9. Hon TREVOR MALLARD (Labour—Hutt South) Link to this
to the Minister of Education
Is she aware of and does she understand the intended and unintended consequences of national standards?
Hon ANNE TOLLEY (Minister of Education) Link to this
Yes, I am aware of, and understand, the intended consequences of national standards. I am also aware that some have suggested unintended consequences, but I have found that once the full facts are on the table, the unintended consequences seldom stack up. I am sure the member will enlighten me on his view of the unintended consequences.
Hon Trevor Mallard Link to this
Is one of the intended consequences of national standards to allow parents to take their students out of schools that do not appear to be performing as well against the standards, and send them to another school with better results?
Parents can do that now. In fact, parents throughout New Zealand do that now. We believe that parents should have some choice over where their children are attending school.
Colin KingWhat reports has she received of unintended consequences as a result of the introduction of national standards?
I have received a report that suggests that one unintended but quite useful consequence of national standards has been that the Labour Party has put itself offside with 73 percent of parents, who support the scheme.
Mr SPEAKERHon Trevor Mallard Link to this
Is one of the intended consequences of national standards also to partly abolish school zoning so that it is easier for students to shift schools, as the Otago Daily Times last week reported the Associate Minister of Education Heather Roy as saying?
No, that has nothing to do with the introduction of national standards. If the member examines the speech of the Associate Minister of Education Heather Roy, he will see that she was speaking as an ACT member and she was speaking about a report from a working-group that is not Government policy.
Hon Trevor Mallard Link to this
Is she therefore ruling out Heather Roy’s suggestion, as reported by the Otago Daily Times, that there will be a partial abolition of school zoning?