New independent research has found the Māori Achievement Collaborative is delivering strong and sustained results for ākonga Māori, school leaders and wider school communities — despite Crown funding for the programme ending last year.
The New Zealand Council for Educational Research evaluation examined the Māori Achievement Collaborative, or MAC, which works with principals to strengthen culturally confident leadership and improve educational outcomes for Māori. NZCER lists the evaluation among its 2026 research publications.
The findings show 88 percent of principals reported MAC improved their knowledge and understanding of leadership for Māori success, while 96 percent said it helped normalise te reo me ōna tikanga Māori in their schools. Satisfaction with MAC facilitation reached 98 percent.
The evaluation also found 79 percent of principals agreed ākonga Māori were enjoying and achieving educational success as Māori, with a similar proportion reporting the learning gains needed to achieve across the curriculum.
Attendance provides another significant result. MAC reports the proportion of ākonga Māori attending school more than 90 percent of the time increased from 54.95 percent to 65.2 percent between 2024 and 2025, compared with national Māori figures of 47.2 percent and 51.3 percent over the same period.
The research draws on quantitative and qualitative evidence across a programme now operating in more than 500 schools, including principal surveys, interviews, wānanga, facilitator evidence and school-reported data. MAC says its approach focuses on removing barriers to Māori educational success while strengthening relationships between schools, whānau, hapū and iwi.
MAC National Director Leanne Otene says the results strengthen the case for renewed Crown support after government funding concluded at the end of 2025.
The evaluation also identifies a wider ripple effect, with changes in principals’ cultural confidence influencing leadership teams, teachers and classrooms while strengthening relationships with whānau and mana whenua.
With evidence of progress in reading, writing, mathematics and attendance, MAC is now arguing the question for government is whether a programme showing positive results for ākonga Māori should once again receive public investment.
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