The Secondary Principals Association says a national survey of truancy may not help individual schools deal with the problem.
Education Minister Anne Tolley said earlier on Wednesday that disappointed a biennial survey on truancy had been dropped last year, and she has asked the Ministry of Education to do a new one.
Mrs Tolley says figures from the last survey in 2006, showing that up to 30,000 secondary and primary students play truant every week, are out of date,
However, Secondary Principals Association president Peter Gall says that although the survey would be useful for the ministry, most individual schools already have the data they need.
Mrs Tolley says it's vital to have regular surveys in order to understand the problem, and to talk to people who are dealing with truancy in the regions.
