Hui Taumata 2005: Māori in Early Childhood Education and Schools

Introduction

This paper provides some information on Māori students in early childhood services and schools. It has been prepared at the request of the Hui Taumata Steering Committee to give information on education trends for Māori over the last 20 years. The paper covers the number and proportion of Māori students engaging in education, what type of education is being provided and what is being achieved.

The statistics discussed in the paper are very broad and intended only as an overview. They talk about the average achievement of large groups of Māori students. As with any other group of students, there can be large differences between the achievement of individuals. Some will do exceptionally well, whilst others may not.

Summary

The total number of Māori children enrolled in early childhood education has been increasing steadily over the last decade. The number of Māori students at New Zealand schools has also been growing, and the proportion of young Māori in the population is expected to grow considerably over the next twenty years.

Over the last eighteen years more Māori students have been staying at school in the senior years. However, fewer Māori students remain at school compared to non-Māori students. Māori students are consequently more likely to leave school with no or limited qualifications every year since 1990. Māori students are consistently stood-down or suspended from school at higher rates than non-Māori, and are more likely to be truant from school.

There has been a dramatic increase over the last decade in the number of Māori students in Māori immersion education. Māori parents’ representation on school boards of trustees has also increased. The number of Māori teachers is growing. Māori students’ achievement of NCEA qualifications is improving.

The number of Māori children is growing

The proportion of young Māori in the population is expected to grow considerably over the next 20 years. This is due partly to an increase in the number of young Māori and also partly due to a decrease in the number of non-Māori children.

As can be seen in the graph below, the growth in the Māori population varies according to the age group. The proportion of pre-school aged children (0 to 4 year olds) who are Māori is expected to increase from 27 percent in 2001 to 30 percent in 2021. The proportion of primary school aged children (5 to 12 year olds) who are Māori is expected to increase from 24 percent in 2001 to 28 percent in 2021. The proportion of secondary school aged children (13 to 17 year olds) who are Māori is expected to increase from 21 percent in 2001 to 24 percent in 2021.

Figure 1: Projected Māori population by age groups

Source: Māori projections are based on Statistics New Zealand’s medium scenario series 6.
Base is the estimated resident population of Māori ethnicity at 30 June 2001.

Early Childhood Education - Enrolments and Participation

In 2003, just under 34,000 Māori children were enrolled in early childhood education (ECE) services, accounting for nearly 20 percent of all children in ECE. Overall the total number of Māori children enrolled in ECE has been increasing steadily over the last decade.

Table 1: Number of Enrolments in Licensed ECE Services by Proportion of Teacher Time using Māori as the Language of Communication (July 1999 to 2003)

Year	Te Reo Māori at ECE services (excluding TKR services)		Te Reo Māori at Te Kōhanga Reo Services	Total
	12 of teachers' time	81 of teachers' time	81 of teachers' time
1999	17,865	231	11,859	29,955
2000	15,465	3383	11,138	26,986
2001	13,792	332	9,594	23,718
2002	16,387	247	10,389	27,023
2003	20,623	400	10,319	31,342

Note: This information was not collected prior to 1999. Enrolments in te kōhanga reo (TKR) services have decreased because the number of TKR services have declined. This is a result of a consolidation process undertaken by the TKR Trust since 1995.

The most popular services for Māori children in 2003 were Te Kōhanga Reo (31 percent of all Māori enrolments), Education and Care services (32 percent) and Kindergartens (22 percent).

Table 2: Participation in ECE of new entrant school students (2000 to 2003)

Ethnicity	2000 (%)	2001 (%)	2002 (%)	2003 (%)
Non-Māori	92.8	93.2	94.0	95.1
Māori	84.8	85.3	86.5	88.4
All	91.0	91.4	92.3	93.6

Note: Excludes foreign fee-paying and NZAID students. Excludes children where ECE attendance is unknown.

Many children in ECE experience some Te Reo Māori education. Approximately 7% of all children at licensed early childhood services attended Māori immersion services. Māori immersion is when 81-100% of teacher time is spent communicating in Māori. The table 1 below shows enrolments in licensed services where Māori is used.

Another measure of participation looks at the proportion of Year 1 primary students who attended ECE before coming to school. The proportion of Māori Year 1 students who attended early childhood services has grown steadily since 2000 (see table below). However, Māori participation rates are below the participation rates of non-Māori. 

Schools Enrolments

The number of Māori at New Zealand schools, depicted in graph 1 below, has increased by 16 percent between 1995 and 2004. In 2004 there were around 160,700 school students who were Māori. The domestic school population has also grown in this time, which means that the proportion of Māori in the domestic school population has only grown by one percentage point – from 20 percent in 1995 to 21 percent in 2004.

Figure 2: Māori Students at New Zealand Schools, 1 July 1995 - 2004

The proportion of Māori is higher in primary schools (23 percent in 2004) than in secondary schools (18 percent in 2004), reflecting both the younger age distribution of the Māori population and the lower levels of participation of Māori at the senior level in secondary schools.

Table 3: Number of Māori Students enrolled in New Zealand Schools by School Type (1 July 1995 to 2004)

School Type	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004
Primary	93,147	93,911	95,990	97,291	97,165	98,715	99,643	100,799	102,797	101,877
Special	495	497	479	456	467	485	517	564	626	643
Secondary	38,357	37,091	37,101	38,270	38,469	39,069	40,012	41,105	43,442	46,474
Composite	4,047	4,294	4,987	5,559	6,583	6,842	7,450	7,990	8,401	9,548
Corresp. School	2,049	2,223	2,316	2,827	2,054	1,802	1,968	2,098	2,004	2,190
Total	138,095	138,016	140,873	144,403	144,738	146,913	149,590	152,556	157,270	160,732

Note: Composite schools cater for both primary and secondary level students. Special schools are schools for children with special needs.

Participation in Schooling

Over the last eighteen years the proportion of Māori students staying at school has increased. In 1986 an estimated 47 percent of Māori students aged 16, 20 percent of Māori students aged 17 and 4 percent of Māori students aged 18 remained at school. By 2003 this had increased to 63 percent of 16 year olds, 37 percent of 17 year olds and 9 percent of 18 year olds. However, the increase in Māori students staying at school has not been constant over this period of time. Large increases occurred in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and then the proportion of Māori students staying at school declined. This decline has stopped in recent years, with the proportion staying at school being quite stable over the last two to three years.

Female Māori students are slightly more likely to stay at school at ages 16 and 17 than are male Māori students. The percentages of Māori students remaining at school are considerably lower than that for non-Māori (87 percent of 16 year olds, 63 percent of 17 year olds and 15 percent of 18 year olds). Shorter stays at school contribute to the higher likelihood of students leaving school with limited qualifications.

Figure 3: Percentage of students staying at school in 2003

Increased Participation in Māori-Medium Education

Students involved in Māori-medium education are taught curriculum subjects in both Māori and English. Māori-medium education is divided into four levels according to the amount of class time spent teaching in Māori.

Level 1 is the highest level of Māori-medium education, where 81-100% of class time is conducted in Māori. Level 1 is also sometimes referred to as Māori immersion. In 1992 there were 4,618 students involved in Māori immersion. In 2003, just over 12,200 students were involved in Māori immersion, which is a 164% increase in enrolments from 1992 to 2003. The proportion of students at level 1 Māori-medium education who attend Kura Kaupapa Māori has also increased dramatically over this period, from 10 percent in 1992 to just under half of all Māori immersion students in 2003. This reflects the increase in the number of Kura Kaupapa Māori schools – from 13 in 1992 to 61 in 2003.

The number of enrolments in lower levels of Māori-medium education have also risen since 1992, though at a much lower rate and with more fluctuation between years. In 1992 there were just under 9,800 students involved in levels 2 and 3 Māori-medium education . By 2003 enrolments had risen to 10,682 students, representing a 9 percent increase since 1992. Figure 4 depicts enrolments in Māori-medium education where more than 31% of class time is conducted in Māori (levels 1-3).

Figure 4: Number of students involved in Māori-medium education where more than 31% of curriculum time is in Māori (Levels 1-3), 1992 – 2003

Stand-downs and Suspensions

Stand-downs, suspensions, exclusions and expulsions are some ways to deal with student behaviour that disrupts teaching and learning. Stand-downs are the formal removal from school for a specified period, after which students return automatically to school. Suspensions are the formal removal of a student from school until the board of trustees decides the outcome of the suspension. The board may decide to lift the suspension, extend the suspension, or exclude or expel the student. Following a suspension, and an appropriate response by the board of trustees, the majority of cases (84 percent) resulted in students resuming schooling in 2003.

Table 5: Year 11 & 12 candidates^ who achieved an NCEA qualification by highest level of qualification achieved

Year	Ethnic Group	Total number of candidates	Proportion of candidates achieving level 1	Proportion of candidates achieving level 2
Year 11	Māori	6,733	40	1
	Non-Māori	40,765	64	1
Year 12	Māori	4,432	21	40
	Non-Māori	32,798	10	61

Note: Not all candidates reported their ethnicity. Those with no recorded ethnicity are excluded from analysis.
^ A candidate is a student who has gained one or more credits on the NQF.

Students can gain credits at more than one level throughout the year. If a student does not gain a qualification, the credits gained in that year can be put towards a qualification the following year.

A higher percentage of Māori candidates achieved an NCEA qualification in 2003 than in 2002. Of Year 11 Māori, 41 percent achieved an NCEA qualification in 2003, 5 percent more than in 2002. However, Māori achievement is still below non-Māori achievement.

A high percentage of Māori Year 12 candidates gained an NCEA level 1 qualification in 2003. This indicates that Māori candidates who did not achieve NCEA level 1 in Year 11 are returning to school to complete the qualification in Year 12.

Subject participation at secondary school

In 2003, a similar percentage of Māori and non-Māori gained credits in most learning areas. A higher percentage of Māori candidates than non-Māori candidates gained credits in Health & Physical Education. A lower percentage of Māori than non-Māori gained credits in Science.

Table 6: Percentage of Year 11 & Year 12 candidates^ by learning areas (2003)

Year	Ethnic Group	No. of Candidates	Candidates completing credits in learning areas as a proportion of all candidates
			Languages-English	Mathematics	Science	Social Sciences	The Arts	Health & PE	Technology
Year 11	Māori	6,733	90%	94%	72%	55%	36%	65%	49%
	Non-Māori	40,765	94%	96%	86%	64%	33%	57%	54%
Year 12	Māori	4,432	84%	73%	39%	63%	31%	62%	52%
	Non-Māori	32,798	87%	76%	55%	62%	28%	44%	49%

Note: Not all candidates reported their ethnicity. Those with no recorded ethnicity are excluded from analysis.
^ A candidate is a student who has gained one or more credits on the NQF.

School Leavers

A disproportionate number of Māori school leavers leave school without formal qualifications. School leavers without qualifications have accounted for over a third of all Māori school leavers for most years between 1990 and 2002. However, the proportion of Māori leavers with no qualifications dropped to 30 percent for the first time in 2003.

Since the introduction of NCEA in 2002, the proportion of Māori school leavers with NCEA level 2 or higher qualifications has increased from 39 percent in 2002 to 45 percent of all Māori school leavers in 2003. Between 1990 and 2001 the proportion of Māori school leavers with Sixth Form Certificate or higher has been in the range between 36 percent (in 1990) and 43 percent (in 1999). However, not only have school qualifications changed in the past few years, but also the measures used for measuring school leaver attainment are changing. This makes drawing strong conclusions from the school leaver time series difficult at this time.

Table 7: School leavers by highest attainment and ethnicity (1990 to 2003)

Year	Ethnic Group	Level of Attainment						Total
		University Bursary2	Entrance Qualification3	Higher School Certificate4	6th Form Certificate1&5	School Certificate1&6	No Qualification7
1990	Māori	4		8	23	26	38	8,781
	Non-Māori	21		16	31	19	12	46,656
1991	Māori	5		9	23	26	37	8,633
	Non-Māori	26		18	28	16	12	43,599
1992	Māori	6		10	23	24	37	10,029
	Non-Māori	25		18	29	16	12	47,839
1993	Māori	5	2	9	26	25	34	9,770
	Non-Māori	23	6	13	29	17	12	46,470
1994	Māori	4	4	8	24	25	34	10,308
	Non-Māori	23	8	12	28	17	12	45,753
1995	Māori	4	3	7	25	25	35	10,073
	Non-Māori	23	8	11	27	17	14	43,746
1996	Māori	4	4	8	22	24	39	9,570
	Non-Māori	24	9	12	24	17	15	41,917
1997	Māori	5	4	10	22	22	38	9,137
	Non-Māori	25	9	14	24	15	13	41,056
1998	Māori	4	5	10	22	21	38	9,650
	Non-Māori	24	10	14	24	14	13	42,216
1999	Māori	5	4	10	25	22	35	9,793
	Non-Māori	23	9	12	27	16	13	44,607
2000	Māori	4	3	9	25	26	32	9,453
	Non-Māori	23	8	11	28	17	13	45,180
2001	Māori	4	3	8	25	26	33	9,688
	Non-Māori	22	9	12	26	18	13	43,829

 

Year	Ethnic Group	Level of Attainment							Total
		University Bursary2	Entrance Qualification3	Higher School Certificate4	NCEA Level 2/ 6th Form Certificate1&5	NCEA Level 18	14+ Credits at Level 19	No Qualification7
2002	Māori	4	4	9	22	5	21	35	9,9445
	Non-Māori	22	9	12	25	3	13	15	43,101
2003	Māori	5	4	11	26	10	15	30	9,688
	Non-Māori	23	10	14	25	8	8	12	43,783

Note: Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding. 1 Figures relate to students gaining one or more subjects, irrespective of the grade awarded.
2 Includes National Certificate Level 3 from 1996
3 Includes at least 40 National Certificate credits at Level 3 from 1996
4 Includes at least 12 National Certificate credits at Level 3 from 1996
5 Includes at least 12 National Certificate credits at Level 2 from 1996
6 Includes at least 12 National Certificate credits at Level 1 from 1996
7 Includes less than 12 National Certificate credits Level 1 from 1996
8 Includes other National Certificate at Level 1, and 1 to 13 credits at Level 2 or above.
9 Includes School Certificate in one or more subjects, and ACE or overseas awards at Year 11 level.

Māori representation on boards of trustees increases

All of New Zealand’s state and state integrated schools have a board of trustees. Each of these boards assumes the governance roles and responsibilities of its school(s). Boards are responsible for setting the strategic direction of the school and for ensuring a safe environment and quality education outcomes for the school’s students. Boards are also responsible through the formation of policies for the oversight of property, financial, and personnel management and administration. Boards of trustees are made up of elected parent representatives, staff, principal and student representatives and they can appoint and/or co opt members.

From 1997 to 2003 there has been a decrease in the number of trustees overall, which can largely be attributed to the decrease in the number of schools in the same period. Despite this, the number of Māori trustees in 2003 totalled 3,034 having increased by 8 percent (or 232 trustees) since 1997. Consequently, the percentage of board members who are Māori has increased steadily from 13 percent in 1997 to 15 percent in 2003.

Table 8: Percentage of Boards of Trustees who are Māori by type of membership, as at December (1997 to 2003)

Member type	1997 (%)	1998 (%)	1999 (%)	2000 (%)	2001 (%)	2002 (%)	2003 (%)
Elected Parent Rep	12.4	14.0	13.6	13.5	16.1	15.3	15.1
Appointed Parent Rep	14.2	14.0	15.6	15.1	16.9	22.2	19.4
Co-opted Member	23.6	23.2	25.0	24.2	27.0	29.5	28.4
Other Members	8.2	8.4	8.6	8.8	9.1	9.2	9.4
Total	12.9	13.2	13.3	13.5	14.8	15.0	15.1

Note: Excludes student representatives.

The number of Māori teachers has grown

In April 2004 close to 4,500 teachers in state schools identified themselves as Māori. Compared to 1998 figures there are now around 1,200 more Māori teachers in state schools, representing an increase of 36 percent.

Table 9: Māori Teachers as a percentage of all teachers, by school type, as at April (1998 to 2004)

School type	1998 (%)	1999 (%)	2000 (%)	2001 (%)	2002 (%)	2003 (%)	2004 (%)
Primary	12.4	14.0	13.6	13.5	16.1	15.3	15.1
Secondary	14.2	14.0	15.6	15.1	16.9	22.2	19.4
Composite	23.6	23.2	25.0	24.2	27.0	29.5	28.4
Special	8.2	8.4	8.6	8.8	9.1	9.2	9.4
Correspondence	8.2	8.4	8.6	8.8	9.1	9.2	9.4
Total	12.9	13.2	13.3	13.5	14.8	15.0	15.1

Note: State and state-integrated teachers only.
Percentages exclude teachers whose ethnicity is unknown or not stated.

The growth in the number of Māori teachers is reflected in the increased proportion of Māori teachers in the workforce. In 1998, 8 percent of all state teachers identified themselves as Māori, and by 2004 this had increased to 10 percent. Composite schools have seen the largest increase in the proportion of Māori teachers in this time, more than doubling in numbers from around 270 in 1998 to 550 in 2004. This increase is largely due to the increase in the number of Kura Kaupapa Māori schools, which are mostly composite schools.

Māori teacher education graduates are increasing

The number of Māori graduating with teaching qualifications has increased by around 250 primary graduates and 80 secondary graduates from 1995 to 2002 . Even though the number of Māori graduating with a primary teaching qualification has increased since 1995, other ethnic groups have increased at a greater rate. Thus Māori primary teaching graduates in 2002 represented a slightly lower proportion of graduates compared to 1995 levels. Māori secondary teacher education graduates on the other hand have increased in proportion from 6 percent of secondary graduates in 1995 to 11 percent in 2002.

Figure 5: Percentage of Teacher Education Graduates who were Māori, 1995 to 2002