Earlier you test, earlier you brand kids failures

green-party

Mon Apr 02 2007 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)

Earlier you test, earlier you brand kids failures

Monday, 2 April 2007, 5:19 pm
Press Release: Green Party

2 April 2007

John Key's announcement today that the National Party would introduce national standards for primary and intermediate school children and test all children according to these standards, is a cheap policy based on a flawed analysis of why some children do not do well, the Green Party says.

"Many developmental differences are normal and to highlight this as underachievement at an early age stigmatises otherwise capable students," Green Party Education Spokesperson Metiria Turei says.

"Some children will be 'missing the benchmarks' because they're late bloomers, and some will be missing them because they have learning difficulties, perhaps due to inherent problems, or perhaps because they live in an environment that does not support their learning.

"The questions is, how will increasing the number of tests these struggling children have to endure actually help them to do any better?" Mrs Turei says.

"Teachers already have the skills to identify students who aren't achieving to potential, it's about having the resources to act on this knowledge."

"Does John Key really believe that the half of all Maori boys who don't get Level 1 NCEA fail to do so because they weren't tested enough as five and six year olds? Yes, these kids need to be supported to gain necessary skills at primary school, but more testing is not the way to support them. They might need some hours with specialised support staff or their families may need to be better supported through a higher minimum wage, better living conditions and safe, healthy housing."

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"John Key needs to remember that the secure state housing of his day is not on offer to today's kids who often get moved around between inadequate rental properties, changing schools many times during their schooling. Until the National Party is willing to admit that underachievement is not just an educational problem, but a societal problem requiring a whole of government response, they're just trying to sell us gimmicks which won't help anyone and will end up hurting kids."

"The very fact that the National Party claims that this policy will have no budgetary implications reveals that this is not about providing additional remedial and support staff to help pick up struggling kids, but rather it aims to make some schools winners and others losers."

"Schools in difficulty need support and resources. They do not need to be placed in competition with each other, creating failures of teachers, students and whole communities. The earlier you test, the earlier you brand kids failures," Mrs Turei says.

ENDS

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