A new school attendance report undoubtedly presents us with a big problem. It also uncovers such a broad range of contributing factors that “collective responsibility” may be the only solution, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday morning, sign up here.
School attendance falls by 10% in six years
The Education Review Office (ERO) released a report yesterday that warned New Zealand has worse school attendance than other English-speaking countries. Reported on by RNZ’s John Gerritsen, one of our most experienced education reporters (his story was syndicated widely), the ERO found regular attendance, defined as attending more than 90% of the time, fell from 70% in 2015 to 60% in 2021. Four in 10 parents said they were comfortable with their child missing a week or more of school per term and a third of students did not see going to school every day as that important.
No silver bullet or grand solution
Broadly, the report found there is a lack of understanding about the importance of attending school, or to flip that, the detrimental effects of missing school. The report has a few examples of local school and community initiatives in play to address the issue. Northland schools lifted attendance by 2% after joining together to create a campaign to send a unified message about the importance of school attendance. In some ways it reminds me of the grassroots efforts to lift Covid vaccination rates that proved instrumental in our success. What’s pretty apparent reading the report is that there is no grand cause or silver bullet solution. Four different causes and potential solutions are offered in four letters to the editor in the Herald this morning.
Parent argues school isn’t the only place where education takes place
Responding to the report, leader of the opposition Christopher Luxon would not rule out fines for parents if they let children skip school in term time. Academics in Australia and Canada advise against taking punitive measures. Fines have been introduced in the UK. BBC Panorama recently investigated that system and found they were being unevenly issued and were a last resort for many schools. Founder of a popular parenting website Maria Foy, also provided a counter argument to the idea that missing school for some of the reasons listed in the report meant kids were missing out on educational experiences. “I really do think school is important, but I also see the other side where outside of school is equally as important to educate our children,” Foy said.
Whole of government approach also required
The report also says a whole of government approach is required. You just need to read the list of barriers to attendance cited in the report to see that. It’s only one example, but dots could be joined between transport (listed as a barrier), and housing, urban planning, roading and transport policy. New Zealand recently scored very poorly in a global ranking of children’s exercise on the number of kids taking “active transport” like walking or biking to school. The reason? Safety concerns. If you’re a working parent worried about that, you drive and commutes then chew up time. In Chicago, schools recently canvassed their local neighborhoods about what might be affecting students’ attendance. Not only did they uncover a problem with unreliable transportation but the community provided solutions. Bus routes got changed. Before schools resort to fines in the UK, many are checking whether kids have bus fare.