Child poverty within early childhood education in Aotearoa, New Zealand

My chosen social issue is child poverty in early childhood education in New Zealand. I have
chosen this social issue as I believe that here in New Zealand there is an particularly high
percent of children that live in poverty. I believe that as a teacher I need to be aware of this
issue and be willing to make a change to provide children with quality care and skills to aid a brighter future.

Before commencing study I had little knowledge about child poverty and its effects on
children within our education system. However, over the last two years I have deepened my
knowledge and understanding to become more aware of the consequences and severity of
child poverty within Aotearoa, New Zealand.

I want to find information that explains why child poverty is a major social issue within New
Zealand. How does child poverty affect children’s learning in an early childhood setting? I
want to identify the effects of child poverty. Are these the result of the government’s actions?
Does research tell us methods through which we can alleviate child poverty? I will be interested to discover how teachers, managers, children and whānau are affected by child poverty.

Therefore, I will discuss child poverty, critically analyse government policies and ideology
that affect child poverty and examine the pedagogical implications that affect children to
fully participate in early childhood education within New Zealand.