Partnership Schools achieve excellence on attendance
New data on school attendance reveals fantastic engagement of students at Partnership Schools, says ACT Leader David
Seymour.
“There’s a story that’s missing from this report, but becomes clear when you compare its findings with Partnership Schools’ annual reports: Partnership Schools are blowing state schools out of the water when it comes to attendance.
“The average state school’s truancy rate in 2016 was 4.5 per cent. But no Partnership School had a truancy rate of more
than 1.7 per cent.
“Partnership Schools don’t just perform better on truancy – they’re specifically contracted to ensure this remains the
case. They’re not allowed truancy rates above 2.8 per cent. If a Partnership School performed as badly as the average
state school on attendance, it would be at risk of closure. Meanwhile, state schools can achieve high rates of truancy
year-on-year with little or no consequences.
“Priority learners like those who attend Partnership Schools are statistically more likely than the average student to
be truant. But at Partnership Schools they are showing up to learn. In other words, students underserved by the state
system are effectively engaged by the alternative educational approaches offered by Partnership Schools.
“A stronger ACT will allow state schools to convert to the Partnership School model, giving them more flexibility in
exchange for higher expectations of performance.”
ENDS