The Child Forum is a website which offers "fresh thinking, advice, research, analysis and information" on childcare and early childhood education.
It is also providing a (continually updated) summary comparing New Zealand's political parties' policies as they relate to early childhood education - including topics of funding, management, as well as family, community and cultural issues.
The parties appear to not yet comment on improving quality as it relates to the architectural environments of early childhood. However, Labour and National are yet to formally release their policies...
National has stated however, that it will be implementing new web-based tools for "rating" ECE services - and helping parents choose an ECE centre.
Education Minister Anne Tolley says "parents told us they want to know their children are being educated and cared for in a high-quality environment".
Perhaps such a tool providing both an outline of centres' philosophies surrounding their learning environment and photos describing it - will encourage New Zealand centres to improve the architectural quality of their environments?
See article on Stuff.
Thanks for linking to their summary - interesting reading. Have you read 'An agenda for amazing children' which is the govt's taskforce report that details Nationals plans for ECE? Contentious, esp the changes to funding which will see middle-class families pay more. There's a lot of critique out there in Google-land. Childforum did a good piece on it. No mention of architecture at all I'm afraid (if memory serves me right).
ReplyDelete(Childforum are corporate apple-polishers - Farqhuar is extremely right-wing so when reading them to pays to understand their agenda :))
Hi, this is 'Farquhar' replying. Would like to know why the corporate apple-polisher label and as to being right-wing???? Others have said I'm extremely left wing. Still others think I'm deeply christian just for the reason that I love kids have lots of my own. Lets get past the labelling. It shouldn't be about me. Many people contribute to ChildForum and diversity of views and opinions make ChildForum a Forum.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Ako and for reading the summary. Invite you to meet sometime if you live anywhere near Porirua. Email me via the childforum website
My apologies for being so quick to label Sarah. Yes Childforum is made up of many people with diverse opinions, but it does primarily champion the private sector which I broadly consider part and parcel of the neoliberal reforms. My referring to you as right-wing is admittedly hearsay and I aplogise for using it in a public forum!! While I was born in Porirua alas I no longer live any where near it now.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to write a piece on National's ECE election promises and will be referring to your summary report about the Taskforce. Your thoughts would be welcome.
Jess, sorry for the shit stirring on your site. Me bad.