Speech: English - Auckland Chamber of Commerce - Scoop.co.nz (press release)

URL: Speech: English - Auckland Chamber of Commerce
Scoop.co.nz (press release)
We will ensure young New Zealanders receive relevant, future-focused skills through National Standards, and improved transition for teenagers from school to work and training. We will invest in in 14,000 more apprenticeships over the next five years.

Maori Party president makes plea for charter schools - Radio New Zealand

URL: Maori Party president makes plea for charter schools
Radio New Zealand
Maori Party president Pem Bird appeared before Parliament's Education and Science select committee on Wednesday as a spokesperson for Nga Kura-a-Iwi, a group of 23 Maori immersion-schools. The committee is hearing submissions on the Education ...

Nats 'care more about money than special needs children' - Voxy

URL: Nats 'care more about money than special needs children'
Voxy
"This is just another example of the rationalisation of the education dollar that has seen the closure of special schools and the reduction of classroom assistance for these special needs students. "Once again the Government is showing us what it truly ...

Parata's reign 'a string of blunders, miscalculations' - Otago Daily Times

URL: Parata's reign 'a string of blunders, miscalculations'
Otago Daily Times
The reality is that she has created the perfect educational storm. Since she took hold of the education reins, policy implementation by Mrs Parata has been beset with problems of her own making. Failure to do her homework or take advice, judicial ...

Recommended lunches are 'unrealistic' - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Recommended lunches are 'unrealistic' Stuff.co.nz "It's not aimed at promoting affordable foods," manager of regional operations and education Darryl Bishop said. Ad Feedback. "Sushi and couscous might not be realistic choices for some people but we're trying to show interesting things you can do with ...

Families facing school lunch challenge - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Families facing school lunch challenge
Stuff.co.nz
It's not aimed at promoting affordable foods," manager of regional operations and education Darryl Bishop said. "Sushi and couscous might not be realistic choices for some people, but we're trying to show interesting things you can do with food and ...

Spelling trouble in our classes - The Bay of Plenty Times

URL: Spelling trouble in our classes
The Bay of Plenty Times
University of Canterbury senior education lecturer Brigid McNeill said teachers typically used a memory-based strategy - spelling tests with pre-taught words - rather than concentrate on developing skills which would help children spell all words ...

Boards wary on charter schools - New Zealand Herald

URL: Boards wary on charter schools
New Zealand Herald
The New Zealand School Trustees Association, which represents about 2200 school boards of trustees, has what it calls a "midway position" on charter schools with no blanket opposition or blanket support. But the association has concerns at some ...

Computer classes right on trend

URL: Computer classes right on trend
With the start of the academic year, thousands of students around the country are opening their texts in computer science, information systems and other technology-related courses.But are they learning the right things to be useful...

Vacant school sites could fetch $41m - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Vacant school sites could fetch $41m
Stuff.co.nz
The Government could pocket more than $41 million if it sells the sites of all Christchurch schools it proposes to close under its sweeping education reform. But with some merging schools not due to relocate until 2016, it could be years before for ...

Children 'safer in early childhood centres than in many homes' - Voxy

URL: Children 'safer in early childhood centres than in many homes'
Voxy
The Early Childhood Council said today that the Home Education Foundation (HEF) was 'talking nonsense' when it argued that early childhood centres were unsafe for children. The comment referred to the HEF news release: 'Accidents, escapes plague ...

Accidents, escapes 'plague early childhood centres' - Voxy

URL: Accidents, escapes 'plague early childhood centres'
Voxy
As the government Select Committee draws up its report on the Social Security (Benefit Categories and Work Focus) Amendment Bill, the Home Education Foundation (HEF) of New Zealand is calling on members of the committee and the public to consider ...

Parata focus of Novopay action - 3News NZ

3News NZ

URL: Parata focus of Novopay action 3News NZ “I think the public has lost confidence in Hekia Parata,” says Labour Education spokesman Chris Hipkins. “I think John Key is the only person who has confidence in her really.” There's been the class size reversal, the chief executive's departure ...

Teachers' union mounts legal action over Novopay - TVNZ

MSN NZ News

URL: Teachers' union mounts legal action over Novopay TVNZ The Post Primary Teachers Association (PPTA) says it is launching legal action on behalf of its members because its patience with the failed education payroll system has all but run out. PPTA president Angela Roberts said the association would be ...

Novopay legal action backed by Principals - TVNZ

3News NZ

URL: Novopay legal action backed by Principals TVNZ At least 23 school staff have resigned as a direct result of Novopay and Waikato principals are backing pending legal action over the education payroll "circus". The Post Primary Teachers' Association (PPTA) yesterday announced it was launching a group ...

Authority backs charter schools - The Daily Post

URL: Authority backs charter schools
The Daily Post
Authority spokesman Pem Bird said a group of supporters from the education authority would be making a submission in Wellington this week in support of partnership schools. The Iwi Education Authority will be supporting charter schools in a bid to ...

Our chance to lead the world - New Zealand Herald

URL: Our chance to lead the world
New Zealand Herald
Every day teachers and students are solving problems and creating new ways of doing things in our classrooms and online. One Kiwi science ... We will need to be innovative in our thinking in the home and classroom to realise these opportunities. Nikki ...

Empowering ahead - New Zealand Herald

URL: Empowering ahead
New Zealand Herald
His own foundation funded a project, Measures of Effective Teaching (Met) that worked with 3000 classroom teachers to better understand how to build an evaluation and feedback system to help teachers improve. The report concluded that there were ...

Fears merger pupils will go into prefabs - The Press

URL: Fears merger pupils will go into prefabs
The Press
No child will be put into classrooms of a lesser standard if school merger and closure proposals go ahead, the Ministry of Education says. But Christchurch principals are sceptical about the guarantee and do not believe the mergers and closures can be ...

Retiring teacher had a ball - Taranaki Daily News

URL: Retiring teacher had a ball
Taranaki Daily News
She said being outside rather than stuck in a classroom helped curb naughty behaviour. She said PE played a vital role in students' development. "Team situations make kids communicate better, they learn respect and it's something different from just ...

Taxis just like Novopay: teacher - New Zealand Herald

URL: Taxis just like Novopay: teacher
New Zealand Herald
Taxis to and from school for some special-needs students are paid for by the Ministry of Education. At the end of last year, it tendered the contracts, changing providers in areas including central Auckland, the North Shore, Tauranga, Whangarei and ...

Sale of vacant school sites could reach $41m - TVNZ

URL: Sale of vacant school sites could reach $41m
TVNZ
The Government could pocket more than $41 million if it sells the sites of all Christchurch schools it proposes to close under its sweeping education reform. But with some merging schools not due to relocate until 2016, it could be years before for ...

Update on Novopay

URL: Update on Novopay

Steven Joyce | Education

Minister Responsible for Novopay Steven Joyce today released an update on Pay Periods 23 and 24.
Pay Period 23, which was paid on the morning of 6 February, paid 74,373 staff a total of $143.87 million. PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) has compiled a report about the pay period showing there were complaints and notifications received regarding 2.2 per cent of staff across the country. 552 staff were notified as not paid, 521 were overpaid, and 589 underpaid. The affected staff were from 628 schools around the country...

Kohanga and Government reach agreement - Radio New Zealand

URL: Kohanga and Government reach agreement
Radio New Zealand
Kohanga and Government reach agreement. Updated at 8:45 am today. The Government and the kohanga reo movement have reached an agreement on a Waitangi Tribunal recommendation. They have been in talks since the release of a Waitangi Tribunal ...

Non-registered, unqualified teachers 'could damage NZ's reputation' - Voxy

URL: Non-registered, unqualified teachers 'could damage NZ's reputation'
Voxy
"Charter Schools could undermine the reputation of our teachers as highly qualified professionals and create barriers for movement of teachers within New Zealand" said Malcolm Walker, President of the Independent Schools Education Association (ISEA).

Conflicting views on charter school potential - Radio New Zealand

URL: Conflicting views on charter school potential
Radio New Zealand
... at what is working in state schools, rather than introducing a foreign model of school. However, Stuart Middleton, director of external relations at Manukau Institute of Technology, told MPs that too many children are failing and it's time to try ...

Charter schools worry principals assoc, union - TVNZ

URL: Charter schools worry principals assoc, union
TVNZ
Fresh debate is raging in the education sector over the introduction of charter schools, as the Act Party pushes for them to get the go-ahead. A Parliamentary select committee held a hearing this week on the Education Amendment Bill to allow for ...

Time to expel education minister - New Zealand Herald

KOMO News

URL: Time to expel education minister New Zealand Herald Just as a reminder, during the last election National did not mention education policies such as charter schools, yet the great educationalist John Banks insisted it become government policy as part of Act's coalition deal. Act's entire electoral ...

Govt eyes back to basics in maths - New Zealand Herald

New Zealand Herald

URL: Govt eyes back to basics in maths New Zealand Herald Education Minister Hekia Parata is considering a return to basic arithmetic for primary school children in an attempt to lift New Zealand's faltering performance in maths. New Zealand 9-year-olds finished last-equal in maths among peers in developed ...

It just doesn't add up - New Zealand Herald

New Zealand Herald

URL: It just doesn't add up New Zealand Herald Nelson says Rainey merely told teachers how to use the programme but, as a non-teacher, he was never supposed to have any involvement in the classroom. Asked for her reaction to the students' poor results, she replied: "I don't have a view to share ...

Plan to lift SME growth with student initiatives - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Plan to lift SME growth with student initiatives
Stuff.co.nz
A lack of education rather than capital is the biggest growth hurdle for New Zealand's small business economy, according to Tenby Powell, founder of the New Zealand SME Network. One way to address the issue was putting university graduates in direct ...

Secret talks on Chch school land swaps - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Secret talks on Chch school land swaps
Stuff.co.nz
Secret meetings have been going on for months between the Ministry of Education and Christchurch City Council staff about possible land swaps to accommodate proposed school mergers. The news has upset Phillipstown School principal Tony Simpson, ...

Maori ICT cash not slush fund - minister - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Maori ICT cash not slush fund - minister
Stuff.co.nz
The fund would also help the Government achieve its existing policy objectives of helping ''lift Maori participation and achievement''. ''I can see opportunities for initiatives improving digital literacy, potential scholarships to improve Maori ICT ...

Students and their learning at the centre

URL: Students and their learning at the centre
National Standards
Rebecca Logan from Wellington East Girls' College discusses how she centres her lessons around her students with group work and time for inquiry. This allows her to have conversations with them about how they are learning. The result is that the students are much more able to reflect on and grow their learning capacity.

Parata booed at Kapa Haka Fest - Voxy

URL: Parata booed at Kapa Haka Fest
Voxy
Over 50,000 people have gathered at the Rotorua International Stadium for the final day of the 2013 Te Matatini competition. Among the action was Education minister Hekia Parata who was booed at from the entire crowd when she was asked to present one ...

Teachers quick studies on reporting abuse - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Teachers quick studies on reporting abuse
Stuff.co.nz
CYF central region operations manager Bev Markham said those trends were mirrored in Taranaki, with education sector notifications rising from 150 to 245. "This is good news as it shows a key part of the community is engaging with Child, Youth and ...

Teachers' union considers legal action - Stuff.co.nz

Newstalk ZB

URL: Teachers' union considers legal action Stuff.co.nz More than 8000 calls were made to the Novopay contact centre and the Ministry of Education. As the Government struggles to get to grips with the payroll fiasco, Mr Joyce has ordered a series of reports. The audit by PWC will also take place for PP24 ...

Novopay software upgrade to roll out this weekend

URL: Novopay software upgrade to roll out this weekend
The first software upgrade of the troubled Novopay system will be rolled out this weekend.It comes as the first report from external auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) shows payments to school staff on February 6 attracted complaints...

Novopay payroll statistics

URL: Novopay payroll statistics
This page contains statistics from 5 September 2012 (pay period 12) which show the number of school staff paid, the total value of the payroll and other related statistics.

Novopay payroll statistics

URL: Novopay payroll statistics
This page contains statistics from 5 September 2012 (pay period 12) which show the number of school staff paid, the total value of the payroll and other related statistics.

Programme resounding success' - Wairarapa Times-Age

URL: Programme resounding success'
Wairarapa Times-Age
The aim of this investment is to provide the Masterton cluster with consistent, high quality school sports, sport specific professional development for teachers and to foster community partnerships to strengthen the delivery of sport in schools ...

NZ Apprenticeships right approach - BusinessNZ - guide2.co.nz

New Zealand Herald

URL: NZ Apprenticeships right approach - BusinessNZ guide2.co.nz "Allowing employers to get direct access to industry training funding to organise their apprenticeships if desired will bring competitive pressures on ITOs and help build on their higher performance in recent months. "Past problems in the system that ...

Rally, vote of no confidence expected - New Zealand Herald

URL: Rally, vote of no confidence expected
New Zealand Herald
A planned strike for today was called off by teachers who wanted to remain in their classrooms today to support children after yesterday's news. NZEI national president Judith Nowotarski says educators are very concerned about the pace that the ...

High demand for trade training - The Nelson Mail

URL: High demand for trade training
The Nelson Mail
The academy was set up last year as a way to offer practical learning outside the traditional classroom, and to help budding tradespeople gain skills. Students remain enrolled at their usual secondary school but train for one day a week with tutors at ...

Resilience key for digital natives - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Resilience key for digital natives
Stuff.co.nz
... schools because exposure to technology from a young age could be rewiring the brains of "digital natives". This could have far-reaching consequences for the way teachers educated future generations and could require fundamental changes in education.

Class to develop better men - Otago Daily Times

Otago Daily Times

URL: Class to develop better men Otago Daily Times University of Otago School of Education senior lecturer Steven Sexton said classes like the one at King's were usually perfect for a majority of people. Not having any knowledge of the specifics, Dr Sexton said he could not comment directly on the King ...

Learning to earn - Otago Daily Times

Otago Daily Times

URL: Learning to earn Otago Daily Times When Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Steven Joyce said students choosing subjects should remember doctors earn three times as much as performing arts graduates, 19-year-old Olivia Lynch said, ''Thank you.'' She did not say, ''How ...

Lost loved ones: Little woman, big heart - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Lost loved ones: Little woman, big heart Stuff.co.nz She told me that she was determined to make up for her failure by ensuring that her 10 children received the best education she could get them. A rather large prospect by the way for a woman who was barely five feet tall! She was a solo parent who ...

Chch single-sex state schools should remain - survey - Voxy

Voxy

URL: Chch single-sex state schools should remain - survey Voxy Most people wanted to be able to choose from either single-sex or co-education schools. They largely felt that Christchurch single-sex state schools should retain their single-sex identity and not become co-educational schools. Most respondents ...

Parata overruled on Collegiate integration - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Parata overruled on Collegiate integration Stuff.co.nz Education Minister Hekia Parata recommended that Wanganui Collegiate should not be integrated into the state system, but she was rolled by her Cabinet colleagues. If integration had not gone ahead, the private school would have closed last year, ...

Teachers' voices suffer - New Zealand Herald

URL: Teachers' voices suffer
New Zealand Herald
Thousands of Kiwi teachers are at risk of developing serious voice problems because of high noise levels and poor acoustics in classrooms. Research surveying almost 3,000 teachers suggests they have higher rates of voice-use issues than people in other ...

New Tertiary Education Commission Chief Executive Appointed

URL: New Tertiary Education Commission Chief Executive Appointed
25 February 2013 New Tertiary Education Commission Chief Executive Appointed The Chair of the Tertiary Education Commission, John Spencer today welcomed the appointment of Tim Fowler as the Commission’s new Chief Executive. “I am pleased to announce ...

Bills to improve and safeguard information sharing passed

URL: Bills to improve and safeguard information sharing passed

Judith Collins | Justice

Legislation to improve information sharing between agencies that deliver public services has passed its final reading in Parliament today. Justice Minister Judith Collins says the new laws will clarify and improve the rules around how government agencies share personal information, while ensuring safeguards are in place to protect individual’s privacy. “These changes pave the way for better services for all New Zealanders, from improving our ability to protect vulnerable children, to reducing duplication and information handling costs...

Former director: Introducing charter schools 'horrendous'

URL: Former director: Introducing charter schools 'horrendous'
A former director of charter schools overseas is urging New Zealand not to introduce them here.Robert Wilson directed three charter schools in the US, for a company with more than a dozen there and other public-private partnership...

Porirua teachers 'red sticker' Hekia Parata - The Dominion Post

New Zealand Herald

URL: Porirua teachers 'red sticker' Hekia Parata The Dominion Post Some of Christchurch's five new schools were likely to be charter schools, Mrs Khan said. ''It's an underhanded way for [the Government] to bring in charter schools. This really is rotten to the core." Glenview School teacher Tufaina Faraimo said ...

Parata insists school closures not a cost cutting measure - TVNZ

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Parata insists school closures not a cost cutting measure TVNZ The minister responded saying she had consistently received feedback from parents who said they wanted "certainty" and to know what the outcomes for their schools would be. Concerned parent Dianne asked the minister why North New Brighton School ...

40 teachers stand to lose jobs - The Press

The Press

URL: 40 teachers stand to lose jobs The Press At least 40 teachers stand to lose their jobs as schools close at the end of the year under the Ministry of Education's network overhaul. And 19 principals' jobs are on the line with just six roles available at remaining schools after the closures and ...

Education, not capital, key to small biz growth - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Education, not capital, key to small biz growth
Stuff.co.nz
A lack of education rather than capital is the biggest growth hurdle for New Zealand's small business economy, according to Tenby Powell, founder of the New Zealand SME Network. One way to address the issue was putting university graduates in direct ...

Christchurch kura will have to move - minister - Radio New Zealand

URL: Christchurch kura will have to move - minister
Radio New Zealand
Education Minister Hekia Parata is ruling out a suggestion to establish a third kura kaupapa in Christchurch and says her relocation plan is the only one on offer. The Government has dropped plans to integrate the city's two total immersion Maori ...

Pressure on Government over bible lessons

URL: Pressure on Government over bible lessons
Parents who oppose bible lessons in public schools are taking their fight to the Government.

Kiwis uncertain about the future - survey - Voxy

Thread

URL: Kiwis uncertain about the future - survey Voxy Professor Paul Spoonley, Research Director at Massey University's College of Humanities and Social Sciences, says that despite concern over what will happen to our communities in the future, the research highlights New Zealander's desire for strong ...

Teachers Council against charter schools - Radio New Zealand

URL: Teachers Council against charter schools
Radio New Zealand
The Teachers Council on Wednesday added its voice to opposition to the Government's proposed charter schools. A parliamentary select committee is continuing to hear submissions on the Education Amendment Bill that will introduce the schools. Although ...

Charter schools a 'failed experiment in New Orleans' - New Zealand Herald

Newstalk ZB

URL: Charter schools a 'failed experiment in New Orleans' New Zealand Herald A visiting opponent of charter schools has told the education and science committee in Parliament today the Government should not proceed with charter schools. Karran Harper Royal, from New Orleans, cautioned the committee against approving charter ...

American mother making submission against charter schools - Newstalk ZB

Newstalk ZB

URL: American mother making submission against charter schools Newstalk ZB An American woman whose son has been at a charter school, says the system leads to the picking and choosing of students. The Post Primary Teachers' Association (PPTS) is presenting its submission against charter schools to a select committee today.

Educa now exporting to Australia

URL: Educa now exporting to Australia
Educa is now officially delivering its cloud-based e-portfolio solution to its neighbor country Australia. Two new customers in Sydney and Perth with a total of 650 pupils and parents are now enjoying the benefits of sharing children’s learning programmes ...

19/02/2013 Publication: Assessing skills of adult learners in 2011

URL: 19/02/2013 Publication: Assessing skills of adult learners in 2011
Education Counts
Initial statistical report on the Literacy and Numeracy for Adults Assessment Tool.

19/02/2013 Publication: Engagement is key

URL: 19/02/2013 Publication: Engagement is key
Education Counts
Report presents findings of a small piece of qualitative research with 9 providers delivering programmes to young people.

Three schools in three years for some - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Three schools in three years for some Stuff.co.nz Education Minister Hekia Parata told Parliament yesterday she had never made a promise to the schools that they would remain open until 2014, but provided only "proposals". "I made it clear, repeatedly, that it was a proposal, that they had the ...

School takes on new name - Auckland stuff.co.nz

Auckland stuff.co.nz

URL: School takes on new name Auckland stuff.co.nz The school is changing its name to Kereru Park Campus in reference to the native wood pigeons that grace the stand of totara trees outside its classrooms. The school is across a field from Kirks Bush where kereru feed on puriri berries before flying ...

School tests

School tests
NZ Herald (letters to the editor)
NZCER's response to the NZ Herald story regarding STAR tests has been published in the letters to the editor section of the print edition.
REF: NZ Herald, 20 February 2013, letters to the editor

NZ Teachers Need To Improve Spelling Instruction, Researcher

URL: NZ Teachers Need To Improve Spelling Instruction, Researcher
Scoop
NZ Teachers Need To Improve Spelling Instruction, UC Researcher Says February 19, 2013 New Zealand teachers are not using their understanding of how to teach spelling into practice in the classroom, a University of Canterbury (UC) research project ...

Parata fails Maori education - Harawira - Voxy

New Zealand Herald

URL: Parata fails Maori education - Harawira Voxy "The announcements made yesterday about the future of Christchurch schooling confirms that Parata doesn't give a shit about Maori education" comments MANA Leader and MP for Te Tai Tokerau. "The PM said at Ratana that he dares anybody to find ...

Schools suffered 'unnecessary grief' - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Schools suffered 'unnecessary grief'
Stuff.co.nz
Following yesterday's announcement to close seven schools, merge 12 into six and keep another 12 open, Harding said his focus today was entirely on extending his support to the 19 school principals, their students and their families who were told ...

Hundreds rally against school closures

URL: Hundreds rally against school closures
NZ Herald
"She has to go," said Sarah Blake, waving a placard outside the Ministry of Education offices in Christchurch.Her feelings on Education Minister Hekia Parata - prompted by the closure of her two children's Central New Brighton School...

Christchurch rally supports schools

Christchurch rally supports schools
Radio NZ
The 19 Christchurch schools the government wants to merge or close are now beginning to think about how they will formally respond to the plans.

School closures brought forward 'to give parents certainty' - TVNZ

URL: School closures brought forward 'to give parents certainty'
TVNZ
Education Minister Hekia Parata says the decision to close some Christchurch schools by the end of next year was made to give parents more certainty on their child's future education. The Education Minister yesterday announced an interim decision to ...

Timing of school closures couldn't be worse - Stuff.co.nz

Getty Images

URL: Timing of school closures couldn't be worse Stuff.co.nz It ended with marches, strikes, a lot of very bad publicity, and then minister Lockwood Smith escaping out a classroom window. A Labour education minister, Trevor Mallard, wasn't spared either when he embarked on a school closure programme in the early ...

Makoura completes huge turnaround - Wairarapa Times-Age

URL: Makoura completes huge turnaround
Wairarapa Times-Age
The review was completed in December and is the first conducted under the governance of a board of trustees that was established after Tim White stood down as commissioner at the school in 2011. The school had been forced to the brink of closure three ...

Students' hard work pays off - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Students' hard work pays off
Stuff.co.nz
South Canterbury schools are celebrating their best and brightest, with a number of National Certificate in Educational Achievement scholarships won in the region last year. Four Craighead Diocesan School students - Genevieve Steven, Rachel Rolleston ...

71pc want Parata gone - poll - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: 71pc want Parata gone - poll Stuff.co.nz Hundreds of protesters have delivered a motion of no confidence in Hekia Parata's performance as a new poll reveals the controversial education minister is rapidly turning into political public enemy No 1. In today's Fairfax Media-Ipsos poll, surveyed ...

Parata's tenure hangs by a thread - Manawatu Standard

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Parata's tenure hangs by a thread Manawatu Standard There was an embarrassing backdown over classroom sizes, a breakdown in her relationship with Education Secretary Lesley Longstone which saw her leave the ministry, and the ongoing Novopay debacle. Parata is clearly out of her depth in a key portfolio ...

New Zealand's first governance qualification - Scoop.co.nz (press release)

URL: New Zealand's first governance qualification
Scoop.co.nz (press release)
Speaking at the launch, IoD Vice-President Stuart McLauchlan said, “Quality professional development is vital for any profession, so we are delighted that Waikato University have developed New Zealand's first postgraduate certificate in governance.

Parata makes Novopay apology

URL: Parata makes Novopay apology
Education Minister Hekia Parata folded under pressure to apologise over Novopay this afternoon.This morning she skirted around calls to apologise but this afternoon uttered the "s" word twice."I am sorry that's it taken so much...

Thousands apply to have NCEA papers remarked - Stuff.co.nz

URL: Thousands apply to have NCEA papers remarked
Stuff.co.nz
New Zealand Qualification Authority (NZQA) has recorded 292 applications for reviews and 5637 for reconsideration after more than 163 000 students received NCEA results on January 15. Pupils had until yesterday to register any concerns about their ...

Kuku Wawatai leaving Bay of Plenty Polytechnic - Voxy

URL: Kuku Wawatai leaving Bay of Plenty Polytechnic
Voxy
Kuku Wawatai (Ngati Porou), Director Education and Maori Development at Bay of Plenty Polytechnic, resigned his position last week leaving behind a legacy of commitment and passion for education, specifically in improving Maori participation and ...

School accused of overcharging parents - Stuff.co.nz

URL: School accused of overcharging parents
Stuff.co.nz
An integrated Hutt Valley school may have overcharged parents more than $300,000 in compulsory fees, but the Ministry of Education has no power to make the school admit it. Hutt International Boys' School (Hibs), which was integrated into the state ...

School raises $40000 for deaf teacher in two weeks - 3News NZ (blog)

3News NZ (blog)

URL: School raises $40000 for deaf teacher in two weeks 3News NZ (blog) Alice Woodcock looks set to be back in the classroom at Mairehau Primary School as early as next term after a whirlwind fundraiser - which included a single donation of more than $20,000. The 34-year-old says she can't believe the generosity of so many.

Building the best schooling network in the country

URL: Building the best schooling network in the country

Hekia Parata | Education

Education Minister Hekia Parata today announced she has listened to parents and school communities and decided about a third of the proposals for greater Christchurch schools should now not proceed. Ms Parata today announced interim decisions for 31 of the 38 schools affected by the Government’s Education Renewal Plans. “The Government is absolutely committed to rebuilding Christchurch – that’s why we are investing $1 billion into restoring and renewing the education sector in Canterbury over the next 10 years,” Ms Parata says...

Editorial: School policy should be about needs, not theories

URL: Editorial: School policy should be about needs, not theories
Of all the decisions fumbled by Education Minister Hekia Parata last year, the post-earthquake plan for Christchurch was perhaps the worst. It was not a decision like class sizes that could be blamed on budget demands and, unlike...

Mathematics in Years 4 to 8: Developing a Responsive Curriculum

URL: Mathematics in Years 4 to 8: Developing a Responsive Curriculum

In this evaluation ERO used the mathematics learning area and associated standards to look at what schools were doing to raise the achievement of students in Years 4 to 8.

National Standards are the problem « Red Alert

URL: National Standards are the problem « Red Alert
…some principals are worried that less-scrupulous schools – or those whose staff simply don't understand how the tests have changed – could be using the results to artificially boost their National Standards results. That in turn could give ... A child's educational achievement and performance should be measured against known standards, not some subjective assessment by an often unionised drone looking to preserve their tenure. National Standards may not be the ...

Challenge of being a small, smart country - Otago Daily Times

URL: Challenge of being a small, smart country
Otago Daily Times
The more scientists who do that - after an expensive education at taxpayers' expense here - the less will they be able to meet another Gluckman ambition. Mr Joyce's speech on Thursday is to a two-day conference of science communicators, which will ...

Seelye Fellowship Seminar: Entrepreneurial Teacher Leadership

URL: Seelye Fellowship Seminar: Entrepreneurial Teacher Leadership
With Professor Raymond L. Price, University of Illinois and Professor Janet S. Gaffney, University of Auckland.
J3 lecture theatre, Epsom Campus, Gate 3, 74 Epsom Ave, Epsom, Auckland (View map)
20 March 2013

National, Key up in post-reshuffle poll despite Parata backlash - National Business Review

URL: National, Key up in post-reshuffle poll despite Parata backlash
National Business Review
The first One News Colmar-Brunton poll finds a big majority think Prime Minister John Key should have dumped Education Minister Hekia Parata in the recent cabinet reshuffle - which saw Phil Heatley and Kate Wilkinson pushed out and high-flyers Nathan ...

Irreparable harm to children's bodies: expert - Otago Daily Times

URL: Irreparable harm to children's bodies: expert
Otago Daily Times
Children were spending much less time on social interaction in sport and other physical activities, and more time at home watching television, engaged in non-educational, antisocial computer/phone activities, eating poorly, gaining weight and ...

Seven schools to close, 12 saved - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Seven schools to close, 12 saved Stuff.co.nz "There are going to be more than 700 kids in one school, there will be about 35 to 40 in a classroom. I dont want him lost to the system." Earlier today Simpson had been hopeful officials would overturn the merger plans and ... O'Leary said there was ...

Phillipstown School closure a 'cruel blow' - New Zealand Herald

Otago Daily Times

URL: Phillipstown School closure a 'cruel blow' New Zealand Herald Mrs Alesana went into Diamond's classroom to console her after hearing the news today. "I didn't want to cry today, I wanted to stay strong, but seeing my wee girl crying and crying, I just couldn't help it." - Additional reporting Kate Shuttleworth ...

Fresh fight for Cantabrians - TVNZ

New Zealand Herald

URL: Fresh fight for Cantabrians TVNZ Education Minister Hekia Parata yesterday announced an interim decision to close seven schools and merge 12 to create six. Another 12 schools proposed for closure or merger were given a reprieve. Protest meetings are being held across the city today as ...

Principals: We were duped - New Zealand Herald

URL: Principals: We were duped
New Zealand Herald
Principals at Branston, Linwood and Manning intermediates said they were assured by Ms Parata at a public meeting in October that they would stay open for two years, allowing new Year 7 students to complete two years' education. Branston Intermediate ...

Parata 'wrestled' with school closure decisions - TVNZ

URL: Parata 'wrestled' with school closure decisions
TVNZ
Education Minister Hekia Parata said she "wrestled with every decision" after announcing the closure of seven Christchurch schools today. Thirty-one of the 38 Christchurch schools earmarked for mergers or closure were given an interim decision on their ...

Phillipstown School closure a 'cruel blow' - New Zealand Herald

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Phillipstown School closure a 'cruel blow' New Zealand Herald Seven schools - Branston Intermediate, Glenmoor, Greenpark, Kendal, Linwood Intermediate, Manning Intermediate and Richmond - will shut by next January, despite assurances from the Ministry of Education that children could stay until 2015. Burwood will ...

Rāhina 18 Hui-tānguru 2013 - TVNZ

URL: Rāhina 18 Hui-tānguru 2013
TVNZ
Minister of Education, Hekia Parata, made her announcement on Christchurch schools today. Seven schools will close and 12 will merge to create six new schools. Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Whānau Tahi and Te Kura Whakapūmau i Te Reo Tūturu ki ...

PM: There will be unhappy Christchurch schools today - TVNZ

URL: PM: There will be unhappy Christchurch schools today
TVNZ
"But we have a chance here to provide greater Christchurch with one of the best and most modern schooling networks in the country that will serve communities for many years to come, and help each and every child get a great education," Parata said.

Kura intends to stay put - Radio New Zealand

URL: Kura intends to stay put
Radio New Zealand
A Maori language medium school in Christchurch is prepared to stay put and has no plans to move, despite a Government plan for it to relocate. In November 2012, Te Whanau Tahi in Spreydon vehemently opposed an Education Ministry plan to merge it with ...

Christchurch schools discuss frustrations

URL: Christchurch schools discuss frustrations
Lyttelton West School faces a similar fate to that of Central New Brighton - it has been earmarked to close and merge with another school, Lyttelton Main, in January next year.

New Brighton schools shocked and speed of changes

URL: New Brighton schools shocked and speed of changes
The staff, students and parents from an 124-year-old Christchurch primary school that will shut its doors at the end of the year will today join the rally against the planned changes to it - and 18 other of the region's schools.

Hekia Parata says decisions are not yet final

URL: Hekia Parata says decisions are not yet final
Many parents, school staff and pupils in affected schools are upset and angry with the decisions.

Christchurch schools to rally against closures and mergers

URL: Christchurch schools to rally against closures and mergers
Thousands of Christchurch people are today preparing to vent their anger at the government's plans to close or merge 19 of the region's schools.

Fate of 31 Christchurch schools to be announced today

URL: Fate of 31 Christchurch schools to be announced today
Matt Bateman is the Principal of Burnside Primary School which the Ministry of Education has proposed closing. Gerard Direen is the Principal of Linwood Ave School which is earmarked to merge with Bromley School on the Bromley site.

Challenge to closures could be long, expensive, pointless

URL: Challenge to closures could be long, expensive, pointless
If schools challenged the Minister of Education’s decision to close and merge Christchurch schools it could potentially be long, expensive and, ultimately, of no purpose for the effected schools, University of Canterbury’s Head of Law Associate Professor ...

Parata's 'lie-telling' infuriates principals - The Press

Otago Daily Times

URL: Parata's 'lie-telling' infuriates principals The Press Many had enrolled new pupils on Parata's earlier guarantees, only to have to renege on promises to parents. Some schools are already planning appeals over the new timelines. Linwood Intermediate's closure has been brought forward to the end of the year.

Too early for teacher job loss numbers - Parata

URL: Too early for teacher job loss numbers - Parata
It's too soon to say how many teachers will lose their jobs due to proposed school closures and mergers in Christchurch, Education Minister Hekia Parata says.

Interactive Map: Chch school closures

URL: Interactive Map: Chch school closures
See below for an interactive map of which Christchurch schools are impacted by the Government's planned closures and mergers.

Top students uncomfortable being identified as gifted - study - Voxy

URL: Top students uncomfortable being identified as gifted - study
Voxy
Several were concerned about getting a nerdy name and most had experienced being called a nerd, among other things. The survey was carried out over 18 months by UC PhD student Louise Tapper. She tracked gifted and talented students from Year 9.

Warnings eyed for kids' TV exposure

URL: Warnings eyed for kids' TV exposure
An expert on the effects of television on children wants TV stations to broadcast warnings about the dangers of children watching for too long.

'She'll be right' not good enough at work - Stuff.co.nz

URL: 'She'll be right' not good enough at work
Stuff.co.nz
Some submitters suggested that parents and the education system were to blame by wrapping young people entering the workforce in "cotton wool". Their first employer therefore becomes responsible for imbuing a sense of personal responsibility and safety ...

Ultra-fast start to school year for Kaipaki students - Voxy

URL: Ultra-fast start to school year for Kaipaki students
Voxy
Kaipaki Primary School's 60 children are among the first rural students in Cambridge to start the school year with access to ultra-fast broadband in the classroom. The three-classroom country school is also among some of the first in the ... Having ...

Interim decisions for 31 ChCh schools on Monday

URL: Interim decisions for 31 ChCh schools on Monday

Hekia Parata | Education

Education Minister Hekia Parata will announce the interim decisions for 31 of the 38 greater Christchurch schools affected by the Government’s Education Renewal Plans in Christchurch on Monday. “I would like to thank parents, students, teachers, principals, and wider school communities for the feedback they provided, particularly those who met me when I visited 35 of the affected schools late last year,” Ms Parata says...

Benefits of early childhood education promoted to Pacific families

URL: Benefits of early childhood education promoted to Pacific families

Hekia Parata | Pacific Island Affairs

Pacific Island Affairs and Education Minister Hekia Parata welcomes the first of a series of local workshops to inform Pacific families of the benefits of early childhood education (ECE) in Auckland this weekend. “We want to make sure that all Pacific families know that having our kids attend ECE improves future educational outcomes. To put it simply, if your child goes to ECE, they will do better at school,” says Ms Parata...

Kids urged to imagine their own Amazing Place

URL: Kids urged to imagine their own Amazing Place

Gerry Brownlee | Canterbury Earthquake Recovery

Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee says the children of Christchurch have a unique opportunity to help develop part of the new central city through the Amazing Place playground competition. Competition packs have been distributed to every Canterbury school and early childhood centre, and schools have already begun registering to take part in the project, which has the Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) as its principal sponsor. There are separate competitions for different age groups...

Test flaws flatter students' abilities - New Zealand Herald

New Zealand Herald

URL: Test flaws flatter students' abilities New Zealand Herald The e-asTTle writing test and the STAR reading test helped teachers identify students' strengths and weaknesses and were used to decide their National Standards ranking. New versions of the tests were rolled out in the second half of last year and the ...

Grade-inflation alarm sparks Ministry probe - New Zealand Listener

New Zealand Listener

URL: Grade-inflation alarm sparks Ministry probe New Zealand Listener Teachers use the results – along with their own observations and judgments – to work out National Standards grades. John Carrodus, principal of Edmonton Primary, says: “According to e-asTTle, we've got sows' ears out here that we've turned into silk ...

Primary school tests not being used as they should be

URL: Primary school tests not being used as they should be
Tests to identify children's learning needs are being used for purposes for which they have never been intended.

Committee hears opposition to charter schools - Radio New Zealand

URL: Committee hears opposition to charter schools
Radio New Zealand
A bill proposing charter schools has been overwhelmingly opposed at a parliamentary select committee meeting in Christchurch, with MPs told it is a disaster waiting to happen. The Education and Science committee is hearing submissions this week on the ...

Rodney Hide: Mad and bad unions hold us to ransom - New Zealand Herald

URL: Rodney Hide: Mad and bad unions hold us to ransom
New Zealand Herald
Their latest campaign is against the Government's proposed partnership, or charter, schools. The campaign is complete with union hyperbole, propaganda and wild claims. The PPTA says partnership schools are an attempt to "dismantle New Zealand's public ...

Key stands by Parata - New Zealand Herald

URL: Key stands by Parata
New Zealand Herald
This followed a torrid time during which she oversaw the class size backdown, the Novopay debacle and the breakdown in communications with Education Secretary Lesley Longstone and her subsequent departure. Mr Key told TVOne's Breakfast programme ...

Parata should have gone, says poll - New Zealand Herald

New Zealand Herald

URL: Parata should have gone, says poll New Zealand Herald Fifty-nine per cent of voters polled by Colmar Brunton believed Prime Minister John Key made the wrong decision by keeping Ms Parata as Education Minister in last month's Cabinet reshuffle following a torrid time during which she oversaw the class size ...

Pressure is on Parata - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Pressure is on Parata Stuff.co.nz With the backdrop of Novopay, charter schools, and the threat of performance pay for teachers and school closures, the pressure is very much on. As former education minister Lockwood Smith gave his valedictory speech last week, colleagues and opponents ...

Survey of up to 3000 children underway

URL: Survey of up to 3000 children underway
A University of Canterbury (UC) survey of up to 3000 children will help provide the first comprehensive study on early language development in New Zealand.

Time to get serious about education profits - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Time to get serious about education profits Stuff.co.nz When I then heard of a fluent Chinese speaker taking NCEA Chinese because it will be easy to get an Excellence endorsement, I started thinking about how attitudes towards education have changed over the years. We all know how important education is for ...

Pre-school brand now spreading to China - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Pre-school brand now spreading to China Stuff.co.nz ... taken the childhood education brand to. CRAIG SIMCOX/Fairfax NZ. BIG HORIZONS: Little School founder Maria Johnson has now taken the childhood education brand to China, where a school will be open by August, and is eyeing the Middle East. ... The ...

Classroom turns field of dreams - New Zealand Herald

URL: Classroom turns field of dreams
New Zealand Herald
"They've been targeted as potentially disengaged students on the back on year nine, and we're aiming to re-engage them by bringing sport into the classroom. They'll follow exactly the same content as every other class, but sport will be the context ...

Dave Armstrong achieves NCEA standard with new play - National Business Review

URL: Dave Armstrong achieves NCEA standard with new play
National Business Review
The play manages to cleverly combine a sense of the timeless gym (it could be set any time in the last 30 years) along with contemporary references to NCEA, charter schools and Novopay. There are perceptive insights and comments about the nature of ...

NCEA provisional results: more Pasifika students achieving

URL: NCEA provisional results: more Pasifika students achieving
Maungakiekie MP, Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga, welcomes the provisional NCEA results showing more Pasifika achievement.

Principals say children at risk in fund squeeze - Stuff.co.nz

Stuff.co.nz

URL: Principals say children at risk in fund squeeze Stuff.co.nz While primary and secondary education in New Zealand was "free", many Southland schools requested financial donations from families to help pay for extras such as technology. In Southland, many of the parent donations were funnelled into technology as ...

Will be keep on sharing? - The Press

The Press

URL: Will be keep on sharing? The Press Education lecturer Veronica O'Toole has been looking at the emotional impact of the earthquakes on Christchurch teachers, exploring the idea that, as in New York after 9/11, teachers were the unsung heroes. In psychology, associate professor Neville ...

Principals fume over STA memo on Novopay

URL: Principals fume over STA memo on Novopay
With John Coulam - Waikato Primary Principals Association president and principal of Marion Catholic school in Hamilton. Lorraine Kerr - School Trustees Association president.

Visible traffic lights system will protect ears in classrooms - New Zealand Herald

URL: Visible traffic lights system will protect ears in classrooms
New Zealand Herald
"The sound indicators are particularly effective in open-plan classrooms where noise can reach uncomfortable levels fairly quickly," Louise Carroll, chief executive of the Foundation for the Deaf, said. "The classroom is where children learn by listening.

Take one tablet and go to school - Taranaki Daily News

Taranaki Daily News

URL: Take one tablet and go to school Taranaki Daily News "Some of our classrooms are 50 years old. They were designed for chalk and talk, not computers." To get connected to UFB and set up the school-wide wi-fi connection, New Plymouth Girls High had to upgrade its network servers to cope with the ...

School encourages electronic switch - Otago Daily Times

Otago Daily Times

URL: School encourages electronic switch Otago Daily Times Principal Andrew Hunter said an initiative was trialled in two classrooms last year in which pupils brought their own laptops, smartphones or tablets to use in class. It was a great success and now that parents had been consulted, the initiative would ...

Active children enjoy healthy snacks on tap - The Southland Times

The Southland Times

URL: Active children enjoy healthy snacks on tap The Southland Times Watching a classroom of children aged 3 to 5 take part in creating Valentines Day heart-themed crafts, leaping around on floor mats and dancing energetically along to a video with two teachers in red sparkly wigs, centre manager Janet Braithwaite said ...

Fonterra, Fisher & Paykel Join to Keep Milk Cool in Schools

URL: Fonterra, Fisher & Paykel Join to Keep Milk Cool in Schools
Fonterra is joining forces with another home-grown New Zealand business to ensure that the milk kids are drinking through the Fonterra Milk for Schools programme is perfectly chilled.

Education: testing times - New Zealand Listener

URL: Education: testing times
New Zealand Listener
STAR is owned and run by the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER), a highly respected statutory body with a reputation for thorough, credible, unbiased research. The e-asTTle test is owned and run by the Ministry of Education.

Grade-inflation alarm sparks Ministry probe - New Zealand Listener

New Zealand Listener

URL: Grade-inflation alarm sparks Ministry probe New Zealand Listener Teachers use the results – along with their own observations and judgments – to work out National Standards grades. John Carrodus, principal of Edmonton Primary, says: “According to e-asTTle, we've got sows' ears out here that we've turned into silk ...

Charter schools exemption 'unconstitutional' - Stuff.co.nz

3News NZ

URL: Charter schools exemption 'unconstitutional' Stuff.co.nz Chief Ombudsman Dame Beverley Wakem's plea was made during the first public submissions into the Education Amendment Bill in Parliament yesterday. The bill seeks to introduce charter schools, clarify the role of boards of trustees, and amend provisions ...

Charter schools exemption from OIAs defended - New Zealand Herald

URL: Charter schools exemption from OIAs defended
New Zealand Herald
Associate Education Minister John Banks has defended a proposed law change that would exempt charter schools from scrutiny under the Official Information Act, saying they will be more accountable than other schools. Chief Ombudsman Dame Beverley ...

Schools fume at Novopay memo - TVNZ

URL: Schools fume at Novopay memo
TVNZ
Coulam backed the move from the New Zealand Principals' Federation to move the deadline for National Standards data, annual plans and charters back a month from March 1 to April 1, to allow school staff to catch up on missed work because of Novopay ...