Last week, the government announced a proposal to replace NCEA with an alternative educational curriculum.
NCEA, which has been in place since 2002, has received mixed responses. In announcing the move, Education Minister, Erica Stanford, says that due to the flexibility of NCEA, this has “come at a cost” for young people to develop critical thinking skills and knowledge for future pathways.
The proposed changes include replacing NCEA level 1 with a foundational test, solely focusing on numeracy and literacy, replacing NCEA’s level 2 and 3 with two new qualifications, requiring students take five subjects, and having to pass at least four to obtain a certificate.
This move is not without its criticisms and concerns, however. For example, Many teachers have told RNZ that the changes, which are set to be phased in from next year, are too swift, with teachers saying they will need additional support during the transition process.
For our weekly catch-up with the ACT Party’s Simon Court, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to him about potentially moving away from NCEA.
Last week, the government announced a proposal to replace NCEA with an alternative educational curriculum.
NCEA, which has been in place since 2002, has received mixed responses. In announcing the move, Education Minister, Erica Stanford, says that due to the flexibility of NCEA, this has “come at a cost” for young people to develop critical thinking skills and knowledge for future pathways.
The proposed changes include replacing NCEA level 1 with a foundational test, solely focusing on numeracy and literacy, replacing NCEA’s level 2 and 3 with two new qualifications, requiring students take five subjects, and having to pass at least four to obtain a certificate.
This move is not without its criticisms and concerns, however. For example, Many teachers have told RNZ that the changes, which are set to be phased in from next year, are too swift, with teachers saying they will need additional support during the transition process.
For our weekly catch-up with the ACT Party’s Simon Court, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to him about potentially moving away from NCEA.
Concerns have been raised with medical professionals using AI scribes to transcribe patient notes.
This follows research by the University of Otago, where researchers surveyed 197 health providers in February and March last year into their experiences using AI in their practices.
40% surveyed had used AI scribes for patient notes, with most saying they had found AI helpful.
However, concerns have been raised over the potential legal and ethical consequences of AI scribing patient notes, such as through data security and patient consent.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to the lead researcher in the study, and Professor of Bioethics at the University of Otago, Wellington — Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka, Pōneke, Angela Ballantyne, about AI scribing, and how AI should be regulated in this space.
In July last year, the government announced a one year period of lower excise rates on the Heated Tobacco Products produced by Philip Morris. Last month, the government extended that period by two years, with evaluation now set for July 2027.
This move has been seen by some as a tax break or a corporate subsidy for Philip Morris, but some have argued that it is a positive step for harm prevention through encouraging smokers to buy healthier nicotine products.
Producer Alex spoke to Emeritus Professor in Population Health at the University of Auckland Ruth Bonita about the government’s move, what it means for Philip Morris, and how this will impact the health of New Zealanders.
At the end of July, Pharmac made the decision to expand eligibility to a fully funded Meningococcal B vaccine to all children under five. This decision has been supported and welcomed by the Meningitis Foundation, who say it will benefit over seventy thousand children in New Zealand.
Now, the Foundation is calling for eligibility to be increased to a higher age limit, to account for all young people in New Zealand. Currently, younger people’s access to the funded vaccine is dependent on whether or not they fit a specific criteria, such as a first year student in halls, and the Foundation believes that young people would benefit greatly from the expanding of these criteria to cover a larger portion of the vulnerable young population.
Producer Alex spoke to Gerard Rushton, the chair of the Meningitis Foundation, about Pharmac’s decision, how meningitis affects young people, and why we should be expanding the eligibility to take care of young New Zealanders.
Welcome to the first episode of bLine, 95bFM’s new news podcast. bLine aims to bridge the gap between young people and decision makers, through youth-centred interviews focused on youth issues. The upcoming episodes will feature a range of topics affecting young people in our everyday lives, starting off with public transport.
As one of the largest public transport user groups, it’s important that young people are represented in decision making around the future of public transport developments in the city. One source of feedback that’s popped up recently is the explosion of activity around public transport on social media. In the first episode of bLine we spoke to @lethimdrive, @ifuckinghatethe394, the University of Auckland's Mohsen Mohammadzadeh, and Auckland Transport's Stacey van der Putten.
Alice speaks with director Rhiannon Hadlow and actor Molly Curnow about MOTHER IS A DAUGHTER IS A MOTHER. Playing at Basement Theatre, the new play from Brick Haus Productions interrogates the relations between art, motherhood and creation.
Today's Bosom Selecta is legendary bFM DJ Dubhead! He joins Rosetta and Milly for a kōrero about his time at 95bFM, what to expect for his iconic specialty show The Rhythm Selection (Mondays 9-11pm, replayed Tuesday 5-7am) and pick some tunes!
Selections:
Clifton Gibbs and The Selected Few - Leave Me To Cry
95bFM 
