Education minister bans Māori words from future kids books

Education Minister Erica Stanford has been accused of overstepping the mark by excluding most Māori words from future books in a series for five year olds. An Education Ministry document shows Stanford made the decision in October last year because she was worried Māori words, apart from characters' names, would confuse learner readers using the ministry's Ready to Read Phonics Plus series. Schools did not know about the edict until RNZ broke the news today. Education correspondent John Gerritsen reports.