Photo: Unsplash / Thomas Park
Education Minister Erica Stanford is seeking official advice on Te Kura following RNZ reports about the national distance education school.
Teachers and parents currently and formerly involved with the school said at-risk students were being dumped on the school, and many were struggling.
Stanford told RNZ she had asked officials for more information.
"It's something I've followed even in opposition as well and I raised questions about the oversight and how much data are we collecting and how do we know what's going on. So I've asked for some information to come across from my officials so I get a really good understanding of what should be happening, what is happening and where are the gaps and what we need to strengthen," she said.
Stanford said principals told her the Ministry of Education had asked them if certain children should be enrolled with Te Kura so they could study from home.
"The principal says 'no' because they know the family and the community well, and it still happens so I do have some concerns," she said.
Stanford said Te Kura did a great job and offered opportunities to children in remote areas and at schools that did not teach the subjects they wanted to study.
"It does a lot of excellent work but if there are pockets of issues that we need to address or strengthen then we'll certainly look at that."
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