Reading Recovery Funding Under Fire By Teachers And Parents In An Official Complaint Against Ministry Of Education

A prominent community-driven organisation advocating evidence-based literacy instruction for people with dyslexia, Deb (Dyslexia Evidence Based), has lodged an official complaint against the Ministry of Education. Their complaint concerns the continual extension of contracts for the Reading Recovery® programme with the Ombudsman.

At the heart of the complaint is the misallocation of approximately $25 million per year in public funds for a programme that is at best ineffective, and at worst, actually harmful.

Parents and teachers have had enough. The lack of transparency and communication with the Ministry of Education is appalling. We have lost faith in the Ministry of Education. The people we trust to make decisions are the very ones who are failing our childrens in education and setting them up to fail in future. - Sharon Scurr

Deb have worked alongside the Ministry since 2020 to drive change towards evidence based literacy instruction. Three years later, Deb do not believe that Reading Recovery should be funded, and contend that the Ministry have not followed appropriate processes to arrive at this decision.

Deb considers that there is clear evidence of a conflict of interest within the Ministry, which raises doubts about the decision-making process behind the contract extensions. One of the concerns relates to the Ministry of Education's Chief Scientific Advisor, Professor Stuart McNaughton, who, among other concerns, is also a trustee of the Marie Clay Literacy Trust

This complaint from the Deb Working Group has the full support of numerous organisations and individuals. Of note, Sharon Scurr (Founder of Deb), Alice Wilson (Lifting Literacy Aotearoa), Dr Michael Johnston (NZ Initiative), Professor Emeritus James Chapman, and Dr Olwyn Johnston (Deputy Principal, Tawa School) are available for comments regarding this matter.

In response to the Ministry's lack of transparency and communication, Deb has formally requested an investigation by the Ombudsman into this matter without delay.

Deb urges the Ministry of Education to take immediate action and respond to their complaint in a timely manner. The future of New Zealand's children and their literacy education depends on making evidence-based decisions that prioritise inclusivity and better outcomes for all learners.

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