Comments on: A breathtaking litany of incompetence

By: Paul

Paul — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 08:58:41 +0000

yes, they will drop out.

By: Stacktwo

Stacktwo — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:18:08 +0000

Hmm… Well, perhaps it was a bit direct: I really do think that this is an insane policy to be enacting at this time, against so much advice and so much international research and I strayed into suggesting (as others have done) that the person who insisted on taking this blinkered and ideological course might have been, well, not quite compos mentis, and sadly making a fool of herself.

It makes me angry to think that a proportion of children will be reported officially, from a very early age, as being educationally inadequate. The first national standard I met was School Cert – and sometimes the branding of inadequacy that young people, then in their teens, had rammed home for the first time was the point at which school ceased to interest them any more. Will they now start dropping out at 7 or 8?

By: Harry

Harry — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:13:48 +0000

It is unfortunate that the Minister has forgotten that 2010 will see the arrival of the new curriculum. This emphasises learning in all areas. Many schools have seen this as an opportunity to introduce inquiry learning – and seen integration as perfect way of achieving this. This means aproaching a theme or problem from several curriculum areas… social studies, maths, science and english can all contribute. Island Bay school does this particularly well but without the help of advisors, and the need to ‘teach to the test’ this will end. I am considering telling my childs Principal that I do not want her tested, if she is tested I do not want her result sent to anyone but me. This new regime will create a generation of kids who hate learning and hate school. If Key wants to help the kids who leave school with low literacy give them smaller classes at Primary instead.

By: Spud

Spud — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 08:18:14 +0000

@Linda LOL @Trevor – damn I didn’t get to read it before moderation @ Stacktwo – I bet that was funny, I love good satirical poetry.

By: Stacktwo

Stacktwo — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 07:36:13 +0000

Look,how jolly,
Here’s Anne Tolley:
Tory polly
Stacktwo the rest is marginal personal abuse. Trevor

By: Linda

Linda — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:08:32 +0000

@Spud. Better be a ‘future proof’ motorway as we will be very short of engineers and talented design people when we need to upgrade or change it! Still maybe a chain-gang could maintain it…

Have just seen an advisor in action at a local school running a programme for children with delayed oral language development. She co-ordinates about a dozen volunteer parent helpers she has trained to work with these children. When she goes so will that programme, very sad!

By: SHG

SHG — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:07:00 +0000

I hate it when people use the word “litany” incorrectly.

By: Spud

Spud — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:30:30 +0000

@Linda – that’s okay, they can funnel them down the new motorway!

By: Linda

Linda — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 07:11:25 +0000

Gifted and talented students without the support advisors give to their teachers = disengaged intelligent minds = ripe for criminal stream.
Likewise children with special needs in other areas!

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 06:17:03 +0000

That is right Trevor – axing the advisory is putting many people out of a job – and they are the sectors skilled professionals who will be snapped up by the rest of the world. People in the public tend to forget that NZ educators are highly regarded around the world. We will lose our best advisors and then when teachers get brassed off we will lose the best of them as well. After all, you can make more money offshore training others than you can here.