Starpath was established in 2005 as a Partnership for Excellence led by the University of Auckland in partnership with the New Zealand Government. The project continued with support from the University of Auckland and was based at the Faculty of Education and Social Work until 2017.

The Starpath project focused on equitable outcomes for New Zealand students who have been under-represented in tertiary education.

It used an evidence-based approach to help transform patterns of educational achievement in New Zealand secondary schools. In 2016 the project moved into Phase Three of its work, which concentrates on a small number of schools in Northland and Auckland, promoting opportunities to learn and targeting the academic progress of students towards the University Entrance qualification.

The Starpath team was made up of a group of leading educational quantitative and qualitative researchers, supported by a Board of Governance which consisted of senior representatives from the University of Auckland, the Manukau Institute of Technology and the Ministry of Education.   

Leading educational quantitative and qualitative researchers made up the Starpath team. The team was supported by a Board of Governance consisting of senior representatives from the University of Auckland, the Manukau Institute of Technology and the Ministry of Education.

• Dr Melinda Webber, Director
• Joy Eaton, Director Schools Engagement
• Victoria Cockle, Research Analyst
• Tania Linley-Richardson, Professional Development Facilitator
• Morgan Rangi, Data Analyst and Facilitator
• Kapua O'Connor, Research Assistant
  

Reports

• Starpath Phase Three Final Report
  A synthesis of all research carried out during 2016 and 2017 as part of the Starpath Project.
• Starpath Final Summative Evaluation Report 2016
  An overview of Phase 2 and presents findings and deliverables.
• Starpath Phase One reports
  • Targets and Talk: Evaluation of Academic Counselling
  • Availability of NCEA Standards: Impact on Success Rate
  • Beyond the First Hurdle: Persistence Beyond the First Semester
  • Factors Affecting UE Success Rate
  • Impact of Revised UE Criterion
  • Stumbling Blocks or Stepping Stones: Transition to University
  • Towards University: Final Report

Publications

Books

• Malamalama i le NCEA (Lomiga lona lua/2nd ed)
  By Liz McKinley and Irena Madjar (NZCER, 2013)
• Understanding NCEA (2nd ed)
  By Liz McKinley and Irena Madjar (2013)
• Uni Bound? (Students' Stories of Transition from School to University)
  Edited by Elizabeth McKinley and Irena Madjar (2010)

Book chapters

• "From schools in low-income communities to university: Challenges of transition for Māori and Pacific students".
  McKinley, E. & Madjar, I. (2014)
  In F. Cram, H. Phillips, P. Sauni and C. Tuagalu (Eds), Māori and Pasifika Higher Education Horizons. H.T. Frierson (Series Ed.), Diversity in Higher Education. Vol. 15. New Milford, CT: Emerald Books (pp 241-252).
• "The Starpath Project: Promoting student success in secondary schools serving low-SES communities".
  Santamaria, A.P., Webber, M., McKinley, E. & Madjar, I. (2014)
  In V.M. Carpenter & S. Osborne (Eds). Twelve Thousand Hours: Education and Poverty in Aotearoa New Zealand. Auckland: Dunmore Publishing (pp 238-245).

Journal articles

• "Data systems in secondary schools: The state of play".
  Irving, S.E., & Gan, M. (2012). Computers in New Zealand Schools, Vol.24, No.2, pp108-136