One-third of Dane County high schoolers missed class in 2021, likely due to pandemic-related distance learning and lack of internet access, according to a report released Monday by the Dane County Youth Commission.
The number of students who missed class was a significant increase from the commission’s last survey in 2018; 34% of high school students reported missing class at least once in the past 30 days during the survey period, compared to 21% in 2018.
The Dane County Youth Assessment, a survey conducted every three years by the commission, is meant to provide insights into the attitudes and experiences of students in grades 7 to 12 in an effort to better understand their concerns, Dane County Executive Joe Parisi said.
More than half of Black and more than a third of Hispanic high schoolers in Dane County reported missing class during the pandemic school year.
Among middle school students, 19% of seventh- and eighth-graders reported missing class in 2021, compared with 8% in 2018.
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Roughly 20% of students surveyed said they struggled with online learning due to an unreliable internet connection, according to the report.
COVID effect
Nearly 27,000 students across 19 area school districts completed the survey this year and results were significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the report.
Negative behaviors, such as bullying, that usually take place at school were down considerably. Behaviors that typically involve face-to-face contact, such as alcohol use or sexual activity, also declined.
But more students expressed struggling with stress, anxiety and depression. Previous reports outlined a steady increase in mental and emotional health problems, but the trend accelerated this year, likely due to the pandemic.
Notable outcomes
The report outlined an increase in mental health struggles among girls, LGBTQ students, and those from low-income families. Among high school girls, 44% reported depressive symptoms in 2021, compared to 34.2% in 2018, 30.3% in 2015 and 25.6% in 2012.
Of youth who identify as gay or lesbian, 78% reported feeling anxious “always or often,” along with 71% who identify as bisexual and 64% who are questioning their sexual orientation. The figure was 44% for youth who identify as heterosexual.
The survey found 77% of students identify as heterosexual, 3.1% as gay or lesbian, 9.5% as bisexual, 2.8% as pansexual, 1.3% as asexual and 5.9% as "questioning." The percentage of students identifying as heterosexual was 86% in 2018, 89% in 2015 and 93% in 2012.
“We cannot ignore the emotional health concerns our young people report struggling with, particularly among female, LGBTQ+, and low-income youth,” Parisi said in a statement. "The results speak to the continued need for mental health services, which Dane County has continued to prioritize and expand during this unprecedented time."
The report noted a decrease in regular exercise, eating breakfast, safer sex behaviors and amount of sleep on school nights among students.
The report also identified some desirable changes among students in grades 7 to 12 during the 2020-21 school year, including an increase in family meal participation, a sense of belonging at school, and receiving mental health services, along with a decrease in smoking, alcohol and illegal drug use, and sexual activity.
Photos: Cleanup continues following F-3 tornado in Boscobel

Sergeant Dave Bowen, center, from the Prairie Du Chien Correctional Institution and inmates from the minimum security prison remove debris at the Boscobel Cemetery.

Inmate Scott Wartzok from the Prairie Du Chien Correctional Institution project crew removes debris at the Boscobel Cemetery following an F-3 tornado in Boscobel, Wis., Thursday, Aug. 12, 2021. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL

Inmate Ben Weber from the Prairie Du Chien Correctional Institution project crew cuts trees at the Boscobel Cemetery following an F-3 tornado in Boscobel, Wis., Thursday, Aug. 12, 2021. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL

A volunteer rakes up debris at the Boscobel Cemetery last week. About 50 headstones were dislodged by the tornado.

Bill Russell was among the many who worked last week to remove damaged trees and other debris from the Boscobel Cemetery. Hundreds of volunteers have descended on the city after an Aug. 7 tornado.

Volunteers Dave Thryren, left, and Bruce Winters clean up debris at the Boscobel Cemetery following an F-3 tornado in Boscobel.

Kathryn Boebel, right, points to the bottom of an uprooted tree that landed on the front of her home, as she and her grandson Brady Boebel, left, decide what to work on next. The property lost several trees to an EF-3 tornado that tore through parts of Boscobel on Aug. 7.

Kari Oates, left, and her husband Donald stand in front of the remainder of their home following an F-3 tornado in Boscobel, Wis., Thursday, Aug. 12, 2021. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL

Volunteers from Iowa and with the Christian Aid Ministries Rapid Response Team flocked to the once tree-filled lot of Kari and Don Oates in Boscobel. Not much remains of the home, and most of the trees were destroyed.

Volunteers from Christian Aid Ministries rapid response team out of Iowa clean up debris from the property of Kari and Donald Oates, whose home was destroyed during an F-3 in Boscobel, Wis., Thursday, Aug. 12, 2021. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL

Kari Oates, right, and her husband Don, walk through what remains of their home on Highway MS in Boscobel. A tornado on Aug. 7 caused significant damage to some parts of the city but missed most of the Grant County community.

A volunteer from Christian Aid Ministries rapid response team out of Iowa cuts trees as cleanup continues following an F-3 tornado in Boscobel, Wis., Thursday, Aug. 12, 2021. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL

Donald Oates, right, hands a photo from a pile of debris to his wife Kari as they walk through their home following an F-3 tornado that swept through Boscobel, Wis., Thursday, Aug. 12, 2021. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL

Donald Oates looks into the backyard from what was a bedroom of the home he and his wife Kari have lived in since 1989.

A mangled billboard rests in a heap along Highway 61 on the southern edge of Boscobel.
Roughly 20% of students surveyed said they struggled with online learning due to an unreliable internet connection, according to the report.