New Zealand’s prime minister will ban cellphones in schools as one of his first moves in office.
Christopher Luxton was sworn in on Nov. 27 and has unveiled 49 executive goals he would like to accomplish in the first three months of his administration.
Luxton had proposed the cellphone ban while running for office, arguing that it could help students and overall improve education performance. He said during an interview in August that student achievement has “declined over the past three decades, jeopardising kids' future livelihoods and threatening New Zealand's future prosperity.”
“Our major problem in New Zealand is student achievement. When half our kids show up at high school not at the standard they need to be, half our 15 year olds failed the most basic maths, reading and writing test, New Zealand's out of the top 10 countries — that's what I'm fixated on,” he said. “I am here to improve academic achievement for our kids so they are set up for a much better future. Phones are a massive disturbance and distraction and we're going to take it off the table.”
In 2022, data indicated that roughly 35% of 15-year-old students struggled to read and write.
“Since the late 2000s, the performance of New Zealand students in international standardized tests measuring numeracy, literacy and science performance has steadily declined,” reports the New Zealand Herald. “These trends are worrying, given that literacy rates can be a strong predictor of the economic and career prospects of young people leaving school.”
In addition to banning cell phones in schools, Luxton plans to pass a new law directing the central bank to focus only on keeping inflation in check, to lower the permitted nicotine level of cigarettes, and to raise the minimum age to buy cigarettes annually by one year until a lifetime ban is achieved. The prime minister also plans to require schools to conduct one hour of reading, writing, and math instruction every day.
“Others plans around ethnicity, such as disbanding the Māori Health Authority, have been portrayed by Luxon’s government as measures to treat all citizens equally but have been attacked by critics as being racist against Indigenous people,” reports AP News.
An evangelical Christian who was born in Christchurch in 1970, Luxton led the country's National Party.
“We listened to the people needing interest rates to come down so they can pay their mortgages,” Luxon said during his victory speech in October, per The Guardian. “We listened to the people that need tax relief to help pay for the grocery bills.”
“Together we will make this an even better country,” he told his supporters.
His administration replaced a liberal government that had been in power for six years under former Prime Minster Jacinda Ardern, who announced her unexpected resignation in January. Luxon defeated Chris Hipkins, a former education minister, who held the office of prime minister for the last nine months.
