School truancy: Tens of thousands miss classes

Almost 60,000 students are missing at least 3 days of school every day, while nearly 40% of students are not attending regularly, RNZ reports. In a pre-budget announcement, Education Minister Chris Hipkins said $88 million will be spent on local education needs. PPTA president Melanie Webber said it was necessary to have funding ‘at the top of the cliff’. “Schools are the people who know their communities and they know their students.”