LAUSR

Abstract Out of all years of elementary school, absenteeism is highest in kindergarten. Prior work has focused on the effects that these absences have on kindergartners and their classmates, yet there is a lack of understanding how absences might affect teaching. This study begins to close this gap by asking whether kindergarten teachers with more frequently-absent students teach differently than teachers with less-absent students. Using a nationally representative dataset of kindergarten teachers, we find that when more students are absent, teachers use different instructional structures, with more of a focus on teacher-directed activities. However, neither the dosage nor rigor of academic instruction differed. Finally, there was no evidence of heterogeneity for our sample of teachers, suggesting that these results are more generalizable. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.