First-year student achievement, attendance, and demography at NorthTec’s Bachelor of Applied Social Work Programme : a quantitative inquiry

Abstract

This paper reports on a quantitative inquiry into student achievement, attendance and demography and their correlations in the first year of an undergraduate social work degree at NorthTec, Whangārei, New Zealand. Data on student achievement, attendance and demography across year one papers from 2016 to 2019 were used for trend and correlation analysis to address the research aim. The study found correlations between attendance and achievement are significant and consistent while correlations between demographic factors and achievement are not. The research supports existing literature documenting the relationship between attendance and achievement. It calls for changes in programme delivery, particularly attendance requirements and student support, at NorthTec to engage students better in the programme.