Met up, purely by accident, with someone who always get’s me thinking. I’m thinking now, and it kinda made me sad.
It total surprised me that they had put their hand up for attending ULearn08. Gosh, i thought, this is the stuff of ‘one small step for man, one giant leap for….”. I was excited to think of the opportunities in session for thoughtful consideration of the mirad of technological possibilites for classroom use.
I caught up with this person and I asked how the conference had been for them. The answer went something like this:
” Well, I managed to avoid all the technology stuff. I went to a few things on leadership. I took away some interesting stuff.”
I nodded politely, as you do in situations like that. But I thought, much later, how sad. What a wasted opportunity?
The priority has to be ‘raising the standards’ – of course we have to raise the standard in Education- Why would we lower them. But I’m wondering how best to do that without developing the League tables for schools idea that has had such a detrimental effect on the teaching profession. How do we raise student achievement without beating the life (and passion) out of teaching?
Shane Taurima questions Helen over Labours failure toward Maori boys. Youth appreticeships form 13?? Surely there is a need for a more though grounding in education than that. I feel that this is spelling of the 19th century model Ken Robinson spoke of with broadening out the ‘working class’ education for the majority of the ’skilled’ labour. Perhaps if education isn’t suiting my kid I could just send off down the pit to work those blast door for ther pit pony’s and leave the educating for those smarter kids!
All I want for my kid in primary school is that he is learning to read and write. Perhaps the two of them are talking about opposite ends of the education system. Of course I want my primary kid to learn to read and write. But equally, I’ll want my 16-17 year old being prepared for the work in the 21st century, I’m not sure appreticeships will address that issue.
Now we’re onto parents paying for Free education. Of course if I want my kid to go on the school trip skiing or to Japan or on some geographical fieldtrip to investigate lava flow I’m willing to pay for that… It looks, feels and probably is above and beyond the classroom experience. But would I expect to be charged for the regular ‘in class’ education of my child, certainly not if it is touted as ‘Free’.
My current situation is partly board funded due to the Ministry of Education stating that the class size is too small to warrent an extra teacher. So what does ‘board funded” mean? It means the school is having to raise addition funds to pay for me to drive up the road and deliver that ‘free’ education labour talks about.
Now I’m off on a rant so feel free to stop reading… but….
It’s a little like the ‘free 20 hours’ for 3-4 year olds. That scheme was under funded and had to be subsided by the parents. The hourly rate underthat scheme was too little to support the wage requirements of the teaching staff. If the government came out saying it was a subsidised scheme there would have been no issue but them saying it was free caused a right row in the ECE sector.
Helen Clark highlights the fact that we do not have to pay these school contributions. Wow what a statement. I’d love to see what would happen if, as a result of that statement ALL PARENTS, EVERYWHERE, right across the country went into their schools and asked for a refund. What would happen to those school budgets this late in the school year.
Wednesday’s Meeanee School- Special writing programme for ‘at risk’ writers
Thursday and Friday’s Sherenden School again.
That is all subject to change as all of those jobs are either set to change and cease in 2009. As usual I have little understanding of what the future might hold.
I know that as an migrant I am to respect the indigenous population and their culture and their ways but I made an observation today that struck me as taking the worst sort of Michael.
There was a very real, powerful funeral for a boy today that I will greatly miss. There was so much to his life that school only featured a very small proportion. However, from my travels around I knew of several other students, attending different schools who were ‘related’ to the whanau is some shape or form, I’m sure.
Some of these I saw at the service, some at the grave side but others I did not, perhaps it was that they were there but I missed them. I suspect not. It really grieved me to think that some folk might use such an occasion to take the whole week off school and then not show for the ‘main event’. The school and the system are then questioned and considered to be ‘culturally insensitive’ if they choose to follow that up.
I know Maori have their culture and their traditions, I’m not knocking it. But what I am saying is that there is a certain minority that take advantage of such toleraces.
The answer? I don’t know. So if anyone can offer thoughts and suggestion now is the time to educate the dragon .
Met up, purely by accident, with someone who always get’s me thinking. I’m thinking now, and it kinda made me sad.
Monday’s Sherenden & Districts School- Principal Release
There was a very real, powerful funeral for a boy today that I will greatly miss. There was so much to his life that school only featured a very small proportion. However, from my travels around I knew of several other students, attending different schools who were ‘related’ to the 
