April 09, 2024
Roll check as Luxon pushes attendance target
As part of a new school attendance action plan, the Government will create a centralised database so schools can report weekly attendance numbers.
Having 80 percent of students present for more than 90 percent of the term was one of nine targets for 2030 announced this week by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon.
Mr Luxon and Associate Education Minister David Seymour this morning announced a promotion campaign highlighting the importance of school attendance as well as an update of public health guidance to help both schools and parents decide if a student is well enough to attend.
“It is a national shame that 54 percent of our kids haven’t been attending school regularly and out target aims to get 80 percent of students present for more than 90 per cent of the term,” he says.
New Zealand attendance rates were 69.5 per cent in 2015 but slumped during the pandemic and have been slower to recover than other countries, with the most recent data from September 2023 showing 45.9 percent attendance.