The Effects of Absenteeism on Academic and Social-Emotional Outcomes: Lessons for COVID-19

Abstract

In March 2020, most schools in the United States transitioned to distance learning in an effort to contain COVID-19. A significant number of students did not fully engage in remote learning opportunities due to resource or other constraints. An urgent question for schools around the nation is how much did the pandemic impact student academic and social-emotional development. This paper uses administrative panel data from California to approximate the impact of the pandemic by analyzing how absenteeism affects student outcomes. Our results suggest student outcomes generally suffer more from absenteeism in mathematics than in ELA. Negative effects are larger in middle school. Absences negatively affect social-emotional development, particularly in middle school. Our results suggest districts will face imminent needs for student academic and social-emotional support to make-up for losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic.