The Government is taking decisive steps to address New Zealand’s declining maths achievement rates, introducing stronger accountability measures as part of its new action plan, "Make It Count."

Education Minister Erica Stanford announced the initiative alongside the Prime Minister, emphasising the urgent need to improve maths education.

“It is unacceptable that only 22 per cent of our Year 8 students are at the expected standard for maths," Ms Stanford stated.

“We cannot allow the decline in achievement to continue. We all need to work together to turn these results around.”

The Make It Count plan consists of four components: Curriculum, Workforce, Assessment, and Accountability.

Key measures include an early introduction of a new maths curriculum from Term 1 2025, increased professional development funding for teachers, and more rigorous intervention by the Ministry of Education in underperforming schools.

“Our Government will not tolerate persistently poor achievement in schools – it is not fair to our kids and their futures,” Ms Stanford added.

“The Ministry will sharpen its approach to intervening in schools when student achievement is at risk, redirecting and targeting resources to schools with inadequate student achievement.”

Further data highlights the urgency of these reforms, with just 45 per cent of students achieving the NCEA numeracy standard this year, a 10-percentage point decline from last year.

The situation is more critical in Māori medium and Kaupapa Māori settings, where only 25 per cent of students met the standard.

The plan sets an ambitious target of 80 per cent of Year 8 students meeting or exceeding the expected maths level by December 2030.

To support this, the Teaching Council will strengthen maths training in initial teacher education from next year.

Ms Stanford concluded, “Our Government will work with the sector and ensure teachers receive the training, support, and resources they need so we can lift student achievement and close the equity gap in our education system.”

Make It Count Plan Highlights:

• Curriculum: New maths curriculum for Years 0-8, starting Term 1 2025.
• Workforce: $20 million for teacher professional development.
• Assessment: Twice yearly maths assessments in primary schools from 2025.
• Accountability: Early and frequent Ministry interventions in underperforming schools.