Bill English's National Standards Plus a big minus for children's learning, teachers say

27 August 2017

The government's plans to spend millions building a computer tool to track children's progress as it happens, based on shonky National Standards, is an obsession with data gone mad, NZEI Te Riu Roa says.

Requiring teachers to input standardised assessment data across a range of subjects in real time for 30 or more students in a class will reduce the time teachers have with children and increase children's anxiety about learning, NZEI Te Riu Roa President Lynda Stuart says.

"No parent wants their child's teacher sitting entering data for hours when they need to be face to face with kids," Lynda Stuart says. "Teachers already do high quality assessment and many schools provide electronic portfolios so that parents can see the rich variety of work the children undertake."

"National is pouring good money after bad. Instead of wasting more precious taxpayer dollars on building a shonky National Standards Plus, the Government should be funding schools properly, reducing class sizes and better resourcing support for children with behavioural and learning needs."

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