Easy literacy pass a concern

Photo / Hawke's Bay Today

Leading educators are upset students will soon be able to pass literacy requirements through subjects such as physics, chemistry, religious studies and even dance.

The New Zealand Qualifications Authority is introducing a new policy next year that will mean students may not have to take English as a subject to get their literary credits.

It is based on the theory that if a student can write and articulate themselves in subjects other than English they must have a certain level of literacy. But many principals are worried that literacy standards will drop.

The policy will affect students from NCEA level 1 - fifth form under the old system.

New Zealand Secondary Schools Association president Patrick Walsh has voiced concerns about the changes to Karen Sewell, Education Secretary, and Anne Tolley, Education Minister.

Sewell and Tolley say they will monitor the changes.

Walsh says: "This means that New Zealand could be one of the few countries in the Western world where students won't have to study their own language. Lots of principals have expressed concern about it ... and I'm not sure that the public is aware of this."

Auckland Grammar School headmaster John Morris said the thought of students being able to study literacy through a subject such as biology was "scary" and "upsetting". He says important subjects such as English should be taught by specialist teachers.

"The curriculum is being foisted on us. It's not knowledge-based - it's knowledge-free. We're going to get behind other Western countries."

He said universities and unions wanted greater literacy standards from graduating students, not less.

Dave Randell, principal of Otumoetai College in Tauranga, also questioned whether the upcoming changes were "too fast, too quick".

Walsh says major concerns include:

The range of subjects students will soon be able to pass literacy in is too broad.

If teachers in subjects other than literacy are going to be assessing student achievement in literacy then they should get more training in this.

Students need to be watched closely to make sure they are not opting too much out of English subjects.

The new changes could be too soon and too broad for such an important subject.

NZQA's deputy chief executive of qualifications, Bali Haque, told the Herald on Sunday that if concerns were raised then "we will monitor it". He said next year would be a transition year. The changes were planned to be compulsory by 2012.

Haque said NZQA was "raising the bar" with literacy for students by making them do 10 credits for literacy instead of the current eight.

He said it was not unreasonable that students could gain literacy credits through other subjects such as biology because "you're going to have to do the reading, comprehension and write stuff".

rachel.grunwell@hos.co.nz