School Leavers: 2005
This report provides a summary of the key statistics on 2005 school leavers.
Introduction
The monitoring of the highest attainment of school leavers is based on the annual 1 March survey of secondary and composite schools. These statistics include all full-time regular students, full-time adult students and special education class students who left school during the period 1 March 2005 - 28 February 2006, to go on to further education, training, the workforce or other activities.
The school leaver statistics in recent years have reflected a qualifications system that is in transition due to the phased rollout of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) between 2002 and 2004.
From 2004, all school leaver highest attainment statistics were based on the NQF/NCEA but the methodology necessarily involved mapping some attainment under the previous examination system to the NCEA context.
In 2005, changes were made to the data collection methodology.
- University Entrance is now collected so that we can accurately report on the numbers of students that leave school having this attainment;
- Students whose highest attainment was in a non-NQF qualification (for example, the Cambridge International exams) are now counted separately from those with NQF qualifications;
- Students whose highest attainment was 1-13 credits at levels 2 or 3 are now considered to have little or no formal attainment (rather than being counted with those that have a full NCEA level 1 or level 2 respectively);
- All historical attainment categories have now been discontinued.
Data for the attainment of UE, NCEA level 3 and higher, and that for leavers with low or no attainment is comparable with 2004 and earlier years. However, as a result of the changes listed above, other attainment levels are not comparable between 2004 and 2005.
Results
Total School Leavers
- In the period 1 March 2005 to 28 February 2006 , there were 486 schools which had students leave school.
- The number of students who left school during this period was 57,454, which is 1,820 greater than in 2004. The number of school leavers has increased each year since 2001. This increase has been matched over the same period by an increase in the number of full-time students aged 16 and over.
Table 1 - School leavers and full-time students aged 16 years and over 2000-2005
| Year | School leavers during Year | Full-time students aged 16 and over (at July) |
| 2005 |
57,454
|
96,401
|
| 2004 |
55,634
|
95,753
|
| 2003 |
53,471
|
93,584
|
| 2002 |
52,546
|
89,919
|
| 2001 |
53,517
|
86,590
|
| 2000 |
54,633
|
86,846
|
Highest Attainment For All Leavers
Between 2004 and 2005, there was a slight increase in the proportion of leavers with UE or a Level 3 qualification or higher and no change in the proportion leaving with little or no formal attainment.
Table 2 - Highest attainment of school leavers 2004-2005
| Highest attainment of school leavers |
Year
|
|||
|
2004
(%) |
2005
(%) |
|||
| UE, Level 3 qualification or higher1 |
32
|
33
|
||
| Half-way to a Level 3 qualification2 |
8
|
9
|
||
| Level 2 qualification |
21
|
Not directly comparable due to changes in methodology |
16
|
|
| Half-way to a Level 2 qualification3 |
8
|
9
|
||
| Level 1 qualification |
10
|
7
|
||
| Half-way to a Level 1 qualification4 |
4
|
9
|
||
| Less than half-way to a Level 1 qualification |
4
|
6
|
||
| Little or no formal attainment |
13
|
13
|
||
| Total |
100
|
100
|
||
| Leavers with UE (included in total above) |
*
|
29
|
||
Note: * In 2004, “School leavers with UE” was collected as part of a broader category. It is not possible to identify these students separately.
Highest attainment by ethnic group
Table 3 - Highest attainment of school leavers by ethnic group 2004-2005
| Highest attainment of school leavers |
NZ European /Pākehā
|
Māori
|
Pasifika
|
|||
|
2004
(%) |
2005
(%) |
2004
(%) |
2005
(%) |
2004
(%) |
2005
(%) |
|
| UE, Level 3 qualification or higher1 |
37
|
38
|
12
|
12
|
14
|
14
|
| Half-way to a Level 3 qualification2 |
8
|
8
|
6
|
7
|
11
|
13
|
| Level 2 qualification | Not5 comp-arable |
17
|
Not5 comp-arable |
13
|
Not5 comp-arable |
18
|
| Half-way to a Level 2 qualification3 |
8
|
10
|
14
|
|||
| Level 1 qualification |
8
|
8
|
5
|
|||
| Half-way to a Level 1 qualification4 |
8
|
13
|
12
|
|||
| Less than half-way to a Level 1 qualification |
4
|
10
|
10
|
|||
| Little or no formal attainment |
10
|
10
|
25 |
25
|
16 |
15
|
| Total |
100
|
100
|
100 |
100
|
100 |
100
|
| Leavers with UE (included in total above) |
-
|
34
|
- |
9
|
- |
11
|
| Highest attainment of school leavers | Asian | Other | Total | |||
| 2004 (%) |
2005 (%) |
2004 (%) |
2005 (%) |
2004 (%) |
2005 |
|
| UE, Level 3 qualification or higher1 |
56
|
58
|
30
|
32
|
32
|
33
|
| Half-way to a Level 3 qualification2 |
12
|
11
|
13
|
11
|
8
|
9
|
| Level 2 qualification | Not5 comp- arable |
11
|
Not5 comp- arable |
13
|
Not5 comp- arable |
16
|
| Half-way to a Level 2 qualification3 |
7
|
9
|
9
|
|||
| Level 1 qualification |
3
|
4
|
7
|
|||
| Half-way to a Level 1 qualification4 |
4
|
9
|
9
|
|||
| Less than half-way to a Level 1 qualification |
2
|
6
|
6
|
|||
| Little or no formal attainment |
5
|
5
|
13
|
16
|
13
|
13
|
| Total |
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
| Leavers with UE (included in total above) |
55
|
27
|
29
|
|||
Attainment of Māori school leavers
- The attainment of Māori school leavers is largely stable.
- Nearly half of Māori school leavers in 2005 left school without reaching a Level 1 qualification (48 percent compared with 28 percent of total school Leavers).
- Māori school leavers are over-represented in the group that has little or no formal attainment with a quarter of Māori leavers at this level (compared with 13 percent for total school leavers). For Māori this is unchanged from 2004.
- Māori school leavers are under-represented in the group that has UE or a Level 3 qualification or higher. Only 12 percent of Māori leavers were at this level (compared to 33 percent of total school leavers). For Māori this is unchanged from 2004.
Attainment of Pasifika school leavers
- The attainment of Pasifika school leavers is largely stable.
- Thirty-seven percent of Pasifika school leavers in 2005 left school without reaching a Level 1 qualification (compared with 28 percent of total school leavers).
- Pasifika school leavers are over-represented in the group that has little or no formal attainment ( 15 percent of Pasifika school leavers were in this group in 2005 compared to 13 percent for total school leavers.) This is a small decrease from 2004 when it was 16 percent.
- Pasifika school leavers are under-represented in the group that has UE or a Level 3 qualification or higher. Only 14 percent of Pasifika leavers were at this level (compared to 33 percent of total school leavers). For Pasifika this is unchanged from 2004.
Highest attainment by gender
- There is a major difference between males and females in the top attainment levels. For those who attained UE or a Level 3 qualification or higher there is a ten percentage point difference: 38 percent for females and 28 percent for males. The difference between the genders at this level is almost unchanged from 2004.
- This gender differential is not as marked for leavers with little or no formal attainment (14 percent for males and 12 percent for females in 2005).
Table 4 - Highest attainment of school leavers by gender 2004-2005
| Highest attainment of school leavers |
Male
|
Female
|
Total
|
|||
|
2004
(%) |
2005
(%) |
2004
(%) |
2005
(%) |
2004
(%) |
2005
(%) |
|
| UE, Level 3 qualification or higher1 |
27
|
28
|
37
|
38
|
32
|
33
|
| Half-way to a Level 3 qualification2 |
8
|
8
|
8
|
9
|
8
|
9
|
| Level 2 qualification | Not5 comp- arable |
15
|
Not 5 comp- arable
|
16
|
Not 5 comp- arable |
16
|
| Half-way to a Level 2 qualification3 |
10
|
7
|
9
|
|||
| Level 1 qualification |
8
|
6
|
7
|
|||
| Half-way to a Level 1 qualification4 |
10
|
7
|
9
|
|||
| Less than half-way to a Level 1 qualification |
6
|
5
|
6
|
|||
| Little or no formal attainment |
14
|
14
|
11
|
12
|
13
|
13
|
| Total |
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
Year Level
- In recent years, there has been a slight increase in the proportion of students leaving in Year 13. This has been complemented by a slight decrease in students leaving at Year 12. The increase in Year 13 continued in 2005, but this time the decrease was in Year 14 rather than Year 12.
- Year 13 was the last year of schooling for 59 percent of leavers in 2005 compared with 58 percent in 2004 (and 57 percent in 2003).
- Year 12 was the final year of schooling for 24 percent of students in both 2005 and 2004.
- Year 11 was the final year of schooling for 13 percent of students in both 2005 and in 2004.
Table 5 - School leavers by year level 2004-2005
| MOE Year Level |
2004
(%) |
2005
(%) |
| Year 9 |
0
|
0
|
| Year 10 |
2
|
2
|
| Year 11 |
13
|
13
|
| Year 12 |
24
|
24
|
| Year 13 |
58
|
59
|
| Year 14 |
3
|
2
|
| Year 15 |
0
|
0
|
| Total |
100
|
100
|
Year level by gender
- The year level which males and females leave school is virtually unchanged between 2004 and 2005.
- Females are tending to stay at school longer with 62 percent leaving from Year 13 compared to 55 percent of males.
- More males left in Year 11 (15 percent compared to 11 percent of females) and in Year 12 (25 percent of males compared to 22 percent of females).
Tabel 6 - School leavers by year level and gender 2004-2005
| MOE Year Level |
Male
|
Female
|
Total | |||
| 2004 (%) |
2005 (%) |
2004 (%) |
2005 (%) |
2004 (%) |
2005 (%) |
|
| Year 9 |
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
| Year 10 |
3
|
2
|
2
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
| Year 11 |
15
|
15
|
11
|
11
|
13
|
13
|
| Year 12 |
26
|
25
|
22
|
22
|
24
|
24
|
| Year 13 |
54
|
55
|
62
|
62
|
58
|
59
|
| Year 14 |
3
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
2
|
| Year 15 |
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
| Total |
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
Year level by ethnicity
Table 7 - School leavers by year level and ethnicity 2005
| MOE Year Level |
Ethnicity of Leavers 2005
|
|||||
| NZ European /Pākehā (%) |
Māori (%) |
Pasifika (%) |
Asian (%) |
Other (%) |
Total (%) |
|
| Year 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Year 10 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Year 11 | 12 | 23 | 11 | 3 | 9 | 13 |
| Year 12 | 24 | 29 | 21 | 12 | 20 | 24 |
| Year 13 | 60 | 41 | 64 | 82 | 66 | 59 |
| Year 14 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Year 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
Year level by Māori leavers
Māori students leave school with less education than students in other ethnic groups:
- 4 percent of Māori leavers left in Year 10 compared with 2 percent of total students
- 23 percent left in Year 11 (compared with 13 percent overall)
- 29 percent left in Year 12 (compared with 24 percent overall) and
- 41 percent left in Year 13 (compared with 59 percent overall)
Year level by Pasifika leavers
Pasifika students are staying at school slightly longer than total students. Only 34 percent of Pasifika leavers left school before Year 13 in 2005 (compared with 39 percent of total students). In years 11 and 12 the percentage of Pasifika leavers is slightly lower than for the total leavers, while in Year 13 Pasifika leavers are five percentage points higher than the total.
SES Decile
- Students who leave from a high decile school are much more likely to leave school with UE or a Level 3 qualification or higher, while low decile schools are more likely to have students leave with little or no formal attainment.
- In Decile 10 schools, 60 percent of the school leavers left with UE or a Level 3 qualification or higher, while only 4 percent left with little or no formal attainment.
- In Decile 1 schools, 11 percent of the school leavers left with UE or a Level 3 qualification or higher, while 21 percent left with little or no formal attainment.
Figure 1 - Highest attainment of School Leavers by SES Decile of School, 2005
Non-NQF qualifications
(These figures are included in the earlier totals.)
Twenty eight schools had leavers with non-NQF qualifications as their highest attainment. For 13 of these schools, all leavers had non-NQF qualifications as their highest attainment.
Table 8 - Leavers whose highest attainment was a non-NQF qualification 2005
| Highest Non-NQF attainment | Total |
| Year 13: Cambridge International Exams, International Baccalaureate, Accelerated Christian Education, or Other Overseas Awards |
843
|
| Year 12: Cambridge International Exams, International Baccalaureate, Accelerated Christian Education, or other Overseas Awards |
80
|
| Year 11: Cambridge International Exams, International Baccalaureate (prep year), Accelerated Christian Education, or other Overseas Awards |
49
|
| No formal attainment |
22
|
| TOTAL |
994
|
| Number of students, included in Total, who have met the UE equivalent criteria |
828
|
Footnotes
- Categories collected in 2005 were different to 2004 and earlier years. This figure has been estimated.
- Includes leavers with year 13 Cambridge International, International Baccalaureate, Accelerated Christian Education or any other overseas awards.
- Includes leavers with year 12 Cambridge International, International Baccalaureate, Accelerated Christian Education or any other overseas awards.
- Includes leavers with year 11 Cambridge International, International Baccalaureate, Accelerated Christian Education or any other overseas awards.
- Not comparable due to changes in methodology.
Related Education Counts Pages
The School Leavers statistics index page.