The Education Minister says he is a little disappointed by an advertisement by a group of secondary school principals criticising his NCEA review.
37 principals signed an open letter in two Sunday papers raising concern that the review process is flawed and rushed.
READ MORE: NCEA review under fire
Chris Hipkins says he was a bit surprised by the ad because they are just at the beginning of a four-month consultation process.
"I don't think you can fail someone when they haven't done the assessment yet," he says.
"So, we've started the study but we haven't actually completed the assessment. I think they might be putting the cart before the horse a bit."
Hipkins says this is not a pre-determined review, and they want to hear everyone's views.
He says principals' views are important, and they'll have ample opportunity to be fully engaged in the review.
The advertisement claims that there has been a lack of consultation and that the timeframe is too short.
Four months have been allocated for consultation, which Hipkins argues is sufficient.
However, he says if at the end of the period it becomes clear that not everyone has been able to have their say, they will look at it further.
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