Wednesday 26 Jun 2002
ACT Education Spokesman MP Donna Awatere Huata today congratulated the principal of Carey Baptist College for rejecting
the NCEA.
"Michael Drake has acted in the best interests of his children by rejecting NCEA for an international certificate from
Cambridge University
"Sadly, every other New Zealand school child still faces the unfair, fraudulent NCEA. This qualification discourages
bright children with bureaucrat-inspired, nit-picking assessments, and rewards mediocrity by letting kids try the same
test over and over.
"The backlash from teachers, parents, principals and students is overwhelming. Many schools are looking at the
Cambridge qualifications - Carey Baptist school is just the first to make this brave move.
"The NCEA is a ridiculous qualification which ACT will eliminate. We need to introduce international-level
qualifications if we want our children to compete in an international environment," Mrs Awatere Huata said.
Ends