What was most interesting about Key’s State of the Nation address today was his tone. Gone was the smart alec one liners and the ‘I don’t really give a damn’ charm, replaced by this weird wide eyed ‘always look on the bright side of life’ run down of NZ where apparently there is no poverty and inequality is something only marxists see.
I couldn’t work out which country Key was talking about at first as the tens of thousands thrown off welfare, 270 000 children in poverty and a gap between poor and rich which should embarrass our egalitarianism were all swept aside for a stirring rendition of ‘we don’t know how lucky we are’.
Key’s themes were that he took the country with him on issues (which he didn’t do on Asset sales and the GCSB mass surveillance legislation), that the Greens are ‘far left’ (When Key is needing to talk up a moon hoax landing, chem-trail child smacker as a political partner, his scaremongering the of Greens as ‘far left’ is ludicrous) and he attempted to portray himself as one of us because he had social welfare in his upbringing (Key’s social welfare upbringing was gold plated, it’s now shit encrusted – comparing them in light of the bennie bashing his Government uses when it needs a dog whistle distraction is beyond disingenuous).
The real highlight was this sudden need to raise achievement levels in education.
I can not believe Key is attempting to introduce market values into education while telling us this is best for the children. A new layer of bureaucracy in education isn’t what students need to lift their achievement, well resourced and well qualified teachers do that, not newly minted education bureaucrats.
This drive for ‘educational achievement’ is just a false competition model being injected into schools under the guise of better outcomes. Instead of new roles in schools, how about paying the old roles better so these new ones aren’t needed?
Key’s education platform is at best a solution looking for a problem, at worst hard right ideology being implemented under the guise of benefiting students.
How about this Government just focus on getting Novopay to pay the right wages before pissing $300 odd million against the wall for a social experiment in right wing education?
This speech had all the vision of a blind cyclops.
A cynic might think that it rather suits the ruling classes to dumb down the masses, and that improving educational standards and thereby encouraging critical thought is at odds with their agenda?
Key’s and National’s clear strategy is simply more of the “successful medicine” of divide and rule. It is what keeps him and his party in power. They do the work for the major “stake holders” in NZ society, the owning, managing and controlling class(es).
So paying the administrators like school principals and “rewarding” them for performance of their students at the schools they manage, that is a smart tactic of dividing the teachers. It will do so, as the administrators have a lot of influence, and they also work closely with parents. They will hire and fire teachers, so giving them a “carrot” will incentivise them to offer teachers “carrots”.
It is simple, it is turning schools into organisations and institutions run “business wise”, and that is how the Nats and their ACT ally want to run society as a whole.
They and “Soft Blue” Labour have done this over the last decades by bringing in “reforms” that started with the ones Roger Douglas brought in. It led to the Employment Contracts Act that the Nats designed and pushed into law, which decimated union influence and divided workers. Individual contracts became the norm, and more outsourcing and privatisation turned many former employees into “self employed” operators kept often in “bondage” like agreements with main contracting businesses and government departments.
Labour only “moderated” the drive towards it with the Employment Relations Act, but did not change the direction.
Now Key and Nats are pushing to further undermine the unions for teachers, and that is a main goal, as the teachers unions are amongst the last with some significance and influence.
Bribing and buying individual key position holders is how this is done.
So we will need to see what Labour, Greens, NZ First and others will have to say about this. If Labour are serious about having “rediscovered” their roots, they will offer the response and that with solid policy, that I expect. NONE of this crap, that is what they must tell Key, who has little else to say, it seems.
And yet Cunliffe say’s its underwhelming and doesn’t go far enough….
The sycophant MSM overwhelmed by Keys speech today, no critical analysis just fawning over the PM who seems to be able to do no wrong in the eyes of the uncritical MSM. No doubt Cunnliffe’s speech will be subjected to ridicule and heavy criticism. I find it hard to believe Dear Leader, and you can imagine the $300 Million that Key said his government will spend on Education that by 2016 if they do win a third term that English will insist that this money is removed from the Education vote .
And once again the middle class who vote for this callous government would have been duped again. What is with the MSM that they are unable to see through Key’s lies?
Key has pulled this kind of thing off before; remember the fiscally neutral tax switch? This looks to me like a creative attempt to achieve what Parata couldn’t. By installing a highly-paid set of managers they will be able to close “under-performing schools” and so on, without direct government involvement.
There are two things to remember with these people: “We can’t afford it” means “we can and will squeeze you further,” and “we have to consider the shareholder” means “we are answerable to our wealthy accomplices, not to you.” These points form a single position that underpins everything they say and do, whatever sugar-coating they feel the need to employ.
.by the gods, I swear I heard our deepstate PMKey ‘offering back ‘democracy’ to the Canterbury council after what ? four years?….five ?
Now ‘they can ‘have democracy BACK ? ‘
Where did it GO to get it given back, Johnny? What does that ‘get given back’ democracy even LOOK like ? That is was so easily TOOK
Just like the past 6 years. Thats what.
But its erection year. PMKey will be picking up the phone for morningreport, now. So will Stephen. “on target for 3% growth”. Consumer confidence up – highest in _ months/years (you fill in). The Kiwi economy new gold standard. Where do they GET these fkn figures – the bilderberg group?
Not the small town I walk around.
All over NatRad this morning, smooth as silk. You could hear the grin. Cunliffe handing him the deepsea drill/Green ‘split’ bone to chew, a gift of the electoral gods, but PM there throwing money at 5 or 7 new ‘top gun’ jobs in education. Why does that feel like being rooted the RAND way ? The program won’t be up and running until 2015, though he tells us they have been working on it for ages-‘oh, for a long long time’- . But.
Due in 2015.
That is when this education saving program will come on stream. Will save our kids in poverty by educating them out of it.
Spray paint that over the mold in the leaky house kiwi can- do
its erection year.
The report points to ‘a power grab by the wealthy elites who have co-opted the political process to rig the rules of economic system in their favour.’ -Oxfam Report
And by throwing money to attract teachers on election year ensures the vote is rigged too.
Given the policy has been widely acknowledged by stakeholders, such as the PPTA, and even the Labour party has described it as being ‘OK’ to label this as right wing is delusional
Except, SDM, as the details are coming out, people are realising that National is pulling yet another “switftie”… http://www.3news.co.nz/Catches-found-in-Nationals-new-teacher-plan/tabid/1607/articleID/329661/Default.aspx
When National offers you something with one hand – check what the other hand is doing. It’s usually going through your wallet or pockets.
Let’s be clear – the PPTA membership did NOT endorse this.
As a member I was once again disappointed by the Union that is meant to represent me.
As a teacher I can say that this move by Key will be used to further balkanise teachers into competing groups and schools.
Do you imagine there will be many/any experts appointed from lower decile schools? The “experts” will predominantly come from schools in the leafy suburbs . . . because of course the wealthy are better learners, thinkers, teachers, etc-ers.
Importing Decile 10 teaching methods into Decile 1 schools is just an arrogant form of upper-middle-class educational colonialism.
If this move in regards to improving education of our children came from a man and a government that had more integrity and noble intentions, it would seem commendable, or at least be a start in the right direction. However, given this government’s record of conduct and policy making to date, the intentions are doubtful. After five years and banging on about how charter style schools and amalgamating existing schools into ‘Super Schools,’ are to be the key saviours of our education system, Showman Key unexpectedly pulls this white rabbit out of National’s Magic Black Hat. Teachers are under supported, underpaid, and undervalued for what they do generally, so moves along these lines should have been made a long time ago. However, given this government’s history to date, this smells of just more politically motivated decisions, not of genuine merit, but more for political persuasion. One way of subtly, yet highly effectively gaining sympathy, is by playing on those you love the most. If this is simply just another political ploy to gain voters by emotionally leveraging on our children, and give this devious government’s track record, it most likely is, and if this is proven so, then this government will be severely punished this coming election. Well Johnny, you know the story, out with what you worship the most – show us the money.
We spent last night watching Alister Barry’s documentary “A Civilised Society”. http://www.nzonscreen.com/title/a-civilised-society-2006
I urge you to watch it, if you haven’t already, as it spells out the bloody obvious way to improve the ‘school failure’ situation -& it’s the exact opposite of Mr Key’s formular! p.s. support Learning Media – they are completely awesome!
Aren’t we at the stage now in the glorious West where spending MORE on education has an INVERSE relationship with student performance? I’d love to see how our current students would perform on 1980’s exams now, with an education budget that dwarfs what we were spending back then (even adjusted for inflation). You know, throwing more money at something doesn’t always make it better (see the US health system for the most glaring example).
Jonky is using the specter of poorly educated children , and his championing of their salvation , to secure his placing in the next election . A poorly educated population of children he and his ministers created . And please , lets not forget that 270 thousand of them are fucking hungry too . Ignorant and hungry .
Jonky is a fucking abuser . He’s a child abuser . A liar and a thief too . I’m watching the latest series of Game of Thrones and when I saw his [ jonky’s ] dead fish eyes in the news paper racks this morning I saw Joffrey Baratheon in all his flaccid hideousness .
Don’t be fooled . All you swing voters . Don’t be fooled .
Thanks Martin. I knew I smelled a rat in this otherwise benign policy announcement from Mr Key. As a teacher in a low decile school I don’t need more bureaucrats telling what to do – I need resources! A warm classroom, kids with healthy food in their stomachs, equipment for them learn with etc etc etc
Those things you list are impossible for a teacher to make up for the lack of, and no amount of bandaids over those wounds will make a difference
on Nat rad Key presented himself as a good example of why education is more im[important is more important than poverty.
When he was raised by an solo mum in a state house.
He was trying to make the connection that ALL anyone needs is a reasonable education to be as rich as he is.
I would like to see how crosby textor join those dots.
Key called it “the teaching industry”! So it’s a business now! – And yet, we New Zealanders, have always regarded it as a vocation and profession – What Key said should tell us everything we need to know!
So if a BOT releases a Principle for 40% of their time, how is that BOT serving their purpose in representing the parents of that school? Cant see how releasing a Principle for 40% of their time could be positive for their school.
Unworkable if you ask me.
Another load of BS by this weird bunch, childrens education is based on some basic principles, discipline and encouraging the childs brain to grow and develop.
More administrators will not help, just look at the health system more administrators than there are medical staff.
This NACT Party is actually frightening trying to change things for the sake of change. Key wants to be seen to be doing something by the general public, the fact is the guy is a fraud and is leading everyone down the garden path.
If their parents were earning a decent wage and could afford to feed, cloth and provide suitable housing for these underperforming children we may see some improvement in their educational achievements.
The guy does not seem to understand that poor socio-economic conditions are a factor in the under performance of children. The guy is in cuckoo land if he thinks more administrators are going to improve standards in the classroom.
Key is the supreme ideologist, having never got his hands dirty and has merely made his fortune shifting around stocks and currency. Rearranging the deck chairs in the schooling system will not improve childrens learning.
If you want to beat your enemy, you need to think like your enemy. The difference between the nats and labour is nats didn’t become like their enemy when they were trying to beat them.
Nats know that we all have this drive to better ourselves, financially and many other ways. If you dangle a carrot, unattainable as it might be many of us will still chase that carrot. That is the genius of the nats. They are playing to basic instincts of teachers ego and greed. This will divide them and from that it will break them. This isn’t about paying teachers more. This is about paying some more and many less. Teachers managed to survive the 1980’s Ayn Rand theories for a very long time, but their time has come. There are enough underpaid and overworked teachers who will think that they will be the ones rewarded with these reforms that will happen. Firefighters, police, and all other unionised public servants will be the next targets.
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