Pass rates improved in crucial NCEA maths and reading tests held in May, but there was a slight slip in the number of teenagers passing the writing test.
Students cannot receive any NCEA qualifications until they achieve the literacy and numeracy corequisite by passing all three online tests, or - until the end of 2027 - completing 20 alternative credits.
The tests are offered twice a year, with the next round scheduled for the first two weeks of September.
Education Minister Erica Stanford said the success rate for reading in the May tests was 61 percent, up from the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) reported figure of 59 percent for the same testing period last year.
Stanford said the maths pass rate was 57 percent, a jump from the 46 percent NZQA reported for last year's May round of tests.
She said 55 percent passed the writing test. Last year it was 56 percent.
The pass rates would almost certainly increase after students attempted in the September round of tests the tests they failed in May. Last year, overall achievement rates after both rounds of testing were about 10 percentage points higher than the May pass rates.
Stanford said the May results showed more than two-thirds of Year 10 students attempting the tests were successful. In addition, most Year 12s who sat the tests in May passed.
"More than half of this year's Year 12 students who did not meet the co-requisite while in Year 11 last year have now achieved it - and around a third of these students will now be awarded NCEA level 1. This takes the pass rate for NCEA level 1 in 2024 from 71.5 percent to 79.6 percent."
Stanford said results for students from low-decile schools improved a lot in numeracy and reading - 34 percent passed the numeracy assessment compared to 20 percent at the same time last year. In reading, 41 percent passed, compared to 34 percent last
"The government's $2.2 million investment in 2024 to provide targeted support to students in 141 lower decile schools has resulted in more students achieving assessments," she said.
"While these results are positive, there are still too many students who don't have the fundamental literacy and numeracy skills they need to thrive. That's why this government is unapologetically reforming the education system to prioritise improving student outcomes.
"As our back-to-basics approach beds in, more children will be better equipped when taking these assessments in the future."
