Opinion

Alwyn Poole says the teaching profession needs to widen the discussion from improving pay to improving the quality of teachers and school provision.

Chair of The New Zealand Initiative, Roger Partridge is concerned that so many New Zealand students don’t know what the word ‘trivial’ means and even more so that such a large percentage require special assistance with reading and writing.

Dr Michael Harvey says we need to move the focus from students’ socioeconomic status to listening to what students really want to get out of their education and working out to best deliver this.

Teacher Sue Robinson is concerned about the current state of the teaching profession and the impact it will have on an enthusiastic new generation of teachers.

Dr Nina Hood suggests we need to look beyond the debate the pits skills against knowledge.

Teacher Dr Derek Hopper believes the argument that many New Zealand teachers have unconscious racist bias, which is contributing to the poor educational outcomes for many students, is on shaky ground.

Kia King shares her findings so far about parents' experiences and opinions of open-plan classrooms and device use in New Zealand primary schools. She urges parents to complete the survey to present a fair representation of how Kiwi parents feel to the Ministry of Education.

NZ Initiative Research Fellow Jenesa Jeram says inequality in average educational achievement can obscure the real gains and improvements some schools and students are making.

The New Zealand education system is in major trouble writes Alwyn Poole.

Soumya Bhamidipati reflects on her journey through our national secondary school qualification as a high school student in the mid-noughties.