Maxim Real Issues No. 173, 8 SEPTEMBER 2005
Parents want more information on their child's schooling
Confidence in the face of a crisis
When the candidate vote counts
New features on nzvotes.org
Your last chance to attend a Political Forum
Tertiary student's essay competition closes 23 September
Parents want more information on their child's schooling
A new report released this week shows that a significant majority of parents would like information on their children's
schooling that is currently not available to them. The Parent Factor: Information for parents reveals key findings from
Colmar Brunton research of 1001 parents' views on schooling in New Zealand.
89% of parents indicated that they would like more information on the quality of the teachers who will be teaching their
children.
89% of parents either strongly agreed or agreed that they wanted to know what areas a school specialises in.
79% of parents would like to know which schools in their area have the best and worst exam results.
61% of parents agreed that they wanted more information about truancy rates, stand-downs and expulsions to help them
choose a school for their child.
Despite the Ministry of Education spending $54 million on information provision in the 2004-2005 year, parents still
cannot find and compare basic information about their local schools, such as exam results and areas of specialty. New
Zealand has taken steps to improve openness and provide better information for parents, including websites such as
www.edcentre.govt.nz, but other countries seem to be further ahead. States in Australia must publish information such as
teacher qualifications and the average results for pupils leaving secondary school. Parents in Scotland have access to a
website that allows them to search and compare schools.
Information for parents makes a number of policy recommendations which would ensure that central education agencies
provide information which more closely reflects what parents want. In particular, Maxim recommends that the Ministry of
Education disclose more of the information it already holds to parents, and that the examination results of all schools
be collected and published.
To download a copy of The Parent Factor: Information for parents, please visit:
http://www.maxim.org.nz/parentfactor/report3_informationforparents.php
Confidence in the face of a crisis
It is not easy to make sense of Katrina's aftermath. And anyway, it is probably too early. But one thing is significant:
the role of men, particularly young men. Their strength and impetuousness can be variously a blessing and a curse. In
our sanitised and perfumed society we tend to forget or even reject the importance of male protectiveness, particularly
in its youthful guise.
Beneath the veneer of good order always lurk the demands of human appetite. Understanding this foundational reality
should help us comprehend some of the inexplicable behaviour which arises in the midst of a crisis. As Plato pointed
out, all of us are driven by our heads or our bellies. Our heads would take us up to the angels and our bellies down to
the level of beasts. In New Orleans, it would seem that the belly has had too many victories.
Young men are always found on the front line. When they have a vision of the heroic and conscience informed by fortitude
(courage), they can rescue those in need. Without such character, they can cause great suffering, particularly in a
crisis. Every society needs its young men to be of good character. A society that does not foster character in its youth
will never confront a crisis with confidence.
One cannot really point the finger at New Orleans or even the U.S., but we should remember a timely warning. Young men
must be given a challenge inspired by the heroic and taught virtue. Then when the floods come, they will pull us out
rather than push us under.
When the candidate vote counts
The campaign for the party vote has dominated this election, and rightly so. Under MMP, parties which qualify for
representation in Parliament are allocated seats according to the proportion of the party vote which they win. The party
with the most party votes has the most MPs. But for the five parties this election who have recently been polling close
to or below five percent, the candidate vote may be their lifeline if they don't cross that threshold.
The ACT party has realised this; shifting its focus off campaigning for the party vote and onto asking Epsom voters to
give their candidate vote to ACT leader Rodney Hide. Winston Peters' Tauranga seat may hang in the balance - along with
the future of New Zealand First.
The United Future party will be thanking Peter Dunne's supporters in Ohariu-Belmont if they return him as their local
MP, as will Jim Anderton's Progressive party, whose presence in Parliament will be secured by voters in the Wigram
electorate. The Maori Party too are polling substantially under five percent, but will have MPs in the house if
candidates win electorate seats. This makes the candidate votes in these particular electorates very influential.
New features on nzvotes.org
New features are regularly being added to www.nzvotes.org. Candidate profiles for candidates standing independently and
parties not currently represented in Parliament have recently been added to ensure voters can compare every candidate
standing for election.
Not sure where to vote? Need to cast your vote in advance? Simply log onto www.nzvotes.org and find your electorate.
Here you'll find details on where you can cast your vote before Election Day if you can't make it to the polling booth
on September 17 as well as details on where to vote on the day. Summaries of the political polls and a campaign diary
are coming soon.
Your last chance to attend a Political Forum
With the general election taking place next Saturday there are few opportunities left to see MPs and candidates in
action. Political Forums coming up include:
Whakatane Friday, 9 September
Manakau City Youth Forum Monday, 12 September
North Shore Tuesday, 13 September
Cambridge Wednesday, 14 September
West Auckland Wednesday, 14 September
For details of these events, visit: www.maxim.org.nz/events
The Epsom Forum on Tuesday night was a major highlight of the road show, with rivals Rodney Hide, Richard Worth and
Keith Locke joining John Tamihere, Peter Brown and Bernie Ogilvy on stage before a packed audience at the Greenlane
Christian Centre in Auckland.
You can read the New Zealand Herald's report, at:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/search/story.cfm?storyid=%1E%FB%F8%C5%29%B7%BFL
Maxim has asked several Forum organisers to share what motivated them to volunteer their time and energy to inform their
community this election. You can read their stories in an abridged version of Democracy in the spotlight which will
feature in the spring issue of Evidence.
To read the article, visit: http://www.maxim.org.nz/ri/DemocracyInTheSpotlight.pdf
Tertiary student's essay competition closes 23 September
Would $2000 make a dent in your student loan? The Centre for Tomorrow's Leaders' tertiary students essay competition
closes on 23 September. First prize is $2000, second prize is $1000 and third prize is $500. This year's question is:
What role, if any, does religion (both personal and institutional) have in the political sphere of a society?
Further details available at: www.maxim.org.nz/essay
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK - Charles Caleb Colton (1780 – 1832)
Physical courage, which despises all danger, will make a man brave in one way; and moral courage, which despises all
opinion, will make a man brave in another.