December 05, 2013
PISA results point to growing inequity
Greens education spokesperson Catherine Delahunty says rising social inequity rather than lower teaching quality may be behind New Zealand’s drop in the OECD education rankings.
The Greens have organised a forum at parliament today for education experts to discuss the results of the 2012 Programme for International Student Assessment or PISA.
New Zealand’s ranking for maths and science as measured by testing 5000 15-year-olds dropped dramatically from 2009.
Ms Delahunty says PISA has identified the way social and economic disadvantage creates problems for children in education, which in New Zealand puts has a major impact on Maori.
"Many countries may have started from a lower base than us, but they are increasing their ability to reach and support children from socio-economic disadvantaged backgrounds. We are one of the countries that are going backwards and I think that’s the major take out from PISA, not whether we are 23 at maths or 18 at science but the context," she says.
Ms Delahunty says PISA has conceded that giving more choice in education such as charter schools doesn’t improve quality.
Copyright © 2013, UMA Broadcasting Ltd