Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More
Parliament

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | Video | Questions Of the Day | Search

 

17 Schools Have Fewer Than 20 Per Cent Of Kids Regularly At School

Today’s revelation by the Government that there are 17 schools where fewer than 20 per cent of students are attending school regularly is just another illustration of the magnitude of New Zealand’s attendance crisis, National’s Education spokesperson Paul Goldsmith says.

Four schools have fewer than 10 per cent of their students attending regularly.

“In a country that understands the importance of education to our children’s future, it is unfathomable schools can carry on with such appalling attendance rates without consequences,” Mr Goldsmith says.

“We cannot turn around our declining student achievement without first ensuring kids are actually in class.

“The Government has working groups for everything in education, but it hasn’t focused sufficiently on turning around our appalling truancy rates.

“Education Minister Chris Hipkins’ only response is to try to shift the blame to the previous Government. In his fourth year in the role it’s time he took responsibility.

“It says a lot about current priorities that it allowed there to be just one attendance officer covering 80 schools in West Auckland during last year.

“Because it is voluntary for schools to reveal their student attendance data, there may be even more schools with such dire attendance levels.

“Requiring all schools to provide their attendance data is one step we could take immediately.

“Knowing the full extent of our attendance challenges is the first step to turning around this dire situation.”

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines



Gordon Campbell: On Dune 2, And Images Of Islam


Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture tends to be hostile to Islam when we’re sitting in the dark, with popcorn.
Any number of movie examples come to mind, beginning with Rudolf Valentino’s role (over a century ago) as the romantic Arab hero in The Sheik...
More


 
 


Government: One-stop Shop Major Projects On The Fast Track

The Coalition Government’s new one-stop-shop fast track consenting regime for regional and national projects of significance will cut red tape and make it easier for New Zealand to build the infrastructure and major projects needed to get the country moving again... More

ALSO:


Government: GPS 2024: Over $20 Billion To Get Transport Back On Track
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has released the draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport, outlining the Coalition Government’s plan to build and maintain a transport system that enables people to get to where they need to go quickly and safely... More

ALSO:

Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.