Stanford told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking there is plenty of money in education to “reprioritise”.
She said the money specifically will be going to “high-quality workbooks” that some schools can not afford right now.
Stanford said it was a “huge effort” to be across all the curricular areas.
She said the Government is remaining steadfast in its commitment to the revitalisation of te reo Māori but maths achievements are more of a priority.
She said the funding shift will ensure support for “high-quality instructional mathematics resources”.
“Resources will be available in English and te reo Māori, curriculum aligned and reflect best-practice around the OECD”.
She said 22% of Year 8 students are at the expected standard for maths and 12% of Year 8 Māori students are where they should be.
The Minister was referring to where students currently sit against the new curriculum set to be introduced.
“I am not prepared to look parents in the eye and allow the 60,000 kids starting school next year to be on a similar trajectory.”
The move is a part of the Government’s “make it count” plan unveiled last month which involves the introduction of structural maths for year 0-8 students from term one in 2025 – a year earlier than planned.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he fast-tracked the move after seeing the “appalling” results.
He said it amounted to “a crisis” and the data had prompted him to call in the Secretary of Education and the ministry’s executive team.
“There’s no way to describe those results as anything other than a total system failure.”
Rachel Maher is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. She has worked for the Herald since 2022.
Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
