UPDATING THE EDUCATION ACT 1989
FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
What do you want
for education?
Why your education is
important
Your education is really important. It helps you to
read, write and count, to discover new things, and to
learn more about the world around you. Later on, your
education will help you to decide what you want to do,
and where you want to work. It is a key that opens doors
to opportunities in your working life.
Your school is run by the adults on your School Board.
To work out how to run your school, and what you
should learn, these adults, and your teachers, are helped
by something called the Education Act 1989.
UPDATING THE EDUCATION ACT 1989 FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
Why change the
Education Act?
The Act has not changed in 30 years. The world has
changed a lot since, and so has education. Back then,
there were no mobile phones, no internet, and few
computers. And, as your parents will tell you, the things
you do and use in your classroom, are so different to
what they did, and had, back then.
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THE BIG CHANGE
One big change the Government
wants is to make it clearer to you,
your parents, and your teachers, what
education is meant to do to help you
become an adult, and to do the things
you want to do in life.
To help you, your parents, and your
teachers, the Government thinks your
education should help you to:
» Achieve the most that you can
» Deal with change
» Be a determined and confident
young person and adult
» Have lots of good ideas and to be
good at thinking about things
» Get on with other people and want
to help others
» Take part in the things that go on in
your community, in our country, and
in the world
» Be able to get the job you want.
UPDATING THE EDUCATION ACT 1989 FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
The Government also thinks your
education should help you understand:
» including and accepting people who
look different, have different ways
of life, and different ideas
» that our country, and the world, is
made up of people from different
cultures (or backgrounds) who have
their own ways of doing things that
are different to how you do them
» why we have three official
languages (te reo Māori, English and
Sign) and why they are important to
those who use them
» the Treaty of Waitangi.
The things that the Government wants
to change are called ‘objectives” in the
new Education Act. Some of the words
in the new Act are different to what we
have used, but they mean the same.
Your teacher, or your mum or dad or
caregiver, can help you match our
words to those in the new Act if you
want to tell us what you think about
the planned changes.
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getting involved
We want you and your friends to tell us what you think about the
Government’s ‘big change’ idea for education.
You and your friends can tell us what you think by writing to
Parliament, where our laws are made, to tell the people who run
our country what you think.
When you write about a change to the law, and what you want to
see, it is called a ‘submission.” You write your submission to the
Education and Science Committee at Parliament. The Committee
is made up of the Members of Parliament (MPs) who are thinking
about the changes.
In your submission, you can explain what you think works well
about our education system and what you think doesn’t. Anyone
of any age can make a submission.
The closing date for submissions is Friday 11 November 2016.
UPDATING THE EDUCATION ACT 1989 FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
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How to make a submission
You can learn how to make a submission at:
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/sc/make-asubmission/
You can send your submission to:
[email protected]
or you can make an online submission at
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/sc/make-asubmission/document/51SCES_SCF_00DBHOH_
BILL69778_1/education-update-amendment-bill
You can comment on any of the changes the
Government wants to make in your submission.
You might also like to use this information to discuss, or
to debate, the proposed changes, in your class.
UPDATING THE EDUCATION ACT 1989 FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
FIND OUT MORE
For more about the new Act’s proposed objectives go to:
http://www.education.govt.nz/ministry-of-education/
legislation/the-education-update-amendment-bill/
establishing-enduring-objectives-for-children-andyoung-people-in-education/
For more about other proposed
changes go to:
http://www.education.govt.nz/ministryof-education/legislation/the-educationupdate-amendment-bill/
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