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THE Education Review Office (ERO) will look more closely into the pastoral care of international students in secondary and composite schools.
"This government is committed to ensuring international students are well looked after when they study in New Zealand," Minister of Education, Mr Trevor Mallard said.
"The export education industry is worth an estimated $1.7 billion a year, and it's important we ensure it is delivering quality education, and quality care to students who come here to study.
"For this reason, I have decided that as part of its regular education reviews, ERO will start assessing in depth the extent to which the Code of Practice for the Pastoral Care of International Students is being implemented.
"The focus will be on the welfare and accommodation aspects of the Code, and ERO will be seeking evidence from a sample of homestay carers to ensure the school is meeting its obligations in these areas," Trevor Mallard said.
Under the Code, schools must provide a range of support services to foreign fee paying students, including advice on accommodation, courses, welfare facilities, health services, New Zealand laws, including driving laws and licensing, and addressing harassment and discrimination.
Schools must also communicate regularly with parents of international students.
ERO will include information from the new in-depth investigation of code requirements in its regular reports on individual schools.