Hon Erica Stanford

Minister for Education

Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore.

The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa.

The summit is co-hosted by the Singapore Ministry of Education, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and Education International (EI).

“Education ministers, union leaders, and teacher leaders from high performing OECD countries are attending. This is a great opportunity to learn what is working internationally to lift student achievement and look at whether these ideas could work in New Zealand schools,” Ms Stanford says.

This year’s summit theme is Reimagining Education, Realising Potential. The discussion topics include the future of learning and implications for teaching, the role of technology in transforming education and partnerships to support learning for life.

“We are focusing building better public services in education by raising achievement and attendance.

“We have already implemented cell phone rules and one hour a day each for reading, writing, and maths. We are revisiting the English and mathematics and statistics learning areas of the NZ Curriculum.

“Building on that work, I am now focused on the next phase which includes the rollout of structured literacy and mathematics.

“A key factor to its successful implementation will be making sure our teachers have the skills and supports they need. It is also important they receive clear guidance on what students should be learning each year and on how to measure student progress.”

While in Singapore, Minister Stanford will represent the New Zealand Government at the Anzac Dawn Service, meet with education researchers focused on early childhood development and host a roundtable with senior officials from Singapore Ministry of Education focused on areas of mutual interest.

Minister Stanford will travel to Singapore on 20 April and returns to New Zealand on 25 April.

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