9. COLIN KING (National—Kaikōura) Link to this
to the Minister of Education
What announcements has the Government made to progress its promise to establish at least five trades academies?
Hon ANNE TOLLEY (Minister of Education) Link to this
The Government has recently asked the education sector for expressions of interest in establishing trades academies. Schools and tertiary institutions have been asked to submit short proposals that can be evaluated. Proposals that are judged to have significant merit will then be taken to a business case stage, so that final decisions can be made by Cabinet.
The key attribute we are looking for is relevance. We are looking for proposals that will provide students who prefer to opt for practical, hands-on education experiences with exactly that, and that will provide them with more opportunities to gain the practical skills they need to enter the 21st century workforce. Members opposite may laugh, but I have been really heartened as I have gone around the country, talking to principals and tertiary institutions, to hear about some of the very exciting opportunities that they want the opportunity to create for young New Zealand students.
Hon Chris CarterHow can the replacement of the previous Labour Government’s Schools Plus programme, which was a comprehensive response to student underachievement, with five proposed trade academies over 3 years be considered anything but pathetic, when, currently, 25 percent of young New Zealanders leave school without the equivalent of National Certificate of Educational Achievement level 1?
I can answer that question very simply. I looked high and low in the Ministry of Education for the substantial Schools Plus policy, and I could not find it, and I could not find any money to do anything about it. The principals out there in secondary schools do not know what that substantial policy was, either. Calling for expressions of interest in establishing at least five trades academies, which will be in place by the next election, goes a long way further to actually addressing the issues of young New Zealanders.
Does the Minister agree with John Key, who said that “National will make the off-site learning opportunities of Gateway and STAR a mainstream part of what schools can offer.”; if so, will she commit to keeping the $21 million for the enhanced Secondary Tertiary Alignment Resource (STAR) programme, which was part of Labour’s Schools Plus initiative?