Mackey Moana: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Mackey Moana: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:629;Page:1712] 
3.  
MOANA MACKEY (Labour) 
 to the  
Minister of Education 
: Has the Minister received any reports about ongoing improvements to the NCEA? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY (Minister of Education) 
: 
 Following a successful exam round in 2005—thanks in particular to the hard work of thousands of teachers—the Ministry of Education has begun work on further improvements for 2006. As part of that work today a survey is being sent to 20000 teachers on the achievement standards and methods of assessment for over 30 subjects. That will result in improvements in achievement standards for the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) and performance standards for scholarship. Since the beginning of the implementation of NCEA teachers have been involved in its design and they will continue to be so involved. 
Moana Mackey 
: What further professional development will be occurring around NCEA? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: The New Zealand Qualifications Authority’s school relationship managers are holding regional seminars in the coming months for teachers to discuss the exam season just past and what improvements can be made. Any teacher who wishes to attend those seminars can do so including any person who has sent an anonymous email to an Opposition MP. What will not be happening is the seminar proposed in this House on 15 February for Mr Bill English— 
Hon Bill English 
: By you. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
:—by myself. Immediately following that suggestion Mr English continued to misrepresent and spread misinformation about NCEA. In particular he said that results were being scaled and massaged and he continued to attack the integrity of the staff of the New Zealand Qualifications Authority. Mr McCully in his own newsletter said he would also continue his attacks on the personal integrity of the acting chief executive Karen Sewell. That is bad faith that is not a fair hearing that is prejudice—no seminar. 
Allan Peachey 
: How does the percentage of level 1 NCEA candidates achieving the minimum standards of literacy and numeracy as a result of the 2005 assessments compare to the percentage of candidates achieving such minimum standards in previous years? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I do not have the figures here with me but I can get them for the member. I can say to members of the House that for the first time NCEA is offering New Zealanders standards in literacy and numeracy that were not there historically. We are now able to measure progress in that area and we all should applaud that. 
Moana Mackey 
: What support has the Minister seen expressed for NCEA? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: There has been unanimous support from across the education sector for NCEA. The one remaining critic is Bill English who constantly undermines the confidence of NCEA to the point that Stuart Middleton writing in the  
New Zealand 
Education Review 
 wrote the following: “Poor Bill only knows the negative and even though he could offer commentary that contributed to discussion and to the progress of ideas he prefers to be the face of the declinologists and be negative.” Mr Middleton also said that we have a world-class education sector. What we need to do is debate how to make it better not try to drag it down as Mr English constantly does. I seek leave to table two documents. The first is my letter to Mr English that explains why his bad faith prejudice and prejudgment of those matters— 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. 
Hon Bill English 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. The member has every right to seek leave to table his silly letter but he is not allowed to use epithets in the course of doing so. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: The second document Madam Speaker— 
Madam SPEAKER 
: No sorry would you please just withdraw. The member has taken objection. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I withdraw. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Thank you. Leave is sought to table that letter. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I seek leave to table a second document. The document is from—[ 
Interruption 
] 
Madam SPEAKER 
: It is a point of order; it is heard in silence. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: The document is from the  
New Zealand Education Review 
. It is an article by Stuart Middleton in which he explains that Mr English is the sole remaining critic: he is a person who is negative and should get on and be constructive. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document— 
Hon Bill English 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. Again the member has a right to ask Parliament to table that material but the article does not state what Mr Maharey says and in any case he is not allowed to read out what it states. He is allowed only to ask to table the document. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: I thank the member for that contribution. I hope all members take note of it and that when they are tabling documents they do it very briefly. I shall take that in future as permission to cut people short. 
Hon Bill English 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. The point here is that the member misrepresented what is in that document and surely you will not allow that under any circumstances. What Mr Maharey said the document reads is actually not correct and he should not be allowed to misrepresent the contents of the document. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I can if the member would like me to read out the part so that we are very clear about the criticisms made of the negativity of Mr English. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: I suggest we just table the document then we can all read it and make up our own minds—if the House agrees. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.