Status of Education in New Zealand
The UN Secretary- General’s Global Education Initiative has done a remarkable job of creating three priorities that set a prime example of what goals should be met in order to obtain maximum results in regards to education throughout every country in the world. As stated by the UN, “Education is not only a right but a passport to human development. It opens doors and expands opportunities and freedoms” (United Nations, 2010). New Zealand, in particular, is doing an outstanding job of implementing the three priorities, which are put every child in school, improve the quality of learning, and foster global citizenship.
To begin, New Zealand is making it a priority to have every child in school, specifically in primary and secondary school. Actually, attending school is compulsory in New Zealand from ages 6-16, although it is offered from ages 5-19 (“Education.govt.nz”, 2015). This means that regardless if a child would like to attend school or not, or if the family has a means of allowing their children to attend school, it is required by law for the child to attend school from the ages stated above. Additionally, there are schools in New Zealand that are public and funded by the New Zealand government, making it completely accessible for all children and families. This meets the needs of priority one, have every child in school, because New Zealand is making it mandated by law that every child in the country receive a primary and secondary education.
Secondly, New Zealand improves the quality of learning by making it a priority to have an exceptional educational system. They do this by investing an extensive amount of time and resources into the curriculum. According to New Zealand Now, “of 32 developed countries surveyed in the OECD’s 2013 Better Life Index, New Zealand devoted the highest percentage of public expenditure to education” (“New Zealand Now,” 2014). Additionally, the quality of learning does not fall solely on a teacher, as most would assume from personal observations; it has a lot to do with the educational system as well. As stated from New Zealand Now, “We pride ourselves on an education system that is world-class, modern and responsive” (“New Zealand Now”, 2014). New Zealand makes it a point to make the basis of education as qualified as possible to produce knowledgeable students. Because New Zealand has such a great educational system, “of 40 countries, New Zealand came eighth in the Learning Curve global education report…” (Tapaleao, 2012). This shows that New Zealand is meeting the needs of priority number two because they are going above and beyond investing an extensive amount of funds and time into making the curriculum and education system exceptional for their students and country.
Lastly, New Zealand is implementing notable programs to provide the needs of priority three, which is fostering global citizenship. Global citizenship is important because it requires people to be knowledgeable of what is occurring around the world and not just what it is happening their community or even in their country. It brings about peace and cooperation with others that share the same world as every one else. In order to implement the concept of global citizenship, New Zealand has begun to immerse this concept into some of their schools (“Save Our Schools NZ,” 2014). However, the most noticeable incorporation of global citizenship in New Zealand has been seen through the New Zealand Model United Nations program, established by UN Youth New Zealand. The idea of the program is to not only educate about how what the United Nations does, but also to help “students learn about different countries and the complex interactions between national interests” (“The United Nations Association of New Zealand,” 2011). By having this program, New Zealanders are receiving the capabilities to learn more about the country’s interactions with other countries, what hardships other countries are facing, and the similarities between them in all regards. Essentially, this is meeting the need of priority three, fostering global citizenship.
Every person in this world is granted the right to an education without exclusions. It betters the world and it is a necessary right that needs to be practiced in every country. The three priorities presented by the Global Education First Initiative lay out significant goals that should be and hopefully will be implemented in every country within the next decade to provide success throughout the world. New Zealand has already begun a successful attempt at meeting these priorities and continues to show improvement, which will only benefit the country and the world.
Citations:
Priorities. (n.d.). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.globaleducationfirst.org/priorities.html
Education for All (EFA). (2010). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.un.org/en/globalissues/briefingpapers/efa/
Education in New Zealand. (2015, October 9). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.education.govt.nz/home/education-in-nz/
Education and Schooling. (2014, October 24). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/living-in-nz/education
Global citizenship. (2014, February 28). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://saveourschoolsnz.com/tag/global-citizenship/
The United Nations Association of New Zealand. (2011). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.unanz.org.nz/About-Us
Tapaleao, V. (2012, December 1). NZ's education system ranked high globally. Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10851193
To begin, New Zealand is making it a priority to have every child in school, specifically in primary and secondary school. Actually, attending school is compulsory in New Zealand from ages 6-16, although it is offered from ages 5-19 (“Education.govt.nz”, 2015). This means that regardless if a child would like to attend school or not, or if the family has a means of allowing their children to attend school, it is required by law for the child to attend school from the ages stated above. Additionally, there are schools in New Zealand that are public and funded by the New Zealand government, making it completely accessible for all children and families. This meets the needs of priority one, have every child in school, because New Zealand is making it mandated by law that every child in the country receive a primary and secondary education.
Secondly, New Zealand improves the quality of learning by making it a priority to have an exceptional educational system. They do this by investing an extensive amount of time and resources into the curriculum. According to New Zealand Now, “of 32 developed countries surveyed in the OECD’s 2013 Better Life Index, New Zealand devoted the highest percentage of public expenditure to education” (“New Zealand Now,” 2014). Additionally, the quality of learning does not fall solely on a teacher, as most would assume from personal observations; it has a lot to do with the educational system as well. As stated from New Zealand Now, “We pride ourselves on an education system that is world-class, modern and responsive” (“New Zealand Now”, 2014). New Zealand makes it a point to make the basis of education as qualified as possible to produce knowledgeable students. Because New Zealand has such a great educational system, “of 40 countries, New Zealand came eighth in the Learning Curve global education report…” (Tapaleao, 2012). This shows that New Zealand is meeting the needs of priority number two because they are going above and beyond investing an extensive amount of funds and time into making the curriculum and education system exceptional for their students and country.
Lastly, New Zealand is implementing notable programs to provide the needs of priority three, which is fostering global citizenship. Global citizenship is important because it requires people to be knowledgeable of what is occurring around the world and not just what it is happening their community or even in their country. It brings about peace and cooperation with others that share the same world as every one else. In order to implement the concept of global citizenship, New Zealand has begun to immerse this concept into some of their schools (“Save Our Schools NZ,” 2014). However, the most noticeable incorporation of global citizenship in New Zealand has been seen through the New Zealand Model United Nations program, established by UN Youth New Zealand. The idea of the program is to not only educate about how what the United Nations does, but also to help “students learn about different countries and the complex interactions between national interests” (“The United Nations Association of New Zealand,” 2011). By having this program, New Zealanders are receiving the capabilities to learn more about the country’s interactions with other countries, what hardships other countries are facing, and the similarities between them in all regards. Essentially, this is meeting the need of priority three, fostering global citizenship.
Every person in this world is granted the right to an education without exclusions. It betters the world and it is a necessary right that needs to be practiced in every country. The three priorities presented by the Global Education First Initiative lay out significant goals that should be and hopefully will be implemented in every country within the next decade to provide success throughout the world. New Zealand has already begun a successful attempt at meeting these priorities and continues to show improvement, which will only benefit the country and the world.
Citations:
Priorities. (n.d.). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.globaleducationfirst.org/priorities.html
Education for All (EFA). (2010). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.un.org/en/globalissues/briefingpapers/efa/
Education in New Zealand. (2015, October 9). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.education.govt.nz/home/education-in-nz/
Education and Schooling. (2014, October 24). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/living-in-nz/education
Global citizenship. (2014, February 28). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://saveourschoolsnz.com/tag/global-citizenship/
The United Nations Association of New Zealand. (2011). Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.unanz.org.nz/About-Us
Tapaleao, V. (2012, December 1). NZ's education system ranked high globally. Retrieved October 23, 2015, from http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10851193
Government System in New Zealand
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Citation for Information on the newsletter: Wilson, J. (2015, February 3). 4. – Nation and government – System of government. Retrieved October 26, 2015, from http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/nation-and-government/page-4
Economic System in New Zealand
- What will be produced with New Zealand's resources?
- Dairy Products
- Meat and edible offal
- Logs and wood articles
- Fruit
- Wine
- Crude Oil
- How will these goods be produced?
- The goods will be produced by being manufactured agriculturally and industrially
- Who will use these goods?
- New Zealand
- China at 20%
- Australia at 17.5%
- United States at 9.3%
- Japan at 5.9%
- Will these goods be exported?
- Yes the goods will be exported
Citations:
Economy of New Zealand. (2015). Retrieved November 4, 2015, from https://productsfromnz.com//browse_1821
(2015, October 28). Retrieved November 4, 2015, from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html
Economy of New Zealand. (2015). Retrieved November 4, 2015, from https://productsfromnz.com//browse_1821
(2015, October 28). Retrieved November 4, 2015, from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html