If you want to develop your listening skills, try these tasks as you listen to the text. The answers are at the bottom of this page, after the Vocabulary. Thanks to Natasha Groves for preparing the tasks.
If you want to listen and read, just scroll down to the text.
1. Listening for main ideas
First, just listen to the text, taking notes if you wish. What information can you catch during this first listening?
2. Listening to practise note-taking skills
Now listen again and take notes under the two headings below. How many features of each programme can you identify?
The current programme:
The new programme:
3. Listening for details
As you listen for a third time, answer these questions.
- Why are some schools/ school principals not happy with the changes to the programme?
- What changes to funding will take place under the new programme?
- What benefits of the current programme were identified in last week’s report?
Text
The free school lunches programme has been reviewed by the government and a new menu will be introduced for term 1 2025. The new programme starts next year for students in year 7 and above, while primary school students will keep getting free school lunches as they are now until 2026. However, there are concerns about the changes, and a recent report shows that the current programme has been effective.
The new menu was announced in October. It includes meals such as butter chicken curry, lasagna, chicken pasta salad, and wraps. The government will pay $3 per child for these lunches, about $5 cheaper than the current programme, which will save it more than $130 million a year. The lunches will be prepared by a company called School Lunch Collective, based in Hamilton. They will be shipped to regional kitchens around the country, where they will be stored, heated if needed, and delivered to schools. However, some schools are not happy with this change. For example, schools on the West Coast of the South Island will no longer receive lunches from local suppliers, which means that jobs in those businesses will be lost. The schools will have to order meals in advance, but the principals are not sure how this will work or what extra work staff will need to do. Other principals in other centres are also worried, as they don’t know yet who will deliver the meals, if it will be on time, and if the quality of food will be as good.
Under the current programme, some schools make their own lunches for their students, and this will continue, but the government funding will drop from $8 to $4 per child for those schools. The extra dollar is intended to help with staff costs for preparing the lunches, but some school principals say that the reduction in funding will limit the amount and range of food that they can provide. They say there may be sandwiches rather than hot meals, which may be difficult for children from poorer homes where there are sometimes no hot meals.
Last week a report was released which found that the current programme is making a significant difference, particularly for Māori students. The report’s writers spoke to more than 700 students, teachers, family, school nurses, and staff involved in preparing school lunches in Northland, Auckland, the Bay of Plenty, and the West Coast. The report found the programme has improved wellbeing and concentration, reduced medical problems, and helped to reduce stress in families. Many schools have also promoted tikanga Māori, or Māori customs, around lunches, including saying a karakia or prayer before eating to acknowledge the food and where it has come from, and teachers and students eating together.
We will see next year if the new programme delivers the same results.
Vocabulary
lasagna – a type of Italian meal made with flat pieces of pasta, meat and/ or vegetables, and cheese
principal – the head teacher, the person in charge of a school
wellbeing – a feeling of being comfortable, healthy, and happy
acknowledge – to recognise
Answers
For section 2, read the text to find features of each programme.
Answers to section 3:
a. Why are some schools/ school principals not happy with the changes to the programme?
- Jobs will be lost in some regions (e.g. West Coast) because of centralised meal preparation.
- Schools will have to order meals in advance: uncertainty about how this will work.
- Concerns about delivery, timing, and quality.
- Reduction in funding will limit the amount and range of food they can provide.
- Possibly no hot meals: a problem for poorer children who may not get hot meals at home.
b. What changes to funding will take place under the new programme?
- Currently around $8 per student; dropping to $3 per student.
- For schools that make lunches for their own students, funding will drop from $8 to $4.
c. What benefits of the current programme were identified in last week’s report?
- has improved wellbeing and concentration
- has reduced medical problems
- has helped to reduce stress in families
- Many schools have also promoted tikanga Māori, or Māori customs, around meals and eating.