Key findings: Data, statistics and publications

Statistics

This measure uses age-standardised rates. These are expressed as the number of stand-downs, suspensions, exclusions and expulsions per 1,000 students enrolled.

Know your region

An online tool where you can find education data for different regions or territorial authority. Using this tool you can access data on student population, student engagement and student achievement.

Why is the Ministry collecting this data?

SSEE data are core information required for monitoring the performance of the schooling system.  The Ministry uses SSEE data:

• to ensure the legislation about student engagement is being followed
• to assess the performance of schools
• to monitor the results of the New Zealand education system
• to support policy analysis
• for national and international reporting

SSEE data are also used for general research and statistics, in accordance with the Privacy Act 1993. This may include linking SSEE data with other student data, for example, attainment, for research on the correlation between student behaviours and NCEA achievement.  Care is taken that no individual can ever be identified from published analysis.

The measures

The key measure of SSEE is an age standardised rate, for example, age-standardised suspension rates.

Age-standardisation removes the effects of the differing age structures of the different groups (schools, regions, time periods, etc.) being compared to avoid misleading results.

The interventions

Stand-down

Stand-down is the formal removal of a student from school for a specified period. A student can be stood-down, for a maximum of 5 school days in a term, or 10 days in a school year. Students return automatically to school following a stand-down.

Suspension

Suspension is the formal removal of a student from school until the board of trustees decides the outcome at a suspension meeting. Following a suspension the board may decide to lift the suspension with or without conditions, to extend the suspension, or in the most serious cases, to either exclude or expel the student.

Exclusion

Exclusion means the formal removal of a student aged under 16 from the school, and the requirement that the student enrol elsewhere.

Expulsion

Expulsion means the formal removal of a student aged 16 or over from school. He or she may enrol in another school.

The data source

Schools use ENROL, a national register of student enrolments, to identify students that have been stood down, suspended excluded or expelled.

This information populates the SDS database.  The Ministry of Education developed the SDS database (also known as the stand-downs and suspensions database) in July 1999, following the introduction of the Education (Suspension) Rules 1999.

The SDS database acts as a trigger for the Ministry’s regional staff to start working with schools to ensure individual cases are dealt with in accordance with the principles of natural justice and that proper processes are followed.