Press releases, open letters, submissions and media
On this page you will find links to our press releases, open letters to Ministers, and public submissions to Select Committees. You will also find links to articles in the NZ media on literacy. These are arranged by type of media (TV, print, radio) and then in chronological order.
Our press releases and public letters
Press Releases
Advocacy group says ‘status quo’ interests holding literacy policy back
21 December 2023. Press release here.
National’s proposal a unique chance for all parties to do what’s right for learners
8 September 2023. Press release here.
Literacy advocates challenge Minister of Education
3 April 2022. Press release here. With link to video here.
Minister ill-informed, Literacy Strategy hollow
27 March 2022. Press release here. In response to release of new Literacy and Communication and Maths Strategy by the Minister of Education on 25 March 2022.
Reading is fundamental to success in Maths too, says Literacy lobby group
4 October 2021. Press release here supporting the recommendations of Royal Society Te Apārangi report calling for urgent measures to improve mathematical outcomes including better testing, a clearer and more prescriptive curriculum, better classroom resources and more training for teachers.
Saturday morning abuzz with structured literacy at Sunnyhills School
28 June 2021. Press release, here, about an ‘Unconference’ event organised by Structured Literacy - Auckland for over 200 teachers across Auckland.
Ministry presented with ‘first best solution’ to solving literacy underachievement
18 December 2020. Read our statement here following our trip to Wellington on 2 December to present to the Ministry of Education and meet with other stakeholders.
Chief Science Advisor Education Report Omits Key Research
24 August 2020. Read our press release here in response to report by Education Chief Science Advisor, Professor Stuart McNaughton.
Support for Ministry of Education’s New Approach for Dyslexia
31 July 2020. Read our press release here following the release of the updated ‘Dyslexia Kete’ of resources.
Open Letters & Public Submissions
Draft Literacy Policy White Paper
21 December 2023. Our advice to incoming Minister of Education, Erica Standford. Read the white paper here or see our blog post.
Petition of Mike Styles: A government inquiry into and support for dyslexia and neurodiversity
29 June 2023. We spoke with Mike to help him prepare for his oral submission to the Petitions Committee. SPELD NZ also gave evidence in support. View the session here. And an interview of Mike on Breakfast TV here.
Letter to Minister of Education Jan Tinetti
31 May 2023. Letter to Minister Tinetti setting out our concerns that the rhetoric of the Minister and the behaviour of the Ministry and ITE providers does not align in regard to the elimination of balanced literacy practices and the Minister’s firm adherence to implementing evidence-based practice. Read letter here or see our blog post.
Letter to Associate Minister Jan Tinetti
15 November 2021. Letter to Minister Tinetti setting out five key areas that need to be addressed if Literacy Strategy is to be successful. Read letter here. And see our assessment of Government’s progress on Literacy Strategy here.
Submission to Education and Workforce Select Committee
31 September 2021. Submission on Inquiry into School Attendance. Read our cover letter here and our accompanying report here. Watch our oral submission here.
Submission to Education and Workforce Select Committee
19 August 2021. Submission in support of Amanda Drumm petition on teaching of systematic synthetic phonics. Read our submission here.
Position Statement on Reading Recovery
14 August 2021. Read our position on Reading Recovery here.
Open Letter to Ministry of Education
2 February 2021. An open letter to the Ministry of Education, here, in response to statements made on TV1 News item 31 January. And their response to us, here.
“I agree with you that instruction needs to be explicit, systematic, diagnostic and engaging. This includes phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.”
- Ministry of Education Deputy Secretary, 3 February 2020
Alice Wilson: Reading between the lines of the phonics debate
26 January 2021. An opinion piece, here, from our Chair, Alice Wilson in the NZ Herald in response to a previous Opinion Piece a few days earlier.
Letter to Chief Science Advisor re Literacy Landscape Report by Prof Stuart McNaughton
4 September 2020. Letter to Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor setting out our serious concerns about the report, including the troubling omission of research and a related conflict of interest on behalf of the author, here.
Structured Literacy in the Media.
We have been working to get more media coverage of literacy and structured literacy, in particular. And we are getting more and more interest from journalists. If you have an idea for a story you want us to pitch to the media, please get in touch.
We post all media coverage we come across to our Facebook page as well.
We find that sharing media articles with your school leadership team is often an effective way to pique their interest.
Television
Getting results: Erica Stanford and Jan Tinetti scrap it out in Education Debate
TV segment, NewsHub, 30 September 2023
Literacy expert on how best to teach kids to read
TV segment, Q&A, 17 September 2023
Jan Tinetti: Is the education system in crisis?
TV segment, Q&A, 2 July 2023
Advocates for dyslexia and neurodiversity say today is biggest opportunity to influence politicians
TV segment, Breakfast Show, 29 June 2023
Paddy Gower Has Issues: New Zealand schools falling behind international literacy rates
TV segment, TV Three, 25 May 2023
NZ literacy rate in spotlight as principal calls out 'malpractice'
TV segment, Paddy Gower Has Issues, TV Three, 24 May 2023
Newshub-Reid Research poll: Kiwis send resounding message to Jan Tinetti over literacy and numeracy
TV segment, NewsHub, 16 May 2023
Principal calls for Govt to scrap reading recovery as participation falls
TV segment, One News, 29 November 2022
Lyn Stone on Breakfast TV: difference between structured literacy and the whole language approach
TV segment, Breakfast Show, 27 September 2022
Jan Tinetti: Radical changes to how Kiwi kids learn to read
TV segment, Q&A, 22 August 2022
The New Zealand Initiative's Literacy Workshop saw a group of experts come together to improve NZ's literacy standards
TV segment, Breakfast Show, 15 May 2022
Prof James Chapman: The past and future of literacy education in New Zealand
YouTube video, 15 May 2022
What it’s like living with dyslexia as an adult
TV segment, Breakfast Show, 5 May 2022
Tracy Karanui-Golf and Regan Orr chat literacy with John Campbell
TV segment, Breakfast Show, 22 March 2022
Learning Matters' Carla McNeil on declining literacy standards
TV segment, Breakfast Show, 21 March 2022
Damning new report finds two in five New Zealand children failing or only just meeting literacy standards
TV segment, NewsHub, 21 March 2022
Bridging the academic success rate between Māori and non-Māori using structured literacy
TV segment, Te Karere News, 27 September 2021
Breakfast Show Interview with Associate Minister Jan Tinetti
TV segment, TV1, 12 August 2021
Woman in her 60s switches career to teaching
TV segment, Seven Sharp, 11 August 2021
Structured literacy for Te Reo Māori learners
TV segment, Te Karere News, 9 August 2021
Select Committee hearing on reading instruction petition
Video clip, 4 August 2021
Breakfast Show Interview
TV segment, Breakfast Show, 4 August 2021
The Māori speech therapist guiding rangatahi through the justice system
TV segment, The Hui, 31 May 2021
Ministry of Education launches new books to improve New Zealand's falling literacy rates
TV segment, AM Show, 25 February 2021
Parents of children with reading difficulties want overhaul of methods as phonics books are printed
TV segment, TV1 News, 31 January 2021
Teachers not to blame for Kiwi kids' falling literacy skills - principal
TV segment, AM Show, 16 September 2020
Experts divided over best way to teach Kiwi children to read.
TV Segment, TV1 News, 6 September 2020
Print Media
The elephant in the classroom
The Post article, 12 September 2023
Complaint made to Ombudsman over Govt funding Reading Recovery
1News article, 11 August 2023
Making the Grade: Struggling students get a boost thanks to changes in teaching and monitoring
NZ Herald article, 27 April 2023
Ideology trumps evidence at the Ministry of Education
Newsroom Pro article, 30 March 2023
Making the Grade: Ministry of Education releases literacy and maths common practice model
NZ Herald article, 24 March 2023
Making the Grade: Why NZ kids are falling behind at school
NZ Herald article, 22 March 2023
Penny drops on new way to help dyslexics
Newsroom article, 16 September 2022
Aotearoa has a literacy problem. How can we fix it?
Spinoff article, 25 May 2022
'Whole system change' required for country's poor literacy and numeracy rates
Stuff article, 25 March 2022
SPELD NZ’S response to the Education Hub report
Press release, 23 March 2022
Structured literacy provides solid foundations
Education Gazette article, 16 March 2022
Roger Partridge: Roadblock on literacy's pathway to prosperity
NZ Herald article, 1 December 2021
Literacy problems, transport, discrimination listed as reasons kids don't attend school
Stuff Article, 20 October 2021
Lifting literacy in Levin: Programme finds favour at Fairfield School
NZ Herald article, 16 August 2021
Trainee teachers get 90 minutes to learn how to teach children to read, graduate says
Stuff Article, 9 August 2021
Ben Can Read
Essay, The Spinoff, Catherine Woulfe, 16 April 2021
Teachers urge switch in main approach to teaching children to read
Stuff Article, 13 March 2021
The Reading Wars are over - and phonics has won
Opinion Piece, SMH, Sarah Mitchell, NSW Minister for Education, 30 November 2020
Education Ministry Strikes Fool’s Gold
Opinion Piece, Roger Partridge, The NZ Initiative, 27 November 2020
Schools footing bill to teach teachers how to teach reading
RNZ Article, 20 November 2020
Fix for literacy problems to stop children labelling ‘themselves dumb’
Stuff Article, 29 October 2020
What is decoding? Literacy is evolving.
School News NZ, Dr Christine Braid, 27 October 2020
Advisor under fire as literacy group says reading programme failing children
Stuff Article, 9 September 2020
Young New Zealanders are turning off reading in record numbers – we need a new approach to teaching literacy
The Conversation, Dr Christine Braid, 21 August 2020
Stuff Article, Dr Christine Braid, 26 August 2020
Literacy methods get children on the road to learning
Stuff Article, August 2019
Giving teachers the tools for the 'science of reading'
Stuff Article, February 2019
Radio
Emily Hanford: are we teaching reading all wrong?
Radio interview, RNZ, 1 July 2023
Literacy expert dissects new literacy, numeracy model & National's education policy
Radio interview, RNZ, 24 March 2023
Reading Recovery's refresh - will it satisfy its critics?
Radio interview, RNZ, 28 November 2022
Australia to revamp school curriculum, in particular numeracy and literacy
Radio interview, Mike Hosking Breakfast NewstalkZB, 11 May 2022
Large US study finds Reading Recovery benefits don't last
Radio interview, RNZ, 4 May 2022
Looking at ways to turn around young students' literacy issues
Radio interview, RNZ, 31 March 2021
Lifting Literacy Aotearoa: Govt's literacy reform rings hollow
Radio interview, Mike Hosking Breakfast NewstalkZB, 28 March 2022
Alice Wilson "They haven't got it right"
Radio interview, Duncan Garner TodayFM, 28 March 2022
New Literacy and Numeracy Strategy
Radio interview, RNZ, 25 March 2022
Report finds less than 65% of NZ 15-year-olds have basic proficiency in reading and maths
Radio interview, NewstalkZB, 24 March 2022
How under-served learners are a $11b loss for New Zealand
Radio interview, RNZ, 22 March 2022
Damning report exposes declining literacy rates
Radio interview, RNZ, 21 March 2022
Literacy and attendance
Radio interview, RNZ, 22 October 2021
Trainee teachers need more preparation to teach kids to read
Radio interview, NewstalkZB, 9 August 2021
Literacy expert Carla McNeil - new phonics books in schools
Radio interview, RNZ, 8 April 2021
Easy as A-B-C? Report stokes debate about how to teach reading
Radio interview, RNZ, 9 September 2020