Auditor-General finds Ministry of Education lacks information on student achievement before NCEA

• Auditor-General John Ryan has found the Ministry of Education lacks “comprehensive information” about student achievement in years 1-10.
• A new report released today recommends better information gathering and more collaborative work to improve performance and tackle inequities.
• The Government’s already introduced curriculum changes with a greater focus on literacy and numeracy outcomes.

A new report from the Auditor-General has found the Government lacks “comprehensive information” about how students are achieving in primary and intermediate schools.

The report, tabled in Parliament today, outlines a need for better information and more collaborative work between the Ministry of Education, schools, and representative organisations such as unions and boards to improve student performance and understand inequities.

Auditor-General John Ryan found gaps and “limited information” about student achievement in schools from the age children start until they reach NCEA. Once students reach Year 11 things improve, with the NCEA system found to be providing “consistent information”.

Titled Promoting equitable educational outcomes, the report found the ministry gets its picture of student achievement by studying samples of students, and from international studies in proficiency for literacy, maths, and science.

The national monitoring study of student achievement, a snapshot of results from schools around the country, was updated last year to collect information from years 3, 6 and 8. Results from 2022 found students in low- to mid-decile schools performed worse in numeracy compared to those from higher-decile areas.

Ryan’s report described the education ministry as aware of the gaps, pointing out particular challenges around achievement in Māori medium education, including te reo immersion learning kōhanga reo.

Details on the progress of students with disabilities and additional learning support needs were also perceived to be constrained.

It states there is an understanding there have been “discussions” about setting up a study for Māori-medium education that corresponds with other studies.

“In our view, the ministry needs to continue working with Māori-medium schools and kura kaupapa Māori on introducing such a study. This could help the ministry better understand the achievement and progress of Year 1-10 students and what more the ministry, kura, and schools can do to support Māori students to reach their potential and to better identify and address the challenges these students might have,” the report reads.

The report says the Ministry of Education has used the data and insights it has to understand how societal factors impact educational performance, and is aware many students not meeting expected targets are from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.

This information has been used to develop an equity index, responsible for funding allocations, school lunches, initiatives to boost attendance, and plans to improve maths and literacy performance — the latter a policy focus for the new Government.

It was recently revealed the Government would strip $30 million from te reo Māori teacher training to be “reprioritised” towards a new maths curriculum.

From 2025, standardised testing in reading, writing, and maths for those in years 3-8 will be in place twice a year, in a bid to better measure student progress and achievement.

Education Minister Erica Stanford is spearheading maths curriculum changes in what she has previously described as “a pendulum swing back to a knowledge-rich curriculum with evidence-based teaching practices”.

She’s also driving a move to structured literacy, suggesting the changes will make teacher’s lives “easier”.

Erica Stanford has said she can "retire a very happy politician" if structured literacy is implemented in every school, within a few years. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Ryan’s report suggests the Ministry of Education’s knowledge of what impacts student achievement and progress is “not detailed enough to ensure that all initiatives are well targeted”.

“For example, the Ministry [of Education] has a limited understanding of why some students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are able to reach their potential while other students in those circumstances struggle,” the report said.

It recommended the public sector agency work “closely” with schools and other departments, including the Education Review office and Council for Educational Research to develop a plan to collect in-depth information on inequities.

“The ministry does not currently have a planned approach to evaluation, and there is no central oversight of what initiatives are being evaluated, what initiatives are due for evaluation, and what initiatives have never been evaluated,” the Auditor-General wrote.

Students said to potentially reap the most benefit from improved outcomes were said to be least likely to reach their educational potential.

The report also outlined positives about school lunches and nutrition.

During the audit, the Ministry of Education had completed an evaluation of its healthy school lunches programme Ka Ora, Ka Ako. Associate Education Minister David Seymour recently announced cost savings in relation to the programme and yesterday unveiled what’s on the menu for students.

The report described evaluations as finding many “positive results” from the school lunches programme.

“For secondary school students, these included increased mental well-being, improved energy and ability to carry out physical activity, and improved ability to pay attention and keep up in school,” the report said.

Regular analysis of information around student achievement was also endorsed by the Auditor-General.

It was recommended the Ministry of Education look into “specific student groups who are not meeting achievement or progress expectations,” the factors that influence that, and what the ministry and schools can do to tackle the issue.

Azaria Howell is a Wellington-based multimedia reporter with an eye across the region. She joined NZME in 2022 and has a keen interest in city council decisions, public service agency reform and transport.