Posts by Tony Parker
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Are we headed for the kind of system the Japanese are moving away from?
Not sure about Japan but the Brits have found that setting standards and all that went with hasn't worked and are moving away from it. Means nothing to Tolley though. My concern is what is further down the track. Punishing schools that don't meet the standards. Paying teachers according a narrow range of standards results.
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All these enrichment programs are victims to the back-to-basics drive of the last few years (in NZ and elsewhere).
Paul I don't entirely agree with this with regards to NZ education. I would say the back to basics drive here started as soon as National were voted in and they began to instigate their standards regime which will mean schools will have to focus on numeracy and literacy standards and then report on them. A pretty narrow focus that may preclude schools from exploring creativity. It's also at odds with the new curriculum which has as it's vision the creation of Confident, Connected, Actively involved lifelong learners. A curriculum that is viewed overseas as one of the best in the world. Mind you over the past few weeks the poor showing of the AB's and warriors has me thinking maybe I should be setting standards for PE with my class of 5 year olds.
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Yes I saw that too.I am glad JC said it was stingy in light of the private schools getting 35 mil, and this was only 2.5 to keep the status quo and only 33 mil to bring all other schools in line with these about to be cut.This is truly cruel. WTF! Good on ya Tolley .
As a state school teacher who sees a battle ahead just to maintain things the way they are this really pissed me off. If you go to the MoE site you will see their reasoning was...
It is also designed to make private schools more affordable to more parents. By increasing the overall subsidy, the desired outcome is for private schools to reduce their fees resulting in an increase in enrolments
yet the day after the budget the head of the Independent School's Association said on radio that they were grateful for the dosh but would not be reducing their fees.
Why can't the arguement about night schools (Most people who attend these can afford to pay for them) also be applied to Independent schools. -
Apparently in reply to a question in parliament today the Minister of Education opened up the whole education system to potential privatisation.
Fucking wonderful. 9 years of relative peace in the education sector allowing us to teach and now as I work towards retirement it all turns to shit.
On another note-I wonder if westy Bennett got tickets for AC/DC today??? -
In reply to John Campbell's questioning tonight about her own use of the TIA to get a degree in the 1990s, she replied that it was much harder then, she had to start her own university creche.
This is what really annoyed me about her Close Up interview. She basically sidestepped most questions by giving an answer that bore little relation to the question. I suppose it's what politicians do I guess.
This whole episode and the recent budget just reinforce for me the contempt this government is showing for public education. If you're an independent school here's loads of dosh. If you want to better yourself with nightclasses or study as a solo parent/adult lets' take the money away. And it's going to get worse as they set their sights on the staffing budget of public schools as signalled in the budget. -
My23 yr old daughter just spent 3 weeks in the states and we found Twitter was the easiest and most immediate way of keeping in contact. She used both mobile phone and her netbook. Came in handy every time I remebered another cd I wanted her to get!
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I enjoy the festival but sometimes have trouble seeing the point of watching a "film" projected from DVD or video. This happens a lot.
The other thing that happens with DVD/video is that it restricts what we see here in Napier as The Century Theatre where the festival is shown doesn't have the capability. We also seem to miss out on some of the better music movies and at present we don't even know what's going to be shown here this year.
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I agree but my buying practice must seem archaic to many young 'uns. I buy CDs (sometimes online; sometimes from a store), transfer them to my iPod and seldom play them again. Still, I like the CD as a physical object--the case and inserts. It may well be like the arguments over the e-book vs the paper book--all about tactile pleasures, portability, sharing etc.
Nevertheless , I remain ambivalent about older models of the music industry, as they have screwing us for so long in respect of the actual-per-unit-cost of yer average CD (especially the out-of-license back catalogue), and the pitiful share artists get from the majors profit margin.
You've summed up the way I feel too Geoff. Maybe it's because I grew up with vinyl. I still look forward to going to my local independent cd store to spend my hard earned dosh and feel that the cover/liner notes etc are all part of the package. I guess I could buy online/download but part of it is supporting the local guy and putting the money into the local economy. Unfortunately he's at the bottom of the food chain as far as the record companies are concerned often not getting new release stock for at least 2-3 weeks after the Warehouse/CD Store get it so yeah record companies are the enemy sometimes.
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On a related note is it just me or is the Clayton Weatherston/Sophie Elliot case just getting more and more bizarre.
And on another slightly related note is the increased profile(Listener cover, TV programme, nationwide speaking tour) of Nigel Latta over the last week so close to the referendum a coincidence or am I just cynical and suspicious? Although he doesn't say it you get the feeling he leans towards a no vote. -
just saw Neil Young at the weekend in Hyde Park - f*@cking awesome. A brutal guitar sound when he went electric
Speaking of Neil (and I always am) He also finished Hyde park with A Day in the Life as usual but with the added attraction of McCartney joining in.