Key points
- The Government’s announced a new plan for mathematics education, bringing forward plans for a new curriculum.
- A principal says “something needed to happen” but he’s concerned about the looming deadline for the changes.
- The Prime Minister says “there’s a real crisis here and it’s important that we move very quickly”.
A principal has tentatively welcomed the Government’s new plans for maths education, saying something needed to change — but adding the time frame is “asking an awful lot”.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced on Sunday that the Government will roll out a refreshed maths curriculum to primary and intermediate school students in five months time — a year earlier than planned.
The Government will also spend $20 million for development in structured maths for teachers as the Teaching Council lifts maths entry requirements for new teachers.
And the Ministry of Education will intervene “earlier and more often” in schools that have students slipping behind in mathematics.
Kyle Brewerton, president of the Auckland Primary Principals’ Association, told Breakfast this morning that something had to change.
“We needed something to happen, we can’t continue with these levels of achievement,” he said.
Education Minister Erica Stanford said this week that only 22% of Year 8 students were at the expected standard in maths.
“So yes, something had to happen,” Brewerton said. “The pace … and the implementation is the piece that’s really going to test everyone.
“There’s a lot of work to do and we’re asking an awful lot of our teachers and of our principals and of our communities.”
He called it a “challenge” but acknowledged that, “to a point”, the scale of the problem justifies the pace.
“There are only so many hours in the day and we’ve got to remember that, right now, our priority for our teachers is those young people in front of them this morning,” Brewerton continued. “We want that focus to remain.
“But we also want them to be focusing on these changes that are needed.
“So how do you do both at the same time? There’s the rub.”
The $20 million for teacher training is “great to see”, he said but he also asked where the time taken for that training would come from.
‘It’s important that we move very quickly’ – PM
Christopher Luxon said “it’s important that we move very quickly” on improving the education system. (Source: Breakfast)
Later on Breakfast, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon stood by the Government’s time frame.
“We have a real crisis,” Luxon said. “We want every kid in New Zealand, irrespective of where they come from, to have a shot at life.
“That means getting a good education.
“Also, if we’re going to build the economy we want — if we want to be able to be the world’s leading people in agri-science and we want a new northern expressway from Auckland to Whangārei — we need future people in New Zealand to understand how to do all of that stuff.
“That starts with understanding maths so, there’s a real crisis here and it’s important that we move very quickly.”
Luxon acknowledged that the Government is “moving at pace” with its focus on education and said: “It may mean that other things take a back seat but that’s entirely appropriate.
“That may mean that we actually de-prioritise other things because there’s nothing more important than teaching our kids to read and to be able to do maths, going back to the basics and teaching them well so they’ve got confidence to go forward, and making sure our teachers are supported in that process as well.”
Asked for an example of something that may be de-prioritised within education, the Prime Minister said: “We wanted to do work on our music curriculum, our art curriculum.
“Those are things that are not a focus for us right now.”
