Teaching at home a solid springboard

I was interested to read Deborah Hill Cone’s opinion about getting rid of schools. Many Aucklanders have done just that. New Zealand is one of the world leaders in accommodating families to home educate. Any kids left to interact unchecked establish a pecking order very quickly at school or elsewhere.

The most common question asked of home educators is, “What about socialisation?” I say, “That’s why we do it.” It is our goal as home educators to equip our kids to socialise appropriately with all ages and they are mentored to be inclusive, discerning and kind.

We have not done any external qualifications but our children have not struggled to get jobs. They learned work ethics doing old fashioned chores.

I have been told that some of the conditions necessary to produce genius are a warm and caring relationship with an adult, unlimited access to good ideas (books), and unhurried time to think. It is unlikely school is going to produce many of them. All are available at home. Barbara Halliday, Mangere Bridge.

Regimented kids

We wandered down to our local playground last week with some friends. As we arrived a bunch of school children approached. My 6-year-old stared in bewilderment as three classes of kids were directed to the edge of the field, told to sit down, then told to get up and run around the field twice, then exit the field in line back to their classrooms. Practice it was, for cross country.

My 13-year-old couldn’t help comparing it to a prison routine. In light of Deborah Hill Cone’s article, school is very much an institution and its attendees are not there by choice. It is a regimented and archaic system, convenient for parents, she said, who need to work for our capitalist society. Does it really produce curious, motivated learners?

Not all of us participate in that institution. In my experience, home-education has engaged our children in real-life learning and relationships while producing top scholars and grounded kids. For my dyslexic child, home-education has been a gift. No comparisons, no competition, no testing. Just learning at her pace, and in her way. There is an alternative and it’s got a lot going for it. Siobhan Porter, director, Auckland Home Educators.

Meth evictions

It seems highly ironic that a Government that makes law will now not be upholding and enforcing their own laws, once again at the cost of taxpayers who already fund those in state houses, by stating Housing NZ “will not refer illegal drug users to the police”. What message does that send to people? Do the right and lawful thing and report them. If these people in state houses have the money for drugs then evict them and give their state house to someone who may be in more need. J. Sorensen, Howick.

Landlord’s loss

Okay, let me see if I have this right. I owned a house that was tenanted, went to sell the house, house was identified with P contamination (above the Ministry of Health guideline), spent tens of thousands in remediation (no one would touch it without), lost tens of thousands on the sale. The chief government scientist now says there is absolutely no evidence supporting the MoH guideline, I have to suck up what was spent and lost because, according to the Government, the MoH — a supposedly reputable entity responsible for setting health policies and guidelines — has absolutely no culpability. Bel Lee, Herne Bay.

Obama bill

Mr Obama was here on a private speaking engagement and was paid a lot of money by ticket holders, given that celebs like him commonly command around $200,000 to attend such an event. His attendance had no benefit to this country and his $32,000 travel payment is a blatant misuse of taxpayers’ money. Please explain, Jacinda or Winston. Paul Baker, Waitakere.

Fully deserved

We have not progressed very far, have we, when your two lead letters were highly critical of Dame Catherine Healy’s award for her services to sex workers. Did the writers not get that she did not receive it for her occupation, she was rewarded for her unflinching fight to obtain recognition, protection and equality for a section of our female population hitherto derided and working illegally?

In unselfishly and courageously putting herself at the forefront of the successful battle to legalise prostitution she not only obtained rights for the workers but access to health benefits and an acceptance that at the time was unique in the world. These honours should surely be awarded to people who contribute to the welfare and advancement of New Zealanders rather than those who have mainly worked for themselves. New Zealand needs more Catherine Healys and fewer closed minds. Mark Easson, Greenhithe.

Street prostitution

I have been an enthusiast for the honours system, recognising people who have contributed to their community and made sacrifices to the betterment of others. However, as a resident of Papatoetoe and having been compelled to sell our family home well below value because of the infestation of prostitution, I am aghast at Catherine Healy receiving a Queen’s Birthday Honour.

We were victims of mayhem in our neighbourhood, dealing with defecation on our front lawns and debris on the streets in the form of needles and used contraceptives. There was no consideration for residents, families or an ordered way of life.

There are residents in Christchurch undergoing the same torture right now.

To have our Prime Minister condone this bestowal signals where this country is heading. I hope this is not the beginning start of the honours system disintegrating to the point where it is neither meaningful or an honour to be a recipient. John Lee, Papatoetoe.

Precedent

The DNZM for Catherine Healy extravagant? Surely not. It falls well short of the superb nine-metre statue of Imperia in Konstanz, Germany. It is both a tribute to the over 1500 prostitutes employed by the church to “entertain” the clergy and officials during the Council of Constance, 1614-1618, and a statement about the hypocrisy of both church and state when it comes to so called moral judgment. A. C. Cronshaw, Limoges, France.

Need for inquiries

Claire Trevett is right to point to the large number of inquiries being generated under the Labour-led Government. But she cites every explanation for this other than the most obvious one, that New Zealand has being “treading water” for nearly a decade and our institutions and structures are long overdue for a review.

The previous National Government had one big idea: rely on the the China FTA and volume growth in milk, tourists and migrants to balance the books, and then offer continuity and tax cuts for reelection. The Christchurch quake also delivered a multibillion insurance-funded stimulus. Meantime, New Zealand’s vital social infrastructure silently eroded.

Add to this a politicised and disempowered public service, the most recent example being Housing NZ and meth contamination, and we have an atmosphere of a static decade-long, steady state bereft of any inspiring and forward-looking ideas. I believe this is the real reason for the flurry of inquiries. Peter Davis, Kingsland.

Nurses pay offer

Yet again Mike Hosking’s pen moved before his brain, giving nurses the benefit of his vast experience in the health sector and writing that they should accept the 9 per cent offered and be grateful. If he asked nurses what they earn as new graduates, also the work they have to do on a daily basis, without factoring in the continuous study they must complete to maintain their level of competence, he might find that 9 per cent is a very poor cousin to what they need to even get into the shadow of Australian nurses.

I am sure if nurses, within five years of graduation, were receiving $93,000 they would line up to join the sector. But like all skilled work, compensation follows experience and hard work. Currently a “master of nursing” is the standard for nurses to maintain their career path, as well as the hard slog it takes to progress their careers. If Mr Hosking had to avail himself of nurses’ skills in hospital, would he feel confident the nurses caring for him were not overworked, underpaid, stressed and at the end of their second round of overtime trying to chase the $93,000? Your pills Mr Hosking . . . Robin Warner, Pyes Pa.