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Professor Gail GillonDiscussion paper on advice provided to the Minister of Education in October 2024
Topic: The use of kupu Māori in the Ready to Read Phonics Plus Readers
Author: Professor Gail Gillon, Fellow of the Royal Society and Director of the Child Well being Research Institute at the University of Canterbury.
The October 11th, 2024, report to the Minister of Education titled Kupu Māori in the Ready to Read Phonics Plus Readers was forwarded by the media to several academics last week. I would like to provide comment on this document and advice to the Minister. The report indicates that last year the Minister received advice raising issues related to the use of kupu Māori in the Ready to Read Phonics Plus Series. What is unclear, however, is who provided this advice and what evidence supported this advice provided to the Minister. I would like to clarify several points raised in the report to the Minister in October 2024. My comments relate to the following concerns raised in the report