First School Journal published

In May 1907 New Zealand pupils were for the first time able to read a schoolbook published in their own country.

The quarterly School Journal was initiated by Inspector-General of Schools George Hogben as a free publication containing information on history, geography and civics. This was a cheaper option than publishing several separate textbooks.

Until 1939, when a School Publications Branch was formed, the School Journal was the Department of Education’s sole publication for children. The School Journal was published by Learning Media for the Ministry of Education from 1993 until 2013, when it moved to a private publisher, Lift Education. Believed to be the longest-running serial publication for children in the world, the Journal continues to provide seven- to 13-year-olds with reading material that is relevant to their lives. Around 750,000 copies of the School Journal are published annually in four parts.

Many of New Zealand’s foremost authors and illustrators have had their work published in the School Journal over the past century. They include Rita Angus, James K. Baxter, Alistair Campbell, Russell Clark, Jack Lasenby and E. Mervyn Taylor.