Posts by Russell Brown
Last ←Newer Page 1 2 3 4 5 Older→ First
-
Howard Broad: "Now is not the time to issue a general apology"
Lovely. So they smear people as terorists on insufficient evidence, then refuse to apologise in any way for it. And they wonder why people have a low opinion of the police.
Calm down I/S. He's just given a very strong indication on Checkpoint that an apology -- to "the innocent people caught up" in the Ruatoki raids -- will be forthcoming, and that there are discussions with that community in progress.
I think it's fair enough that he wants to say what's going to be said in an orderly fashion, with those involved informed in advance.
-
Heather, the logical outcome is to poor $10 mil of taxpayers money into the slowest learner - thanks a million. This "outing" or "mainstreaming" bollox is another rort we should face as a nation
Kevin, with every line you write, I understand you less.
-
Michael, I'm hoping that if evidence does eventually emerge that presents some of those involved in a bad light, terrorists or not, that you will find time for a word of criticism for them too ...
-
In the interests of accuracy, I think the places quoted above (although they don't clearly say it) are among English-speaking countries.
The Wikipedia article for PISA 2003 has us sixth in reading literacy (with 522 points, in a tight group of five countries between that score and South Korea on 534, with Finland out front) and fifth (and the top-performing English-language country) in problem-solving.
-
not quite as successful as Russell would have us believe, but successful none the less. Real success will be when they can stay and do their thing here!
Ahem. What's your source for that smackdown?
From a summary of PISA 2003:
PISA 2003 (Programme for International Student Assessment) assessed students in reading, mathematics, science and problem solving. Overall the PISA study found that New Zealand was a leader compared to other English speaking countries. New Zealand ranks 3rd out of 31 in the world in literacy, 3rd in Mathematics and 6th in science.
Expressed slightly differently:
PISA 2003: The mean performance of New Zealand 15 year olds was significantly higher than the OECD mean for each of the four areas assessed in 2003 (reading, mathematical and science literacy, and problem solving). Finland was the only country that performed significantly better than New Zealand in reading and only four countries achieved a result that was significantly better than New Zealand in mathematics and science. Results from PISA 2006 are due at the end of 2007.
And PISA 2000, from the Beehive website (the actual link to the report on the MinEdu website is broken - duh):
Of particular interest to secondary schools was the recent launch of the PISA report in a New Zealand context, which I released at a Secondary Principal Literacy Workshop in Porirua. The Programme for International Student Assessment ranks the average literacy of New Zealand 15-year-old students to be in the top three OECD countries.
Despite this excellent result, the survey results also blow away elements of our egalitarian image. The report has highlighted much wider disparities in our levels of literacy than some other high-achieving nations, including Finland, Canada, and Korea. The report reinforces the Government's decision to fund new and expanded assessment tools and literacy programmes in both primary and secondary schools.
As you note, the fact that our top students are great doesn't absolve us of responsiblity for the fact that the gap with non-achievers is widening.
-
From the stuff I'm learning at the mo (which is about how to be a teacher) we are failing in that our lowest studetns are falling further behind our best performing students.
That's precisely the challenge. Our best students are among the best in the world -- but there's a group at the other end the scale being left behind.
-
consultation = spamming your own website with pdfs by your own yay sayers asking you to change the wording of paragraph 1.3.2.4.5 from "to" to "for".
That's total BS. As a parent, I was approached for consultation; all parents were (or should have been if their schools were doing their job). The website did a good job of making the process as open as possible as it unfolded.
-
Then friends had a colicky reflux baby and I realised I was back to knowing sweet frack all about anything.
Jimmy had colic -- whatever the hell that actually is. I spent so many hours walking in circles with him on my shoulder (because of a birth injury he couldn't rest in arms at the time) that it really buggered my back. Took ages to get right.
-
All it is going to take is one leftish writer to actually get of their arse, start a website of like minded people, sell ads on it and we are all ruined.
You mean it's my fault? Damn.
-
See THIS JUST IN ...
Last ←Newer Page 1 … 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 … 2279 Older→ First