As a result of previous BPS targets in Education, set in 2012, more children are now participating than ever before in Early Childhood Education and the rate of 18 year olds with NCEA Level 2 has reached record highs.
This is due to hard work by our teachers, school leaders, parents, whānau, iwi and government in response to targets that focused our resources and attention. While these are no longer BPS targets, they will continue to be a focus of the Ministry and wider education system.
Now, new Education targets have been introduced to raise the achievement of all children and young people in mathematics and writing, pāngarau and tuhituhi. They aim to have at least 80% of Year 8 students, by 2021, reaching the National Standard or Ngā Whanaketanga Rumaki Māori expectations in these areas.
Raising mathematics and writing performance gives young people the confidence and ability to learn in all areas of the curriculum. When they can write with accuracy and fluency they can also, for example, make a persuasive argument in social sciences. When students can present statistical information, they can use these skills to reveal the results of science investigations.
This in turn opens up greater opportunities when it comes to further study, training and employment. Employers need staff whose skills allow them to adapt and thrive in modern work places.
These targets are designed so that teachers and school leaders can plan for their students’ progress over time, and they will have support to do this.
The achievement challenges set down by Communities of Learning | Kāhui Ako all involve maths or writing, and 75% have targets for both maths and writing that equal or exceed the new national ones. Government is investing $359 million to support teachers and principals in these Communities, so schools and early learning services can work together to share high quality teaching and learning practices.
We are also investing smartly to give all teachers and school leaders a range of tools to collect more accurate, reliable and timely data on individual student progress and performance. This includes the Local Curriculum Design Smart Tool to help Kāhui Ako design a curriculum that meets the needs of their students. We have also developed the Learning Progression Frameworks (LPF), the Progress and Consistency (PaCT) Tool, and Te Waharoa Ararau (TWA).
Read more about the new targets, as well as the range of support available for school leaders and teachers.&