16 April 2004
Welcome to the Education Forum Update. The Update is a regular round-up of all that is new at the Education Forum
website.
Visit our home page (www.educationforum.org.nz) for links to the following recently-added items:
Hot topic: The case for more school autonomy and better choice for parents: why New Zealand is losing ground in the
school choice stakes.
Media releases: We argue that fee maxima, not under-funding, is the real threat to medical education; that the minister
of education's recent rant on school funding does nothing to enlighten the debate over the best ways to improve
education; and that the proposed export education levy will mean less investment in the education sector.
OpEds: Issue 56, 'Education policy denies real choice in schooling' by Roger Kerr.
Event: The world's leading school choice thinkers gather in Washington on 27 May to examine if school choice policies
have increased government control or encouraged free and thriving education markets.
Submission: The Education Forum submission opposing the Education (Export Education Levy) Amendment Bill.
Conferences: The second Maori Industry Training Summit and the annual conferences of the Early Childhood Council,
Visionschools and Independent Schools of New Zealand are all being held in the next few weeks.
Subtext: Still fresh and online, our March edition of Subtext looks at how fee maxima could kill the radio stars, how
alternative education could be the answer for at-risk students, and more.
And look out for this month's Subtext, coming soon, when we see the Carter Observatory getting starry-eyed over
education and public/private partnerships making inroads in Australian education.
News: Links to a range of domestic and international news including: Denver teachers voting for performance pay; a bill
to relax charter school laws; a feature on NZ school trustees; and an opinion piece - 'Learning the key, not just
research'.
ENDS