Latest news with #curriculum
RNZ News
18 hours ago
- Science
- RNZ News
Three quarters of primary aged school children not at level of new curriculum
Education Minister Erica Stanford said the results confirmed why it was "mission critical" to focus on reading, writing and maths in classrooms this year. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii Only a quarter of children at the end of intermediate school were writing and doing maths last year at the level expected by new curriculums introduced this year. The Curriculum Insights study tested children in Years 3, 6 and 8 last year and results were released on Tuesday. The study found children were doing about as well as in previous years. But it found few were performing at the level expected by the incoming maths and English curriculums. Just 22 percent of Year 3 children, 30 percent of Year 6 children and 23 percent of Year 8s were doing maths at the expected level. And in writing 41 percent of Year 3s, 33 percent of Year 6 children and 24 percent of Year 8s were at the level expected of their age group. The study was run by Otago University and the NZ Council for Educational Research for the Education Ministry. The projects conceptual lead, Dr Charles Darr, from the NZCER said: "These results provide an early indication of student achievement in relation to the national performance aspirations of the refreshed curriculum". "They give us an important starting point for understanding how students are progressing and how expectations are taking shape during this time of change." Education Minister Erica Stanford said the results confirmed why it was "mission critical" to focus on reading, writing and maths in classrooms this year. She said the results showed the government had "stemmed the decline of maths achievement" because maths achievement against the level of the new curriculum had increased from 22 percent in 2023 to 23 percent in 2024. However, the study's authors said: "In both mathematics and writing, average scores are similar to those recorded in previous assessments, indicating that achievement remains stable". "The study's new benchmarking, aligned to the refreshed curriculum, sets performance expectations that are higher than in the past. "These results show where students currently sit in relation to those expectations." The study was developed from the National Monitoring Study of Student Achievement . Stanford was due to make an announcement at Brooklyn School in Wellington on Tuesday after lunch. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
06-08-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Curriculum changes delayed after feedback from teachers
Photo: 123RF 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. 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. 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." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mark Cuban Says Its Not The Students At Fault But The School If Answers Can Be Generated With AI: Kids Take 'Path Of Least Resistance'
Billionaire entrepreneur and investor Mark Cuban says schools that still teach for model-ready answers will be 'way behind' within a decade, arguing curricula must evolve with artificial intelligence. What Happened: In an X post on Sunday, the investor wrote, 'Within 5–10 years, if a school teaches in a manner where answers by students can be generated by a model, it's a sh*tty school and way behind.' He added that 'kids will always take the path of least resistance' and said AI should be 'part of the solution.' Trending: Be part of the breakthrough that could replace plastic as we know it—Cuban's point is less about cheating than design. If assignments can be solved by a general‑purpose model, he argues, the problem is the assignment, not the student's ingenuity. He urged educators to change 'the path and how they learn,' warning that 'teaching like it's 2024' will soon be obsolete as generative systems spread. The billionaire has been on this beat for months. He told Gen Z at South by Southwest in March to "spend every waking minute" learning AI and has encouraged teens to build AI side hustles rather than wait for credentials. He's also warned there will be 'two types of companies,' those great at AI and those they put out of business, a framing he now extends to It Matters: Cuban has said AI could mint the world's first trillionaire, potentially 'one dude in a basement,' highlighting his view that mastery will drive outcomes over pedigree in the next decade. To him, classrooms that simulate that tool‑rich environment will serve students best. The former Shark Tank investor says he made it in the business world by refusing to retire in his mid‑30s and by pushing to be the best. Fresh out of Indiana University's Kelley School of Business, he founded MicroSolutions in his 20s, aimed to retire by 35, but instead sold the firm at 32 for $6 million and took home about $2 million in profit. Photo Courtesy: Kathy Hutchins on Read Next: $100k+ in investable assets? Match with a fiduciary advisor for free to learn how you can maximize your retirement and save on taxes – no cost, no obligation. These five entrepreneurs are worth $223 billion – they all believe in one platform that offers a 7-9% target yield with monthly dividends Up Next: Transform your trading with Benzinga Edge's one-of-a-kind market trade ideas and tools. Click now to access unique insights that can set you ahead in today's competitive market. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? This article Mark Cuban Says Its Not The Students At Fault But The School If Answers Can Be Generated With AI: Kids Take 'Path Of Least Resistance' originally appeared on
SBS Australia
25-07-2025
- Health
- SBS Australia
Queensland's homeschooling parents pleased with outcome from review
A win for homeschooling parents in Queensland, fighting to make the system more accessible for families. The Queensland government has accepted all 8 recommendations of an independent review into the Home Education Unit. The regulatory review, which published its report in September 2024, was prompted by widespread opposition to the previous state government's attempts to enforce legislation that would impose the Australian curriculum on homeschooling students. That move was firmly rejected by parents like Danika, who homeschools her neurodiverse 8-year-old son Ben. Danika says she's most excited about a recommendation to trial a shorter style of written reporting, alongside an online interview. She says this would offer a promising alternative for Queensland parents, after a positive experience with a moderator while homeschooling in Western Australia. "Whereas in Queensland, you feel it's just cross your fingers and hope that you can continue to do, and there's a lot of uncertainty around the processes over here, and it is quite daunting to submit a report every 12 months with no real guidance, no real reassurance that you are doing what they require. Having a person to report to would be humanising to the procedure, so that would be quite nice to have someone, a face, face to the documents would be nice. So yeah, I think that it is very exciting to have that process possibly come into play for us and just alleviate that kind of stressor." Sunshine-based parents Danika and her husband Joel, made the shift to homeschooling in 2022 after Ben's classroom anxiety reached a tipping point. Danika is among thousands of Queensland parents who moved to homeschool their children after 2020, with the Queensland government saying there was a 230% increase in home education over the past 5 years. It brings the current number of homeschooling students in Queensland to more than 11,000. Brisbane-based Patricia Fitzgerald is campaign manager of the Free2Homeschool movement, which gathered more than 21,000 signatures opposing the former Queensland government's attempts to enforce the Australian curriculum on homeschoolers. She says the government's decision to accept all of the report's recommendations is a great move forward for the community. 'I just think that with the reviews, the recommendations that have been proposed, it's going to be a really good opportunity for the HEU to connect with the community and build that connection and more support rather than just having the regulatory side. Having that educational leader there to bridge that gap and to build that supportive side as well is going to help a lot of the families who are trying to find that information and trying to find the community." Ms Fitzgerald pointing to the first of the recommendations - to transform the Home Education Unit, which will be renamed Queensland Home Education, to ensure greater practical support and regulatory oversight. There are hopes the appointment of education leader Dr Renae Acton will improve processes for families, alongside enhancing resources, such as program templates and exemplar annual reports. Queensland's Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek told SBS he supports a parent's right to choose the best type of education for their family. "We as a government support choice, I've done distance education myself or correspondence as we called it, partly because I lived in another country in Papua New Guinea. And the important thing is that if parents choose to do it, we want to make sure we support them just as we support them in the other frames of schooling that they might choose, whether it's state or non-state schooling." Minister Langbroek couldn't outline a date for when the recommendations would be legislated, saying his government prioritises consultation. This comes as legislation to raise the age cut-off from 17 to 18 for homeschooling students is still under review, after it was tabled in March. But Mr Langbroek says some of the recommendations from the regulatory review are already being enacted - including changing the name of the unit to Queensland Home Education, as well as extending the stakeholder consultation via the Home Education Expert group, by another six months. "We used to criticise the former government for consulting but already having made a decision about something. So this is genuine consultation with the group, so we want to keep the momentum going about the positive work we've been able to do with parents and stakeholders, and then continue parent engagement before we try to make any legislative change." One of the key aspects of the recommendations is to enhance resources and supportive tools for parents meeting regulatory requirements. Danika welcomes access to learning programs and reporting scaffolds, which are particularly helpful in teaching a neurodiverse child with individualised learning. "The learning plan that I have for Ben being neurodiverse, we very much follow his interests at the time. And having an online reporting scaffolding will really help me just report as we learn because we do have a plan in place, but obviously following just natural interests and natural ways of learning, it does change as we go. So having a formalised reporting structure will help us just keep tabs on where we're at and what we're learning and how we're learning it." But she would like to see state and local governments offer greater support for homeschooling co-ops, which allow groups of homeschooling families to collaborate and provide educational and social opportunities for their children. "We really need the support from local government backed by, sorry local councils backed by government, to ensure that we are setting up safe spaces for our children. All the boxes are being ticked to keep it a safe environment for our children and that they can continue to build regular foundational relationships within those groups instead of being shut down every couple of months because local councils are getting one complaint from someone who doesn't agree with the way that we are teaching our children. So I think that's another way that the government could help us all support us on our journey." The Queensland Family and Child Commission released a separate report in December 2024, in response to concerns raised by the Child Death Review Board in their 2022-2023 report. It "affirmed a parent's right to choose the most suitable learning environment for their child", but called for improved information-sharing between state government departments to ensure child safety. Minister Langbroek told SBS that his government are considering the work of the Queensland Family and Child Commission, acknowledging past obstacles around information sharing. "And Premier Crisafulli has been very clear that he wants me as education minister working closely with the Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm, the Attorney General Deb Frecklington, and
CBS News
24-07-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Michigan lawmaker proposes bill that would encourage public schools teach cursive again
A Michigan lawmaker has introduced legislation that would develop a statewide cursive curriculum for public schools. State Rep. Brenda Carter, D-Pontiac, introduced House Bill No. 4675 in late June. If passed, the bill calls for the Michigan Department of Education to develop a list of model programs for cursive handwriting instruction by no later than June 1, 2027. While the bill would not require school districts, beginning with the 2027–28 school year, they would be encouraged to incorporate one of the model programs into their curriculum. Cursive had regularly been taught in Michigan schools, but the requirement was dropped from the state's curriculum in 2010. "Many children today are not being taught how to read or write in cursive — a foundational skill that not only enables them to sign their own name, but also gives them access to important historical documents, including many of our nation's founding texts," Carter said in a statement. Carter previously introduced similar legislation during each of her three prior terms. "I'm going to keep going to bat for this policy because of how important it is," she said. "This is a commonsense step to help ensure our students aren't left behind when it comes to a skill that connects them to both practical tasks and our shared history and culture." Carter says previous attempts received bipartisan support in the House but stalled in the Senate. The current bill has been referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce, which has yet to hear it. Currently, 24 states require some form of cursive to be taught in public schools, according to Education Week.
