1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,520 Speaker 1: Good afternoon. A big crackdown today on truancy. Teacher only 2 00:00:03,600 --> 00:00:06,640 Speaker 1: days will no longer be allowed during term time and 3 00:00:06,760 --> 00:00:09,600 Speaker 1: parents will be prosecuted for continued absence of their kids. 4 00:00:09,600 --> 00:00:11,840 Speaker 1: Pat Newman is the spokesperson for that. I talk at 5 00:00:11,840 --> 00:00:15,040 Speaker 1: our Principles Association apat HI. 6 00:00:15,200 --> 00:00:16,479 Speaker 2: How are you good? Thank you? 7 00:00:16,480 --> 00:00:17,680 Speaker 1: This is a good move, right. 8 00:00:19,600 --> 00:00:21,479 Speaker 2: Oh brilliant. If you want to put something and it 9 00:00:21,520 --> 00:00:24,280 Speaker 2: doesn't work but sounds good politically, what do you think 10 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 2: is not going to work? The whole concept that finding 11 00:00:28,960 --> 00:00:32,920 Speaker 2: people is going to get kids into schools? I mean, 12 00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:37,320 Speaker 2: the cold hard reality is that it's been tried, it's 13 00:00:37,360 --> 00:00:40,960 Speaker 2: been on the box, it hasn't worked. That's why it's 14 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:44,320 Speaker 2: not used. And by apping the penalty, that's not really 15 00:00:44,360 --> 00:00:46,680 Speaker 2: going to work a heck of a lot either, because 16 00:00:46,720 --> 00:00:50,080 Speaker 2: if you haven't got it, you can't pay it, So 17 00:00:50,200 --> 00:00:53,600 Speaker 2: the fine means nothing, unless, of course he's going to 18 00:00:53,600 --> 00:00:57,440 Speaker 2: make NAFA prison big enough and then put parents in 19 00:00:57,480 --> 00:01:00,200 Speaker 2: there at Jaalen if they don't have their kids at 20 00:01:00,240 --> 00:01:03,080 Speaker 2: school and they can't afford to pay the fine. 21 00:01:03,880 --> 00:01:06,759 Speaker 1: What about the teacher only days only being during term time? 22 00:01:06,800 --> 00:01:07,520 Speaker 1: Are you okay with that? 23 00:01:10,720 --> 00:01:14,880 Speaker 2: Some people are referring to certain gentlemen as being an 24 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:20,720 Speaker 2: educational megalomaniac. I of course would never say that, but 25 00:01:21,080 --> 00:01:24,800 Speaker 2: some people are because he hasn't got that authority. As indeed, 26 00:01:24,840 --> 00:01:28,840 Speaker 2: the authority, the authority the minister has is to say 27 00:01:29,440 --> 00:01:32,119 Speaker 2: you don't have to do your two hundred days, which 28 00:01:32,160 --> 00:01:35,000 Speaker 2: is the primary school one, that you can have a 29 00:01:35,040 --> 00:01:38,200 Speaker 2: teacher only day. He can say that, all right. However, 30 00:01:38,440 --> 00:01:40,920 Speaker 2: if a school starts at a different time or anything 31 00:01:41,000 --> 00:01:44,240 Speaker 2: like that, we have days up our sleeve. We can 32 00:01:44,360 --> 00:01:47,080 Speaker 2: take those whenever we want to, and he has not 33 00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:49,960 Speaker 2: the authority to say no to that. Changes. 34 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:51,760 Speaker 1: Are you talking about the fact that you have a 35 00:01:51,760 --> 00:01:53,920 Speaker 1: flexible start time, let's say at the start of the 36 00:01:54,000 --> 00:01:56,000 Speaker 1: year or whatever, and you might use those days as 37 00:01:56,080 --> 00:01:56,960 Speaker 1: teacher only days. 38 00:01:57,040 --> 00:02:00,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, well, we might do stuff and have kids for 39 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:03,280 Speaker 2: a trip in the holidays, or we could spend a 40 00:02:03,400 --> 00:02:05,920 Speaker 2: special course in the holidays and do five hours a 41 00:02:05,960 --> 00:02:09,240 Speaker 2: day on mathematics, and that would in the holiday what 42 00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:11,919 Speaker 2: was some term holiday time, and that would classificue a 43 00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:12,760 Speaker 2: school being open. 44 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:16,079 Speaker 3: So how it's been explained to me is that the 45 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:20,160 Speaker 3: Act actually says that these teacher only days actually should 46 00:02:20,160 --> 00:02:22,799 Speaker 3: be taken during the break time, and if they're going 47 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:25,040 Speaker 3: to be taken during the term time, it is with 48 00:02:25,400 --> 00:02:27,000 Speaker 3: the sign off of the Ministry of Education. 49 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:33,120 Speaker 2: Is that correct? Yes, that is education. That is the way. Sorry, 50 00:02:33,320 --> 00:02:35,800 Speaker 2: that is correct, And I'm not arguing that. What I 51 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:38,120 Speaker 2: am arguing is that we are only required by law 52 00:02:38,200 --> 00:02:42,200 Speaker 2: to be open for two hundred school days. So therefore 53 00:02:42,240 --> 00:02:45,720 Speaker 2: if we have stuff done in the holidays, then we 54 00:02:45,760 --> 00:02:48,240 Speaker 2: can actually not do the two hundred, or we can 55 00:02:48,280 --> 00:02:49,919 Speaker 2: do extra teacher any days. 56 00:02:50,080 --> 00:02:51,800 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I see what you're saying. You've got power 57 00:02:51,800 --> 00:02:54,800 Speaker 1: of your own. What do you make of taking the 58 00:02:54,840 --> 00:02:57,600 Speaker 1: money out of the teacher training for trial and putting 59 00:02:57,600 --> 00:02:58,239 Speaker 1: it into maths. 60 00:03:01,639 --> 00:03:05,359 Speaker 2: Of all of the things that this government is intending 61 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:10,440 Speaker 2: to do, this is probably the most appalling and deplorable 62 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:13,760 Speaker 2: actions I have ever heard and ever come out. And 63 00:03:13,840 --> 00:03:16,920 Speaker 2: I never thought i'd hear at the New Zealand. And 64 00:03:17,000 --> 00:03:22,120 Speaker 2: I've got to think about other countries like the Inuits 65 00:03:22,160 --> 00:03:26,240 Speaker 2: in Canada, where the same sort of stuff has been done. 66 00:03:27,040 --> 00:03:32,440 Speaker 2: I look here as appalling. I don't know whether the 67 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:35,360 Speaker 2: Minister Seymour thinks at all that the teacher has to 68 00:03:35,400 --> 00:03:38,760 Speaker 2: do is to be able to pronounce the child's name. Correctly, 69 00:03:38,760 --> 00:03:42,720 Speaker 2: and that's all that matters. Every bit of research, every 70 00:03:42,760 --> 00:03:45,480 Speaker 2: bit of educational knowledge that I have, and I think 71 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:48,120 Speaker 2: it might be a bit more than mister Seymour's, and 72 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:51,960 Speaker 2: even the current ministers says that what they have done 73 00:03:52,360 --> 00:03:55,480 Speaker 2: is educationally and morally wrong. 74 00:03:56,320 --> 00:04:01,680 Speaker 1: Pat, thank you for your time. Pat Newman, spokesperson, Principles Association. 75 00:04:01,440 --> 00:04:05,160 Speaker 2: Hither Duplicy Ellen Current Project fund. 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