It is hard to ignore the lasting impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on schools as the new school year begins.

David Bloomfield, professor of education at Brooklyn College and CUNY Graduate Center says he is most worried about "chronic absenteeism."

The term is used for a student when they miss at least 10% of the school year.

Bloomfield says it has become an alarming practice since the pandemic began.

"They're not going to have continuity in their subject matter mastery and reading and math are obviously essential and especially in the lower grades, those kids will not be getting the education they need to succeed", Bloomfield says.

According to New York City Public Schools, 26.5% of students were considered 'chronically absentee' during the 2018-2019 school year. In the midst of the pandemic, this number jumped to over 40.2%, during the 2021-2022 school year.

Bloomfield says the most important thing about this school year will be getting kids back in school.

"We're not going to be able to take care of the interrupted instruction from the pandemic, if we don't get the kids in school," says Bloomfield.