Secondary schools in 2012

This report contains the main findings from NZCER's 2012 national survey of secondary schools. The survey draws on responses from more than half the country’s secondary school principals and from hundreds of teachers, parents and members of boards of trustees and was carried out in July and August 2012.

It is part of a national survey series conducted by NZCER since 1989 to track issues and trends across the education system.

The report discusses the views of principals, teachers, trustees and parents on a range of issues from funding and staffing levels, to NCEA, technology in schools and workload.

Key findings include:

• Two-thirds of schools report a worse financial year in 2012 than 2011
• Some schools say they are spending more on marketing and property than they would like in order to compete for students
• While most principals and teachers say they enjoy their jobs, morale has slipped since 2009
• Decile 1 and 2 schools stand out as facing issues related to funding, student achievement, behaviour and motivation, and attracting and retaining good teachers.
• More than half the principals were concerned about the adequacy of their information technology and Internet access. Teachers were enthusiastic about the potential for IT for student learning but more than half said use of IT in classrooms was curtailed by slow or unreliable equipment or access.