The Nature of Unmet Need
Learning Support
Secondary schools are facing inadequate specialist support for neurodivergent students, ESOL learners, and those with complex behavioural needs. There is an urgent need for more effective interventions to enable all of our ākonga to make the most of the educational opportunities available.
In 2022 the Highest Needs Review found that “significant change” was needed “across all layers of the education system”, allowing for “individualised needs of learners with the highest needs” to be met. Simply ‘rearranging the deckchairs’ is not going to cut the mustard, and changes to individualised support in isolation is not enough.
One in five children and young people need extra support for their learning which includes learning difficulties, disadvantage, physical or mental health, or behaviour. Learning supports are critical for learners who face persistent barriers to “attending, participating, and progressing in education”.
Tailored supports need to be “integrated” into both school and class-wide practices to allow for, and support, the “presence, participation, progress and belonging of learners with high needs in local settings”. Children and their whānau should be able to “access the support they need from the moment they enter early learning until when they leave school”.
Neurodivergent students—those with cognitive, learning, sensory, and behavioural differences such as ADHD, autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia, and others—thrive best when schools provide inclusive, responsive, and well-supported environments.
What we have instead is an over-reliance on teachers without training or time to manage complex needs.
We want to see smaller class sizes combined with specialist teachers who have trauma-informed practice, and who have up-to-date learning about combinations of neurodivergence. Our teachers need ongoing professional learning about autism, ADHD, sensory processing, anxiety, and trauma-informed practice. It is equally important that this includes culturally responsive approaches that also recognise intersectionality (e.g., neurodivergent Māori or Pasifika learners).
Research shows us that “Autistic children in New Zealand are almost three times more likely to be stood down or suspended from school than children who aren't autistic” and one in 20 (more than 500) were formally stood down or suspended (and this is not counting the (illegal) ‘kiwi suspensions’).
This same research, conducted by Dr Nick Bowden from the University of Otago, found that ORS funding provided a stark level of difference for students with autism and that “putting high-need funding or targeted funding around kids that need it - autistic students that need it - results in better outcomes".
The results were "pretty powerful ... and hard to ignore, hopefully, for policy-makers".
We know that learning losses have been the most severe among our most marginalised students since ‘the health crises’.
Attendance
We also know that neurodivergence is not the only unmet need affecting ākonga attendance.
It’s a no-brainer that when our students feel connected to the learning and to their school environment, they are more likely to attend school. We also know that sometimes ‘life be lifing’ and for a myriad of reasons, children either cannot or do not want to attend.
The Associate Minister of Education caused ripples earlier this year when he announced punitive measures for the parents and whānau of truant ākonga, saying that “[p]rosecution is a reality for parents who refuse to send their children to school and ignore supports to ensure their children are in class and learning.”
The Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study (The Dunedin Study) showed that the issues are systemic – we need multisystemic therapy to stop ākonga and their families falling through the gaps.
The Dunedin study found that young people who feel connected to school and who had strong relationships with teachers and peers were more likely to remain engaged, even if they faced difficulties at home.
The research repeatedly shows “what most of us know; there’s a strong relationship between school attendance and life outcomes”. Regular school attendance creates opportunities for success, and it goes without saying that “lots of absence from school goes with lower attainment”.
Creating inclusive schools that meet the needs of all learners is crucial. High quality education systems, providing fair access for children from all “social and economic backgrounds” is acknowledged as a way to “lift people out of poverty and empower students to reach their full potential”.
Understanding the socioeconomic deprivation that many of our most vulnerable ākonga and their whānau experience is crucial to making real change that can contribute to equitable societies where all can thrive. The Ka Ora, Ka Ako programme that fed some of these ākonga was instrumental in improving the wellbeing of all of those who were involved. A report commissioned by the Ministry of Education found that “alleviating food insecurity and reducing the stigma associated with not having kai, the programme has encouraged more consistent attendance among underserved ākonga”. It is also worth noting that lower levels of aggression and increased wellbeing were also reported.
Searching for Utopia discusses the schools as hubs model (something that is PPTA Te Wehengarua policy) – recognising “the multifactorial nature of learning, engagement and achievement in schools” and the potential for “connecting schools…with a broader range of social services, multi-generational support and population health services”. This could go some way to ensure that many of the socioeconomic factors that can affect attendance could be addressed.
Mental Health and Wellbeing
Aotearoa New Zealand, and indeed the entire globe, is seeing rising levels of anxiety, depression, school avoidance and trauma, and exacerbating the level of need is the shortage of guidance counsellors available to schools. The New Zealand Association of Counsellors (NZAC) has a recommendation of staffing ratios in schools as “one counsellor to 400 students…some schools in NZ have 1 to 1000”. Increasingly, our schools are not seen as a safe place for ākonga.
Long waiting lists for both school and private counsellor services are of extreme concern for anyone working with young people says NZAC President Sarah Maindonald, and is a “matter of student safety, particularly given our high youth suicide rates and pervasive mental health concerns”.
While not the only factor in these rising levels, the digital realm is having considerable creep into the lives of rangatahi, and we know that cyberbullying, “grooming and…misinformation” is having a negative impact on the mental health of our students. Unlike ‘in our day’, there is no escape for our young people and the pressure they are facing is relentless.
Systemically, our schools have a lack of sustainable funding for wellbeing coordinators, pastoral deans, and health teams. In 2021, 82% of teachers reported an increase in mental health issues with their students. This is not something that will go away without considerable and sustainable management (and resourcing) in our schools.
Teacher Workload and Burnout
Teachers are on the ‘front lines’ and there is not only an expectation but a need to fill gaps left by social services, health, and learning support systems.
It is a common saying that teachers' working conditions are children's learning conditions. Increased administrative and compliance demands have left our members feeling under significant pressure.
Unmanageable class sizes in some areas and kaiako teaching outside of their specialist subject areas is exacerbating the burnout that our members are feeling. The rising number of principals being forced to employ untrained/unqualified teachers because they “could not find trained and qualified teachers” to employ just tumbles on top, with Middle Leaders and teachers needing to further support and mentor these staff alongside their other duties.
In some regions, our members anecdotally report a lack of relief teachers available. Not some, not few, none. This means colleagues having to cover classes when a teacher is unwell, and it has significant impacts on the ability to take up PLD opportunities that fall outside of the mandated school-wide learning.
Alternative Education
We need a suite of approaches and to see creativity of provision in the Alternative Education space.
Despite some increase in funding for alternative education in this year’s budget, it remains one of the most drastically underfunded areas of our secondary education system.
There is a rapidly increasing need for a properly funded and resourced end-to-end system of support for young people at risk of disengaging from education. Funding for alternative education places has not increased for many years, while need has skyrocketed.
One possibility is to situate Alt-Eds on site in all schools – allowing ākonga to be integrated back into school life without too much of a disruption on the ākonga and their whānau. We need to decide what the purpose of Alt-Ed is. Is it to allow the student to return to regular schooling or to provide an alternative path? Or is it both?
At the moment Alt-Ed is seen as respite, but some schools are using it as a way to shift certain problems ‘out of sight’. There are many examples of local initiatives – models of ‘connection first’ – with a combination of teachers and teacher aides. Emotions are regulated, and the learning follows.
Last modified on Tuesday, 4 August 2026 13:20