education

schools

Polity: A clear choice on education

Written By: notices and features
Date published: - 144 comments

One of the most prominent battlegrounds in this election campaign will be education. Both large parties know our kids deserve better than the two-tier education system we currently have. Both have clear, costed plans they think can help. And now the public can choose. Actions, of course, speak louder than words. Both John Key and Bill English have chosen to send their own kids to private schools. Asked why John Key said  “Their schools have smaller class sizes and are better resourced than most state schools.”.

Imperator Fish: In the Beehive today

Written By: notices and features
Date published: - 5 comments

This post was put up at Imperator Fish on Sunday evening. It looks like Hekia Parata was following Scott’s script today. 🙂

Sure we need a better class of wingnut commenter, as is frequently suggested here. However surely it is more important that we get a better quality of government minister than ones who think that evidence based policies means only the evidence about how well their party is doing in the polls?

A quick note to John Key

Written By: karol
Date published: - 44 comments

Remember when John Key explained why he sends his children to private schools….. and now the Nats and Parata are saying that such advantages don’t work for all Kiwis.

Labour addressing digital divide

Written By: lprent
Date published: - 136 comments

What stands out for me in the part of Labour’s education policy announced today, is the deliberate intent to make sure that all kids wind up with a personal network capable device both at school and home, and access to the net. At present we don’t. Much of the “voluntary” donations in schools is for computer equipment that kids need to learn from, but is not paid for by the state funding of schools. I was fortunate in that I started computing in 1976. Everyone needs that education now so they can pay for my retirement..

Local Bodies: Teaching Profession Rejects Parata’s Plans

Written By: notices and features
Date published: - 78 comments

Classroom teachers, the New Zealand Educational Institute, the New Zealand Principal’s Federation and education academics have all strongly rejected the Government’s proposed $359 million Investment into Education Success (IES). All believe that this substantial amount of money will not produce the results that the Education Minister claims and would be better spent elsewhere.

Green Party conference – focus on policies

Written By: karol
Date published: - 74 comments

It’s the Green Party Conference this weekend.  Metiria Turei was on RNZ yesterday morning, talking about how the main focus for the conference will be on policies.  Speeches will be streamed live online from the conference today & tomorrow. Update: summary of today’s speeches. Healthy Teens policy.

LB: EDUCANZ, Professionalism and Politics

Written By: notices and features
Date published: - 8 comments

We now have a Ministry of Education that is under the beck and call of the Minister, and where political ideology determines policy, and shortly we will have a new Teachers Council that will be governed only by political appointees. Under a National led Government, teachers will lose any professional independence and become classroom technicians that have to support politically prescribed programmes and data collection. Anyone want a career in teaching?

Walking the talk – protests Sat 29 March

Written By: karol
Date published: - 63 comments

Tomorrow Today: Support the important Day of Action across NZ against the TPPA – the TPPA is anti-democratic, pro-corporate & will make life harder for ordinary Kiwis; Support the NZEI demonstrations in Auckland & Wellington, for a living wage, for an excellent public education system, against poverty that undermines education. [Update: photos & reports]

LB: The Destruction of New Zealand’s Public Education System

Written By: notices and features
Date published: - 21 comments

In 2008 New Zealand was internationally ranked in the top seven for educational achievement, and when you compared us with other countries that were also culturally diverse and were experiencing growing inequality we were extremely successful. A National led Government was elected and New Zealand’s public education system came under heavy attack… Hekia Parata continues this.

Hekia Parata wants to punish poor schools

Written By: mickysavage
Date published: - 46 comments

Yesterday Hekia Parata floated the idea that funding of schools should be based on measuring the periodic change in academic standards.  This is a retrograde proposal which almost inevitably would penalise poor schools and worsen educational standards for many.  Today she has been trying to dampen down the idea and has emphasised that it will not be considered until after the next election.  A better reason to vote this Government out I cannot imagine.

LB: Executive Principals and National’s Education Dystopia

Written By: notices and features
Date published: - 18 comments

When John Key announced the Government’s plan of spending a whopping $359 million on education it was received with a sort of stunned incredulity. The problem is that few conservative governments understand education and the value of professional knowledge and the treatment of the Christchurch schools revealed a total disregard of the importance of communities.

LB: Rich Schools, Poor Schools

Written By: notices and features
Date published: - 6 comments

Local bodies makes points about the changes in the school system over the years. The nett effect over decades has been to force the inter-generational inequality that a good school system is meant to prevent. The type of school system that this government favours appears to be designed to remove the opportunities for those whose parents aren’t lucky. Is it time to start again?

Some random observations on Key’s Education proposals

Written By: mickysavage
Date published: - 65 comments

The first impression created by National’s announced education reforms is a positive one. But there is a lot of politics in the background. It may be strange for a lefty to say this but is this the best spend of finite education resources? Would the money be better spent addressing child poverty?

Hekia Parata needs new lawyers

Written By: mickysavage
Date published: - 29 comments

For the second time in less than 12 months the High Court has ruled a decision of Hekia Parata’s to be invalid.  The latest decision to be invalidated was the decision to close Phillipstown School in Christchurch.  It is clear that either Parata needs better advisors or John Key needs a new Minister of Education.

Cheap and nasty

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 36 comments

Having been burned by the cheapest tender and the leaky building fiasco, the Nats say that they have now worked out that the cheapest tender is not necessarily the best. (Brilliant eh?) If only it was true that they had really learned the lesson…

National standards nonsense

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 34 comments

If there was a national standard in scientific method than the right wing spinsters talking up yesterday’s national standards results would all fail it.

Christchurch schools for sale

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 17 comments

Recently closed Christchurch schools, which according to the Nats don’t have the student base and/or are too quake damaged to keep running, are going to be sold off for purposes including – charter schools.

Nats split on food in schools?

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 87 comments

Does food in schools show up a split in National between the hardline conservatives who would leave kids hungry in the name of parental responsibility, and pragmatists who will swallow a dead rat every now and again in an attempt to stay popular?

Better than nothing

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 156 comments

The government’s expansion of the KickStart breakfast programme is better than nothing – but that’s about all you can say about it.

Priorities: $9.5 Million over 5 years to feed hungry kids – but in 2012 just 4 private schools got $10.9 Million.

Lining up for charter schools

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 34 comments

The PPTA has published a list of organisations that have expressed an interest in setting up charter schools, almost half of them religious groups, some of them with rather fringe beliefs. Do we really want scarce state education funding being used to teach creationism?

‘That’s what the fuss is all about’

Written By: karol
Date published: - 22 comments

Hone Harawira challenged the Maori Party for its support of charter schools, at the expense of Maori and public education. He challenged Sharples to resign if today’s budget fails to adequately support kura kaupapa and the Manaaki Tauira programme.

Budget: corporate “charity” not the solution to Feeding the Kids

Written By: karol
Date published: - 24 comments

Thursday’s budget is likely to make businesses central to blunting the edge of child poverty.  Campbell Live is concerned about the marginalisation of skilled community organisations.  Harawira has delayed the reading of his Feed the Kids Bill & argues for the state to play a stronger role.

Dunne abandons charter schools

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 33 comments

Peter Dunne is concerned about the use of unqualified teachers in charter schools. As well he should be – the Ministry of Education has issued a detailed warning against this daft policy.

Selling out our education

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 35 comments

Profit-driven private sector cowboys are damaging the reputation of our education system. Naturally, National wants to make matters worse by subsidising foreign owners of profit-driven charter schools. Brilliant.

Novopay: debt collection

Written By: Ben Clark
Date published: - 26 comments

Apparently quite a few teachers got tempted from the fold and voted for John Key in 2008… it’s hard to imagine many of them wanting to do so after the Novopay debacle. But Novopay seem determined to make sure of it. Not content with failing to pay large numbers of teachers, it’s now persecuting those it overpaid, even when they give the money back.

Back to basics

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 15 comments

Looks like we’re in for another round of nonsense in mathematics education from a bunch of politicians who know more about their own prejudices than they do about teaching and learning.

Christchurch kids as political pawns

Written By: Anthony R0bins
Date published: - 39 comments

Looks like Parata has been shafted by Key – her written promises to Christchurch schools will not be honoured. Instead it seems that Christchurch kids are being used as pawns in National’s electoral maneuverings.