Teens at risk of leaving school say a funding boost will help them to persevere and follow their dreams. The government has announced $9.8mil to support and engage students in school to prevent them leaving early.
Koraunui Marae is helping teens stay in the classroom.
Teacher Philomena Heka says, "Being on a marae you've just got to awhi (support) all around. It's not just the learning, it's helping them manage themselves, relate to other people and help them get on with things- which is quite hard."
Fourteen-year-old Maxymus Patelesio is one of thirteen students at the marae alternative education programme. For some it is a last-chance lifeline to achieving their goals.
“It’s a big goal of mine to go back to school,” Patelesio says.
"I'm one of those kids that needs to be shown how to do it instead of reading the instructions in a book, I'd rather learn by watching someone do it. When someone shows me, I learn just like that.”
Heka says the programme also helps students work through some of their family dysfunctions.
Challenges faced by the students include difficult family circumstances, mental health issues or addiction.
$5.8mil of the total funds over four years will help 89 alternative education providers nationwide to support 1,888 students.
Heka says, "[In] our classroom, a lot of it we've had to do on our own but this will help us get more resources for the students’ access to more community programmes."
Associate Education Minister Tracey Martin says, "They haven't had a funding increase in seven years, this is just the best I could do in this moment as at July 1 this year."
Students at the marae were already taking steps towards improvement, starting with truancy records. Heka says kids are waiting for their pick-up at 8am even though school starts at 9am.
"[Their attendance] it's improved. We've got kids that were under 50 percent [attendance] at school now getting up into 80 percent so that's really big for them. Although it might seem small to somebody else that's a huge achievement."
The students want to build bigger future outcomes to support their families, gain employment and travel the world.