Over 8,000 Students Not Attending School Regularly, Says Education Minister

Education Minister Dr Ismail Shafeeu has expressed concern over student absenteeism, revealing that about 8,000 students are not attending school regularly and warning of its impact on learning.

The minister made the remarks during the release of last year’s National Assessment of Learning Outcomes report, where he stressed that regular school attendance is essential for students to achieve satisfactory academic results.

advertisement

He said schools have been recording daily attendance for both present and absent students since 21 June. Previously, schools were required to notify the Ministry of Education only when a student had been absent for a specified period.

Dr. Shafeeu said the new attendance monitoring system had highlighted a significant number of students failing to attend school during this period.

He urged parents, teachers and the wider community to address the issue, noting that parents have a particularly important role in ensuring children attend school regularly. While acknowledging that the ongoing World Cup may have influenced attendance, he said the ministry remained concerned that around 8,000 students were not going to school.

According to the minister, the highest level of absenteeism has been recorded in the Greater Male’ area, where around 40 per cent of students are not attending school.

He warned that every day a student misses school has a negative impact on their learning and said repeated absences could eventually cause students to lose interest in education, creating further challenges for both parents and teachers.