Students were most likely to miss school in the final years of compulsory education, official data show.
The National Statistics Office said yesterday absenteeism in the academic year 2013/2014 amounted to 597,239 school days at both primary and secondary level.
The highest average level of absenteeism was recorded among 16-year-olds who missed an average of 40.6 days, 18.2 of which were unauthorised.
On average, Form 5 students missed 28.8 days, the NSO said.
The lowest absence levels were among nine-year-olds, who missed an average of 8.1 school days.
Male students are more likely to miss school. In fact, in the period under review, boys were absent for a total of 312,829 days, compared to 284,410 days in the case of girls.
While absenteeism in State schools dropped by 22.4 per cent during the 2013/2014 academic year, when unauthorised absence decreased by 4.9 per cent, Church and independent schools experienced an increase in unauthorised absences. The NSO said this grew to 30.1 per cent from 19.7 per cent.
Students attending State schools in Gozo and Comino registered the sharpest drop in absenteeism levels – 49.9 per cent.
The NSO said that, on average, absenteeism among students attending State schools in the south harbour district was the highest – an average of 20.1 days per student – while, at 9.8 days each, Gozitan students recorded the lowest average number of absences.
Reacting, the Education Ministry said the government had introduced a number of measures to encourage students to remain at school.
“Vocational education has played an important role in this, with the Alternative Learning Programme and the introduction of vocational subjects at secondary level being among the main reforms,” it said.
Parents or guardians of primary school children, absent for more than 20 unauthorised days in 2013, were asked to attend a meeting with social workers, the ministry said, and each case was subsequently monitored.
While absenteeism rates continued to decrease, the government said it would be shifting its focus to provide education that was in touch with today’s students, as this enables them to reach their potential.