There has been a call for an inquiry into the national distance education school, Te Kura, but staff fear losing their jobs if they speak out.
RNZ has been told many staff are worried by what they say is a disturbing increase in student disengagement with many of its pupils submitting minimal work for the sole purpose of avoiding being kicked off the school's roll.
Teachers could have no contact with a student for four months before the student was removed from the school's roll, a process they said was ridiculous.
They also warned Te Kura's IT systems for learning and student management were slow and difficult for new learners to navigate.
"For a student to succeed at Te Kura, they have to be extremely conscientious. The bar for success at Te Kura is far higher than face-to-face," RNZ was told.
"The majority are severely disengaged to start with, but the system is failing them."
Earlier this month, RNZ reported a whistleblower who said as many as three-quarters of the at-risk students they worked with were "sitting at home doing nothing" because they did not have the motivation or IT and learning skills to study remotely.
Te Kura responded that only 35 percent of its more than 6000 full-time students referred by the Ministry of Education or Oranga Tamariki who had been enrolled for more than four weeks had not submitted any work this year - and a third of those students were still considered "engaged" because of other activities or contact with their teachers.
The school also said 40 percent of its full-time, at-risk students achieved internally assessed NCEA credits last year - a record better than alternative education centres, which provided in-person supervision for at-risk teens.
However, RNZ has since been told that Te Kura staff believe the school sets a low bar for engagement and submission of work, and say they are encouraged to to remove students from the school's roll for failure to engage with any work.
RNZ has been told some students submitted work that was little more than a line or two of text and, in some cases, that text stated only that the student wanted to remain on the school's roll.
A parent with a child at Te Kura told RNZ the level and volume of work accepted did not seem to be up to standard.
"Taking a photo on a family trip that we went on for the weekend - if they upload that, that's work for the month. If they draw a picture, that's work for the month. If they write a three-sentence story about an excursion they went on, that's work for the month," she said.
RNZ has also seen internal data that showed some Te Kura teachers had received no work from most of their students in the past 30 days and no work at all from a small number of students.
Other figures provided to RNZ showed 60 percent of Te Kura's current 15,800 students had submitted work in the past 30 days and 69 percent had been in some form of online learning session.
RNZ has also obtained a letter drafted earlier this year by a member of the school's staff, warning MPs of a "student engagement crisis" and calling for an independent audit.
The staff member did not send the letter because they believed it would have no impact unless they signed their name to it - in which case, they would lose their job.
"Our current practices allow students to remain effectively invisible, submitting minimal work or engaging in minute contact to reset their engagement status every three months. This not only undermines their education, but also raises serious questions about the role Te Kura is playing in their lives. The growing trend of students leaving mainstream education for Te Kura appears driven by the ease with which they can evade meaningful participation, a pattern that risks turning our school into a refuge for those seeking to avoid academia," the letter said.
The school's student management and learning management systems were "outdated and inefficient, hampering our ability to deliver quality education", the letter said.
It also warned the introduction of new NCEA achievement standards had been chaotic, with most key subjects lacking essential content well into Term 3.
"This failure, coupled with the ongoing mistreatment of staff on fixed-term contracts, highlights a broader pattern of mismanagement that must be addressed," the letter said.
RNZ understands other staff at the organisation agreed with the letter's content and that many staff want a review of wider schooling policies that lead to enrolment of at-risk students.
Te Kura response
In response, Te Kura said it closely monitored student engagement and removed students from its roll according to rules agreed with the Ministry of Education.
"Our processes ensure enrolment and engagement are genuine," it said.
The rules showed the school received base funding of $20 million this year, plus $4958.74 per full-time student. A secondary student was counted as full-time if they enrolled in at least three subjects, the school said.
It denied its enrolment policies were designed to maintain the school's funding.
It said a recent audit resulted in the removal of just a few students from the roll.
"The majority of Te Kura's full-time ākonga are referred to us by the Ministry of Education under the criteria in the Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu Enrolment and Dual Tuition Policy. These students have typically disengaged from their previous schools. We welcome each enrolment in good faith, and we are committed to supporting every ākonga without question," it said.
Te Kura said its computer systems had undergone significant improvements since their implementation, and the learning management system, used for teaching students, was a leader in its field.
The school said it acknowledged staff concerns about the roll-out of new NCEA standards.
"Additional resources and relief were introduced to support key areas like digital submissions and development tasks, ensuring staff have the support they need.
"Frequent changes to specifications from the Ministry of Education and NZQA posed challenges, but our staff worked hard to stay aligned with these updates. We have worked swiftly to get back on track, ensuring open communication and support for our people," it said.
The school denied mistreating staff on fixed-term contracts.
"Te Kura employs kaimahi on fixed-term contracts for genuine reasons, primarily due to our funding model, which depends on ākonga enrolments. When enrolments and funding are uncertain, we hire fixed-term kaimahi to provide additional teaching support for a set period. Te Kura has processes to review whether a fixed-term role remains valid or if it may become permanent."
The school said increasing its per-student top-up funding for at-risk students to $3500 from 2026 would "make a significant difference to Te Kura's ability to support the engagement and achievement of ākonga at-risk of dis-engaging from education".
Parents speak out on Te Kura experience
Meanwhile, parents of students enrolled or recently enrolled at Te Kura have contacted RNZ about their experience.
Some spoke highly of the dedication of the school's staff, but others said it was not the right form of education for many children.
Several said Te Kura worked only if young people were supported by their parents or a part-time tutor. One father described his son's experience as a student of the school about two-and-a-half years ago as a travesty.
The Education Review Office warned in 2013 that at-risk students were being dumped on the school and it was the wrong place for at-risk students.
Staff have been critical of the school's IT systems for more than a decade and an independent review obtained by RNZ in 2013 found significant failings.
