New BC data on student absences

We’re sharing a new set of data on student absences in BC public schools, obtained through a provincial FOI request placed by one of our members. The dataset covers the 2022/23 and 2023/24 school years and includes absence rates and reasons for absence, broken down by inclusive education designation (for example, G designation for autistic students).

We’re making this data available because we are seeing troubling patterns that are important for families to be aware of.

Across every school district, students with inclusive education designations are absent at higher rates than students without designations. 

Absence rates differ markedly by region and designation category. Districts in remote and rural communities — Nisga’a, Stikine, Central Coast, Prince Rupert, Fraser-Cascade — show the highest rates, with designated students in some districts missing between one quarter and nearly half of all school days. The gap between designated and non-designated students is present in every district in the province, with no meaningful improvement between the two years measured.

One notable limitation in this dataset is that a large proportion of absences are recorded as “unspecified” — the dominant reason code across every designation category. The “unspecified” category points to a broader question about how attendance is tracked and understood. A reasonable system would treat half of absences going unexplained as a problem to investigate, not a stable feature of the dataset.

Even so, the demographic patterns are themselves revealing: absence rates climb sharply for both designated and non-designated students in schools with larger Indigenous or disabled student populations.

It concerns BCEdAccess that the Ministry holds this data and has not acted on what it shows.

We are releasing this data to families and advocacy organisations across the province. Attendance is shaped by many factors, and families often have insight into what is or isn’t working in practice. We hope it is examined, questioned, and put to use across this community.