The crusade
I see John Key launched a crusade for literacy yesterday. Isn’t a crusade when a bunch of blood thirsty religious zealots go marauding across Europe pillaging and burning villages in the name of god? If something like that arrived in your local school all armoured and brandishing swords and it didn’t inspire kids to read better nothing will.
Well it looks like the Hamlet of Gisborne was the first to have the would be King John storm through it on his charger. Some Dominion Post reports that the literacy problem there might be more related to poverty related health problems than a lack of crusaders, before it concludes with helpful advice from Ms Porou’s daughter Irirangi, 11:
Asked afterwards what she thought Mr Key should do if he were prime minister, she replied: “A really long handstand. Mostly he should have fun. It’s really important what they do.”
Ka pai Irirangi. If John Key just stuck to that as his policy rather than introducing redundant national standards I’d feel safer.
October 14th, 2008 at 9:13 am
Isn’t a crusade when a bunch of blood thirsty religious zealots go marauding across Europe pillaging and burning villages in the name of god?
Then perhaps someone should have advised Meteria not to use that language also, “Tour of duty an anti-war crusade”
http://www.greens.org.nz/node/12457
October 14th, 2008 at 9:27 am
So frog it is a stupid idea mr Key has come up with then?
Or will it help reverse the dumbing down of societey so you find yourself ideologically opposed to it by default.
Credit where credit is due.
Or is Labours disgusting 200 million bribe more your cup of tea.
October 14th, 2008 at 9:37 am
Eddie at the Standard has published a brilliantly funny video on the Nats’ “crusade”.
And, yes, welly, I don’t think Metiria should have used the term either.
But the worst recent use of it was by Dubya when embarking on his War of Terror after 9/11, because, as history has shown, Dubya meant it in its real historical sense.
October 14th, 2008 at 9:39 am
Shunda barunda said: Or is Labours disgusting 200 million bribe more your cup of tea.
Universal student allowances are a longstanding Green policy plank, so I would say Labour’s sudden conversion to supporting them is more “theft” than “bribe”.
October 14th, 2008 at 9:41 am
Toad, what a load of crap, what a total load of politically correct bull crap, and you guys wonder why no ones listening.
October 14th, 2008 at 9:42 am
“Universal student allowances are a longstanding Green policy plank,”
Well that explains everything.
October 14th, 2008 at 10:34 am
What’s the Green policy on extra-long handstands? Is there a spokesperson for Sustained Inverted Cavorting?
October 14th, 2008 at 11:02 am
Seems to me schools are expected to do too much. Wouldn’t shorter working hours be a better solution? Give parents time to spend with kids helping them with reading and so forth? You might need to put some resources into educating parents who have been hit by the modern overwork syndrome.
October 14th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Nothing wrong with extra money for education, but, as the teachers say, it is rather light on what it would be for exactly, except constant testing. Well, they used to do that back in the day - bored the bright ones, made the less able feel really dumb and created a lot of non-productive work for teachers. Constant testing does not actually make non-readers or reluctant readers read. It just turns them off.
Sam’s suggestion of more parent involvement is a much better idea - parents who have the skills/time/desire to spend with their kids can make a huge difference to their academic achievement. I had a non-reading child stay with me for six months once - she was nine with a reading age of six (teachers do know this stuff already). I read stories to her and gradually she got the confidence to try reading them to me - her reading age went up to 12 in that short time. As her teacher said, it’s just reading mileage. Simple to do if you know it.
October 14th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
So frog it is a stupid idea mr Key has come up with then?
Yes, Shunda, it is.
October 14th, 2008 at 7:53 pm
Your not the one with kids struggling with their education, alot of familys will identify with Key on this one.
Better luck next time Marxists.
October 14th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
shunda - why the vitriol (and insults)? I empathise with your situation (kids struggling with their education) and puzzle how you think increased testing will help them. There are real problems with that scheme as every teacher knows. What is it you see in Key’s proposals that give you hope for your children’s education?
October 14th, 2008 at 8:32 pm
Greenfly, there is something seriously wrong with our education system, I have two kids in this age group and strongly believe Key is right on the button.
The system at the moment is totally failing our kids, both my kids did exceptionally well in pre scool education and to watch my 6 year old now withering away in a faulty system is blimmin hard.
Labour has done nothing, and infact has made it worse.
What am I supposed to do other than home school them?
October 14th, 2008 at 9:26 pm
shunda - I know plenty about this topic, having steeped myself in it for years and years. My suggestion (without knowing the details of your 6 year old’s situation) is that it is you who has the potential to sort out those issues, not a government of either hue. But I ask again, what detail of National’s Education policy do you fined so encouraging? I’d be keen to bounce ideas back and foward with you and perhaps your children might benefit.
October 14th, 2008 at 11:00 pm
Greenfly thanks for the offer, I would like to discuss this further, but I’ve gotta get some sleep right now, talk to you tomorrow.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:27 am
I guess National just want kids to grow up to be able to spell as well as their mates in the ACT Party can!