The Inversion of NZ Education
Beware of teachers who tell your children WHAT to think instead of teaching them HOW to think
Last week secondary school teacher’s union PPTA’s President Chris Abercrombie launched into the media stating his concern about students accessing social media ‘misinformation’ has led the union to plan on developing guidelines for teachers to help them deal with students who have ‘wrong think’ (my words, not theirs).
Education as a mechanism for social change and censorship
This article was published by The Press on June 26.
Accusatory language being used to describe students who have a view that’s different to their teachers’. Described as ‘extreme far-right’. Not only are the cohort of teachers quoted displaying alarm at students who have different points or view, they are calling those differences extreme. But are they really? And are political views in students the REAL reason kids are misbehaving?
Who let teachers unions and schools be our censorship agency? What they call ‘misinformation’ is literally… information people independently seek, outside of their ‘single source of truth’ government/media/education apparatus. They appear to be getting very concerned about students who think outside of their box.
Here is the full article:
Extreme examples are used to illustrate their point. The problem is, when political ideology has become such a big part of the education system that it promotes toxic feminism and anti-maleness, kids are going to push back. Does resistance to a far-left ideology deserve the term ‘far-right extremism’? Let’s unpack the descriptors used in this story…
Manosphere
The UN Women (no surprises) definition of manosphere is “a loose network of communities that claim to address men’s struggles – dating, fitness or fatherhood, for example – but often promote harmful advice and attitudes.”
In short, it appears to be a hit on men who behave as, well, men. It’s a hit on boys being boys, on the masculine, and a hit on husbands. Birthed out of the feminist movement because men being men are exactly what hard-core feminists can’t abide.
I’ve never been a feminist. Some assume I am because I am a woman who has a voice. But a woman with a voices does not necessarily = feminism. In my case it certainly doesn’t. My son even called me a feminist once, because I disagreed with him about something. I corrected him then, and I’ll correct people now. I’m a woman with something to say. That’s not the same thing as being a feminist. Perhaps listen to what I am saying before casting that name on me.
What the world needs more than ever is men who know how to be men. Men who can embody their masculine and teach our boys how to be good men. In a society with good men, our women are protected, not vulnerable.
'Trad-wife’ culture
AUT says trad wives are “women who choose to take up traditional gendered roles within the home, centred around serving their husband and children. This version of wifehood is underpinned by a deference to one’s husband. Because of this, tradwives tend to be financially dependent on their husbands and many also give over decision-making rights to their husbands. In essence, the tradwife lifestyle rejects the past seven decades of feminism.”
In short, it’s a hit on women who stay home, raise children, and God-forbid, wives who love and honour their husbands. It seems that radfems (radical feminists) are threatened by women who aren’t feminists. They are threatened by women like me. Who, no matter how much we might acknowledge that men in our lives have perhaps failed us (because women like me will also admit our failures)… we will still say that we love, value and appreciate men.
I am a mother to sons. More than ever we need good men to role model how to become a good man. Our boys need to witness them. And so do our girls. How on earth can it be seen when the pseudo-cultures of ‘manosphere’ and ‘trad wife’ is allowed to thrive?
Homophobia
First, what is a phobia? It is “…an exaggerated usually inexplicable and illogical fear of a particular object, class of objects, or situation” - Merriam Webster Dictionary
What is homophobia? “Discrimination against, aversion to, or fear of homosexuality (sexual or romantic attraction to others of one's same sex) or gay people.” - Merriam Webster Dictionary
I haven’t met anyone who has an “exaggerated fear” of homosexuals. It’s simply not a thing. So why do we hear it used, again and again. Because in order to shut down dialogue they first have to silence the opposition. Call us names. Shame us. Make us feel guilty, mean, uncertain.
Who were the main critics of the homosexual lifestyle? Christians. Why? Because it’s in the Bible. Even so, very very few people raise an eyebrow now if someone says they are homosexual. Like with the ‘trans’ narrative, it is THEY who are saying we’re all so mean to them. It’s not the actual truth. The same-sex attracted people I know, do not want to be associated with this oppressed/oppressor whinge session.
So far, we’ve read that ‘manosphere’ is anti-husband, ‘trad-wife’ is anti-wife, and ‘homophobia’ is anti-biblical principles. They are trying to kill conservativism, and when conservatives push back, the liberal left scream like banshees. Educators, media, politicians, activists. THIS IS WHAT WE ARE WITNESSING.
I never considered myself particularly ‘conservative’. But the more the liberal left show themselves, the more I understand that a society bereft of conservative values and biblical principles - the worse it becomes. Bar none.
Transphobia
Refer to the definition of a ‘phobia’ above. Now it’s been attached to ‘trans’. So what is ‘trans’? The UN (again) defines ‘trans’ as “Being trans or transgender describes people with a gender identity that does not align with the sex they were assigned at birth.”
BUT: ‘Trans’, and ‘transgender’ do not appear in any NZ law or statue. Nor do these descriptors appear in any international law or treaty that NZ is bound by. The term ‘gender identity’ is the umbrella phrase ‘trans-identified’ people use. Which is exactly why it’s such a concerning phrase. It’s their trojan horse. Which is why I keep banging on about their definition of ‘gender identity’.
Trans people say they need special protections and categories. They don’t. They have the same protections as men and women do. Why? Because - they are either men or women. There is no third category and all people (even ‘trans-identifying people’) are either men or women. It’s not ‘phobic’ to say this. I don’t have a ‘phobia’ of them. And they simply don’t actually exist in law.
The media propagates the message
In the days following The Posts’ article on the PPTA panicking over the ‘far-right extremist’ students, the NZ Herald and RNZ (and likely others) dutifully picked up and propagated the message. It has a chilling, shaming and social engineering impact on our nation and the kickback then amplifies the noisiest of both camps - further dividing us.
Yes, children are becoming unmanageable in school. Yes, it’s a massive problem. But from the many people I speak to… ‘manosphere’ and ‘trad wife’ thoughts aren’t the cause of the issue. Far from it. What we need is an honest inquiry into why our students are behaving worse, and the current strategies to help this, that appear to not be helping at all. I hear reports of teachers being threatened and disrespected throughout NZ… and it’s generally not ‘far right extremist’ students leading the charge.
Antisemitism and Anti-maori racism
Two important inclusions in the PPTA’s list of ‘far right extremism’ - but I won’t dive into in this article, I’ll save these for another day.
I highly recommend this deep dive by Rick the Anglo Saxon about this story, where you’ll see the claims by PPTA Union President Chris Abercrombie are not based on facts.
‘Trump Boys’ and ‘student extremism’
Remember when Paul Stevens, head of the Art Department at Rangitoto College and PPTA Auckland regional chairperson, got media attention for this…
Stevens “presented a report on rising online extremism in classrooms at the PPTA’s annual conference in Christchurch. Secondary school teachers in New Zealand are witnessing an alarming rise in extremism among students, with young men particularly susceptible to misogynistic ideologies promoted by figures like Andrew Tate. Whether it’s young students strutting around as the “Trump boys”, or submitting social science assignments with ‘trad-wife’ (traditional wife) ideologies, secondary school teacher Paul Stevens said the issue has reached “a tipping point” in the past two years.” - says The Press.
It’s the same playbook as the story with Abercrombie. A continuation of the same narrative. Stevens takes an extreme public figure, Tate, and attaches students who aren’t left-wing liberals to it, calling them Trump Boys. hoping that the smear sticks, because we’ve had over a decade of anti-Trump rhetoric.
How this inversion looks in the classroom
I received this troubling school activity…
This is in a NZ high school Social Studies activity. Students were asked to interpret the cartoons. US President Donald Trump is here depicted as a member of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). The KKK is an American white supremacist hate group known for its history of violence and intimidation against minority groups, particularly African Americans. - source Wikipedia
And the White House, is depicted as the head of the KKK with a white triangle over it.
The irony is, the far-left liberal US Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) was recently found to have been funding the KKK. SPLC had put conservative group Turning Point on their ‘hate group’ watch.
“The SPLC has been accused of funneling millions of dollars into the very extremist hate groups that it purports to combat. Yes, the self-proclaimed “catalyst for racial justice” that aims to “dismantle white supremacy” was charged with directly putting money into the pockets of groups like the Ku Klux Klan.” - Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF)
International influence on NZ education sector
The World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Risks Report 2025 lists ‘misinformation and disinformation’ as its fourth most worrisome threat. The WEF (not the people) are concerned about freedom of speech and expression via social media. This is why we are seeing a rush on social media age verification laws. And why liberal teachers are imposing their political opinions on our children as if it is fact. They don’t want our children to see beyond their ideology. (I guess most teachers would have no idea where their extreme views are coming from - they think they are having their own thoughts…).
Are educators building a wedge between parents and children?
Consider this scenario… you send your daughter to school and expect her to listen to the teacher, follow the school rules. She attends a class where the teacher presents, for example, climate alarmism or anti-Trump rhetoric.
Your daughter comes home and repeats what she has learnt in class. You question or disagree with her - perhaps you don’t believe in climate alarmism, or have a different viewpoint on geopolitics.
What happens? She will likely argue with you, because it conflicts with what she just learnt. This causes tension at home. Look at this through your daughter's eyes. Who should she believe? Their teacher or you? Does she see mum and dad as her most primary educator, or does she see you as a provider of food, shelter and taxi service, and her teacher as the expert? It can get even worse when mum and dad have conflicting ideas about these topics. Who does your daughter ‘side’ with? Invariably with the majority (teacher plus one parent).
This contributes to tension in the home. Whether you’re liberal or conservative… or don’t class yourself as either, should education include contested political ideology? Or should education focus on the main pillars of education? Do we even know what they are anymore?
For further reading on the philosophy of education, and it’s concerning absence in our education system, I recommend reading this post by Elisabeth Cave…
What can you do?
At Let Kids Be Kids we hear from families about a range of issues stemming from education sector pressures. The disparity between classroom teaching and what is being discussed at home is, for many, widening. We see the education sector’s response. What strategies will help you? We don’t have all the answers but we encourage you to ask the questions. Some tips:
Tune in to your children. Prioritise spending time with your sons and daughters and grandchildren - this gives them a break from the pressures of the world, and it helps you tune in to what’s going on in their world.
Ask to see their school work.
If you see anything that concerns you, get in touch with the teacher and ask questions.
Watch the patterns in the media relating to education. Keep your antennae up. Keep engaging critical thinking.
Share this article, talk to your friends, be courageous. If you don’t have let-liberal views, you need to find your voice, now.
Do you want to share your story? Please contact us.
Read my previous post
Penny Marie
Penny Marie is an independent researcher and investigative reporter, and the Founder of Let Kids Be Kids NZ.
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Re increasing bad behaviour in schools, one boys school has stopped their students drinking energy drinks during school hours and advised them to stop totally, explained their reasons to the boys. They have noticed an improvement in their students behaviour, and the boys are on board with it.
In the Press article I note the girls were removed from the class, why not the agitator. The teacher left him there and ,of course, in the fullness of time he physically assaulted a girl.
The training needed is for the teacher.