Articles tagged with Writing
New SMART Assessment Tool Boosts Student Progress Reporting for 220,000 Learners
1 hour ago | 30 viewsSince its introduction in February, the Student Mentoring Assessment Tool (SMART) has been used by over 1300 schools and 220,000 students to provide consistent, twice-yearly assessments in reading, writing, and maths. SMART delivers clear, detailed reports to parents of students in Years 0–10, including progress descriptors, explanations, attendance, and guidance on next learning steps, marking the first accessible reporting of this kind in over 20 years. Education Minister Erica Stanford emphasized that SMART helps identify learning gaps early, supports timely interventions, and is widely embraced by schools despite opposition from some unions.
Tags: Student Mentoring Assessment Tool SMART Erica Stanford Education Minister reading writing maths student achievement parents schoolsKiwi Kids' Writing Achievement Boosted with Government's 'Make It Write' Action Plan
10 months ago | 948 viewsThe Government is launching a Writing Action Plan to improve writing achievement among Kiwi kids. New data from 2024 reveals declining writing performance as students progress through school, with only 24% of Year 8 students meeting curriculum benchmarks. Initiatives like the Writing Acceleration Tool and Handwriting Teacher Guidance aim to address these challenges and ensure every student has the opportunity to succeed academically and beyond.
Tags: Government Writing Action Plan Kiwi kids baseline data English curriculum structured literacy Education Minister Erica Stanford Make It Write Writing Acceleration Tool Handwriting Teacher Guidance