10:58 AM |
Title – 7345 NZ: Pacific parents take ministry to court over suspension of language books
Date – 22 March 2011
Byline – None
Origin – Pacific Media Watch
Source – Television New Zealand One News, 20/3/11
Copyright – TVNZ
Status – Unabridged
----------------------------
* Pacific Media Watch Online - check the website for archive and links:
www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz
* Post a comment on this story at PMW Right of Reply:
www.pacificmediacentre.blogspot.com
pmediawa@aut.ac.nz
* Pacific Media Centre on Twitter - http://twitter.com/pacmedcentre
ANGER OVER PACIFIC LANGUAGE BOOKS
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/anger-over-pacific-language-books-4073276
AUCKLAND (TVNZ One News/Pacific Media Watch): A group of Pacific Islands parents are taking New Zealand's Ministry of Education to court over its decision to indefinitely suspend producing Pacific language books.
A coalition including schools, churches and community groups is behind court action that the coalition says is a breach of their children's human rights.
Parent Joanne Okesene said suspending production of the Tupu and Folaunga series is race-based discrimination.
"Discontinuing the books basically affects my children's rights to their cultural identity and their access to education," she said.
The Ministry of Education said it had paused production while it researched the best way to meet Pacific students' needs.
But documents obtained under the Official Information Act show key personnel within the Education Ministry arguing that the books and even learning a Pacific language as a first language is now "unnecessary".
Judy Taligalu McFall-McCaffery said the move proved the Ministry of Education was not in tune with what Pacific people wanted and needed.
"It's not a priority, it's not an interest at all for the ministry. To me it just signals we are going to make you English-speaking," she said.
Finlayson Park Primary principal Shirley Maihi said there was no reasoning behind the ministry's decision.
"My whole community, my board members, we are incensed...for a government to say 'that's it', just doesnt bear any sense of reasoning really," she said.
* Comment on this item pmediawa@aut.ac.nz
+++niuswire
PACIFIC MEDIA WATCH ONLINE
www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz
PACIFIC MEDIA WATCH is a media and educational resource compiled by the AUT Pacific Media Centre for the Pacific region.
(c)1996-2010 Creative Commons
http://creativecommons.org
Items are provided solely for review purposes as a non-profit educational service. Copyright remains the property of the original producers as indicated in the header. Recipients should seek permission
from the copyright owner for any publishing. Copyright owners not wishing their materials to be posted by PMW please contact us. The views expressed in material listed by PMW are not necessarily the views
of PMW or the Pacific Media Centre.
For further information or joining the Pacific Media Watch listserve, visit:
http://lists.apc.org.au/listinfo.cgi/pacific_media_watch?apc.org.au
Email:
pmc@aut.ac.nz
Fax: (+649) 921 9987
SnailMail: Pacific Media Centre, School of Communication Studies, AUT
University, Private Bag 92006, Auckland 1142, Aotearoa/New Zealand
Website: www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz
_______________________________________________
Pacific_media_watch mailing list
Pacific_media_watch_list@aut.ac.nz
_______________________________________________
Pacific_media_watch_list mailing list
Pacific_media_watch_list@aut.ac.nz
http://mailman.aut.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/pacific_media_watch_list
Date – 22 March 2011
Byline – None
Origin – Pacific Media Watch
Source – Television New Zealand One News, 20/3/11
Copyright – TVNZ
Status – Unabridged
----------------------------
* Pacific Media Watch Online - check the website for archive and links:
www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz
* Post a comment on this story at PMW Right of Reply:
www.pacificmediacentre.blogspot.com
pmediawa@aut.ac.nz
* Pacific Media Centre on Twitter - http://twitter.com/pacmedcentre
ANGER OVER PACIFIC LANGUAGE BOOKS
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/anger-over-pacific-language-books-4073276
AUCKLAND (TVNZ One News/Pacific Media Watch): A group of Pacific Islands parents are taking New Zealand's Ministry of Education to court over its decision to indefinitely suspend producing Pacific language books.
A coalition including schools, churches and community groups is behind court action that the coalition says is a breach of their children's human rights.
Parent Joanne Okesene said suspending production of the Tupu and Folaunga series is race-based discrimination.
"Discontinuing the books basically affects my children's rights to their cultural identity and their access to education," she said.
The Ministry of Education said it had paused production while it researched the best way to meet Pacific students' needs.
But documents obtained under the Official Information Act show key personnel within the Education Ministry arguing that the books and even learning a Pacific language as a first language is now "unnecessary".
Judy Taligalu McFall-McCaffery said the move proved the Ministry of Education was not in tune with what Pacific people wanted and needed.
"It's not a priority, it's not an interest at all for the ministry. To me it just signals we are going to make you English-speaking," she said.
Finlayson Park Primary principal Shirley Maihi said there was no reasoning behind the ministry's decision.
"My whole community, my board members, we are incensed...for a government to say 'that's it', just doesnt bear any sense of reasoning really," she said.
* Comment on this item pmediawa@aut.ac.nz
+++niuswire
PACIFIC MEDIA WATCH ONLINE
www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz
PACIFIC MEDIA WATCH is a media and educational resource compiled by the AUT Pacific Media Centre for the Pacific region.
(c)1996-2010 Creative Commons
http://creativecommons.org
Items are provided solely for review purposes as a non-profit educational service. Copyright remains the property of the original producers as indicated in the header. Recipients should seek permission
from the copyright owner for any publishing. Copyright owners not wishing their materials to be posted by PMW please contact us. The views expressed in material listed by PMW are not necessarily the views
of PMW or the Pacific Media Centre.
For further information or joining the Pacific Media Watch listserve, visit:
http://lists.apc.org.au/listinfo.cgi/pacific_media_watch?apc.org.au
Email:
pmc@aut.ac.nz
Fax: (+649) 921 9987
SnailMail: Pacific Media Centre, School of Communication Studies, AUT
University, Private Bag 92006, Auckland 1142, Aotearoa/New Zealand
Website: www.pacmediawatch.aut.ac.nz
_______________________________________________
Pacific_media_watch mailing list
Pacific_media_watch_list@aut.ac.nz
_______________________________________________
Pacific_media_watch_list mailing list
Pacific_media_watch_list@aut.ac.nz
http://mailman.aut.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/pacific_media_watch_list
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