16 July 2012
For Immediate Release
Government given one of strongest messages yet about unfair league tables
More than a hundred of the country’s leading education academics have called on the Government to abandon its plans to
introduce unfair and unreliable league tables.
NZEI President Ian Leckie says this is one of the strongest messages yet that league tables based on unfair National
Standards will have a severely damaging effect on our children’s education.
Mr Leckie says it is virtually unprecedented that such a large number of education experts are now openly telling the
Government that it needs to reconsider the effect that a policy will have on our education system.
“It is vital for the sake of New Zealand’s quality public education system that the Government stops and listens to
this advice.”
“These are people who know and understand what they are talking about so surely this time John Key and Hekia Parata will
listen before taking our country’s education system down such a dangerous and divisive path.”
“The Government needs to abandon flawed ideology and listen to the experts.”
“It needs to understand what the country’s leading academics are saying - that a system that creates winner and loser
schools and labels some children as failing will not improve the quality of our children’s education. Instead it will be
severely detrimental for New Zealand’s education system.”
ENDS