10. Question No. 10—EducationERICA STANFORD (National—East Coast Bays) to the Minister of EducationQuestion No. 10—Education10. ERICA STANFORD (National—East Coast Bays) to the Minister of Education: What are the Government's professional learning and development (PLD) priorities as listed on the Ministry of Education website and how many if any teachers engaged in maths PLD in 2022?Hon JAN TINETTI (Minister of Education): To the first part of the question there are seven PLD priorities that underpin regionally allocated PLD. For English medium: cultural capability local curriculum design and assessment for learning. For Māori medium: mātauranga Māori and te reo Māori marau ā-kura and aromatawai. Digital fluency remains a priority across Māori and English medium. To the second part of the question I am interpreting this as centrally funded PLD. In 2022 at least 260 schools and kura engaged in maths PLD as their priority focus from the regionally allocated PLD fund. Some of these PLD contracts included clusters of schools—schools working with each other—so the actual number will be higher. The ministry informs me that schools reported that this included 9398 teachers and in addition 569 teachers and leaders from across 294 primary schools were engaged with Just-In-Time Maths workshops around the country. Over the 2022 school year $14.1 million was supported for maths PLD from the centrally funded appropriations.Erica Stanford: If maths is such a priority as she stated in the House yesterday can she explain why it is not on the Government's professional development priority list for teachers?Hon JAN TINETTI: Maths is a priority. Central PLD funding is allocated to the regions for them to allocate to meet the needs for their teachers. Schools must pick PLD programmes that fit within the seven priority themes. Now I need to give an example of how this would work. Developing Mathematical Inquiry Communities (DMIC) which 139 school communities completed in 2022 fits in the cultural capability priority theme. Research from the past two decades tells us that Māori and Pacific learners thrive when learning environments are responsive to their cultures and contexts. DMIC develops mathematical capability through collaboration and culturally responsive pedagogy because the evidence shows it works.Erica Stanford: When her own Government's commissioned report told her that only half of year 4 teachers felt moderately confident in teaching any strand of mathematics" why did she then not bother to find out exactly how many teachers across the 41000 teachers teaching primary and intermediate maths are engaging in maths professional development?Hon JAN TINETTI: I think the answer to my first question would show that from the centrally funded PLD funds 9398 teachers are getting centrally funded PLD. That is on top of their own PLD that schools will be paying for as they also see it as a priority.Erica Stanford: When she was told by the international mathematics and science study that over half of teachers felt that their professional support in maths was fair poor or very poor why did she not immediately put maths on the professional development priority list to ensure that all teachers are getting the support that they need?Hon JAN TINETTI: The member misunderstands that the priority areas are what underpins the philosophies for the different areas. Maths is a priority for this Government. We have put that out in our strategy documents. We have put that out in our action plans to meet the goals of that strategy. PLD is a central focus for those strategies.Erica Stanford: Why hasn't she made maths professional development an urgent priority on that list over the last six years when around half of year 4 teachers don't feel confident teaching any strand of maths half of teachers don't feel supported and less than half of year 8 kids are at curriculum in maths?Hon JAN TINETTI: I have.Erica Stanford: How can she look parents in the eye and guarantee that their child is getting the best possible education in maths when she cannot guarantee that the Government has adequately supported teachers to teach maths in the last six years?Hon JAN TINETTI: I have confidence that our teachers know how to assess their students and communicate this to parents. I won't be bringing in national standards again which were a complete failure. What I am doing is ensuring our curriculum is crystal clear on what needs to be taught and when so that learning is not left to chance."