• Māori Education: Some Suggestions from the Research Literature [PDF 397kB]

This paper was originally prepared for Hui Taumata Mätauranga, which took place in Turangi/Taupo earlier this year. The paper, intended as a discussion document, presents research-based information on positive education initiatives focused on Māori, and outlines some approaches and practices that seem to be associated with improved educational outcomes for many Māori students. It also highlights some of the strong messages which emerged from the literature and signals areas where more information would be valuable.

• The Staffing Situation in New Zealand Schools... [PDF 234kB]

Since 1997, the Ministry has undertaken a survey of all state and state-integrated schools at the beginning of each school year, in order to monitor the extent to which schools experience vacancies, and the steps they take to cover any vacancies. The article presents the results of the latest survey, conducted at the beginning of the 2001 school year and includes some comparisons with data collected in previous years. The results this year suggest that the effects of high roll numbers in primary schools over the latter half of the 1990s are now beginning to impact on teacher supply in the secondary sector, as primary students progress through the education system into secondary schools.

• A Survey of New Graduates from Teacher Training Programmes [PDF 314kB]

The article presents results of a study which explored the extent to which new graduates of teacher training programmes were likely to be in teaching positions several months after completing their training, and for those who were not, their reasons for not teaching. The study also explored the graduates' teaching intentions over the shorter- and longer-term, with a particular focus on groups where there are known to be shortfalls in teacher supply: that is, those with tertiary qualifications in mathematics, the sciences, te reo Māori, and English; Māori and Pacific graduates; and male graduates.

• Overseas Teachers in New Zealand Schools: The Picture in 2000 [PDF 312kB]

The recruitment of overseas teachers is one of several Ministry of Education initiatives introduced in recent years to increase the supply of teachers to New Zealand schools. The article presents results from the most recent of a series of studies on overseas teachers who have come to teach in New Zealand. Amongst other things, the article provides information on the teachers' country of origin, and, in the case of secondary teachers, what prompted their decision to come to New Zealand to teach, and their main teaching subjects. As well, data on the overseas teachers' intentions for continuing to live and teach in New Zealand in the short- and longer-term are discussed.

• Annual Monitoring Of Reading Recovery [PDF 211kB]

Reading Recovery data, including the number of students who participate in a Reading Recovery programme each year and the number of those who successfully complete their programme, have been monitored and reported on annually since 1984. This article discusses the most recent data, collected in 2000. In common with previous years, the results show that the majority of students successfully complete their programme within the year. As well, the data suggest a steady, ongoing demand for Reading Recovery in New Zealand schools.

• A Summary of the 2000 Data on Students... [PDF 222kB]

Data on students taught by Resource Teachers of Reading (RTRs) have been collected and analysed each year since 1992. RTRs (reassigned as Resource Teachers: Literacy from the beginning of 2001) offer specialist assistance to primary school students (mostly, seven- to twelve-year-olds) with serious difficulties in learning to read and write. The article presents a summary of the latest data, which, along with other findings, show that the majority of students discharged from RTR programmes in 2000 were considered now able to cope in the classroom situation. The 2000 data also indicate that the demand for the service provided by RTRs remains high.

• Implementing Health and Physical Education... [PDF 337kB]

The final version of Health and Physical Education in the New Zealand Curriculum was released in 1999, and scheduled for full implementation in schools in 2001. In order to establish how schools were progressing in implementing this new curriculum and to assess what further assistance schools might need, the Ministry of Education surveyed a random sample of schools for feedback in August 2000. The article presents the results of the survey which, broadly speaking, found that schools were progressing well towards full implementation of many areas of the curriculum. There were, however, some areas where further guidance and support were considered necessary.