Hon Erica Stanford
Minister of Education

More support will be available for Early Childhood Education (ECE) teachers to help them drive better literacy and numeracy outcomes for young learners, Education Minister Erica Stanford announced today.

Online curriculum resource Kōwhiti Whakapae will now help ECE teachers strengthen planning, formative assessment and teaching practice in oral language, literacy and maths within the curriculum.

“New research from the Education Review Office (ERO) found too many children are starting school without the spoken language skills they need to thrive.

“It recommended putting consistent expectations in place for students and tracking their progress against them, increasing teachers' use of effective practices and supporting parents and whānau to develop language at home.

“We want every child to have confidence when they start at school. Implementing the oral language, literacy and maths content of Kōwhiti Whakapae will support children to grow as readers, writers, mathematicians, and life-long learners,” Ms Stanford says.

“The online tools will help teachers adjust their practices in response to evidence-based judgements on a child's progress. It will also give parents an understanding of what their child’s learning and where they’re at.

“We are committed to making the most of data and evidence to drive student achievement across the key learning areas and key competencies,” Ms Stanford says.

“Oral language is a critical building block for all children and essential to setting them up to succeed at school and beyond. These tools are another step in the right direction in lifting achievement and closing the equity gap in our education system.”

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