Will’s Word: Pacific literacy rates rise but gaps remain stubborn

I'll give credit where credit is due: the announcement from Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Education Minister Erica Standford yesterday was largely a positive one.

We've finally seen real data on this new structured literacy approach, and on the face of it, it looks a wee bit promising. The number of students reading at or above expectations has jumped from 36 per cent to 58 per cent in just two terms.

For Pacific students, the percentage increased from 27 per cent to 43 per cent. I take my hat off, that is a big improvement in a short amount of time. But, and there's always a but, the question is: does it actually paint the full picture?

Because even with that jump, more than half of our Pacific kids are still falling below expectations. So yes, the numbers are heading in the right direction, but the gaps persist.

The Government's calling this a success story, and maybe it is, but it's also a snapshot. Twenty weeks of data doesn't really tell you whether the change will stick.

We don't know yet if those gains will last, or if some schools are simply better resourced to make it work than others. And while Luxon says it proves the system's on track, I suppose the real test is still ahead.

Can it lift every school, particularly those in low socioeconomic areas? Not just the ones that already have the tools and teachers to deliver.

It's good news, genuinely, but if we're serious about shifting the dial for our Pacific youth, I'm eager to see this progress sustained, resourced and equitable.

That's Will's Word.

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