They are participating in a nationwide online statistics project called CensusAtSchool, which will allow them to use digital devices to answer 35 online questions in English or Maori about their lives and opinions.
The census explores New Zealand childhoods in the here and now, asking pupils about topics such as whether they get pocket money, and how much; whether there is a limit on their screen time after school; and if anything in their lunchbox that day had been grown at home.
Pupils also carry out practical activities such as weighing the laptops and tablets they take to school.
The project started this week, is open to pupils aged 9 to 18, and will finish on July 7.
Ministry of Education deputy secretary Karl Le Quesne said 835 teachers from more than 530 schools nationwide had already registered to take part in CensusAtSchool in their maths and statistics classes.
From mid-June, the data collected would be released for teachers to use in the classroom.
"CensusAtSchool gives teachers relevant, real-life data to help students tell stories about themselves and their peers.
"Students become data detectives, mining the census to reveal the stories hidden in it.
"The CensusAtSchool questions are wide-ranging and, in analysing the answers, teachers have opportunities to start conversations that touch on many areas of the curriculum, from technology to sport to environmental studies."
He said the project started in 2003 and was run every two years by the University of Auckland’s Department of Statistics, with support from Statistics New Zealand and the Ministry of Education.
Statistics New Zealand’s education manager Andrew Tideswell said in our data-driven world, statistical literacy was as important as knowing how to read and write.
"People with statistical skills are very attractive to employers, but statistical literacy isn’t just about careers. If you’re confident with data, you have a valuable toolkit to negotiate everyday life."
CensusAtSchool is part of an international effort to boost statistical capability among young people, and is carried out in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Japan and South Africa.
The countries share some questions so comparisons can be made, he said.
