Summary

This index page provides links to data on homeschooling.

As at 1 July 2014, there were 5,555 home schooled students recorded in the Ministry of Education’s Homeschooling database. These students belong to 2,862 families and represent 0.7% of total school enrolments as at 1 July 2014. Out of the 5,555 homeschoolers 65% were the aged 12 or under, 66% had been home-schooled for less than 5 years, and only 4% had been home-schooled for 10 years or more.

European/Pakeha students are more likely to be homeschooled than any other ethnic group with 83% of all Homeschoolers identifying as European/Pakeha compared to 53% of the total school population. Only 7% of Homeschoolers identify as Maori compared to 23% of the total school population, and 2% of identify as Pasifika compared to 10% of the total school population. The ethnicity of 3% of homeschoolers is unknown.

The chart below provides a number of downloads relating to the number of students in Homeschooling.

Downloads	File Size & Type
Number of Students by Time Series 1998-2014	[MS Excel 103KB]
Number of Students by Student Gender, Ethnic Group & Age 1998-2014	[MS Excel 80KB]
Number of Students by Student Gender, Ethnic Group & Duration 1998-2014	[MS Excel 81KB]
Number of Students by Student Gender, Ethnic Group & Ethnicity 1998-2014	[MS Excel 50KB]
Number of Students by Student Gender, Ethnic Group & Regional Council 1998-2014	[MS Excel 90KB]
Number of Students by Student Gender, Ethnic Group & Territorial Authority 1998-2014	[MS Excel 280KB]
Number of Students by Duration & Regional Council 1998-2014	[MS Excel 81KB]
Number of Students by Duration & Territorial Authority 1998-2014	[MS Excel 261KB]
Number of Students by Student Age & Regional Council 1998-2014	[MS Excel 80KB]
Number of Students by Student Age & Territorial Authority 1998-2014	[MS Excel 253KB]

More information here: http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/statistics/schooling/homeschooling

Here are the “Next Steps” from the National Office of the MoE. Please note that our comments need to received by the MoE by 5pm Monday 8 December 2014.

To Home Educators,

Thank you for your feedback in October on what is and is not working well with home schooling.  It has helped us identify possible areas for improvement and to learn more about what is working well for you.

We all have a shared interest in supporting positive education outcomes for children.  Your feedback, along with that from other key stakeholders (such as our regional staff), will directly inform our thinking on possible improvements to home schooling.

I have attached  feedback_summary_letter and  Feedback_Summary for your consideration a summary of the feedback we received.  Please tell us if we have missed anything – the deadline for any additional comments is 5pm Monday 8 December and is to be sent to home.schooling@minedu.govt.nz.

Once we have finalised your feedback, we will consider what improvements we are able to make.  I will be in contact with you in February 2015 regarding these.

Kind Regards,

Jim Greening

Group Manager, Schools & Student Support

Ministry of Education | Te T?huhu o te M?tauranga
www.minedu.govt.nz

– MoE/ERO issues

– Changes in the MoE

– MoE discussions introduction to the Red Tape Cluster Buster meetings

– Preparation for the MoE discussions with Red Tape Cluster Buster meetings andrelevant for the Problem Scoping Survey
– Discussions home educators had online at Clutter buster group or (for ease of reading as not everyone can get onto the Google docs) here…https://hef.org.nz/coming-events-archives-2012/red-tape-cluster-buster/ (Also a lot of very good information to aid you in filling out the Problem Scoping Survey)

– Record of Progress and Achievement (an example of the new National MoE office staff understanding home educators)

– Truancy and the Home Schooler/Home Educator (another success with the National Office in that Megan showed us alternatives)

– Scoping Meeting 15 July 2014 – Getting to know you

– 2nd Meeting 28 July 2014 – Red Tape Cluster Buster Meeting

– MoE scoping Home Educators – email

– Feedback Form (Problem Scoping Survey) on MoE website

– Email to the MoE about the Scoping Survey from a Home Educator

– Problem Scoping Survey: ideas and deadline

– MoE’s reply to Yumiko’s email about the Scoping Survey

– MoE Problem Scoping Survey: please make it known and fill it out

– The last of Craig Smith’s writings before he died 3 years ago

– MoE Problem Scoping Survey

– Home Education Foundation’s Problem Scoping Survey

– Scoping Survey: Barbara Smith

– Problem Scoping Survey – Update

– Letter to MoE re Scoping Survey 7 October 2014

– Scoping Survey: Long term plans for our personal “survey/email”

– “Next Steps” from the MoE

A home educator who had recently returned from overseas looked into his exemption applications for his children. He questioned whether he should be filling out new exemptions for his children. Candida from the Hamilton local MoE office looked into it for him and found that he did not have to submit new exemptions (Thanks Candida). Wonderful news. Candida contacted the National MoE office and now we have the official word on it from Lucy:

We have sought clarification with our legal team regarding the rules around having to reapply for an exemption when returning to New Zealand after residing overseas for a while.

Home Educators do not need to reapply for their certificate of exemption after leaving NZ and then returning.

We do however, need to be informed when they leave and return to NZ as the funding will cease when they are away.

I will be changing our deskfile to make this clearer, and will also be sending a message out to all of our regional homeschooling staff today.

The deskfile will say:

Homeschool Parents Leaving New Zealand for Holiday or Extended Period

The maximum time a home schooling family can leave New Zealand and remain eligible for full home schooling allowance is 28 days. However the 28 day rule can be slightly flexible.

If a family leaves New Zealand for up to and including 28 days they still remain eligible for the full home schooling allowance for the overseas period.

If a family leaves New Zealand for more than 28 days but less than six months and returns to New Zealand to continue home schooling a ‘less days’ payment will be made. Please inform the Resourcing Division in the National Office of any home schoolers that will be out of New Zealand for more than 28 days, so a note can be made for the payment period.

If a family leaves New Zealand for more than 6 months they will need to re-apply for their homeschooling allowance, upon their return. This does not mean having to re-apply for the exemption but rather inform us they are back so the payments can resume.

 

This has been mentioned in some of the feedback provided to us that I have seen so far. Can you please let your members know of this?  I will also add it into our communications when we go back to the home educators with the collation of feedback.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

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Please share/forward this link with other home educators.

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From the Smiths:

Needing help for your home schooling journey:

https://hef.org.nz/2011/needing-help-for-your-home-schooling-journey-2/

And

Here are a couple of links to get you started home schooling:

Information on getting started: https://hef.org.nz/getting-started-2/

and

Information on getting an exemption: https://hef.org.nz/exemptions/

This link is motivational: http://hef.org.nz/2012/home-schooling-what-is-it-all-about/

Exemption Form online: https://hef.org.nz/2012/home-schooling-exemption-form-now-online/

Coming Events: https://hef.org.nz/2013/some-coming-events-for-home-education-during-2013-2/

Beneficiaries: http://hef.org.nz/2013/where-to-for-beneficiary-families-now-that-the-social-security-benefit-categories-and-work-focus-amendment-bill-has-passed-its-third-reading/

“It is best that the exemption applications be sent to the “old offices” and then they can distribute them if need be.”

Please see my email below to Lucy and her reply regarding which offices we should be sending our exemption applications to.

Are all the local MoE offices now processing exemptions?

These offices will be processing the exemptions:

• Local Ministry homeschooling offices [WORD; 38kb]

There is confusion about these other offices since they are not in the link above yet:

Tai Tokerau
BOP/Rotorua/Taupo
Hawke’s Bay/Gisborne
Taranaki/Whanganui/Manawatu

1.  It would be helpful to have:
a) a list in the above link of the offices that are now processing the exemption applications
b) and if they are not yet when the expected date is.

***

The other confusion people have is – which office to send the exemption to.

2. It would be helpful to have a map of New Zealand in the link showing the catchment for each local MoE office.

This is Lucy’s reply:

I will add this to the feedback for collation, thank you.

In terms of your first question – it is up to the regional directors of each region whether they will be processing the applications in their office or not. Some have not made that decision yet, and I am not sure when the decisions will be made.

So for now, it is best that the applications be sent to the “old offices” and then they can distribute them if need be.

Once I hear more I will let you know.

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Please share/forward this link with other home educators.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the Smiths:

Needing help for your home schooling journey:

https://hef.org.nz/2011/needing-help-for-your-home-schooling-journey-2/

And

Here are a couple of links to get you started home schooling:

Information on getting started: https://hef.org.nz/getting-started-2/

and

Information on getting an exemption: https://hef.org.nz/exemptions/

This link is motivational: http://hef.org.nz/2012/home-schooling-what-is-it-all-about/

Exemption Form online: https://hef.org.nz/2012/home-schooling-exemption-form-now-online/

Coming Events: https://hef.org.nz/2013/some-coming-events-for-home-education-during-2013-2/

Beneficiaries: http://hef.org.nz/2013/where-to-for-beneficiary-families-now-that-the-social-security-benefit-categories-and-work-focus-amendment-bill-has-passed-its-third-reading/