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Please Excuse My Child: Unexcused Absences in Student Attendance and Achievement

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Bibliographic Details
Title: Please Excuse My Child: Unexcused Absences in Student Attendance and Achievement
Language: English
Authors: Nat Malkus, Sam Hollon, American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
Source: American Enterprise Institute. 2026.
Availability: American Enterprise Institute. 1150 Seventeenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 202-862-5800; Fax: 202-862-7177; Web site: http://www.aei.org
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 28
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Descriptors: Attendance, Public Schools, Truancy, Attendance Patterns, Student Records, Elementary Secondary Education, Poverty, Racial Differences, Ethnicity, Child Health
Geographic Terms: Indiana
Abstract: Predominant measures of student attendance, such as attendance rates and chronic absenteeism, do not distinguish between excused and unexcused absences. Using statewide attendance records in Indiana public schools from the 2015-16 through 2023-24 school years, the authors examine excused and unexcused absences across students, schools, and time and how these differences relate to chronic absenteeism and academic achievement. The authors find that the two types of absence followed distinct patterns. Unexcused absences were more common among students from historically disadvantaged groups. The timing of unexcused and excused absences also differed: Unexcused absences rose over the spring, while excused absences did not, instead rising more before and after weekends. Finally, unexcused absences reduced student test scores more than excused absences. These findings show that systems for recording attendance meaningfully distinguish between the two types of absences, which may reflect different patterns of attendance behavior. Unexcused absences' concentration among the most absent students, their spike around weekends, and their spring rise are consistent with their being driven by the choices of students and families, beyond illness or circumstance.
Abstractor: ERIC
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: ED681580
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:Predominant measures of student attendance, such as attendance rates and chronic absenteeism, do not distinguish between excused and unexcused absences. Using statewide attendance records in Indiana public schools from the 2015-16 through 2023-24 school years, the authors examine excused and unexcused absences across students, schools, and time and how these differences relate to chronic absenteeism and academic achievement. The authors find that the two types of absence followed distinct patterns. Unexcused absences were more common among students from historically disadvantaged groups. The timing of unexcused and excused absences also differed: Unexcused absences rose over the spring, while excused absences did not, instead rising more before and after weekends. Finally, unexcused absences reduced student test scores more than excused absences. These findings show that systems for recording attendance meaningfully distinguish between the two types of absences, which may reflect different patterns of attendance behavior. Unexcused absences' concentration among the most absent students, their spike around weekends, and their spring rise are consistent with their being driven by the choices of students and families, beyond illness or circumstance.