Guide

State, integrated, private — what the difference is

New Zealand runs four kinds of school, and the differences are about ownership, money and character, not quality.

State schools

Government-owned and fully government-funded; 2,132 of the 2,565 open schools. They teach the New Zealand Curriculum and cannot charge compulsory fees — donations are voluntary.

State-integrated schools

332 schools, formerly private, that integrated into the state system while keeping a "special character" — most commonly religious. The state pays the teachers; the proprietor owns the buildings and charges compulsory attendance dues towards them. They follow the national curriculum.

Private schools

82 registered private schools, funded mainly by fees. They set their own curriculum and their own enrolment rules, and the Ministry publishes no Equity Index for them.

Kura kaupapa Māori and Māori-medium

Kura kaupapa Māori teach in te reo Māori under Te Aho Matua. They appear in this directory under their standard school type, with their language of instruction recorded on each school's page.

Which is best?

None of them, categorically. Type tells you who owns the school and how it is paid for. It does not tell you how well it teaches — for that, read ERO's reports and visit.