Source: Radio New Zealand
Te Akau School students on their visit to Ninja Valley Hamilton. Show Up and Shine
A new, simple and very local initiative is increasing primary school attendance across dozens of schools in Waikato and Canterbury.
It comes as the government has set an attendance target for all schools – 80 percent of students present for 90 percent of the term by 2030.
Show Up and Shine encouraged attendance by offering the class with the highest attendance rate in each school a free visit to Ninja Valley, a privately-owned playground.
Ngāruawāhia Primary School attendance increased by 57 percent.
Deputy principal Margaret Gillies told Morning Report as well as the incentive, the programme appealed to children’s competitive nature.
“I believe towards the end there, we had two percent between the top two classes. And, it was interesting that it was our new entrants and our senior class. So the babies and the tuakana of our school are competing.”
Gillies said the programme was part of the school’s wider effort to get local children engaged in education, including picking children up and taking them to school.
“We have breakfast in school, we are lucky to be part of the lunch program, and we’ve got an on-site cook, so the kids really love the lunches.
“We have a daily incentive as well, so classes who have 100 percent attendance, our principal goes over to the class and gives them a treat.”
As well as the positive response from students in Ngāruawāhia, there was also a 48 percent lift in attendance at TKKM o Tōku Māpihi Maurea, and students participating in the programme in Canterbury had already reached the government target, with an average 80.8 percent regular attendance this term.
Gilberthorpe School saw a 26 percent surge in attendance, while Springston School recorded a 19 percent increase.
Grant Beuzeval, CEO of Ninja Valley said the programme had shown how local businesses and communities could play a role in supporting the educational goals of students and families.
Grant Beuzeval, CEO of Ninja Valley Show Up and Shine
“”We aren’t seeing a one percent or two percent nudge – we are seeing double-digit turnarounds.”
“It shows that when you give kids a collective goal they actually care about, the Monday morning blues disappear,” Beuzeval said.
The winning classes so far this year were Room 3 at Benneydale School in the Waikato, reaching 98 percent attendance, and Lyttelton Primary School achieving 97.6 percent.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand