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Argentina’s Secondary Absenteeism Climbs as Majority Miss 15+ Days

A new analysis shows absences growing more severe, with no unified system to track them.

Overview

  • Argentinos por la Educación, which released its analysis Thursday using Aprender 2024 data, reports 51% of final-year secondary students missed 15 days or more, up from 44% in 2022.
  • The pattern has shifted toward heavier absence bands, with 21% missing 15–19 days, 20% at 20–29, and 10% at 30 or more days.
  • The middle group of students with 5–14 absences shrank from 41% to 34% as high-absence groups grew, a sign of polarization in attendance.
  • Absenteeism varies widely by province, led by Buenos Aires at 66% and followed by CABA at 59%, while Santiago del Estero, San Juan, and Jujuy hover near 28–30%.
  • Students most often cite health issues (62%) and lack of motivation (39), which schools say erode learning time and raise dropout risk; in response, a new #ArgentinaALaEscuela campaign pushes for better data as Buenos Aires province tightens monitoring and CABA lowers permitted absences.