Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Minister of Education sending Mixed messages « Red Alert

Minister of Education sending Mixed messages « Red Alert:
“Central to improving student achievement is the quality of the learning environment and the interaction between a student and teacher that takes place within that environment. Highly effective teaching makes the biggest difference to student achievement within the education system. ... They use assessment both to track progress and chart future learning. Our recent synthesis of research evidence has also underlined the importance of professional leadership.

Primary results may go online - Stuff.co.nz


Stuff.co.nz
URL: Primary results may go online
Stuff.co.nz
Ms Parata said parents should visit the Australian website to see what was possible with the national standards. Under the national standards, children aged five to 12 years old are ranked at, above, below or well below benchmarks in reading, ... and more »

Starpath is helping more students succeed at school

URL: Starpath is helping more students succeed at school:
Starpath, a partnership between The University of Auckland and the Government, was established in 2005 to determine evidence-based ways of improving education results for Maori, Pacific and students at low-mid decile schools. Between 2005 and 2010 Starpath ... One school increased its Level 3 NCEA results by 18 percent while another's Level 1 pass rate went from 4 percent to 60 percent and its level 2 rate from 40 percent to 58 percent. As part of the project ...

Netball now on academy programme - Taranaki Daily News

URL: Netball now on academy programme
Taranaki Daily News
"There's an academic programme for 16 to 24-year-olds to get NCEA level 1 and 2, as well as training at the same time and picking up sport credits," she said. It's a great opportunity for people who found mainstream schooling "didn't work for them".

Wairarapa standards feud goes digital - Wairarapa Times-Age

URL: Wairarapa standards feud goes digital
Wairarapa Times-Age
ALL ON: Kevin Jephson has had a mixed response to his abysmal assessment of pupils as measured against National Standards. A Wairarapa Times-Age story about National Standards has taken a long-running feud over the education benchmark into our digital ... and more »

League tables for winners and losers - Voxy

URL: League tables for winners and losers
Voxy
Since the national standards were introduced in 2008, to lift student achievement, the teaching profession has been in a state of confusion. For three years academics and professionals alike have argued the shortcomings of the standards and especially ... and more »

A New Broom in Town

URL: A New Broom in Town:
... Parata talked favourably about the Australian website Myschool [Myschool.edu.au], which compares statistically similar schools in reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy against national testing, ...

Editorial: A lesson primary teachers could learn - The Dominion Post

URL: Editorial: A lesson primary teachers could learn
The Dominion Post
OPINION: It must have dawned on primary teachers by now that the Government remains determined to make their schools more publicly accountable. Last week, Education Minister Hekia Parata showed she is as committed to national standards and greater ...

Education system failing Pacific students - ministry - Radio New Zealand


Stuff.co.nz
URL: Education system failing Pacific students - ministry
Radio New Zealand
The Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs is calling for more funding for Pacific early childhood centres and bilingual education to lift the poor performance of students. The call comes in a briefing to incoming minister Hekia Parata, who is also in ...
Govt eyes secondary school comparison site Stuff.co.nz
Labour suspicious about Govt's education plans NZ City

NZ POLITICS DAILY: Another embarrassing blow to the Maori Party - National Business Review

URL: NZ POLITICS DAILY: Another embarrassing blow to the Maori Party
National Business Review
Prospective Act leader Catherine Isaac is overseeing the Charter Schools trial, and opposition parties, unions and academics cite this as evidence that the policy is completely ideologically driven – see Andrea Vance's Anger at ACT link in charter ... and more »

Destiny Church may get funding for new school - Stuff.co.nz


Stuff.co.nz
URL: Destiny Church may get funding for new school
Stuff.co.nz
The controversial plan for charter schools was agreed upon as part of the confidence and supply deal between National and ACT following last year's election. Neither party campaigned on the issue and critics say the Government has no mandate to pass ... and more »

Editorial: A lesson primary teachers could learn - The Dominion Post

URL: Editorial: A lesson primary teachers could learn
The Dominion Post
Apart from charter schools, it includes developing more effective teacher and principal appraisal, and making secondary-school performance data available to parents. After all, parents are entitled to know how their kids are doing so they can work with ...

Anger at ACT link in charter schools trial - Stuff.co.nz


Stuff.co.nz
URL: Anger at ACT link in charter schools trial
Stuff.co.nz
Charter school critics are incensed at the proposed appointment of the former ACT party president to lead a trial of the scheme. The Government is likely to confirm Catherine Isaac in the role after she was nominated by sole ACT MP and Associate ...
ACT defends charter schoolsNZ City
Isaac tipped for charter schools job3News NZ
Charter school row: Key thinks 'very highly' of IsaacTVNZ
Radio New Zealand -Scoop.co.nz (press release) -New Zealand Herald

Charter school policy lambasted by Pacific community leader - New Zealand Herald

URL: Charter school policy lambasted by Pacific community leader
New Zealand Herald
"When we are subjected to an initiative like charter schools, we have to ask the question as Pacific people, 'is this system of education ... going to positively [affect] our communities?"' A charter school system is set to be carried out in South ...

Government passes the buck on charter schools - The Dominion Post


The Dominion Post
URL: Government passes the buck on charter schools
The Dominion Post
And now there are charter schools. Schools that are free of all those annoying regulations designed to ensure that students' interests are protected. Charter schools don't have to follow the New Zealand curriculum or use the New Zealand qualification ...

Corporate-Controlled Schools Coming? - Scoop.co.nz (press release)

URL: Corporate-Controlled Schools Coming?
Scoop.co.nz (press release)
New Zealand was the first country in the world to introduce charter schools and did so in the wake of the 1980s 'Tomorrow's Schools' reforms. The charter is the document of accountability between the Board of Trustees and the Ministry of Education. and more »

Govt stacks the charter school deck, public kept in the dark - Scoop.co.nz (press release)

URL: Govt stacks the charter school deck, public kept in the dark
Scoop.co.nz (press release)
The education sector union NZEI Te Riu Roa says the government is stacking the charter school deck while keeping the public in the dark about how charter schools will work in New Zealand and how they will actually make a difference to student ... and more »

Trust's working party first step toward charter schools - The Dominion Post

URL: Trust's working party first step toward charter schools
The Dominion Post
A charitable trust tipped as the most likely to start up charter schools in New Zealand has announced it will set up a working party to investigate the viability of the controversial schooling model. The controversial plan for charter schools to be set ...

Charter schools job 'not confirmed' - Stuff.co.nz


Stuff.co.nz
URL: Charter schools job 'not confirmed'
Stuff.co.nz
Former ACT president Catherine Isaac has defended her proposed appointment to lead a trial of charter schools. The as-yet unconfirmed role has been criticised by political and academic opponents of the scheme. Isaac said she was ''not entirely ... and more »

Bringing Antarctica into the classroom - The Ashburton Guardian

URL: Bringing Antarctica into the classroom
The Ashburton Guardian
The real-time connection will bring Antarctica and the Southern Ocean into classrooms. From the classroom, children will be able to ask crew members a question, read blogs and track the boat on a map in real time. Mrs McKendry has spent her last few ...

School children talk about the Treaty

School children talk about the Treaty: The Treaty of Waitangi is one of the eight principles that under-pin the school curriculum.
Popout

Evolution of the classroom - Auckland stuff.co.nz


Auckland stuff.co.nz
URL: Evolution of the classroom
Auckland stuff.co.nz
Classrooms had blackboards. There was nothing electrical unless it was a short film. The teachers in our era were really grim. A lot of them weren't married and they were not very personable. A lot of my friends' mothers baked for school lunches. and more »

Getting the write start - The Southland Times


The Southland Times
URL: Getting the write start
The Southland Times
Another thing that had become quite clear during the research was that new-entrant teachers were deliberately telling the children during classroom exercises that they could do the same things at home with their packs. Many of the pack's components ... and more »

Labour suspicious about Govt's education plans - NZ City

URL: Labour suspicious about Govt's education plans
NZ City
"I think the professional development that can be offered is quite powerful, sometimes two or three times the effect that you get from reducing class size, I think there's a tremendous number of other things." Mr Hattie says the New Zealand education ... and more »

Experts, MPs blast Treasury's advice on schools - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Experts, MPs blast Treasury's advice on schools
Stuff.co.nz
He slammed comments made by Mr English, who said there was "clear evidence" that class size did not affect the quality of education. "It's disappointing to hear the finance minister say class size doesn't matter when parents and teachers, ... and more »

Education should not be Govt cash cow - Voxy

URL: Education should not be Govt cash cow
Voxy
"It's disappointing to hear the Finance Minister say class size doesn't matter when parents and teachers, who see what happens in classrooms everyday, know that children get more out of teaching and learning when they are in smaller groups and can get ... and more »

A teacher's nightmare - The Ashburton Guardian

URL: A teacher's nightmare
The Ashburton Guardian
The Auckland professor concluded that class size, amount of homework and which school a child attended, had little effect on learning. This interpretation flies in the face of basic principles that parents use to choose schools and principals use to ...

Class size matters to those who struggle most - Massey News (press release)


Massey News (press release)
URL: Class size matters to those who struggle most
Massey News (press release)
Research shows that class size does matter; and that it matters most for socio-economically disadvantaged learners, the very groups that the Government says it is most concerned about, says Massey University Professor of Education John O'Neill. and more »

Should teacher-student class ratios be increased? - New Zealand Herald


3News NZ
URL: Should teacher-student class ratios be increased?
New Zealand Herald
Analysis by Professor John Hattie has shown that class size is one of the least important factors in determining student achievement. The Treasury said student achievement could be raised by improving the quality of teaching "which the evidence shows ...
Treasury wants school class sizes to increase Radio New Zealand

Principals give Govt an 'F' on class sizes - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Principals give Govt an 'F' on class sizes
Stuff.co.nz
A survey of seven Taranaki secondary school principals yesterday revealed Treasury's proposal to increase classroom sizes does not wash with those charged to do the job. Spotswood College principal Mark Bowden says claims by Finance Minister Bill ... and more »

Increased classroom numbers only works on case-by-case basis - Scoop.co.nz (press release)

URL: Increased classroom numbers only works on case-by-case basis
Scoop.co.nz (press release)
“Whilst FYD supports increased investment in quality-of-teaching and believes that increased classroom numbers may be effective in some cases, it is certainly not a one-size-fits-all situation and if simply a cost-cutting initiative than it is of grave ... and more »

Experts slam larger-classes plan - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Experts slam larger-classes plan
Stuff.co.nz
Increasing class sizes would make it harder for teachers and pupils, said School of Education Professor John O'Neill. Those most at risk would be new entrants and Maori and Pacific students, and those who do not achieve well under the current system, ... and more »

Bigger classes plan stuns schools - The Ashburton Guardian

URL: Bigger classes plan stuns schools
The Ashburton Guardian
A report from Treasury to the Government that student teacher ratios could be increased and some schools closed, with savings used to improve the quality of teaching are not based in reality, said Mr Leverton whose school has a role of 120.

Experts slam larger-classes plan - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Experts slam larger-classes plan
Stuff.co.nz
A Massey University professor has condemned a Treasury proposal to increase school class sizes to save money. Increasing class sizes would make it harder for teachers and pupils, said School of Education Professor John O'Neill. and more »

Govt pushes on charter school scheme for city - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Govt pushes on charter school scheme for city
Stuff.co.nz
The Government is pushing ahead with plans for a charter school in Christchurch, but education leaders say they are being left in the dark. Associate Education Minister and ACT MP John Banks said yesterday he had "not forgotten about trialling a ...

Don't make Chch classes bigger - education expert - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Don't make Chch classes bigger - education expert
Stuff.co.nz
Increasing class sizes in earthquake-hit Christchurch would be a "rushed and wasteful decision", an education expert says. The Treasury this week made several radical cost-cutting recommendations to the Government, including school closures and ...

New round of school closures feared - Radio New Zealand


Stuff.co.nz

Radio New Zealand
School groups fear a new round of closures following recommendations by the Treasury and the Education Ministry that the Government close schools to save money. They say the Government must avoid the painful network reviews that hit schools nearly 10 ...
Labour suspicious about Govt's education plans NZ City
Govt eyes secondary school comparison site Stuff.co.nz

New Westlake Girls' head eyes improvements - The Aucklander

URL: New Westlake Girls' head eyes improvements
The Aucklander
She's come from 10 years of leading 280 girls at a private rural school, Nga Tawa Diocesan in Marton, to being charged with the education of 2200 girls in a city school on the North Shore. That's where The Aucklander's assessment comes in.

League Tables Are For Winners and Losers

URL: League Tables Are For Winners and Losers:
Media Release 2 February 2012 – for immediate release Attention: Education and Political Reporters League Tables Are For Winners and Losers ‘The latest news that Ministry constructed league tables are likely to be used to compare the performance ...

Maori-based school sets sights on high achievers | Maori Pacific Jobs

URL: Maori-based school sets sights on high achievers | Maori Pacific Jobs:
A tikanga Maori-based secondary school with a focus on technology and innovation where students will exercise before class each day opens in Hamilton next week. Tai Wananga Ruakura principal Toby Westrupp said the school at the Ruakura ... “If a student wants to be a dentist, our role is to clearly outline the exit strategy to identify what is required of them to get into dentistry,” said Mr Westrupp. “We discuss what are the number of points they need, what are the ...

New Waitaki rector inspires pupils to set goals | Otago Daily Times ...

URL: New Waitaki rector inspires pupils to set goals | Otago Daily Times ...:
[image]New Waitaki Boys' High School (WBHS) rector Paul Jackson was welcomed to the school at an assembly in the Hall of Memories yesterday morning.

Plan to raise pupil-teacher ratio in classrooms | Otago Daily Times ...

URL: Plan to raise pupil-teacher ratio in classrooms | Otago Daily Times ...:
"There is scope to achieve fiscal savings, primarily through reintroducing interest on the student loan scheme.'' Professor Hattie's 2009 book Visible Learning analysed 50000 educational studies covering 83 million students ...

Hail the penguin - Stuff.co.nz


Stuff.co.nz
Hail the penguin
Stuff.co.nz
I still pull my hair out when I see senior students grinding through NCEA cources covering figure-pathway-skills or introductions to Microsoft Word... there are a lot more exciting and challenging aspects to computing out there today that will teach ...

Auckland Grammar headmaster in end of an era - Auckland stuff.co.nz


Auckland stuff.co.nz
URL: Auckland Grammar headmaster in end of an era
Auckland stuff.co.nz
But actually, says the Auckland Grammar headmaster perhaps best known outside his school for slagging off the NCEA assessment system and playing in goal for the All Whites in the 1970s, "this is the happiest school I've been at".

A tough elitist approach is in students' best interest - New Zealand Herald

URL: A tough elitist approach is in students' best interest
New Zealand Herald
By Kerre Woodham So, Treasury has recommended that interest on student loans be reintroduced and tertiary funding be targeted at younger students and higher-level qualifications. Amen to that. The number of young people being sold false promises is a ...

Getting the write start - The Southland Times


The Southland Times
URL: Getting the write start
The Southland Times
Three years ago, with the support of the Invercargill East Rotary Club and the community, she developed a literacy starter pack which is given to every new entrant pupil in Southland. Containing storybooks, mini whiteboard and marker pen, ...

School lures pupils with free books and uniforms - TVNZ

URL: School lures pupils with free books and uniforms
TVNZ
A primary school is offering free uniforms, books and bags to get students through the door to hold onto government funding, but educational experts are warning schools could get caught in a bidding war if the scheme takes off.

Pool closures take toll - Otago Daily Times


Otago Daily Times
URL: Pool closures take toll
Otago Daily Times
There are 41 primary and intermediate school swimming pools in Otago, and 22 that have been closed since 2002. Eight of those pools closed when the schools they were attached to closed. One school working hard to keep its pool open is Outram School, ...

Ranfurly stalwart departing after 38 years - Otago Daily Times


Otago Daily Times
URL: Ranfurly stalwart departing after 38 years
Otago Daily Times
He took over from the area school's first principal, the late Tom Morgan, and spent 25 years at the helm. The school roll peaked at 350 during that time and he was able to use his writing skills to plead with the Education Department for improved ...

Schools use recruitment firm - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Schools use recruitment firm
Stuff.co.nz
Ilam, Waihi and Thorrington schools have hired recruitment company Sheffield to oversee the appointment of principals. Waihi, in South Canterbury, and Ilam engaged the firm late last year. Thorrington School, in Colombo St in Beckenham, told parents ...

Schools Take an Early Bite Out of Fundraising - Impact PR - Public Relations (press release)

URL: Schools Take an Early Bite Out of Fundraising
Impact PR - Public Relations (press release)
Schools throughout New Zealand are being given the chance to kick off their fundraising year with help from Muffin Break's Great Bake Sale! Students at schools around the country are being invited to enter their school into the Great Bake Sale through ...

Julie Helson: We need help in our own backyard - New Zealand Herald

URL: Julie Helson: We need help in our own backyard
New Zealand Herald
Photo / Getty Images KidsCan provides food and shoes to help children in low-decile schools, writes Julie Helson, founder and chief executive of KidsCan Charitable Trust. The impact of poverty on the health and education of children has been ...

Wellington start-up inspires kids' love of reading - TVNZ


Auckland stuff.co.nz
URL: Wellington start-up inspires kids' love of reading
TVNZ
The start-up creates educational digital books for the iPhone and iPad, including animation and optional soundtracks that read the text aloud and play accompanying music. Managing director Glenn Andert says customers download its free Read Me Stories ...

Boy genius may finish school at 15 - Stuff.co.nz


Stuff.co.nz
URL: Boy genius may finish school at 15
Stuff.co.nz
BOY GENIUS: Frano Stanistic is in his last year of high school at ACG Sunderland and at 15 will apply to study engineering at Auckland University next year. Many teens dream of finishing school by the age of 15 but for Frano Stanistic it could become ...