14th October 2026 | Rural News

Agriculture teachers back ACT push to keep Year Eleven standalone subject

Safer Farms urges farmers to check their footwear

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Agriculture teachers back ACT push to keep Year Eleven standalone subject

Agriculture and horticulture teachers are backing ACT’s campaign to retain agriculture as a standalone Year Eleven subject, warning its removal could limit student pathways into one of New Zealand’s most important industries.

Horticulture and Agriculture Teachers Association president Rex Newman says it’s bloody frustrating — if the subject is out of the curriculum, schools are no longer required to offer it, removing the incentive for schools to hire specialist teachers.

ACT agriculture spokesperson Andrew Hoggard says sixty-three percent of the more than one-hundred-and-eleven-thousand students who have studied the subject over the past nine years are at urban schools — making it far more than a rural offering.

Newman says Year Eleven is a student’s first formal exposure to agriculture in the curriculum — and losing that matters.

Safer Farms urges farmers to check their footwear

afer Farms is calling on farmers to make sure everyone on the farm has safe, suitable footwear — and has launched a #BootsOfShame competition to get the message across.