New school curriculum delayed as Government responds to teacher concerns
Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
The government has delayed the new senior secondary school curriculum after teacher feedback.
By John Gerritsen of RNZ
The Government has delayed introducing the new senior secondary school curriculum after feedback from teachers.
The change followed warnings the new curriculums were being rushed, and coincided with the Government's announcement this week that the NCEA qualification would be phased out from 2028.
The Government had originally told schools they would have to teach the new English and maths curriculums for intermediate and secondary schools from the start of next year and new curriculums from other subjects from the start of 2027.
But this week the Ministry of Education dropped that timeline and introduced a staggered start.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NZ Herald
an hour ago
- NZ Herald
Local elections 2025: Rotorua rural ward councillor Karen Barker re-elected unopposed
'I'm very grateful I get the chance to serve again, because it's been a particularly enjoyable experience,' said Barker. 'I will take the opportunity to do the best I can, not just for rural people, but everybody and I am very much looking forward to it.' Barker said she was expecting to see more names trickle in before last Friday's nominations deadline. After nothing changed by Monday, she tentatively accepted her re-election. She hoped the lack of challengers was a show of 'confidence' from the rural community about her work. 'It can be a reflection of the kind of job you have done and how comfortable people are with what the council's been doing. So it's not all disengagement, sometimes there's potentially a level of comfort.' She also pointed to the six candidates running for four seats on Rotorua's Rural Community Board as a sign rural constituents were not apathetic about local politics. 'That is particularly encouraging,' she said. 'It shows that the rural people are engaged, and they want to have their say and they want to try and support me in my role.' Karen Barker was first elected in 2022. Photo / NZME Rotorua's rural ward was established after a drawn-out representation review concluded in April 2022. The Local Government Commission also instituted three Māori ward and six general ward seats. The rural ward covers an area with around 8000 residents including parts of the Ngongotahā Valley and Hamurana, Rerewhakaaitu, the Kaingaroa Forest, Lakes Rotomā and Rotoiti, Waiotapu, Reporoa, Mamaku and others within the Waikato portion of the Rotorua district. Barker highlighted rates affordability, community halls and rural subdivision rules as key issues in the ward for the next three years, as well as wider Rotorua projects such as water, sewerage, infrastructure investment and the museum. She said she was committed to still attending pre-election events to remain 'as engaged as possible'. There was a 'great choice' of candidates available across the other council wards, she said. Barker was congratulated by fellow councillors at Wednesday's Infrastructure and Environment Committee meeting, which she chairs. Don Paterson and Conan O'Brien both passed on their well wishes, while Robert Lee said she had 'conducted herself admirably' in her role. Mathew Nash is a Local Democracy Reporting journalist based at the Rotorua Daily Post. He has previously written for SunLive, been a regular contributor to RNZ and was a football reporter in the UK for eight years. – LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
The Spinoff
an hour ago
- The Spinoff
The government may be turning away from te Tiriti – but the people aren't
Two authors of books about te Tiriti o Waitangi discuss the modern relevance of the nation's most important document and shifting attitudes towards it, despite pushback from the government. We recently shared the stage for a public kōrero on te Tiriti o Waitangi. The event, held during Matariki as part of the Tāmaki Untold series, filled the Whare Wānanga. People stayed after to talk. They asked thoughtful, sometimes difficult questions as they connected over cups of tea. We're seeing this kind of energy across the country. People are showing up not to argue or feel guilty – but to learn. What makes that so striking is how few New Zealanders were ever taught the basics about te Tiriti. That's not an individual failing, it's a systemic one. Some of the people in government who speak most confidently about te Tiriti may know less than the average person in the audience. That's why we sometimes need to start from the beginning. One of the questions Roimata was asked at our talk was: 'Which is the authoritative document – te Tiriti or the Treaty?' It's a common and important question. She laid it out like this: Māori discovered Aotearoa. Moriori discovered Rēkohu. They held tino rangatiratanga – complete authority – over their lands and lives. That's not ancient history; that's most of our history. By 1840, Queen Victoria's representatives wanted the exclusive right to buy land and a way to control British settlers. They promised protection and partnership. These were the terms discussed and recorded in te Tiriti o Waitangi, in te reo Māori. It reaffirmed Māori authority, echoing He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni, the 1835 Declaration of Independence. But a different version – the Treaty of Waitangi – was written in English, asserting that the Queen would have 'sovereignty' – the power to make laws over everyone, including Māori. That was never discussed or agreed. It's important to set this all out when giving the short answer: only te Tiriti was agreed to, so only te Tiriti can be authoritative. Still, since 1840, the Crown has acted on the English version, using it to justify a flood of laws that have harmed Māori and enabled the loss of more than 60 million acres – nearly 97% of Māori land. When people hear this for the first time, they're often stunned. Sometimes there are tears. But when people are met with compassion rather than shame, they lean in. They keep learning. They tell their friends. And they begin to expect better from our institutions. We've both seen this shift up close. Avril met a woman after a talk who shared that her group was about to sign an MOU with their local hapū. She has been hosted by treaty education groups, who have been working in their communities, educating, leading protest actions and building networks for years These efforts are part of a growing nationwide movement. The commitment to te Tiriti is real – and it predates this government and will outlast it. Today, there are more tauiwi who outwardly support te Tiriti than ever before. And what's most heartening is that this movement is grounded in hope. At a time when public conversations are often dominated by fear, misinformation or division, we are generally seeing the opposite in our communities: courage, curiosity and kindness. In town halls, classrooms, marae and boardrooms, it's ordinary people – not politicians – who are stepping up. They're asking questions, challenging old assumptions, and imagining a future where Te Tiriti isn't a source of tension, but a foundation for justice, understanding and shared strength. It takes courage to admit you were never taught this history. It takes hope to believe things can be different. And it takes both to stay in the room, keep learning and take action. In workplaces too, change is continuing. Despite government reversals, many organisations are choosing to keep investing in Tiriti education, co-designing projects with Māori partners, and ensuring staff have a basic understanding of tikanga and pronunciation as part of respectful engagement. This matters. Non-Māori have a critical role to play – not just in backing Māori-led initiatives, but in educating our own communities, challenging our institutions and supporting the enactment of tino rangatiratanga in practice. Yes, people still get nervous. Some worry about being tokenistic. Others fear making mistakes or overstepping. But the reality is that mistakes are inevitable in any learning journey. The key is to treat them as part of the process, not a reason to pull back. Being useful looks different in different contexts. Sometimes it means stepping back and letting Māori leadership guide the kaupapa. Other times, especially where there are few Māori voices in a space, it means stepping up – but doing so under the direction of Māori colleagues and communities. In the end, it's about relationships. Te Tiriti was always meant to be a partnership – a mutually beneficial agreement between peoples. That vision still exists. Māori haven't withdrawn the invitation. The door is still open and we're seeing more and more people walk through it. That's what gives us hope. The future of this country will not be shaped solely by whoever is in power at any given moment. It's being shaped every day by teachers, parents, kaumātua, rangatahi, social workers, union delegates, health workers, and neighbours – people who are choosing honesty over defensiveness, and connection over fear. New Zealanders are ready to engage – if the facts are made accessible. We know that once people begin to understand, they often want to act. Hope grows fastest where knowledge replaces silence. The momentum is already here. And if it continues, the future of this country – grounded in te Tiriti – could be brighter than many dare imagine.
1News
2 hours ago
- 1News
Curriculum changes delayed after feedback from teachers
The Government has delayed introducing the new senior secondary school curriculum after feedback from teachers. The change followed warnings the new curriculums were being rushed, and coincided with the Government's announcement this week that the NCEA qualification would be phased out from 2028. The Government had originally told schools they would have to teach the new English and maths curriculums for intermediate and secondary schools from the start of next year and new curriculums from other subjects from the start of 2027. But this week the Ministry of Education dropped that timeline and introduced a staggered start. The 2027 date would apply only for students up to Year 10. Those in Year 11 would be taught the new curriculums from 2028, Year 12 from 2029, and Year 13 from 2030. ADVERTISEMENT Teachers spoken to by RNZ welcomed the delay, but said work on a new qualification to replace NCEA should wait until after the curriculums were in place. The morning's headlines in 90 seconds, including privacy concerns over road user charges, possible changes to Wellington's waterfront, and one of the biggest sports memorabilia heists ever. (Source: 1News) Association of Teachers of English president Pip Tinning said she was happy the curriculum would be phased in. "It is really important to allow teachers time to get their heads around the changes and what's going to need to happen." Auckland Secondary Principals' Association president Claire Amos said teachers were feeling overwhelmed by all of the changes the Government was making. She said the Government should delay consultation on a new qualification to replace NCEA until work on the curriculums was complete. "We're expected to comment on whether we think an assessment framework change is the right change when we have no idea what it will be assessing." "It's really hard for us to be consulted on the way we might assess something that is invisible to us at the moment."
