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Intermediate schools emphasise that enhancing teacher skills is a more effective strategy for boosting students’ maths performance than merely implementing catch-up lessons.
On Monday, the government announced a NZD$2 million initiative to introduce catch-up maths lessons for students in Years 7 and 8 in the upcoming year. Education Minister Erica Stanford detailed that the trial would involve small group tutoring and supervised online sessions lasting 30 minutes, up to four times a week for each child.
She indicated that if the trial proves successful, it could be extended further. This announcement follows an earlier decision made in August to expedite the rollout of a new maths curriculum, set to begin in 2025, amid concerns about students’ preparedness.
Angela Lowe, president of the Association of Intermediate and Middle Schools, acknowledged that the trial was a positive initial step. However, she stressed that the primary focus should be on bolstering teachers’ confidence in delivering the new curriculum.
“Regardless of all the resources that we throw at the school, the new textbooks, the workbooks, those sorts of things to be quite honest pale into comparison to lifting teacher expertise, to improving the practice of all of our teachers,” Lowe stated.
Furthermore, Lowe highlighted that the intermediate years are critical for student success.
Whangarei Intermediate principal Haley Read expressed her appreciation for any governmental financial assistance that aims to aid students who struggle with maths. She conveyed her enthusiasm for the initiative but sought clarity on how staffing would be managed to support it.
“We’re interested in who is going to support it in terms of staffing,” she noted.
Read also pointed out ongoing challenges related to teacher shortages, stating, “Every classroom at the moment is struggling to find teachers, let alone extra teachers.”
Additionally, she raised concerns about accessibility issues some students might face with online components of the program.
“It’s going to be interesting because the most important resource I would suggest is professional development for our teachers,” she concluded.
In conjunction with this trial, Stanford announced an allocation of NZD$30 million for resources and workbooks for every primary and intermediate school. Initial assessments suggest that the new curriculum will be more challenging than its predecessor.
Approximately 22% of Year 8 students are anticipated to meet expected achievement levels under the new guidelines, compared to 42% under the current curriculum.