Thousands leaving school before turning 16

new-zealand-national-party

Wed Apr 18 2007 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)

Thousands leaving school before turning 16

Wednesday, 18 April 2007, 11:11 am
Press Release: New Zealand National Party

Katherine Rich MP
National Party Education spokeswoman

18 April 2007

Thousands of students leaving school before turning 16

The number of secondary students being granted exemptions to leave school before they turn 16 has increased by 42% since 1999, says National’s Education spokeswoman, Katherine Rich.

Answers to parliamentary questions reveal that 2,802 students were granted exemptions in 1999, and by 2006 this had risen to 3,957.

“It’s worrying that the rate is so high, because leaving school early is linked to poor outcomes later in life. Sure, there are some successful exceptions to the rule, but most students leaving this early will have limited opportunities due to their lack of education.

“Labour is conspicuously quiet about this issue, but it was a different story when they were in Opposition.

“Back in 1997, when there were 1,771 exemptions, Labour’s Opposition Spokesman for Education, Trevor Mallard, was outraged. He claimed that many of the students being granted exemptions were truants, and the Government was ‘basically relieving itself of any responsibility for these young people’ in allowing so many exemptions.

“Now that the numbers have more than doubled, Education Minister Steve Maharey needs to explain why.

“Under Labour the truancy rate has increased 41%, and it’s disturbing that it could have been much higher if Labour hadn’t been so keen to allow so many students to quit school before they turned 16.

“Exemptions need to be scrutinised more carefully so that it’s clear that the student is leaving school to go to genuinely sustainable work or training”.

ENDS

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