New Zealand to Mandate ‘3 Rs’ Daily in Schools From Term One

Senior students attend school in Auckland, New Zealand, on Oct. 26, 2021. Phil Walter/Getty Images

All New Zealand primary and intermediate (Year 0 to 8) students are to be taught an average of an hour each of reading, writing, and maths from term one next year as part of the government’s “back to basics” approach to education.

Mobile phones will also be banned from the classroom starting in term two, though it is expected most schools will implement the measure as soon as they reopen.

Education Minister Erica Stanford said it was about “removing distractions and teaching the basics brilliantly,” and while many schools were already doing well in numeracy and literacy, this change was “about having time dedicated to teaching reading, writing, and maths in a purposeful and deliberate way consistently across New Zealand.”

Meanwhile, she said the phone ban would also help “maximise class time.”

“New Zealand schools and overseas jurisdictions that have already imposed restrictions on cellphones in the classroom have reported better concentration and engagement in class and an improvement in student achievement and well-being,” the minister said.

The implementation and enforcement of the policy will be at the discretion of individual schools.

Some schools insist students hand in their phones before class, or leave them in their lockers or bags for the day. Those with health conditions or other compelling circumstances will be able to seek an exemption.

Public Supports Ban

A Horizon poll carried out in November found that overall 61 percent of respondents supported banning mobile phone use at all schools during class time, but not during breaks.

That option was supported by 63 percent of people with children, while only 22 percent of that group thought there should be no ban at all.

The government—a coalition between the National, ACT, and NZ First parties—is also establishing an advisory group to review the English and maths curriculum for primary schools.

“The intention ... is not to start again, but to build on the work that has already been done and strengthen this,” Ms. Stanford said. “Work will be done in the first half of 2024, ready for implementation in 2025.”

Educators at Odds Over Effectiveness

The changes have been met with criticism by some in the education sector.

Riverlands (Marlborough) School principal Bradley Roberts said the curriculum already taught at least an hour of reading, writing, and maths, but said it was “in a different format.”

“I don’t think I would like to see it mandated that we had one hour a day that is just reading, one hour a day that is just writing, and one hour for maths,” he said. “That’s not how people learn. That’s not how the curriculum works.”

He predicted the policy could face resistance from principals and teachers.

“It wouldn’t be easy to implement, because the people that know the sector best, being the educators, would have some reluctance in doing that,” he added.

However, Bohally Intermediate School Principal Nicky Cameron-Dunn said her school was already implementing set reading, writing, and maths lessons.

After years of “integrated curriculums,” where subjects were combined with things such as inquiry learning projects, the school found pupils were missing out on essential skills.

The National Party’s policy also called for regular assessments, with tests each year for students in years 3 to 8, to assess progress in reading, writing, maths, and science, but Ms. Stanford did not make any mention of this in her announcement on Dec. 19.