Taxpayer Talk: Professor Elizabeth Rata on the decline of education in New Zealand

Taxpayer Talk: Professor Elizabeth Rata on the decline of education in New Zealand

April 22, 2026 · 1h 2m

About this episode

Professor Elizabeth Rata discusses the decline of New Zealand's education system since 1971.

Why did New Zealand’s education system "turn to custard" in 1971? In this episode of Taxpayer Talk, host Peter Williams sits down with Professor Elizabeth Rata to explore how the nation moved from a world-class, knowledge-rich curriculum to one dominated by "social constructivism" and "learnification”. Elizabeth also lifts the lid on how the rejection of liberalism and nation-building has failed several generations of Kiwi children, and the challenge of turning around the "oil tanker" of mode...

People in this episode

Host: Peter Williams

Guest: Professor Elizabeth Rata

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Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: New Zealand

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