Barry Maggie: Estimates Debate — In CommitteeText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeBarry Maggie: Estimates Debate — In Committee[Sitting date: 01 July 2014. Volume:700;Page:19099. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]MAGGIE BARRY (National—North Shore):It is with great pleasure that I rise to speak about Vote Education. I think when we look at the amount of money that has been spent that is one way of evaluating things. The Opposition has concentrated on trying to get a smoke-and-mirrors exercise going so that there is perpetual bewilderment at least on that side of the Chamber about how much is actually spent and where that money is spent.We do not share those confused states. From our perspective it is pretty straightforward. We have put a great deal of money into education—$10.1 billion in the financial year—because we believe that it is the most worthwhile investment we can make. If we want New Zealand to grow and prosper as a nation we need to give our young people every opportunity to get the kind of education that will bring out the very best in what they are able to achieve as individuals.Recently I took part in a gifted and talented children’s political panel where we looked at how that group of people is assisted. There are a lot of areas where the Ministry of Education and this Government are moving towards that are going to encourage those very talented and very gifted children to achieve their best. Rolling out broadband is one thing. The professional development that is put through for the teachers is very important not only in English but also in the medium of Māori and that is working very well.Early childhood education—a lot of people have spoken about it and said that really what we are trying to do is to get that sort of start for as many young people as we possibly can. Our target was pretty well a straightforward one. We wanted 98 percent of children having participation in quality early childhood education by 2016. We are already at 95.7 percent. We are well on track to doing that. What needs to happen with our very young people is that they are made to feel confident and certain that they can with diligence and application get the best education that they possibly can. So yes we have concentrated on trying to bring up to a standard our poorest performing young people because they need that extra assistance. But that must not be at the expense of gifted and talented children or the great mass of children who are really at a similar level with that similar curiosity and excitement.In my North Shore electorate over the past couple of years I have seen firsthand what it is like—that sense of excitement as new classrooms are opened up and rolled out and as the broadband comes through. These are quality teaching environments and quality learning environments. Yes there are sliding doors and yes there are lime green squabs. In fact the squabs are all sorts of colours. That does not matter. These are places that are child friendly and teacher friendly. At Mairangi Bay Primary School for example where I opened a block which is set above the old classrooms the teachers were ecstatic. That is the word I would use. They were absolutely convinced that they had the best possible learning environment for the young people in their school and they were right.Initially when the designs came out these same teachers were a little uncertain as to whether that kind of environment would suit their teaching methods and the children. They were a little change averse let us face it. That is not unknown in the teaching profession and in other professions as well. But really when you look at the results and you look at the outcomes you look at the broadband roll-out—$700 million is being spent there—and at digital learning which has been a very big part of what the Minister the Hon Nikki Kaye was talking about earlier what we have had is at the forefront of where we want to make technology relevant to people’s lives. This has worked in a way that I think has surprised many because it has enabled young people to learn at their own pace to learn from home.The education site gifted.tki.org.nz which is the Ministry of Education site has just enjoyed an upgrade. There were eight different modules in there for teaching advanced mathematics for example and the children were extraordinarily enthusiastic about that and rightly so. They were able in their own time and in their own homes and at their own pace to not have the frustrations of perhaps being held back by other children but were able to carve their own path and be stimulated to the level that they need to be so that they are not bored and frustrated. They are able to share with each other via the medium of high technology their latest thoughts and ideas. I think that has probably done an enormous amount to relieve that sense of isolation that some of these children have had because they have been made to feel different and special but not always in a good way.I think that the various measures that we have been putting into education have worked extremely well. It is why this Government has spent so much money—because we believe that that is the way for the future. Yes we have spent money on infrastructure and health but education has been one of our priorities because we are a Government that cares about families that cares about children and that cares about people. We are not prepared to borrow big and go into a routine where we cannot pay our debts back in order to fund our education and our other excellent policies. Thank you.