Latest from Primary Education

Angry 5-yr-olds kick and bite teachers

Lack of support for special- and high-needs pupils was cited as the single biggest concern of 35 per cent of 104 principals.

Children and young adult book awards announced

Primary schools get media savvy

Primary school principals are being urged to pay for one-stop media training to prepare for crisis situations.

Murray Britt & Kay Irwin: Returning to rote learning 'condemns future to failure'

Children learn to use strategies to build a wide repertoire of mathematical knowledge, write Murray Britt and Kay Irwin.

Teachers of maths to be targeted

Falling maths grades will be addressed by "lifting" primary teachers' knowledge through more on-the-job training, the Government says.

Editorial: Big overhaul of numeracy doesn't add up

There is no need for a major overhaul to the Numeracy Project, just modification so that rote learning is taught for the benefit of struggling pupils.

Kids' math skills don't add up

A report to be launched by the Minister of Education today criticises the way pupils are taught maths and calls on parents to demand a return to basics.

Now you are five - stay home

Primary schools are looking to adopt new policies that will see children begin at preset dates throughout the school year - meaning some will wait up to five weeks after they turn five.

Parents, place trust in ECE

Book cuts will hit hard, says Labour

The scrapping of nearly one million book loans to schools each year will let down students who are not prepared for digital alternatives, the Labour Party says.

Iwi kids' school progress shown

Education Minister Hekia Parata has released figures for the first time showing iwi by iwi how Maori children do in early childhood education, primary school and NCEA.

Schools' BYO tissue demand irks parents

Schools' latest stationery demands are making some parents mad enough to cry - especially the discovery that tissues are now listed among their children's essentials.

Tips for first day at school

Settling into a routine as soon as possible is one of the best ways to give your child a good start to school, a leading principal says.

Peter O'Connor: Schools chance to bridge class gap

Future Auckland: School to shop floor

Auckland is a great place - but it can be even better. In the second of our five-part Future Auckland series we aim to stimulate debate. Teuila Fuatai reports.

Hayo Reinders: Goodbye classroom, education's new era doesn't need you

Jamie Whyte: Profit-seeking and preschools go together

If teachers were unpaid, they would be reluctant to do the job and, in the end, children would be worse off, writes Jamie Whyte. Yet the same goes for those who supply the capital.

Dita De Boni: Our teachers really do know best

The Government would have us believe school teachers are just a pack of whiners, writes Dita De Boni. It is exhausting, relentless work, mentally and physically, and I for one am happy to admit I could never hack it.