7. DIANNE YATES (Labour) Link to this
to the Minister of Education
What reports has he received about ways to ensure a good start for all young people?
Hon CHRIS CARTER (Minister of Education) Link to this
This morning the OECD released a review of how New Zealand supports young people in transiting from school to work. Jobs for Youth New Zealand notes the huge progress we have made since the 1990s in getting young people into employment and rebuilding the vocational pathways from school to work. Further improvements are recommended, including raising the school leaving age and improving participation in early childhood education. Those are exactly the policies that the Labour-led Government has introduced into our schools with the Schools Plus programme, and our 20 free hours of early childhood entitlement for all 3 and 4-year-olds. Interestingly enough, those policies are opposed by the National Party.
How does the OECD report on youth employment relate to major new education initiatives announced by the Labour-led Government?
They relate exactly. Our very strong economy has lead to record levels of employment. We have higher-than-average achievement levels in science, mathematics, and literacy, and initiatives like our Gateway programme, now available in all secondary schools in New Zealand, the Youth Apprenticeships scheme, which will be trialled in 10 schools this year, and, of course, our Schools Plus programme will significantly improve our educational outcomes.
Anne TolleyWhy has this Government clearly failed to address the ongoing problem of student underachievement, so that after 8 years of a Labour Government we are left with a “hard-core of youth who are at high risk of poor labour market outcomes and social exclusion.”, as the OECD has described today; would New Zealanders not be better off with a totally focused, fully funded initiative like National’s Youth Guarantee and trades training policy?
Cheap headline initiatives like boot camps will not work. An investment in education will work, like the extra $4 billion this Government has put in, the 5,000 teachers above roll growth, the 20 free hours for early childhood education, the over 1,400 new classrooms, the over 36 new schools, and so it goes on. This Government has invested in education; it is offering real solutions to real problems.