New Attendance Measures
Alongside the existing measures of attendance, the Attendance and Engagement Strategy is introducing new measures around the actions taken by schools to identify and respond to absence.
Summary
The Ministry is focused on working with the sector to improve the quality, consistency, understanding and use of attendance data.
As part of this work, and as signalled in the Attendance and Engagement Strategy, three new attendance measures are being introduced.
The new measures will record:
- Absences remaining unexplained at the end of each week
- Learners with 5 or more days unjustified absence in a term
- If action has been taken for learners unjustifiably absent for 5 or more days
Accurate and timely attendance data can enable schools to identify patterns of behaviour, and to intervene quickly where attendance patterns change.
The new measures are designed to provide a better picture of the actions taken by schools to respond to learners’ absences and enable schools to demonstrate the timeliness of their efforts to address learner absence.
The measures will also support schools to focus on the sub-group of learners not regularly attending school, who may be at risk of slipping into persistent patterns of unjustified absence.
The first two measures do not require schools to record any new data, or make any changes to the software/Student Management System (SMS) they use. The Ministry will calculate these measures from the data we already collect from schools. However, schools may wish to adjust their coding practices to ensure that the first measure accurately reflects the level of understanding of absences by the school. The third measure does require new data and functionality, and more information about this is provided below.
Timeline
The first and second measure will be collected from Term 2 2023 onwards. These will use existing data collections and will be reported alongside the existing attendance indicators.
The third new measure requires changes to the software/Student Management System (SMS) that schools use to record and monitor attendance data. These changes will occur during Term 2 2023, and we’ll work with schools to implement this measure from Term 3, 2023.
This web page will continue to be updated with further information and guidance for schools to support full implementation of the new attendance measures.
First New Measure: Absences remaining unexplained at the end of each week
What the measure is
We will measure this by looking at the use of the “? – Unknown” attendance code, which is the default reason recorded if a learner is absent and the school does not have information as to why. This code should be updated once an explanation has been obtained from a parent or caregiver (for example if a student is unwell).
The measure will be calculated using attendance data that is already provided to the Ministry at the end of every week on a Saturday morning. This data records whether a learner is present or absent for each class or period, using attendance codes.
As long as the “? - Unknown” code is updated before the end school week, the measure will provide an accurate reflection of the number of absences that remain unexplained.
Where the percentage is higher, it may indicate that the school needs more support with identifying and tracking why learners are absent from school in a timely fashion – i.e. the week in which the absence occurred.
What this means for you
No new collection or changes to existing collections are needed and the introduction of this measure will have no new administrative impact on schools as it will use data already collected.
Your school will not be able to be identified in our public reporting
Like our termly attendance publications, our reporting on this measure will be aggregated. From the reporting on our website, you’ll be able to see trends across the country, but we won’t publish any individual schools’ rates publicly.
You might want to review your existing attendance management process
Most schools will have an existing process in place to identify and follow up on reasons for absences. It might be timely for your school to review what process you have in place and ensure the measure will accurately reflect your school’s understanding of absences. Encouraging parents and caregivers to proactively inform you when their ākonga are going to miss school will also help to reduce this measure.
Your local Te Mahau staff will use the data to inform conversations with you
Te Mahau staff from your local office will have access to your school’s individual data. They’ll use this data to help answer any questions you may have and inform conversations about any barriers you may be facing to understanding absences in your school.
Second New Measure: Learners with 5 or more days unjustified absence in a term
What the measure is
Percentage of students who are unjustifiably absent for 5 or more full days in a term
This measure focuses on the number of students accruing five or more full days of unjustified absence during a term. It signals an intention to focus on the sub-group of students who are not regularly attending school and who are at risk of slipping into (or are already showing) persistent patterns of unjustified absence and disengaging with school.
This is different from our existing attendance categories, as it focuses only on those absences which are considered “unjustified”, for example, truancy and holidays during term time. Our existing categories are based on all absences, including those due to sickness and other unavoidable absences. While all absences mean learners are missing opportunities to learn, this measure encourages schools to focus their attention on those absences which can be more readily reduced.
A low percentage will provide assurance that learners and whānau are supported to prioritise attendance.
Where the percentage is higher, it may indicate that there are greater barriers to attendance.
This measure will support the implementation of the third new measure.
What this means for you
Data is already collected as a part of your termly collection
No new collection or changes to existing collections are needed and the introduction of this measure will have no new administrative impact on schools as it will use data already collected.
This measure is calculated on the basis of full days of absence only. This differs from the existing measures, in which all absences contribute to the total amount of absence recorded.
Your school will not be able to be identified in our reporting
Like our termly attendance publications, our reporting on this measure will be aggregated. You’ll be able to see trends across the country, but we won’t publish any individual schools’ rates publicly.
You might want to remind your ākonga, parents and caregivers of your attendance policy
Your attendance policy should explain what reasons for absence are considered unjustified and might recommend activities like holidays to be taken outside of school term. Reminding your community of the policy may help to reduce the number of learners in your school who are unjustifiably absent.
Your local Te Mahau staff will use the data to inform conversations with you
Te Mahau staff from your local office will have access to your school’s individual data. They’ll use this data to inform conversations with you about the reasons for absences in your community and what support might be available.
Third New Measure: If action has been taken for learners unjustifiably absent for 5 or more days
What the measure is
Percentage of students who are unjustifiably absent for 5 or more full days in a term where their school has initiated intervention in a timely fashion.
This measure seeks to demonstrate the extent to which schools are responding before or soon after students reach the threshold of five full days of unjustified absence.
While we expect all schools will have processes in place to respond to frequent absences, the recording of this process and the specified thresholds are new. For some schools this may require changes to when responses are initiated, and for all schools it will require changes to reporting practices.
The reporting model for the measure will be a high-trust model, with schools confirming that they have identified and responded to learners meeting the threshold.
A high percentage will provide assurance that schools are taking steps to quickly respond before patterns of absence become entrenched.
Where the percentage is lower, it may indicate that the school needs more support with identifying and responding to absences.
Responses will need to be tailored to the reasons for absence.
As we implement this measure, we will be building an increased understanding of how schools are addressing unjustified absence up and down the motu. This will enable us to work with schools to share best practice and provide data and insights around interventions and support systems that are effective in supporting ākonga to attend school regularly.
What this means for you
The data that will be required to report against this measure is not currently collected.
To implement this measure, we are working with SMS providers to develop new functionality to be in place from the beginning of Term 3 2023. We’ll update you with more guidance and support for how to record and report on this measure once the functionality has been built.
Your school will not be able to be identified in our reporting
Like our termly attendance publications, our reporting on this measure will be aggregated. You’ll be able to see trends across the country, but we won’t publish any individual schools’ rates publicly.
You might want to review your attendance management policies and processes
Most schools will have policies and processes in place to respond to frequent absences. It might be timely for your school to review what policies and processes you have in place and ensure the measure will accurately reflect your school’s response to frequent absences.
Your local Te Mahau staff will use the data to inform conversations with you
Once the collection is in place, Te Mahau staff from your local office will have access to your school’s individual data. They’ll use this data to inform conversations with you about barriers you are facing to responding quickly, the responses you are using and how effective they have been, and what further support might be available.
Further information and support
Please contact your regional office in the first instance for further information and support.
Local Ministry offices - Education in New Zealand
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