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ASHBURTON GUARDIAN, Wednesday, March 13, 2013
NEWS
ANNOUNCEMENTS DEATHS
MAW, Andrew Christian James – On March 10, 2013, at home after a short illness, surrounded by his loving family. Much loved husband and soulmate of Charlotte Westwood, devoted and loving dad of Bridget and Kate, dearly loved son of Mary and the late Harry Maw. Much loved brother and brother-in-law of Joanna; Julia and Jeremy, aged 49 years. “An amazing man taken from us far too soon but will remain in our hearts forever.” Communications c/2 Balcairn Street, Halswell 8025. In lieu of flowers memorial donations for Andrew may be made to The Nurse Maude Hospice and may be left at the Church. The Celebration of Andrew's life will be held at the Lincoln Baptist Church, 530 Birchs Road, Lincoln on THURSDAY at 1pm followed by private internment at Prebbleton Cemetery. Andrew requested a colourful dress code please. In the care of Heritage Funeral Services FDANZ O’CONNELL, Anthony Michael (Tony) – On March 9, 2013. Dearly loved son of the late Kieran and Mary O’Connell, and loved brother and brother-inlaw of Kath Fitzgerald, Sister Maria, John and Teresa O’Connell, Dick and Robbie O’Connell, Rosie O’Brien, Clare and Barry Watts, Kerry and Carol O’Connell, and Vince and Marina O’Connell. Please note all late death notices or notices sent outside ordinary office hours must be emailed to: deathnotices@theguardian.co.nz
to ensure publication. During office hours notices may also be sent to: classifieds@theguardian.co.nz
Any queries please contact 0800 ASHBURTON (0800-274-287).
IN MEMORIAM UNDERWOOD, Elaine (1991) MATTINGLEY, Alan (2001) – Gone from our sight, but never from our hearts. Although it’s hard that you’re both gone, one thing is very clear, there’s a certain thing that I often do, which always brings you near, my memories are like autumn leaves blowing in the breeze and I just let them float around me, whenever it may please. Loved and missed for ever more, your big sis, Shirl.
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INthanks MEMORIAM I would like to thank all my friends who sent me beautiful get well card and flowers. And for many visits during my long stay in Kew and Ashburton hospitals. Shirley Bebbington.
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Maths: ‘Schools need to adapt’ been labelled confusing and timeconsuming by critics, and is being blamed for the drop in achievement. One international study in 2011 found that half of New Zealand’s 9-year-olds could not add 218 and 191 with Education Minister Hekia Parata calling it “extremely concerning”. But Mid Canterbury Principals’ Association president Neil Simons believes critics should not take aim at the methods used, instead it was up to individual schools to exercise their powers to make the methods work. “The biggest problem is that peo-
By Myles Hume Mid Canterbury principals have defended the way they teach numeracy, saying schools need to adapt to give their pupils the best chance at succeeding. Schools throughout New Zealand have taken on the Numeracy Development Project which was introduced in 2001 in reaction to the low achievement of Kiwi schoolchildren in maths in the 1990s. The resource, which can teach pupils up to four different ways to solve one question efficiently, has
ple have got confused, saying that they (children) can’t work it out the written way, I don’t believe some schools are implementing it fully,” Mr Simons said. Allenton School principal Graham Smith said the project enabled pupils to fully understand the “conceptual” elements of numeracy, instead of using the old column style to just reach an answer. The latest ministry figures show the number of Year 8 (12 years old) children who could answer a series of simple multiplication questions correctly within four seconds dropped from 47 per cent in 2001 to
37 per cent in 2009. To add to the concerning statistics, the Education Review Office (ERO) recently found half of the 240 schools they visited had not made the required changes to the Numeracy Development Project to suit their pupils. That’s something that Tinwald School principal Peter Livingstone finds hard to believe. After realising how time consuming the method had become, Mr Livingstone met with staff to investigate how they could streamline the project. “At our school maths was the sec-
ond strongest in national standards, we have voiced concern over what changes needed to be made, you can’t follow it ad hoc,” he said. Mount Hutt College saw the direct result of pupils coming out of the Numeracy Development Project. Principal John Schreurs said it was not numeracy the college was worried about, saying the time spent on numbers was impacting on other aspects of maths like geometry. With some critics calling for a resurgence in basic teaching methods, Mr Schreurs said it would be a “knee-jerk reaction” that would need more investigating.
Methven finally gets another dentist By Sam Morton Howard Lee is filling the gap in Methven. The former Kalgoorlie dentist arrived in Mid Canterbury last week, following months of planning, departing his previous practice. Dr Lee, who was born in South Korea, has practised in several North Island dental centres and has spent the previous four years in Western Australia, catering largely for the mining community. However, Dr Lee’s 10-year love for skiing has enticed him to Methven, and he is looking forward to a quieter, more relaxed lifestyle living in the district. “I can’t wait to get out on the slopes and enjoy the winter, but that will probably be closer to next year, because I will be doing some long days here in Methven for the first year. “The demand is definitely there and I want to be able to help service the community, they don’t need to wait any longer,” Dr Lee said. Dr Lee and his business Dental Care Canterbury, will operate out of the Methven Medical Centre. Methven hasn’t had a dentist for five years and the district demand, especially on the Ashburton dentists has been rapidly growing. Dr Lee is confident his services will help ease pressure all round, but he is encouraging people to make their own decisions when it comes to changing dentists. “There may be quite a few people who have been travelling in to see their dentist in Ashburton and that’s absolutely fine to keep it that way ... that’s their choice. “I’m saying that I’m here and available if people need to see a dentist, regardless of where they have travelled from to see me. I am looking forward to getting to know the local community,” Dr Lee said. In the next week or so, Dr Lee will be busy converting an empty room at the medical centre into a wellequipped dental clinic. He will be providing all routine dentistry and
Legal action against the country’s major banks is out of the question for many Ashburton locals, but some say it is about time the banks stopped ripping off their customers. Auckland barrister Andrew Hooker, backed by Australian law firm Slater & Gordon and Australian litigation funders Litigation Lending Services, announced plans to take class legal action against the main banks to claim back “excessive” default fees charged over the last six years. Mr Hooker said up to a million Kiwis could be eligible to join in the action which close to 10,000 people had registered online to join the lawsuit against BNZ, ASB, ANZ, Westpac and Kiwibank. Although some Mid Cantabrians claim they have been financially hampered by bank fees in recent years, they say they will not be joining legal action against the banks. “It doesn’t affect me too much so I don’t know if I’ll be joining ... I think sometimes people forget they are there to make money too but not that I have pity for them,” cafe worker Carolyn Handley said. “People need to be aware of
• Two arrests • The Ashburton Police arrested a 17-year -old Ashburton man on charges of burglary and intentional damage on Monday night. The teenager will appear in the Ashburton District Court on Monday. • A 23-year-old Ashburton man was arrested for breaching bail yesterday.
• False alarm The Ashburton Volunteer Fire Brigade was called to an incident on Collins Street in Netherby yesterday, following reports of smoke coming from a window. The call-out proved to be a false alarm, about 12.30pm.
A report that somebody had been shot in Gisborne yesterday afternoon was a hoax. Several armed officers and ambulances responded to a call about 1.10pm that someone had been shot in Munro St in Gisborne. “Someone called the ambulance to say someone was injured through a gunshot wound,” said Inspector Marty Parker. The street was cordoned off but nothing was found. -APNZ
• Parole denied The mother of tortured Rotorua three-year-old Nia Glassie has been denied parole. Lisa Michelle Kuka, 38, started her a nineyear sentence for the manslaughter of her daughter on February 4, 2009. Kuka’s then partner, Wiremu Curtis, 19, and his brother Michael, 22, were sentenced to life imprisonment for the little girl’s murder. The Parole Board yesterday said Kuka remained an undue risk. - APNZ
Photo Sam Morton 110313-SM-065
New dentist: Former Australian dentist Howard Lee has made the move to Methven to fill an empty gap and follow his love for skiing. carrying out limited surgery. With the risk of reigniting the fluoride debate, Dr Lee commented on the proactive attitude Methven has shown in retaining low levels of fluoride in their water system. He believes this will have long-
what is going to affect them. We have the power, so we need to make sure we know our rights and how they are going to impact on us.” Jan Hart believed banks already made “plenty” of profit, so the lawsuit was justified. In fact, New Zealand banks made record profits last year and over the past six financial years have had a combined net profit of $16.4 billion. Mr Hooker said the banks had been illegally overcharging Kiwis for many years on transactions for overdrawn accounts, late credit card payments and bounced cheques. He claims the banks have breached contract law by charging a fee that is higher than what it costs them when the payment defaults. Many small businesses are expected to sign up to the class legal action, charged for shuffling money around to make ends meet. Cynthia Downes owns The Bag Shop on West Street. Even though she had not been affected by bank fees, she said it would be hard on small business. “I do agree, I think the fees are a high cost, and smaller businesses could be terribly affected,” she said. The class-action lawsuit
term benefits. “I find it strange Ashburton doesn’t do the same, because it has proven benefits and little risk. “As a dentist and as a person, I will always support low concentrated levels of fluoride, but there is a
danger of over-tipping the balance ... it’s about getting that just right,” Dr Lee said. “I think the oral health of Methven residents, particularly children, will be generally good, due to the fact fluoride has been present for so
many years – but I’m looking forward to getting to know my new home.” Dr Lee will open on April 2 and all appointments should be made through the Methven Medical Centre.
WHAT YOU THINK
The Guardian hit the street to find out if locals will be signing up in a bid to take the banks to court.
Terry Hart
Carolyn Handley
Wayne Jones
Hamish Paterson
“We aren’t affected so we won’t be taking legal action ... but I think there should be more competition with banks to create a better and more competitive environment.”
“No I won’t be taking legal action because I am not being charged a lot of fees. When people take on banks they tend to lose but I think it’s good because banks have been exposed.”
“Bank fees do tend to annoy me from time to time but I’m not in the position at the moment (to take legal action). I’m convinced they do make enough money from fees.”
“I would have to read into it before I said anything but I guess the fees are a necessary evil, it’s like paying a service for anything and maybe people need to understand that.”
has been met with criticism by Massy University banking expert David Tripe, saying the claimable amount appears to have been overblown. “The figures are a bit of guess-
Harpist in concert Ashburton music lovers will have an opportunity to hear international harpist Robin Ward in concert on Friday. The ex-New Zealander will perform at St David’s Church on Friday as part of his national tour. Playing his own hand-crafted triple harp, Mr Ward will present a programme that contains a variet of music styles, with a combination of his own transcriptions and
Incidents attended to by the Ashburton Police and Mid Canterbury volunteer fire brigades recently. Check out guardianonline.co.nz, for up-to-the-minute updates on every fire callout in the district during the week.
• Shooting hoax
Little local interest in taking banks to court By Myles Hume and APNZ
111 diary
music originally written for the instrument. Mr Ward is currently residing in the United Kingdom, where he has been touring extensively. In 2009 he released his first solo CD; No Pedals Attached, and is currently working on his second. The concert will be held at St David’s at 7.30pm on Friday. For tickets and enquiries please contact the church office on 308-5174.
CRUMB
work. I would be surprised if there was a billion dollars that was claimable.” He said when banks charged exception fees it wasn’t just to cover the cost of the transaction
• Injured in fall A 79-year-old was airlifted to Nelson Hospital with hip injuries after a fall early yesterday morning at Anchorage in Abel Tasman National Park. The Wairarapa man woke during the night and fell while leaving his cabin. -APNZ
Primary teachers hold pay meeting Some Mid Canterbury primary schools will be closing early tomorrow afternoon as teachers meet to discuss collective agreement negotiations. Mid Canterbury teachers will be among 27,000 who are covered by the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) union, who will be meeting to discuss offers from the Ministry of Education as well as wider issues that surround pay negotiations. Teachers’ contracts finished in August last year and negotiations have stalled, but tomorrow’s meeting will be a step closer to sorting pay negotiations. NZEI will be holding meetings throughout the country from March 12-22.
but also to cover the increased risk of the money going out and warned if there were no fees there would be little incentive for people to manage their accounts well. by David Fletcher
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