A rise in reports of far-right extremism in New Zealand classrooms has prompted the Post Primary Teachers’ Association to seek expert advice for its members.
The PPTA is hiring someone to develop guidelines for teachers, following reports of extremist views being expressed by some students.
The union says teachers are encountering behaviour and beliefs including homophobia, anti-Semitism, racism, misogyny and so-called “trad wife” views.
PPTA president Chris Abercrombie, a history and social studies teacher, told Checkpoint that teachers were seeing a rise in neo-Nazi symbols, neo-Nazi language, Holocaust denial, anti-Semitism and misogyny.
The union said students were engaging with harmful ideologies that undermine respectful relationships, inclusive values, learning and development.
“PPTA members believe that teachers and schools should not be left to face these challenges alone. The education sector needs tools, training and resources necessary to equip both educators and students to navigate digital culture as safely and as critically as possible,” the union said.
Abercrombie said the issue was becoming increasingly visible in classrooms.
“I’ve had students… deny the Holocaust in class when we’re talking about it. I’ve had students write essays about that kind of stuff, talk about not everyone deserves human rights, those kind of things there, and it’s increasingly becoming more and more common. I wouldn’t say it’s in every school and every student, of course, but it’s more common and we’re hearing about it more and more,” he said.
Misogyny and online radicalisation
Abercrombie said misogynistic behaviour was also a growing concern for teachers.
“Our women’s committee did a submission [about the Deepfake Digital Harm and Exploitation Bill] and it talked about young boys taking upskirt photos of students and teachers. So this is becoming a significant issue. The online fakes, all of these things fall into that online extremist behaviour,” he said.
He said students were often encountering extremist views online, where algorithms can push young people toward increasingly harmful material.
“The algorithm’s a powerful thing and it pushes these young people in certain directions. I mean, I talked about my YouTube — I often watch documentaries, I’m a history teacher, and my YouTube algorithm, when I watch documentaries about World War II, suggests some really quite unpleasant things for me to watch,” he said.
Abercrombie said teachers urgently needed help to respond.
“My concern is we’re going to see what’s happening like we see overseas. There was a recent survey of German teachers. You know, half of them had seen their students do neo-Nazi symbols in class.
“Nine percent had been physically assaulted by students espousing far-right views. You know, and 14% of teachers in Europe said they don’t want to talk about democracy because they are getting pushback from their far-right students and their parents,” he said.
Ministry still considering report
The Ministry of Education said it was still considering the union’s report on extremism and recognised teachers’ concerns about the impact of harmful online content in classrooms.
The ministry said the refreshed curriculum included tools to help students recognise misinformation and extremist content, understand its impact and make informed decisions.
It also said it supported schools through partnerships with Netsafe, Network for Learning, and Bullying-Free NZ.
For teachers, however, the message is clear: schools cannot be expected to handle rising online extremism alone.
The PPTA says educators and students need proper tools, training and resources to confront harmful ideologies and protect inclusive learning environments.
