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issue 4. 2

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issue 3. 2014.

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Education Today, established 1989 Issue 4, August 2014

PublisherEducation Today LimitedPO Box 22321, Wellington 6441New Zealandwww.educationtoday.co.nzISSN 1175 9240

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CoverOur cover art was done by Kaya Soul Atkins, Y6, of Newton Central School in Auckland especially for our election issue.

Education Today is independently owned and promotes creative, stimulating thoughts and ideas for the benefit of students and educators. Contributions are welcome, and contribution guidelines can be obtained from production@educationtoday.co.nz. Photographs are also welcome, and where applicable must include appropriate permission sign-off from parents, students, and school principals. Photos need to be sent as minimum 1MB jpeg attachments. Sign-off form and format information is available on the website or by email. The Education Today website homepage also publishes student artwork which does not require sign-off. Artwork copyright remains the property of the student and it is accepted that artwork is submitted to be shown on the Education Today website with the permission of the students. To submit artwork, see the website or email production@educationtoday.co.nz. Education Today content is copyright, but may be published elsewhere after gaining consent from the publishers. All care but no responsibility taken for loss or damage. Opinions expressed in this magazine are those of the writers.

conten

ts02 On yer bike

04 investing in leadership 06 connected educators

08 kiwi kids inspired 10-11 vox pops: the elections

13-21 party policies 22-26 comic spread: the magpies

27 news 28 liar, liar

29 book reviews

28

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10

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Learning Auckland, established 2012Issue 3, August 2014

PublisherEducation Today Limited

PO Box 22321, Wellington 6441

New Zealandwww.educationtoday.co.nz

ISSN 1175 9240

Advertising For rate card, media specs and general

enquiries phone 04 499 9180 email production@educationtoday.co.nz

SubscriptionsEmail admin@educationtoday.co.nz use subject line SUBSCRIBER or subscribe online at www.educationtoday.co.nz

Annual subscriptions to Learning Auckland are $25 inc GST in New Zealand,

three editions per year. Overseas rates are available on request.

CoverOur cover art was done by Kaya Soul Atkins, Y6, at Newton Central School

especially for this issue.

Learning Auckland is produced by Education Today to tie in with the Learning Auckland

Accord, Whakakotahitanga te Ara Mātauranga, as part of a wide range of collaborators working together for a shared goal. Education Today and

Learning Auckland are independently owned and promote creative, stimulating thoughts and ideas for the benefit of students and educators. Contributions to Education Today and Learning

Auckland are welcome, and contribution guidelines can be obtained from production@educationtoday.co.nz. Photographs are also

welcome, and where applicable must include appropriate permission sign-off from parents, students, and school principals. Photos need

to be sent as minimum 1MB jpeg attachments. Sign-off form and format information is

available on the website or by email. The Education Today and Learning Auckland website homepage also publishes student

artwork which does not require sign-off. Artwork copyright remains the property of

the student and it is accepted that artwork is submitted to be shown on the Education Today

website with the permission of the students. To submit artwork, see the website or email

production@educationtoday.co.nz Learning Auckland and Education Today

content is copyright, but may be published elsewhere after gaining consent from the

publishers. All care but no responsibility taken for loss or damage. Opinions expressed in this

magazine are those of the writers.

conten

ts02 On yer bike

04 investing in leadership 06 connected educators

08 kiwi kids inspired 10-11 vox pops: the elections

13-21 party policies 22-26 comic spread: the magpies

27 news 28 liar, liar

29 book reviews

28

04

10

08

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www.educationtoday.co.nzWRITING * ART * PHOTOS * IDEAS

Education Today is one of the few publica-tions running the education policies of all

major parties (and minor but influential players) when there is a general election. The diversity of views shows constructive education debate is alive and well in our country.

The big question confronting most of us (especially those with children currently in the education system) is how to best equip our young people for a future characterised by constant and rapid change, especially in the workplace.

We need to take stock of what our educa-tion system is achieving and then look at any changes which seem called for.

Our early childhood education, primary school sector and secondary school sector are, gen-erally, producing well educated, well rounded life-long learners who have an excellent oppor-tunity to thrive once they leave secondary school. We do not ignore or understate the fact that we have a 15 per cent “failure rate” of students leaving secondary school. These stu-dents become part of a problem that plagues the western world in that they become NEETS (not in employment, education or training). The intractable problem of these NEETS should not distract us from the excellent job our pre-school and schooling system does overall.

It is what happens after secondary school that usually highlights what we need to stop doing through pre-school and school so we can start doing other things, and which also highlights attitudes built up by individual students during their formative years.

The coming election presents an excellent opportunity for a constructive debate about

how to help students decide if they should go on to tertiary and how we can save those that do from too much debt. Arguing the merits of education options is more useful to voters than being transfixed by an errant cup of tea.

We need a better process at the end of sec-ondary schooling to enable students and their parents to make more informed choices about whether to go into tertiary education or directly into the workforce.

The head of the Employers and Manufacturers Association, Kim Campbell, puts a strong case (see article ‘On yer bike...’ on page 2 of this edition) for secondary schools to provide high quality, and most importantly, independent vocational guidance advice. Improvements in this long neglected area would come at a cost but may well save students heartache and dis-appointment if a tertiary education choice turns out to be wrong. Professional vocational advice may also save money in the tertiary sector if it means options other than a tertiary education are chosen where appropriate.

Mr Campbell also advocates that schools issue a work readiness certificate. This certificate would not only provide detail of a student’s ability in subjects such as English, mathemat-ics etc, but also, and most importantly, details about a student’s attitude and, according to the EMA, is at least as important as knowledge. Good attitude is often a determining factor in an employer’s decision whether to employ or not. A work readiness certificate would be a valuable qualification for those students who are not suited to a tertiary education and wish to enter the workforce straight from school.

One of the key issues facing students

contemplating a tertiary education is student loan debt. It is time to explore options which would enable some students to undertake tertiary studies or training without incurring serious debt. Some Australian universities have introduced Massive open on-line courses (Moocs) which our students could easily access. The major problem with Moocs has been how to accredit students with a qualifica-tion upon successful completion.

Our contribution could be in having the Ministry of Education resource ways of moderating the content and accrediting both Australian and New Zealand students with the appropri-ate qualification. In due course we could have our own Moocs to complement the Australian schemes with these courses being of value to Australian students too.

If we can develop on-line tertiary courses pro-viding qualifications which have credibility with employers huge savings could be achieved in some parts of the tertiary sector both in terms of government funding and student loan debt.

Getting back to the NEETS. There is a strong case for running a pilot scheme involving early childhood intervention. Some success has been achieved in such schemes designed to save very young children from going on to become serious criminals. Surely a similar scheme for children at risk of educational fail-ure is worth trying.

Finally, listening to our students, and educators, is vital to designing and adapting any education system. Our fearless primary students through to our aspiring school leavers have something to say, and to do, and our educators are invari-ably our window to their world.

editorial - AUGUST 2014 EDUCATION TODAYTHE EDUCATION MAGAZINE OF THE FUTUREThe election issue

 EducationToday.co.nz

Young people go through a lot in the struggle to find jobs.

To find a job you invariably need experi-ence, and to get experience you need a job. It’s an ongoing loop, difficult for young people to break out of without help from the right people.

The Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA) chief executive recently said students are leaving school without the adequate skills for work, and that more should be provided from about the stu-dent that NCEA and schools isn’t showing (Wanted: meaningful work readiness cer-tificates for school leavers – EMA Election Manifesto, July 2014).

The association is proposing a ‘work readi-ness certificate’ highlighting the details such as reading, writing, mathematics, on-time attendance and attitude of a student

- what the association believes a young person should have when joining the work force.

The Employers and Manufacturers Association should know something about this. It is over a hundred years old and has been helping businesses to grow, and net-work between each other. The Learning Auckland editorial team recently spoke to Mr Campbell, and he elaborated on what he believes a young person needs.

Mr Campbell said there are two sets of skills that people have. Vocational skills, otherwise known as ‘knowledge’, is what

school has prepared for the young person and, Mr Campbell said, would only take a person so far. The other set of skills that Mr Campbell identifies as the most important, and what young people may sometimes lack, is the correct attitude.

Attitude can be expanded; it’s not only the way a person acts, but it is the motivation and goals, the way one people communi-cate to their employers and co-workers, and it is the overall determination of the young person.

Mr Campbell said the best attitude is a balanced attitude, when a young person knows how to change their attitude accord-ing to the circumstances. For example, a young person has to know the balance in confidence. If a person is cocky around their employer, or shy and quiet, it might give the wrong impression. The balance between a lack of confidence and not being too self-confident is important.

He said the same applies to formality and language. An employee should know when to speak up, who they’re speaking to and how they should act. It has to do with showing respect. The attitude isn’t simply taught by a curriculum, but it is constructed by the young person themselves and how they approach every obstacle in life.

School can provide the first example an employer can look at to decide how a young employee might work.

Mr Campbell used the metaphor of ‘Kim’s

Bike’ to describe how a young person should behave, to find out whether they’re ready to work.

He showed the bike’s four main parts. The front wheel, the back wheel, the pedals, and the steering wheel. In order for a bike to get to where it wants to go, all four parts have to have an equal balance and work together.

The front wheel is attitude and goals, the back wheel is the vocational skills, the pedals are the motivation, and the steering wheel is the control of the person. A young person must have a balance of the parts their bike. Not only should they focus on what they learn in school, but they should have a goal set in their head and have the attitude to get there.

When their bike is balanced the next step is to put in work. They have to pedal, and they have to have the motivation to move, because without motivation then there won’t be any movement, leaving both skills sets to go to waste. When these three parts of the bike are balanced the young person can steer their life to where they want to go. It’s a useful analogy.

Mr Campbell made the point young people are totally responsible for themselves and getting a job. It’s the determination and will that allows for someone to create their own future. A young person is in for a life-time of learning, and it is the life skills and maturity that will determine the outcome of the young person’s life.

On yer bike–

pedalling to your

destiny

STUDENTVOICE.

SANTIPHAP SOUMPHONPHAKDY talks about the skills needed for the job market from an interview our student editorial group held with Employers and Manufactur-ers Association boss Kim Campbell.

EducationToday.co.nz

Employers want every student leaving sec-ondary school to be issued with a work

readiness certificate detailing their abilities in reading, writing, mathematics, on-time attend-ance and attitude.

The proposal is part of the Employers and Manufacturers Association six-point Election Manifesto 2014 issued on July 14. “Businesses keep reporting young people are leaving school without adequate work readiness skills,” said Kim Campbell, EMA’s chief executive. “The present NCEA report issued to school leavers is simply not up to the job for helping employers choose among young job seekers,” Mr Campbell said. “We are proposing students be issued with a new document that employers can easily understand: an Employment Readiness Certificate containing a

meaningful assessment of the student’s skills. “Along with that, more needs to be done to encourage students to take up a career in the trades. The perception that going to university will earn the best jobs and the big bucks still persists, but it is not necessarily so. “Employers in manufacturing and ser-vice organisations are crying out for people with an aptitude for trades and technical skills which are not taught at universities. “Our policy prescription is to boost the num-bers of students choosing a trades career with an ongoing national public relations cam-paign that highlights trades as valuable, and often demanding of considerable intelligence. “We also want to urge those who influence students’ career deci-sions not to discourage high achieving students from choosing a trades career. “To do this we propose all students have

access to quality, independent, expert career advisors not biased towards aca-demia or trades,” Mr Campbell said. EMA’s Election Manifesto presents policies across six areas to encourage business success.

Pictured above: Employers and Manufacturers Association boss Kim Campbell with student editorial group members Hollie Court, left, Ciccone Hakaraia-Turner, Santiphap Soumphonphakdy, Charlotte Collins and Katelyn Eden.

LINKSEMA’s Election Manifesto 2014 can be found at: www.ema.co.nz/resources/EMA%20Reports%20and%20Documents/Advocacy/Submissions/2014/EMA-2014-Election-Manifesto.pdf

Certificates for school leaversEMA Election Manifesto

 EducationToday.co.nz

This year, a budget of $359 million was announced for Teaching and Leadership pathways.

This investment is intended to help support teachers and principals to lift student perfor-mance in every school, according to Education Minister Hekia Parata.

But where does all of this money go, is it enough or is it too much and could we be spending it better?

The money is being spent to allocate new roles to Teachers and Principals in New Zealand Schools. There are an anticipated 6,270 roles being implemented throughout New Zealand, and these roles come under four categories; Executive Principal, Expert Teacher, Lead Teacher and Change Principal.

The idea behind creating these roles is to rec-ognize and use talent where it’s needed most, largely because educational achievement in New Zealand has been slowly declining on an international scale since the early 2000s.

These new roles offer a boosted paycheck for anyone involved, ranging from $10,000 a year for a lead teacher to $50,000 a year for a Change Principal. This is expected to be fully rolled out by 2017.

The selection process for Executive Principals involves being selected by a panel of experts with help from the Local Board of Trustees (BoT). These Executive Principals will then select the Expert Teachers and the Lead Teachers with aid from a member of the exter-nal selection panel. A Change Principal will be recruited and appointed as vacancies arise by the relevant school’s BoT, with some guidance from a member of the external selection panel.

So what does all of this really mean?

Basically, for tackling a school that needs to be improved quite a lot, a bonus paycheck will be given to a change principal. This will give incentive to the highly skilled principals at other schools to take on this new challenge and bring some experience to the school.

This is a good idea, as it will improve the quality

of the ‘foundation’ of the school. Giving expe-rienced and proven principals the incentive to work at a change school will also reduce the chances the school will fall into a state where it needs more change and more funding in the near future.

Expert Principals will be implemented to sup-port and mentor other principals in their area, to raise student achievement across the board. This makes use of the experienced principals in our education system and will result in a greater number of quality principals in the future.

Teachers that are identified as experts in the core areas such as Maths, English and Science will be given an incentive to work with other teachers both inside and outside of their school to raise the quality of teaching and student achievement. They will be known as expert teachers. They will work closely with Executive Principals.

The final role is the lead teacher, who will be given an extra $10,000 a year to keep their classroom open to other teachers (including student teachers or beginners) so that they can learn positive teaching practice from an excel-lent teacher in their school.

I see a few flaws in the plan to implement the teacher’s roles into school. Firstly, expert teachers will be absent from class two days a week, and the schools will receive funding to replace the teacher during these days. The issue I see is not from the school’s perspective, it is from a student’s perspective. I know that when my teacher is not in class and we are left with a replacement or a reliever, students’ work rates decline by a very large amount. Even if this reliever was experienced, students will not stay focused and will miss out on essential parts of their learning.

If this is happening twice a week, this could result in a heavy grade drop in an expert teach-er’s class, which not only impacts the students but the teacher’s reputation as an expert teacher as well.

Another problem I see is that even if the

replacement while the teacher is gone man-ages to sustain student focus and achievement (which I consider unlikely), the required commu-nication between reliever and absent teacher to keep the education ‘flowing’ steadily with-out doubling up or missing parts is unrealistic. This will again result in a reduction of student achievement, and potentially a negative effect on the reputation of the expert teacher.

Finally, the lead teacher is being paid to make their classroom open to other teachers, to go and get more guidance. The first issue here is that other teachers will have to miss out on teaching time to see this guidance, when instead with the expert teacher they can get in-class guidance on how to improve.

Secondly, teachers are unlikely to willingly attend another teacher’s class, on the basis that it makes them look inferior to another teacher, so they may be receiving an extra $10,000 a year to do practically nothing. If they are being incentivised with extra money, I believe a lead teacher should have more of an active role in the education system.

A solution to all of this is for the Ministry of Education to employ an expert teacher full

STUDENTVOICE.

Investing in leadership

Massey High School’s MATHEW DITCHBURN looks at the large investment being made in building, developing and

nurturing leadership in schools across the country through the creation of new roles.

time, to circulate all of the schools in a certain area and give guidance without having a posi-tion as a teacher themselves. This would have to be fully ministry funded instead of partially school funded, but will result in a better learn-ing environment for students than if they had a teacher absent two fifths of the time.

Another positive of this could be that the expert teacher will be able to give some responsibil-ity to the lead teachers, thereby still giving a comparison for the teachers they are assisting

when they are working at another place. This will result in the expert teacher being an area based contact for improvement and a lead teacher being a school based contact, so no matter what other teachers will have guidance available for them whenever they need it. This will give the lead teacher a more active role, as they will be the first point of call for school based guidance.

Overall, the extra government spending is well thought out and is a good idea, but could be

spent more effectively on the teachers than it currently is being. In saying this, the ideas they have laid out for principals are great and will help to improve our education system in the future.

LINKS & STUDENT COMMENTSFor more information on the Teaching and Leadership Career Pathways, visit https://www.national.org.nz/news/news/media-releases/detail/2014/01/22/$359m-for-teaching-leadership-career-pathways.

“““ ““

Nic says:I didn’t know $359 mil-lion was being spent in

this way in our education system. I think it would be better spent on new computers for students,

and better equipment, but I suppose it is well spent

on this as well.”“Ryan says:

I didn’t know this was being invested into our

education system this year, and I think it would be better spent on improv-

ing the BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) system in

our schools.”

EducationToday.co.nz

y EducationToday.co.nz

Are you interested in professional devel-opment and connecting with like-minded educators from around the globe? Do

you want to try an innovative approach to pro-fessional learning and connect with educators from around the world?

We’re all on our own journeys to learn to use digital technologies effectively with our learn-ers. However we need to be learners too. New and emerging web technologies offer educa-tors opportunities to collaborate, share and learn from each other in ways that previously have not been possible.

CORE Education is bringing Connected Educator Month (CEM) to New Zealand in October for its inaugural year, alongside CORE’s partners - the US Connected Educator Team and the Department of Education (Victoria, Australia) - to help educators share and learn in a digital environment.

CEM Project Manager, Karen Melhuish Spencer, said her own experience and inter-ests are reflected in CEM.

“My passion is working alongside schools, educators and students to design inclusive, engaging learning for our digital world. What is most exciting is the way digital technologies can offer us more ways than ever before to connect our professional learning globally, as well as locally, in ways that are flexible, mean-ingful and engaging,” Karen said.

Connected Educator MonthConnected Educator Month is a coordinated approach providing educators with opportuni-ties to participate in events and activities online. Connected Educator Month will be the ultimate professional development for ‘how to’ con-nect and learn, offering skill development and enhancement of personal learning networks.

CORE Education believes a connected, net-worked approach to learning offers far greater opportunities for professional learning.

Over the past two years, millions of educa-tors and organisations have participated in rich professional learning as part of the US-based Connected Educator Month which has proven to be extremely valuable for educators from early childhood education through to tertiary.

ParticipationConnected Educator Month is driven by an open, collaborative calendar that will con-nect you, kura, early childhood services and other learning centres, with thousands of like-minded educators from around the globe, enable you to engage in conversations in safe online spaces, help you to develop online connectivity skills, enhance your professional networks and transfer your knowledge back to your own learners/classroom.

For emerging leaders, you can run your own event, mentor others and model networked professional practice.

If you feel like you could be using the digital world more effectively and want to understand more about how to use digital technologies, such as online communities, creating a blog or participating in a webinar, there is the per-fect starter kit for you that runs daily to learn the basics about connecting, using digital technology and creating professional learning networks.

Schools, kura, early childhood services and other learning centres can commit to sharing the event with your whole staff, individuals can pick their own pathway - and anyone can submit an event to the calendar to share with others.

Calendar of eventsThe calendar of events will be connected through online platforms, such as webinars and blog posts. There’ll also be streamed face-to-face workshops with live feeds at CORE’s ULearn14 Conference 8-10 October, plus online book groups, panel discussions and

virtual field trips. Mark the key dates in your diary so you don’t miss out on the events that will help your professional learning.

Prominent Maori and Pasifika will be sharing on panels locally, nationally and globally. Kura in the Far North can connect with students and kaiako through collaborative online learning with Kura in the far south.

CORE encourages those who want to run their own event to do so by adding it to the calendar and then sharing it through their own networks.

Register for updates

You can register to receive updates and more information online by visiting the official www.ConnectedEducator.org.nz or following on Twitter @ConnectEduNZ, #CENZ14.

Together we can be stronger and move on the digital technology pathway in a shared, collabo-rative approach.

Ka kaha ake tātou mēnā e whāi wāhi ana te katoa ki te whakawhanake, ki te tuari hoki i te ara rawa hangarau.

Connected educatorsNationally, locally, globally

whatunga tangatawhatunga mātanga

CEM in the US • Highlights of the 2013 event as recorded

by our partner in the US included:

• 300+ major education organisations offi-cially participated

• 600+ national events and activities (many more local)

• 1 million+ pages, other locations ref-erencing, promoting or discussing the event

• More than 14 million were reached through Twitter alone, with an average of 4.6 million impressions/day

• The White House and President Obama supported and advocated this event

Brought to you by

i EducationToday.co.nz

The week-long event, which celebrates great leadership and seeks to inspire the next gen-eration of Kiwi leaders, is named in honour of one of our greatest Kiwis, Sir Peter Blake, and has two major school-focused activities - the Dream Team and Young Leader Awards. This year’s celebrations were particularly special as the Sir Peter Blake Trust also celebrated its 10th birthday. A summary of the key activi-ties and how to get involved is outlined below.

What: The Dream TeamWho: Primary, intermediate and sec-ondary students nationwideWhy: To encourage young Kiwis to dream big and make their goals and dreams happenClose to 20,000 New Zealand school students were inspired over the course of Leadership Week, as 300 Sir Peter Blake Trust Dream Team leaders visited local classrooms around New Zealand to share their inspiring stories and lessons in leadership.

Led by New Zealand’s Governor-General, Lt. Gen. The Rt. Hon. Sir Jerry Mateparae, a large number of high-profile leaders took part, including: Sir Eion Edgar and Sir Ron Carter; television psychologist, Nigel Latta; scientist and inventor, Sir Ray Avery; TV presenters, Rawdon Christie and Toni Street; Newstalk ZB radio host, Rachel Smalley; and ZM breakfast presenters Carl Fletcher, Vaughan Smith and Megan Sellers; singer-songwriter, Jamie McDell; former Prime Minister, Dame Jenny Shipley; Air New Zealand Chief Pilot, Capt. David Morgan; sporting greats, Hamish Carter and Beatrice Faumuina, TV fishing

personality, Matt Watson; Blake Leader and 2014 Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year, Dr. Lance O’Sullivan; and a wide-ranging list of New Zealand adventurers, CEOs and business leaders, doctors, politicians and community champions.

Each Dream Teamer spent an hour telling stories from throughout their various careers and sharing what they’ve learned along the way, as well as talking about the importance of having goals and dreams that you want to achieve, and the drive to make those dreams happen. During the session, students also shared what they hoped to achieve in the future and were given Dream Cards to fill in so they could write their goals down and then start making a plan of how they might accom-plish them.

Sir Peter Blake Trust CEO, Shelley Campbell, says, ”The response each year from leaders who are keen to be the involved in the Dream Team is simply amazing. Their passion for the programme ensures that thousands of Kiwi students have the opportunity to be inspired by their stories and learn how they can achieve their dreams too. We look forward to welcoming more schools into the programme in 2015 and having even more inspiring Kiwis onboard to share their stories and encourage our young people to realise that if you work hard, and believe that you can achieve your dreams, then anything is possible.”

What: Young Leader AwardsWho: Primary and Intermediate school students nationwideWhy: To celebrate and recognise young Kiwis who lead by exam-ple by showing great teamwork, sportsmanship, kindness to others, commitment and/or determination to succeed Each year, in association with founding sponsor Westpac, the Sir Peter Blake Trust, presents Young Leader Awards to students at around 300 primary and intermediate schools throughout the country.

Westpac has been a primary sponsor of the Sir Peter Blake Trust for the past nine years and supports the development of New Zealand’s future leaders. During Leadership Week students selected by their teachers or peers to receive an award are presented with a medal and certificate by their local Westpac Bank Manager at a school assembly.

Kiwi kids inspired to dream and

succeedThousands of New Zealand students

were encouraged to dream big and make it happen during the annual Sir

Peter Blake Leadership Week, held this year from 27 June to 4 July.

“Each Dream Teamer spent an hour telling stories from throughout their various careers and sharing what they’ve learned along the way, as well as talking about the importance of having goals and dreams that you want to achieve, and the drive to make those dreams happen.”

EducationToday.co.nz

Young Leader Award winners this year were recognised for various achievements such as one student who started a ‘Kindness Club’ at his school where everyone was encouraged to be kind to their schoolmates. Other Young Leaders were awarded for always trying their best at school sports or achieving great results

in the classroom, others for showing leader-ship by being thoughtful and caring to their classmates and a number were awarded for being great team members and showing good sportsmanship.

Sir Peter Blake Trust CEO, Shelley Campbell, said Sir Peter believed in the potential of young Kiwis to achieve great things and the Trust encourages young New Zealanders to demon-strate positive leadership in their schools and communities and to work hard to make their goals and dreams happen.

“We hope that by receiving a Young Leader Award, it will help develop their self-confidence even further and inspire them to keep on

achieving and doing well, and, that in celebrat-ing their success, it also shows other students what positive leadership looks like, so they can aspire to do the same,” says Ms Campbell.

All New Zealand schools are eligible to sign up for both the Dream Team visit and Young Leader Awards and the Sir Peter Blake Trust actively encourages further schools and classrooms to take part. To find out more infor-mation about how your school or class can be part of 2015 Leadership Week, or find out more about what happened this year, visit our website for detailed programme info.

http://www.sirpeterblaketrust.org/get-involved

Pictured at top left: Mangere Bridge School student Karmella Reedy, Y5, was rec-ognised for displaying her very own style of leadership when she was awarded the

Blake Young Leader Award presented by local Westpac Business Manager, Gerry Smutz, at a special assembly that her parents attended too. Above, Greenmeadows

School students were encouraged when their Dream Team leader - The Governor General, Sir Jerry Mateparae - visited the school during Leadership Week. Sir Gerry

was amazed to hear about their own dreams, and their vision for Aotearoa.

“One student started a kind-ness club at his school where everyone was encouraged to be kind to their schoolmates”

1) EducationToday.co.nz

Rory O’ConnorHow does the election affect me?The strength of the economy will affect my job prospects as I leave school.

What are the key differences between parties?National’s focus towards helping business, building a strong economy and bringing the country to budget surplus. Labour is more focused on expensive social policies that I don’t believe we need.

What are the key education issues?I have strong opinions for the National party but they are not based on education policy. I am not well versed in either party’s educa-tional policies but I also think the NZ education system is not an area for concern.

Katelyn EdenHow does the election affect me?The election impacts the opportunities provided to me as a student in both the edu-cational and societal aspects of my life, and I place a heavy level of importance on the elec-tion and voting.

What are the key differences between parties?Labour focuses on improving the quality of education for all students and assisting strug-gling families. National focuses on improving the economic performance of New Zealand internationally and domestically through assisting businesses.

What are the key education issues?One of the biggest education issues surround-ing New Zealand schools is the introduction and integration of E-Learning within the class-rooms across the country. While offering the technology to students could have benefits, there is the worry of the cost outweighing the benefit, as students may not use it as effi-ciently as intended.

Bagena MaluaHow does the election affect me?It would be sad because since John Key is prime minister for four years, then the next four years it might be a different prime min-ister who might change how things work. For example, you might have to pay more to go to university and the government might make the wrong choices by taking some teachers away from a school so they can give money to less teachers.

What are the key differences between parties?The differences I see between the National party and the Labour party is that the National party don’t really care about the poor people because they don’t see the poor people around them. But the Labour party actually care about the poor people because when they see a poor person, they help them out. When the National Party sees a poor person, they don’t really care as long as they are alright.

What are the key education issues?I think the two main education issues are the teachers getting paid less and the govern-ment trying to cram kids into classes. Also the parents are worried with the zoning for their kid’s school they go to. Some parents lie to the school by pretending to live somewhere close to the school so their kids can go to that school.

voxpops

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Charlotte CollinsHow does the election affect me?I view the election of great importance. It is a choice that impacts who leads both our local area, and the country as a whole, and if you waste that opportunity you have no right to argue the policies they make, and the impact they have on education.

What are the key differences between parties?Labour takes a policy to appeal to more

‘humanitarian’ views, which are not always achievable in the current economic position.

What are the key education issues?Charter schools present a controversial issue to education within New Zealand; however, I think the qualification system used in New Zealand needs to be reanalyzed. Often educa-tion is not the focus of election issues, which I think should be rethought as it is a key ele-ment of society.

Ciccone Hakaraia-TurnerHow does the election affect me?I think that it could affect my education because if there’s a new prime minister for the next four years, they might change the way things work and might ban some useful things that we could use in the future.

What are the key differences between parties?The differences I see between the National and Maori party is that the Maori party are trying to get as many seats as they can in parliament and they’re trying to get the Maori language back, but the National party want to get rid of the Maori seats and are trying their best to hide the truth.

What are the key education issues?I think that some key education issues are that we don’t really study the Treaty of Waitangi, and we need more bilingual units in schools so that we will be able to speak our own language.

Mathew DitchburnHow does the election affect me?The election will decide who is in power for the next few years, which means that any decisions made by the party in power will end up affecting society, which will in turn affect me. I must make informed decisions to select the party in power, to help craft my future.

What are the key differences between parties?National is focused on the economy and how to improve it, while Labour and Green are planning to spend more to improve social ser-vices, thereby increasing national debt.

What are the key education issues?One of the articles I wrote recently was about giving good teachers and principals pay raises to incentivise them to take on more challeng-ing roles and “mentor” other teachers. This is one key education issue of this time.

voxpopsIt’s a big year for voters. STUDENT EDITORIAL GROUP writers from a variety of schooling years have this to say about the elections...

 EducationToday.co.nz

From what we have gathered, students don’t seem to care about the upcoming elections.

Of the students surveyed, the majority “have no real idea” or

“don’t pay much attention”.

One student said: “Our education won’t be affected much unless they employ an Umbridge in every school”.

As secondary students nearing the age of 18 we are gaining the abil-ity to vote, and have our opinions count. We get a say in who leads the government and chooses the policies impacting us.

Whoever runs the government has a say on the lives of everyone, regardless of whether you person-ally voted or not. So why do the younger generation entering the voting pool not care?

Perhaps this is because students fail to see the impact their vote will have on not only on their education, but also their lives.

Teenagers have a tendency to be self-centered and shallow, with a focus on their own futures. As a result of this students do not pay enough attention to politics due to a general lack of understanding.

The political system employed in New Zealand can present a challenge to comprehend for the

majority of people. In turn, those who fail to understand the system have a limited interest in both poli-tics and the election in particular.

There are two potential solutions to this issue. The first is the imple-mentation of a compulsory course within the New Zealand educa-tion system. This would involve students learning about the MMP system used within New Zealand and basic information regarding the political parties.

Through completion of the course students could make an informed decision regarding the election. Radio New Zealand reporter Karen Mangnall believes “having no civics course at school contributes to low voter turnouts.”

Having such a course in school could then lead into the second option of a youth vote. Those who complete the course have the enti-tlement to cast a vote, before the age of eighteen, as it reflects their position as an educated voter.

Having a youth vote enables a wider demographic to vote, there-fore increasing the perspective of parties in the preparation of their policies.

Compiled by Charlotte Collins, Katelyn Eden, Rory O’Connor, Mathew Ditchburn

One of the major ways we receive infor-mation regarding the election is through journalism and the work of reporters.

Karen Mangnall is a radio journalist with an interest in the youth of Auckland and their views on the upcoming election. She told our recent student editorial group meeting she believes many of those becoming eligible to vote are not well-informed about politics and therefore are not interested in voting.

Karen has voted in all but one election since she was eligible to vote. The 1981 Springbok rugby tour took place during her first voting year. Karen’s current employers, Radio New Zealand, have a policy under which their report-ers do not declare their political position and

maintain a public image of neutrality. The party in power does impact her role as a journalist though, as it “dictates how interesting stories are”.

The dilemma of the declining voting rate affects not only in New Zealand but also many demo-cratic Western countries. What Karen expects in the upcoming election is a lower turnout than previously, and she suspects Auckland in particular will have a low voter presence, simi-lar to the local body elections. She suspects this could be because people aren’t as passion-ate about the issues as they could be.

Karen said she has no idea how to increase participation, but feels the emergence of the Internet-Mana party may make a difference

with their internet skills “taking it where young people are”.

Karen believes it is extremely important to use the vote as an “indication people understand the role of being a citizen in a democracy”. However, she acknowledges it can be difficult for people to see how their vote can influence policies, to see the change they are making.

As a result of this, Karen suggests that making voting compulsory, as it is in Australia, may be a good idea, as it is “important for the social contract that keeps society together”.

Compiled by Charlotte Collins, Katelyn Eden, Rory O’Connor, Mathew Ditchburn

Valuing the right to vote

Decline in voter turnout

STUDENTVOICE.

Māori make up 15 per cent of New Zealand’s population - and a third of them are under 15 years of age. The median age of Māori was 23.9

years in the 2013 Census compared with 38 years for non-Māori. These demographics require us to prepare as a nation, for a future in which Māori will play a significant role.

The Māori Party has always sought to protect Māori rights and promote Māori interests, for the advancement of the nation; believing that what works for Māori will ultimately be good for New Zealand. Within this, our focus on whanau wellbeing underpins all policies.

Our party values are driven by the expression of nine kaupapa; kotahitanga, manaakitanga, rangatiratanga, wairuatanga, mana whenua, mana tupuna/whakapapa; whanaungatanga, kaitiakitanga, te reo.

Expression of these kaupapa lead us to give emphasis in practical ways throughout our policy such as:

• Recognising whanau as the foundation of our social, economic, and cultural development

• Focusing on whanau-centred solutions to determine their own direction;

• Upholding and defending indigenous repre-sentation in governance arrangements.

How then, are our kaupapa actualised in educa-tion policy?

Early Childhood EducationWe want to inspire the hunger to learn by increasing the quality and access to universal early childhood education. Early childhood edu-cation, as the foundation to our future, must be affordable, available and responsive and include initiatives such as PAFT, HIPPY, PAUSE, PAUA, kōhanga reo, puna reo and whānau led centres.

We expect services to meet the needs of Maori and Pasifika children and their parents, to be culturally competent and appropriate. We believe all early childhood teachers should be required to be culturally competent as part of the basic expectations for service performance.

Cultural CompetencyThe Māori Party has introduced guidelines to make the education system work better through Tataiako: cultural competencies for teachers of Māori learners. Tataiako sets in place guidelines to assist educators in devel-oping an understanding of one’s own identity, language and culture; developing an under-standing of the relevance of culture in New Zealand education; and developing an under-standing of and openness to Mäori knowledge and expertise. We want to see an environ-ment where strategies promote, monitor and reflect upon learning outcomes that lead to improvements in Māori student achievement.

AchievementThe education system has been persistently inequitable for Māori –

• low inclusion of Māori themes and topics in mainstream education,

• fewer teacher-student interactions,

• less positive feedback,

• more negative comments targeted to Māori learners,

• under-assessment of capability,

• institutional racism,

• mispronounced names, and so on.

We support teaching environments which pro-mote a holistic view of education and where teacher expectations and pedagogies focus on fulfilling the potential of every child. We sup-port ongoing performance improvement and the capacity for teachers to be self-reflective and self-analytical about the difference they are making.

The key to education success is engagement by whanau in the education of their children including participation in their schools. We want to encourage stronger and more meaningful relationships with whanau, hapu and iwi; and ensure effective engagement for the majority of our tamariki in mainstream education.

We will amend the Education Act with a defi-nition that education is to promote, and be consistent with, the principles of lifelong learn-ing, including intergenerational learning.

We will establish ten experiential learning pilots in Maori medium and general education schools, to grow entrepreneurial skills.

Ko te reo Maori te matapihi ki te ao MaoriKnowing the Maori language is to know the Maori world. • We will investigate and implement as

negotiated:

• increased support to development of Puna Reo at early childhood level

• ensuring te reo will be compulsorily available in all schools

• the establishment of a Maori Language Teacher Education Leadership Centre

• Research to the establishment of Maori lan-guage learning communities

• An increase in the number of kura kaupapa Maori established each year

• Promotion of whanau language learning pro-grammes at zero or reduced fees.

Education gains to dateWe are proud of the difference we have made through some key gains negotiated with Government. These include:

- Expanding the Reading Together Programme to include more than 140 decile 4 and 5 schools. Reading Together is a research-based programme that helps parents to support their children’s reading at home.

- $17 million to allow an additional 20 schools to participate in Te Kotahitanga teacher train-ing programme.

- $3 million to support Te Runanganui o nga Kura Kaupapa Māori to develop a curriculum and associated resources based on Te Aho Matua.

- $60 million to build new kura kaupapa Māori and upgrade existing school buildings.

- $9 million over four years to support iwi to develop school and community-based lan-guage initiatives.

- A new education initiative to support and strengthen the teaching of Māori history in Years 1-13. Te Takanga o Te Wā,

- Puawaitanga scholarships will be awarded to young people who demonstrate leadership potential to enrol in Māori Boarding Schools.

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Te Ururoa Flavell, Māori Party Co-leaderNgāti Rangiwewehi, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Raukawa

Te Ururoa Flavell was first elected to the House of Representatives as a Māori Party Member of Parliament on 17 September 2005 for the Electorate of Waiariki and was

re-elected in the 2008 and 2011 General Elections.

http://maoriparty.org/te-ururoa-flavell/

party education policies

1$ EducationToday.co.nz

National knows that ensuring all chil-dren get a good education is the most important thing our govern-ment can do to raise living standards,

and create a more competitive and productive economy.

We want every child to leave school with the skills they need to reach their potential in a modern world. New Zealand has a top perform-ing education system and National has worked hard to get the wheels well and truly moving. However, we still have plenty of work to do.

In our schools, we know it’s excellent teaching and leadership that have the greatest effect on the quality of learning and achievement of our children.

We are committed to raising the status of the teaching profession and acknowledging the powerful contribution it makes to lifting overall student achievement.

To that end, we have developed a Quality Teaching Agenda.

The cornerstone of this agenda is the proposed, new independent professional body, Education Council of Aotearoa New Zealand (EDUCANZ).

It is essential our teachers and education lead-ers have the best professional body to support them in their roles. EDUCANZ will be estab-lished as an independent statutory body that will be owned by the teaching profession, and will speak, act, and lead on professional issues.

We are determined EDUCANZ will become a strong voice for the profession. It will be focussed on raising the status of the teaching profession, establishing a specific focus on education leadership, and leading informed and constructive public debate on education issues.

It will support system changes that will have the needs of children and young people, and the public interest, at its heart.

Earlier this year the Prime Minister announced a $359 million investment in career pathways for teachers and principals to lift the quality of learning and student achievement in every school in New Zealand.

This initiative draws on what the profession has said it needs, what the best performing countries are doing, and what international research and evidence shows works.

Currently a working group, made up of profes-sionals from across the sector, is making good progress further developing the design of the initiative.

This may result in some changes to the details of the policy, but our intent is clear – we want to recognise excellent teachers and principals, keep good teachers in the classroom, share expertise across schools and among teachers, and get our most experienced to the schools that need them most for the benefit of all our children.

We are reviewing Professional Learning and Development expenditure for teachers. This review provides the opportunity to ensure our teachers are getting the right level of support for their development needs, and are being challenged to raise the achievement of all stu-dents. The review is being undertaken by an Advisory Group of sector leaders.

We are also taking action to ensure boards and school leaders can continue to focus on rais-ing educational achievement for all students and not be stifled by low level compliance and regulations, by establishing a Taskforce on Regulations.

The Taskforce on Regulations Affecting School Performance will investigate regulations that may distract or hinder schools from focusing on raising achievement and recommend changes to existing practices, rules and regulations that

will allow schools to focus on our children’s needs.

We are committed to continuing to work closely with the profession to develop policy that will be of the most benefit to not only teachers and principals, but to parents and their children.

Since 2008, National has seen more young people than ever before succeeding in education.

In 2013, we had a 95.7 per cent participation rate in Early Childhood Education (ECE). We have also invested $1.5 billion in ECE – the highest amount invested by any Government and a 75 per cent increase since 2007/08.

School-leavers are also doing better under National. Provisional 2013 results show nearly 77 per cent of students leaving school achieved at least NCEA Level 2, up from 66.5 per cent in 2008 under Labour.

Māori and Pasifika students had the biggest increase in achievement, up 14.2 and 16.5 per-centage points respectively since 2008.

We know the higher the achievement at school, the better the opportunities for further educa-tion, employment, higher wages, and a better standard of living.

So we’re keeping more 16-and 17-year-olds engaged in vocational training, and seeing more young adults go on to tertiary study.

We want to ensure we remain on track to meet our Better Public Service targets, to have 98 per cent of children starting school having par-ticipated in quality ECE in 2016, and 85 per cent of all 18 year-olds achieving NCEA Level 2 or an equivalent qualification in 2017.

We have a proven track record of success in education and we are eager to continue to build on the great foundation we have already established.

Hon Hekia Parata became the Minister of Education in 2011, after entering Parliament in 2008. She has had successful careers as a businesswoman and as a senior public servant. She ran a policy consultancy with her husband Sir Wira Gardiner before entering Parliament and has held senior roles in a range of government departments. She has a Master’s degree from Waikato University.

Hekia grew up in a large family in Ruatoria on the East Coast of New Zealand and her classroom education was enriched by a socially and culturally strong community with high expectations, and a hard-working family and whanau with even higher expectations, built on the value of a great education. She is of Ngāti Porou and Ngāi Tahu descent, and is the daughter, sister, cousin, and aunt of teachers. Hekia Parata and Sir Wira Gardiner have two daughters in the middle of their education.

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Labour is committed to a New Zealand in which all people can reach their full potential through education.

New Zealand’s public education system is amongst the best in the developed world. Labour has always been at the forefront of driving progressive educational change – from Peter Fraser and his Secretary of Education, Clarence Beeby, ushering in the modern school era in the 1930s, through to the development of our modern early childhood education system.

Best start for kidsQuality early childhood education has long been a priority for Labour. We are commit-ted to fully funding centres with 100 per cent qualified staff, extending free access for thee and four-year-olds to 25 hours per week, and increasing the funding available for the estab-lishment of new services in areas of unmet demand.

Smaller class sizesWe all know that kids will do better if they’re in a smaller class where the teacher has more time to devote to each individual child. Labour will reduce class sizes by funding 2,000 more teachers, paid for by cancelling National’s flawed and divisive IES policy.

Quality teachingTeaching is one of our most valued and respected professions. Labour wants to ensure our best and brightest choose a career in teaching so that every student has a fantas-tic teacher. Labour will raise the standard of entry into the teaching profession by requiring the Teachers Council to establish and maintain a vigorous process for pre-screening entry into all initial teacher education programmes. We will also strengthen the requirements for teachers to engage in professional develop-ment as a pre-requisite for on-going practising certificates. The range of bonded scholarships

will be expanded, support for beginning teach-ers improved, further career pathways opened up, and quality professional development made available to teachers at all levels.

Sharing best practiceWe get the best results for our students when teachers and schools work together, share best practice, and exchange ideas. We have some of the most dynamic, creative teachers in the world, and we want to make sure they have the opportunity to share what they know and continue to further their own professional development.

Labour will establish a comprehensive school advisory service to share best practice and act as a mentor and advisor to teachers through-out New Zealand. The new advisory service will oversee all centrally funded teacher pro-fessional development spending, and provide advice, where appropriate, to schools on their own internal professional development pro-grammes. It will also have the power to second excellent teachers and school leaders for a period of up to three years to act as mentors and trainers.

Quality teaching relies on quality school leader-ship. We want every school to be a great school, and that means we need every school principal to be a great educational leader. Labour will establish a College of School Leadership oper-ating as part of the school advisory service. It will establish the standard of entry for school leadership positions and ensure ongoing pro-fessional development and support is available to school leaders throughout their careers.

21st century learningSchools are turning to technology to assist student learning. Labour will put in place a programme that provides an affordable option, available to all schools, for Year 5-13 students to have access to a portable digital device,

in the classroom and at home. We will also expand access to teacher professional develop-ment in the ICT area, and partner with schools, local government and communities to put in place infrastructure that will allow students, particularly those from low-decile schools, who do not currently have internet connections to use their portable devices to access the inter-net at home.

Quality public educationAs New Zealanders, we pride ourselves on our tradition of free public education, but that prin-ciple has been steadily eroded in recent years. Labour will provide additional funding to allow schools to stop asking parents for donations, scrap National’s charter schools legislation, and work with the sector to develop a model that allows for the voluntary integration of early childhood centres into the public education system.

Support for every studentEvery one of us is unique, we all have differ-ent strengths and weaknesses, we all learn in different ways. Labour is committed to an education system that recognises this rich diversity and focuses on bringing out the very best in every student.

Labour will ensure every child develops the basic foundation skills for further learning by extending Reading Recovery to all schools and developing a parallel intervention for children struggling with basic maths skills.

We will also comprehensively review the entire system of special needs support so that resources are allocated based on individual needs assessment for each child, rather than each child having to meet the criteria imposed by the system.

More information about Labour’s education policies is available at www.labour.org.nz

Chris Hipkins is the Member of Parliament for Rimutaka and the Labour Spokesperson for Education including Early Childhood Education, and Labour Spokesperson for Forestry. He currently serves on the Education and Science Select Committee and the Privileges Committee.

Chris previously served as senior advisor to the Rt Hon Helen Clark, Prime Minister, Hon Trevor Mallard, Minister of the Crown. He was the education officer at the Health Professions Council in London; senior consultant at Learning Energy New Zealand; and project advisor at the Industry Training Federation of New Zealand.

He holds a postgraduate certificate in public policy from Victoria University of Wellington, a national certificate of education and training from the New Zealand Qualifications Authority and a BA in politics and criminology from Victoria University.

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The Green Party believes that a strong, free, inclusive public education system is the foundation of a good society and a way to ensure all children reach their

potential. We have a vision where every child is recognised for their uniqueness and supported to achieve all they’re capable of, regardless of their home life, their culture or any disability or special ability.

The Green Party’s plan is to expand and strengthen public education and support schools to be the heart of their communities - places where children and their families can be connected to what they need to get the most out of education.

One of the ways we’ll do that is to set schools up as community hubs. Our hubs plan is based on research showing education is only the most effective route out of poverty and a great equaliser if it is inclusive and of a good quality.

There are thousands of kiwi kids who are not reaching their potential at school because the symptoms of poverty, like sickness, hunger and a lack of resources get in the way of their learning.

That is a tragedy for those children and comes at a huge cost to the rest of us as we waste the potential of each of those kids, and collec-tively pick up the tab for the $6 to $8 billion a year in preventable health, welfare, and jus-tice expenses that are associated with keeping them poor.

School hubs directly tackle the impact of pov-erty on education, reverse roll decline and build community by acting as the anchor for the resources and opportunities which support kids and their families.

Our plan will:

• put a dedicated school nurse in every decile 1 to 4 school;

• provide a healthy lunch for all children who need it;

• build quality early childhood education cen-tres onsite where they’re needed;

• offer free after school care so that all children can experience sports and cultural activities regardless of their parents’ income, and parents can work knowing that their kids are safe, having fun and are well looked after.

From there, it’s up to the individual school com-munity to decide what they want in their hub. Adult and parenting education, disability coor-dination, cultural and after school experiences, community gardens are just some things that could become part of the mix.

Eventually, we’d extend our hubs to all schools, offering each an opportunity to develop a unique hub serving their communities’ indi-vidual needs.

School hubs are based on the understanding that setting achievement targets on their own do not work unless we give kids, their families and the schools the support they need to meet those targets.

Research shows that between 60 and 80 per cent of the influence on a child’s educational achievement comes from out of school fac-tors, the lives that kids bring with them to the school gate.

The Green Party believes any initiatives to improve teacher quality need to be done

in tandem with the efforts to mitigate the real impact that factors to do with poverty have on education.

Education is the most sensible investment we as a country can make. That’s why we sup-port restoring, and improving, funding to early childhood so centres can employ fully trained teachers

All our kids deserve a great early childhood edu-cation with trained teachers who know how to expand their horizons. It is simply not good enough to enrol poorer kids in lower quality services to make up the Minister’s achieve-ment targets.

We know that under National the impact of pov-erty on education has got worse. Recent PISA results show that poorer kids here are less likely to do well than poorer kids in other devel-oped countries, and their chances of doing well have lessened over the past eight years. Research shows equity in education improves when public education is strengthened and

when schools collaborate rather than compete. Educational systems which focus on quality, such as Finland and Singapore, also do the best overall.

This is why we don’t support charter schools, or big payouts to private schools, or national standards which are used to compare schools and drive them to compete on narrow markers of so called success.

We believe all kids, not just those whose par-ents can afford a private education or who have been cherry picked for a Charter School, deserve small class sizes, great teachers, amazing out of school opportunities, 100 per cent inclusion and the health and social support they need to thrive.

The Green Party believes in 100 per cent inclusion, which means centrally funding

support staff and special education services so that schools are not forced to pick and choose from their stretched ops grants and support is funded based on need.

We believe that to honour Te Tiriti, and give Māori and Pasifika kids the best chance, schools should develop placed based relation-ships with tangata whenua and demonstrate respect for whānau and tikanga.

Cultural inclusiveness can be lived throughout the school by developing the understanding of Te Tiriti through sustained professional devel-opment of teachers and by developing the capacity for Te Reo to be available to all children.

Education can be a route to a great life, full of possibilities, and the means by which kids can reach their full potential. The Green Party believes investing in children is the smartest investment a society can make.

Green Party MP Catherine Delahunty, left, with Metiria Turei.

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Education should be available to everyone.

A 100 per cent free, quality public edu-cation system, from early childhood to

tertiary, is the best investment a country can make in its own future.

For this to happen, the system needs an over-haul. More needs to be done to ensure the quality provision of early childhood education and more needs to be done to boost par-ticipation and quality in kōhanga reo. Much more also needs to be done to ensure tama-riki in kōhanga reo can attend a quality kura kaupapa in their local area. Alongside this, all public schools, including kura kaupapa and wharekura, need to be supported by policies that are known to work, such as embedding learning in a wellbeing framework that includes food in schools, health care, small class sizes, and culturally supportive and relevant learning contexts.

Changes also need to be made to address inequality as students’ learning achieve-

ment is directly related to family incomes. Raising achievement requires investment in job creation, raising wages and benefits to livable levels, alongside direct investment in education.

More investment is also needed in tertiary edu-cation so it can be provided free of charge and for students to be properly supported while studying. High costs stop too many from par-ticipating or stop them from enrolling in longer degree courses which boost their employment and earning opportunities down the track. Students, staff, and communities must retain their voices on TEI governing bodies to con-tinue to advocate for free education.

MANA policy priorities are to:• Reinvigorate kōhanga reo

• Increase the number of kōhanga reo and provide funding for up to 40 hours/ week for each child.

• Improve access to te reo classes for whānau and staff.

• Develop a policy framework to increase participation and quality

• Increase funding to implement the frame-work, equitable to teacher-led ECE.

• Train more kaiako for special education.

• Invest in research to support and build the contribution of kōhanga to language revitali-zation and Māori educational success.

• Fund kōhanga to provide meals and health care services.

• Improve the quality of ECE

• Raise minimum standards to improve qual-ity, including setting minimum qualification levels for home-based services, and requir-ing 100% qualified and registered teachers in teacher-led services.

• Increase funding to non-profit ECE centres to meet these standards.

• Increase Playcentre funding to remove reli-ance on volunteer administrators.

• Streamline processes for parents to estab-lish new ECE services.

• Reinstate funding for research and profes-sional development to ensure services are culturally relevant.

• Support ECE services to better support children with special needs.

• Introduce meals and health care services in all non-profit ECE centres.

• Ensure there are kura kaupapa for all kōhanga 5 year olds

• Increase the number of kura kaupapa to greatly improve accessibility, and increase funding to ensure quality.

• Invest in the ongoing development of a cur-riculum and assessment system consistent with Te Aho Matua.

• Invest in the professional development of kaiako and whānau.

• Support state schools to provide quality teaching and learning environments

• Cancel public private partnership contracts and abolish charter schools.

• Invest in the professional development of teachers and school leaders to provide culturally supportive and relevant learning contexts.

• Develop all schools, kura, and wharekura into Taiao Hauora centres with free dental, healthcare, social support, and breakfast and lunches.

• Develop kura, wharekura, and schools as community hubs with home-school and whanau literacy partnerships, adult and community education, trades training and other tertiary courses, and the creation of community-based jobs.

• Abolish National Standards and replace with a better system.

• Boost funding for special education, includ-ing for gifted children.

• Make te reo Māori a compulsory subject in schools and develop a plan to ensure there are sufficient teachers and learning resources to do so.

• Greatly improve access to tertiary education

• Abolish all fees and provide students with a living allowance (or Universal Basic Income) while studying.

• Develop a plan to write off student debt. In the meantime, there should be no further interest on student loans.

• Reinstate compulsory student unionism to support the push for free education, with students setting fees and determining how they are spent.

• Provide students with community-based jobs to help them complete their courses and reduce debt.

• Provide graduates with incentives to work in areas where there is an identified need. Ensure that incentives are culturally appro-priate where applicable.

• Increase funding to the sector to ensure quality of provision, and ensure it is equi-table across all parts of the public tertiary sector.

• Reduce competition by phasing out funding for PTE’s while reviewing public TEIs to ensure ongoing accessibility for all. Māori PTEs to be funded as a Treaty partnership responsibility of the Crown.

• Require public tertiary institutions to plan together for the provision of courses to meet student needs and community development goals, and ban spending on expensive and unnecessary marketing campaigns.

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What our society has asked, and indeed demanded, of our public education system continues to change. New Zealand First

believes that it is time to have an education summit; a forum for robust discussion between all stakeholders after 25 years of ‘Tomorrow’s Schools” that includes the voice of students, parents and caregivers, support staff, teachers, school leaders and school trustees.

Our national curriculum document provides our teachers and learners with wide success criteria but current government policy has narrowed the definition of success to the detri-ment of learners. We believe that “success for Kiwi kids as Kiwi kids” needs to be identified, agreed and implemented. We, politicians, par-ents and community leaders, need to return to a high-trust model partnering with the people in and around our classrooms and school grounds who share the responsibility for edu-cating our children.

New Zealand First believes that we have a quality public education system but acknowl-edges that there are always areas for reflection and review to meet the needs of all learners. New Zealand First is strongly opposed to the current government direction. Charter schools are publically funded privately owned profit making opportunities that would be removed by New Zealand First.

New Zealand First believes that all students need to be literate and numerate but does

not believe that the black and white National Standards imposed on our primary school chil-dren are fit for purpose. Our national curriculum has identified curriculum achievement levels that are progressive and overlapping – children are not expected to achieve at the same level at the same time. Discussion on refocussing data, analysis and reporting using these levels

would be part of any educational summit.

The often repeated phrase that public schools and our teachers are failing ‘1 in 5 of our stu-dents’ is simplistic and does not address the real concerns of many New Zealanders regard-ing the effect of economic and social conditions outside the school gate. The recent announce-ment of a top-down injection of $359 million of new funding does nothing to support clearly identified student need in the early years of compulsory schooling.

New Zealand First would “front end the spend”.

We would urgently and immediately review the funding model for play centres and kin-dergartens as these are the backbone of our public early childhood education system and are currently having to compete with a plethora of privately owned centres. New Zealand First is most concerned about the loss of access to these services for our rural and isolated communities.

New Zealand First asks why is the Ministry of Education not collecting baseline data that clearly identifies the learning needs of brand new ‘schoolies’ - every new entrant teacher in the country would be able to tell you who needs extra support and who needs extension.

We are working with Resource Teachers of Literacy, Resource Teachers of Maori, Resource Teachers of Learning and Behaviour, Speech Language Therapists and ESOL teach-ers to understand how best to meet the needs of all children including those learners chal-lenged by dyslexia, dyspraxia, Asperger’s and autism.

New Zealand First would review the imple-mentation of the operations grant with a view to increasing it and creating a separate fund-ing structure for support staff. A review of how ORS, SLS, special needs and special abilities

learners are funded is timely to ensure that there are no barriers to using highly experi-enced and skilled support staff in the delivery of teacher aide support hours.

Our recent work on the Pasifika languages inquiry has reinforced the importance of

heritage recognition to student achievement. Until recently, New Zealand schools had the opportunity to participate in the well-respected initiative, Te Kotahitanga. New Zealand First would re-establish this funding support along-side nationwide professional development by rolling out this initiative for all schools. It is our view that this programme has positive out-comes for Maori learners and all learners, no matter what their heritage background. We see a greater role for Resource Teachers of Maori within mainstream classrooms specifi-cally around teacher support to deliver quality teaching and learning Te Reo Maori in English-medium schools Years 1 to 13.

New Zealand First is concerned that our sec-ondary schools are being held to ransom by NCEA league tables through the emphasis on ministerial targets. There needs to be greater flexibility concerning successful pathways and positive outcomes for students after NCEA Level 1. Secondary schools can be financially disadvantaged through recently introduced quarterly roll returns which may affect their ability to maintain the range of academic and cultural classes throughout the school year.

New Zealand First believes that alongside the extension of ‘fees-fee’ Youth Guarantee places for 16 to 19 year olds, there needs to be greater flexibility for rural youth who do not have easy access to a wide range of tertiary education provider’s classrooms. New Zealand First supports the move towards greater use of in-business training outside the current appren-ticeship models.

Tracey Martin, pictured with kapa haka students, is Deputy Leader of New Zealand First and Spokesperson for Education. Leaving the paid work-force in 1995 to be the full-time at-home caregiver of her three children she was elected as a list member of parliament at the 2011 election. With early beginnings on the various administrative and fundraising committees of Helensville Playcentre, Mahurangi Kindergarten, Warkworth Primary School and Mahurangi College PTA’s, Tracey was elected to the Warkworth Primary School Board of Trustees in 2004, a position she held for seven years with the policy and finance portfolios. Tracey resigned from the Warkworth Primary School Board in 2011 due in part to the introduction of National Standards. She was elected to the Board of Trustees of Mahurangi College in 2007 and during chaired the finance sub-committee and was the board’s liaison to Te Whanau O Mahurangi, a support group for Maori, families, students. Tracey became Chair of the Board in 2009 and currently retains that position.

Portfolios: Deputy Leader, Education, Research, Science and Technology, Women’s Affairs, Youth Affairs, Arts/Culture/Heritage, Communications and IT

EducationToday.co.nz 1(

The Conservatives are committed to ensuring that New Zealand has a world-class education system, one that works for all New Zealanders and

provides our young people with the opportu-nity to have successful and fulfilled lives.

We have become increasingly concerned in regards to the way education is being man-aged in this country. The Budget for education has continually increased, however our posi-tion in the world with regards our educational outcomes is dropping. The question needs to be why? We believe the bottle necking of funding in large bureaucracies and the empha-sis on a single educational pathway are among two of the most pressing problems that are having significant impacts on New Zealand’s educational outcomes and the prospects of our young people.

Funding is certainly part of the issue; how-ever the amount that is appropriated is not the problem, rather the problem lies in the ever increasing costs of running an ever-burgeon-ing bureaucracy in the form of the Ministry of Education. The budget for the ministry increases year on year, while we ask our teach-ers, students and parents to do more with fewer and fewer resources. Given the chance we would attempt to streamline the Ministry of Education, by reversing the increased cen-tralization of decision making to the ministry, and allow schools to make more decisions affecting positive outcomes for their students. We believe that the size and functionality of the MOE should be about half of what it is now. We would reallocate half of what we would save in this restructure to schools for their frontline services for use on classroom resources and for targeted resources such as staff to ensure the best outcomes for children in our schools.

Another aspect that concerns us with regards funding is the arbitrary decisions that are

made as a result of the decile rating system. We believe that every child should be funded so that they can achieve. However we are con-cerned that the way in which this is assessed creates a porous net, one which many children are falling through. Policies like the Green’s

and Labour’s, which seek to increase funding for low decile schools, have fundamental flaws in our opinion. While it might seem like a posi-tive thing to do, we have concerns about the children in higher decile schools that consist-ently fall through the gaps as a result of this funding method, this needs to be addressed. It simply does not follow that all of those who live in higher decile areas are actually better off. It is our belief that funding should follow the child, and schools should be funded and resourced to educate the students they have. Of particular concern to us is the way this fund-ing problem filters through to students who have special needs. We have spent a lot of time talking with teachers across the country about the issues they have in accessing the funding and the resources they need to teach children with special needs. We believe that learning difficulties and other special needs to be identified much earlier on and adequately resourced for the success of all students. Testing particularly for conditions such as dyslexia should be mandatory for all children so that these difficulties can be identified and practical steps taken to help early on in a child’s learning. We are committed to ensuring this is brought about. Once these issues have been identified we believe that local schools, teachers and parents are best placed to assess the modifications to the learning environment needed and implement these changes. We

would look at policy changes including a reas-sessment of the effectiveness of RTLB’s to ensure the delivery of effective special learn-ing programs occur in the most seamless and efficient way possible.

With an increase in the shortage of par-ticular skills in New Zealand, we would

like to see a repositioning of emphasis in our education system, particularly at secondary level to encourage students into the trades. We believe that the emphasis on the pathway to university education needs to be pivoted so that our labour market’s requirements can be filled with well-trained and qualified young New Zealanders. It is apparent that in the last few decades, New Zealand has moved down a path which has encouraged the pro-liferation of university graduates, the majority of whom gather major state sponsored debt in the process without guarantee of any tangible career prospect. We believe that more oppor-tunities should be given at secondary school level either in the existing school system, or specialist colleges that will cater for and pro-vided career pathways for 1000’s of young kiwis who would excel in a trade. We believe that providing these options at a younger age and encouraging New Zealanders with more opportunities when going through their educa-tion will produce fewer younger people who go from education onto welfare and provide a generation of successful and prosperous kiwis.

Colin Craig, pictured front centre, is a businessman and the founding leader of the Conservative Party of New Zealand.

                                2) EducationToday.co.nz

T ime to end the deadweight loss of industrial conflict

Education today is a fractious business. The teachers’ associations, Ministry

of Education and government are engaged in a bitter running battle with each other. A Secretary of Education was sent packing almost before getting her feet under the desk. Online, teachers are sharing ‘the list’ of harms the government has done to them. There are protest marches and education issues are seldom far from the front pages.

The situation in education today resembles industrial relations in the wider economy four decades ago. The energy used for conflict is a deadweight loss, and removing deadweight would be better for everybody.

Better results for everybody are an urgent need as the latest PISA results show. The con-cern should not be the recent drop in average scores but the long-standing poor performance in equity. Our self-image as an equalitarian society (and the reality of it) is at stake. We have to do better.

It is not difficult to sympathise with the teaching profession. Today, what was once tomorrow’s vision of a proud and autonomous profession teaching in self-governing schools remains a paper reality. It is not, however, a practical one. It is easy to sympathise with a profession that is routinely disrupted by Wellington edicts about how they should teach, assess, and resource themselves.

The Teachers’ Associations find themselves in an invidious position as they attempt to fight for professional autonomy while also negotiating

blanket national awards for their members. The two positions are mutually antagonistic.

One association negotiates only 13 contracts for a whopping 48,000 members. Highly effi-cient from a negotiator’s point of view. It is difficult for such an organisation to support any initiative that would lead to more individualised agreements.

It is inconsistent, though, to insist that teacher quality is one of if not the most important factors in education (true), while making it extremely difficult to dismiss bad teachers and insisting on pay scales that reward only senior-ity and management units rather than teaching excellence.

So long as the Associations maintain an indus-trial, rather than professional, approach, they will have to choose between collectivism and excellence. Members of the Law Society, the Institute of Professional Engineers, and the College of Surgeons, to name a few examples, would not tolerate this approach, and neither should the teaching profession.

For their part, though, the Government could return much of the autonomy that

Tomorrow’s Schools promised to the school campus. The most obvious is remunera-tion decisions for teachers. Indeed, control over budgets in at the core of whether an organisation is truly autonomous. Under such a model, some schools might choose to continue single agreements. That is a legitimate choice, but it should be a choice. No other sector of New Zealand that employs 100,000 people has faced the scale of debacle that education has seen with Novapay. It is

no coincidence that no other sector of such a size is paid centrally by the government (there are fewer than half as many nurses in public and private practice) combined. Novapay is just one example of the problems caused by centralisation.

Having given the profession more autonomy, the Government might look to commit to a

more Finnish-style, long term plan with respect to policy. Rather than regularly imposing exter-nal shocks on the sector, as governments of both stripes have done, an attitude that schools are competent and competitive, and deserve the space to get on with educating the next generation, should prevail.

Such a bargain, more autonomy to schools in return for abandoning the indus- trial relations model, would lead to better outcomes for everyone. The teaching profession would be elevated and over time students would receive better service from an elevated profession. Until then, educa-tion politics in New Zealand looks like the 1970’s all over.

David Seymour is ACT’s Education Spokesman. He can be reached at david@sey-mour4epsom.co.nz

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Could National’s refusal to reform MMP lead to the defeat of the gov-ernment? Is the media providing

voters with the information they require to make an informed electoral decision? What directions might John Key’s lead-ership take if he secures a third term?

These questions are part of a five-week course about the 2014 New Zealand election, run by Victoria University of Wellington’s Continuing Education programme.

Five academics from Victoria’s Political Science and International Relations programme are providing a variety of perspectives on the general election. Members of the public can sign up to the full five-week course or join indi-vidual sessions.

Jeff Ashford, Director of Victoria’s Centre for Lifelong Learning, said the course was for anyone interested in politics and the electoral system in New Zealand.

“It will provide a valuable context for understanding this year’s election and insight into the parties, personalities, media and policies that will feature.”

Election inspection

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COURSE OUTLINEWednesday 6 August Continuity and Change in Electoral Politics: The 2014 New Zealand General Election Professor Stephen Levine: Cycles of change and continuity in electoral politics, with a sketch of the historic context in which the 2014 competition for votes will take place.

Wednesday 13 August Foreign Policy and the General Election: Positioning in an Age of Asian Growth Dr Jason Young: Diplomatic and security rela-tions in the Asia-Pacific will remain central to New Zealand’s foreign policy over the coming decades. Examine the positions of the major parties on New Zealand’s place in the Asia Pacific.

Wednesday 20 August The Electoral System and the Election Professor Nigel Roberts: How our electoral system converts votes into seats in Parliament has profound conse-quences for the government and politics of New Zealand. Given the rules governing MMP, it can spell success or disaster for political par-ties. What’s likely to happen on Saturday, 20

September? Will National’s refusal to reform MMP lead, ironically, to the defeat of the government.

Wednesday 27 August John Key in Political Time Redux Dr Jon Johansson: Look at Prime Minister John Key’s leader-ship in political time post-1984. Dr Johansson will locate John Key and his government as continuing the long post-Rogernomics consolidation. He will discuss some of the underlying dimensions of Key’s leadership and what future directions it might take should Key secure a third term.

Wednesday 3 September Media’s Role in the 2014 New Zealand Election Campaign Dr Kate McMillan: Assess the degree to which the New Zealand media are carrying out the roles expected of them in a representative democracy. Look at a range of challenges currently facing the media and ask how these challenges have enhanced and diminished its ability to provide voters with comprehensive information ahead of the election.

To join courses:

http://cce.victoria.ac.nz/courses/248-elections-2014-be-informed

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The only organisation in New Zealand spe-cifically founded to help parents cope with youth at risk needs more money.

ToughLove spokesman Peter Altman said during the last three decades the organisation had mentored and supported tens of thou-sands of mothers and fathers through the pain and disruption caused by their teens’ behaviour.

“Although we’re grateful for contracted fund-ing from the Ministry of Social Development, there’s a limit to the numbers of parents our tightly-budgeted, overwhelmingly volunteer-based organisation is able to assist without additional income,” Mr Altmann said.

“It’s a cause of concern that lack of resources prevents us helping every parent in need. Well-funded statutory organisations such as

CYF, Police Youth Aid and schools (through their School Counsellors) recognise our exper-tise and send parents to us. We would really appreciate funding levels appropriate to that expertise and to the job we need to do,” Mr Altmann adds.

ToughLove’s approach includes weekly Parent Support Groups, which provide participants with a sympathetic forum and the opportunity to learn and share effective and proven strat-egies for coping with youth at risk. Support groups are typically facilitated by parents who have themselves experienced such issues in their own immediate families.

Peter Altmann describes unacceptable teen-age behaviour as a spectrum that can include violence, defiance, verbal abuse, bullying of siblings, truancy from school, promiscuity, drug or alcohol usage and compulsive gaming.

Also part of this spectrum are staying out all night, disappearing for days on end, trashing the family home, staying in bed all day, refusing to do homework and behaving in a disrespect-ful or manipulative manner.

“All these behaviours can be found across New Zealand, in every social, economic or educa-tional quartile and across all sorts of family units, including nuclear families, single parent families, blended families and those with same-sex parents,” Mr Altmann said.

“Those who can no longer reason with their teenage children typically suffer a massive loss of confidence. Shame, grief, stress, worry and

embarrassment are also normally part of the mix, in ways that can impact severely on health, put a huge strain on relationships and corrode or destroy families.

“Nor is the impact always restricted to the imme-diate family, as grandparents, uncles, aunts, friends and neighbours can all be affected by a dysfunctional relationship between parent and teen. Moreover, there’s an economic cost to New Zealand, as stressed-out parents often need to take time off work to cope with family issues.

“Contrary to a widespread misconception, the name TOUGHLOVE doesn’t mean we favour a heavy-handed, authoritarian approach. We advocate clear and consistent boundaries and consequences. But we also recommend that parents back off from constant arguments. Our name reflects the realisation that parenting is always a tough job and that love is one of its essential ingredients,” he said.

According to a survey carried out between October 2011 and April 2012 by Wellington-based research company, Litmus Limited, 91 percent of parent attending TOUGHLOVE Support Groups would recommend the expe-rience to other parents.

ToughLove employs four paid staff members, based respectively in Auckland, Canterbury, Waikato and the Bay of Plenty.

LINKSwww.toughlove.org.nz

news

Love needs money

English and community languages teach-ers attending the 14th National CLESOL Conference in Wellington last month want

the government to develop a New Zealand lan-guages policy “as a matter of urgency”.

The conference at Rutherford House con-nected hundreds of community language teachers who work to maintain the first lan-guages of migrant and refugee groups settled in New Zealand, and English (ESOL) teachers who work with speakers of other languages in all sectors of education.

TESOLANZ president Dr Hilary Smith said the changing ethnic make-up of New Zealand meant all political parties need to make lan-guage teaching a key priority.

She said that although there are now over 160 different languages spoken in New Zealand and Auckland is one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world, we still don’t have a languages policy to support the complex and diverse needs of people who speak English as a second language.

“The language profile of New Zealand is chang-ing rapidly, and without good policy and planning to cater for the diverse language needs of a significant number of residents we run the risk that many will not participate fully in our society, or reach their potential,” Dr Smith said.

“Acquiring language fluency is a significant bar-rier to people getting jobs, understanding the system, getting a basic education and connect-ing with the community.

“We need to increase our competency in other languages to trade and do business in an increasingly complex world — especially now English is not the first language of many of our major trading partners.

“We also need to see the existing language skills of new migrants as an asset — not an impediment — to their learning,” she said.

Dr Smith said TESOLANZ supported the Royal Society and the Human Rights Commission who have both called for a national languages policy focusing on: Te Reo Māori and New Zealand Sign Language; Pasifika languages especially Cook Islands Māori, Niuean and Tokealuan; other community and heritage lan-guages; and English language.

“Future policy initiatives must be based on good evidence from high quality local and interna-tional research,” she said.

“A strong body of international evidence now shows that children who have a good founda-tion in their first language have better outcomes in all subjects, including English. This means it’s important for teachers to understand how to support children’s learning in and of their first languages.

“If we make sure our migrant children are con-fident in both languages, this benefits them individually as well as the wider society. In some cases it will also have a direct economic future benefit, by enabling them to work confi-dently across two or more cultures.”

Dr Smith said the “I’m not good at languages” mentality is now a luxury for people in English language speaking countries which is not shared by the rest of the world, and increas-ingly we are missing out on the social and economic benefits that an understanding of other languages brings.

Call for language leadership

SIDENOTEIn the first half of 2014, there were 31,829 students from migrant or refu-gee backgrounds eligible for Ministry of Education ESOL funding, in 1,327 schools. There is a trend for these students to be more widely located in schools around the country. The number of Indian and Fijian Indian ESOL funded students was 4,855 in the first half of 2014, now the second largest group after Samoan.

2* EducationToday.co.nz

Parents should be careful about telling lies, even white lies, to children as it can cause the children to also tell lies.

This is the finding of two studies from America. The first study, from the University of California, San Diego involved 186 children aged 3 to 7 in a temptation-resistance game.

Half of the children were told that there was a large bowl of sweets in the next room avail-able as a reward for playing a game. Then they were told that was simply a lie designed to get them to participate. The other half of the chil-dren were not lied to, but simply invited to play the game.

In the study, published in the journal Developmental Science, the children were asked to identify well known toys by their sound (i.e. barking would indicate a dog). The children could cheat by peeking if they chose to do so, but they were asked not to do that, and not to lie about it if they did in fact cheat.

One of the toys was difficult to identify and the researchers found that the 5 to 7 year-old chil-dren who had been lied to earlier were more likely to cheat and lie about it than those who had not been lied to. Interestingly, among the 3 and 4 year-olds there was no difference in the rate of lying and cheating.

The researchers concluded the older children were more inclined to lie if they discovered adults had not been telling the truth, but the

younger children had not yet developed the sophisticated abilities to do that. The research-ers agreed they did not know why these results emerged.

“It could be the 5 to 7 year-olds were simply imi-tating the behaviour modelled by the adult, or it could be they were making judgements about the importance of honesty to this adult,” said Professor Leslie Carver, who headed the study.

“Even if it’s expedient for an adult to lie, to get co-operation through deception, for example, or to get children to control their emotions, it’s probably a bad idea in the long run.”

The other study from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and published in the magazine Cognition, found that not only can children tell when they are told white lies, they can even spot when important informa-tion is being withheld from them by parents or teachers.

“Determining who to trust is an important skill to learn at an early age,” said Hyowon Gweon, the lead author of this study.

“When someone provides us with information we not only learn about what is being taught we also learn something about that person. If the information is accurate and complete you might also trust that person in the future,” she said.

Professor Carver from the California study said the actions of parents suggest they do

not believe the lies they tell their children will impact the child’s own honesty, but “the cur-rent study suggests even a little white lie might have consequences.

Liar, liar, pants on fire

LINKS• http://drwilda.com/2014/03/20/univer-

sity-of-california-san-diego-study-lying-parents-tend-to-raise-lying-children/

• A recent survey of US university students showed 30 per cent of all students admitted to cheating on an examination, 50 per cent admitted to cheating on a class assignment, 66 per cent admitted to cheating at least once during their college career, and 66 per cent have seen classmates cheat on exams or assignments. Paradoxically, 75 per cent of those in that survey believe that cheating is not justified under any circumstances. Finally, 50 per cent of the students surveyed believe that the faculty of their university do not try to catch cheats.

• www.mnsu.edu/cetl/teachingre-sources/articles/academicdishonesty.html

Black, white or multi-coloured with sparkles, a lie is a lie. DAVID CRAIG says as children develop they learn the ability to tell porkies from the adults around them - and they copy the behaviour.

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money funTo access free resources visitwww.youngenterprise.org.nze: support@youngenterprise.org.nzt: 04 570 0452

Title: Flies in a windowAuthor: John FergussonPublisher: JF MinistriesISBN: 978-1463751210RRP: $20FROM: www.jfm.org.nz

When Wendy’s 16-year-old brother falls from a fourth-floor window in Reading, England, the

verdict is suicide. But Wendy doesn’t believe it. So it was an accident? Or worse?

Compelled to discover the truth to honour her

brother’s last request, Wendy sets out on an adven-ture involving drug money, romance, and a bizarre family feud over a large Dorset estate.

As she unravels the mystery she gradually discovers what, or rather who, the truth really is.

Despite being set in the UK the themes are universal and the story will resonate for teenage readers. John Fergusson’s style has natural rhythm and a pace keeping the reader involved.

Flies in a window is refreshing fiction, with the larger life questions teen readers enjoy imagining and asking of the world around them.

book reviews

Fiction with a message

Title: Mindful LearningReduce stress and improve brain performance for effective learningAuthors: Dr Craig Hassed & Dr Richard ChalmersPublisher: ExisleISBN: 9781921966392RRP: $34.99From www.exislepublishing.co.nzPhone 09 8179192

Mindful Learning shows ‘mindfulness’ tech-niques to manage stress, improve memory

and increase focus, all vital to success in any learn-ing environment.

Mindfulness refers to our ability to focus our atten-tion. In the context of learning, this means training ourselves to ignore distractions and unhelpful self-chatter and keep our attention on the job at hand.

The authors provide practical exercises to help students improve their performance, to develop per-sonally, to enhance physical and emotional health, and deal with study and exam-related demands.

The exercises, not only for students but for anyone, help people access creativity, identify mindsets and increase mental flexibility, improve problem solving skills and foster intuitive learning as opposed to rote regurgitation of spoon-fed facts and figures.

LINKS

* Co-author Dr Craig Hassed has been speaking to school leaders from throughout the country on sus-taining leadership, and at the Secondary Principals’ Association of New Zealand www.spanz.school.nz

*Dr Richard Chambers is a clinical psychologist spe-cializing in mindfulness therapy, and developed Smiling Mind, a free iPhone and web app www.richard-chambers.co/Mindfulness.html

Performing brains

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The dinosaurs are

coming To WellingTon!

aT Te PaPa 27 sePT 2014 – 6 Feb 2015 charges aPPlY

Discover the Tyrannosaur family tree, from the mighty T rex right down to the tiniest of dinosaurs. Explore how Tyrannosaurs became the world’s top predators with their massive skulls, powerful jaws, and bone-crunching teeth.

See fossil specimens, dinosaur models, and life-sized skeletons, and experience the might of these amazing creatures through augmented reality.

book a TYrannosaurs exPerience For Your class! Term 4, 2014

Programmes and resources to support learning are available for Early Childhood, Primary and Secondary students.

This education experience will be popular, so don’t miss out, book today!

For more information and to book go to www.tepapa.govt.nz/education

Or contact our Education Coordinator reservations@tepapa.govt.nz Ph: (04) 381 7087