Funding Cuts To Adult Education

Our flash new government has recently made an 80% funding cut to adult education spending. This is likely to have a major effect on the future of many adult education classes and on the jobs of around 15,000 tutors across the country.

The cuts start in 2010 and will see funding of $152 million over four years limited to $19.4m in the first half of 2010, $40.4m in 2010-2011, $44.7m in 2011-2012 and $48.4m in 2012-2013.

In rather arrogant and snobbish attitude, both Bill English (Finance Minister) and John Key (Prime Minister) have denigrated the adult classes, (many of which take place in local high schools thereby utilising those buildings in the evenings and probably paying the school a bit of rent too) saying that teaching useless subjects to old people is not a good use of our taxpayer money.

Which is somewhat ironic when, according to Labour MP Maryan Street, Bill English has spent years while in opposition, extolling the virtues of adult education. Maryan Street is spearheading a nationwide petition calling on the Government to reverse funding cuts to Adult Community Education (ACE) programmes.

Speaking while launching the petition, Maryan Street also commented that Education Minister Anne Tolley's responses to concerns about the cuts were "distressingly facile" and sought to ridicule all kinds of courses which are run in our communities.

Ms Tolley had stated that she was reprioritising funding from courses like "twilight golf, pet homeopathy and Moroccan cooking" to numeracy and literacy courses.

Waimea College Principal Larry Ching said he found Ms Tolley's comments insulting, "not just as a principal but for as a person who for many years has attended adult education classes. These courses affect ordinary Kiwi people and they build resilience in our communities." Mr Ching also said it was hard to justify for the government to justify the spending of $35m in funding to Private Education when ACE funding was being cut.

According to a 2008 report, more than 400,000 adults enrolled annually in courses including literacy, numeracy, foreign languages and computer training. "And giving people the chance to upskill is particularly vital during a recession," Ms Street said. "Community based education employs thousands of full and part time tutors and has an estimated economic benefit of between $4.8 billion and $6.3b annually."

And here's the thing. One of the "classes" affected will be our own Tai Chi class here in Oxford, which is run from our Community Office. There is a wide age range attending and quite a few are elderly and retired people on fixed incomes who may quite simply no be able to afford a higher fee so they may wind up simply staying home. They can all read and write quite well already, thank you very much Ms Tolley and Messrs English and Key.

Tai Chi helps people of all ages and abilities. It keeps people (especially important for older or disabled people) fit, active and mobile.

The petition will be circulated throughout our country until the 30th September, which said Ms Street, would give the Government time to rethink its decision. If you are a Kiwi and the petition turns up somewhere near you, please sign it.