Giving Compass' Take:

• Educators are concerned about students this year because student surveys are showing a large proportion feel disconnected from schools during the pandemic.

• How can schools help students that need more support during this time? How do educators plan to address chronic absenteeism in the context of remote learning? 

• Learn more from data that reveals attendance rates during this time. 

Though graduation rates steadily increased over the last few years, education leaders expect remote learning will cause that trend to reverse in the 2020-21 school year, The Huffington Post reports.  Last year when schools closed due to coronavirus, most seniors already had enough credits to graduate. This year, however, incoming seniors have already spent months out of school and may miss required credits needed for graduation.

Teachers say their students are less engaged during remote learning because some are helping their families pay bills or care for their siblings, while others lack access to technology or internet connections. Many students also face higher barriers to success when learning from home, where they are without the schools’ support systems.

An America's Promise Alliance survey found nearly 30% of students did not feel connected to adults in the school at the end of the last academic year. Slightly fewer did not feel connected to their school communities and classmates, at 22% and 23% respectively.

Remote learning puts students at higher risk of dropout due to loss of connection with peers and support staff, reduction in available services and the loss of extracurricular activities and events that help keep students motivated. To reverse these risks, the Colorado dropout prevention framework recommends school personnel identify students who were already at risk of dropping out; offer counseling, mentoring and credit recovery options; create family and school partnerships that help prevent students from dropping out; and create programs that help transition students back into the classroom.

Read the full article about remote learning by Shawna De La Rosa at Education Dive.