The Education Minister has conceded there's nothing to prevent two of New Zealand's first charter schools teaching creationism alongside the national curriculum.
Two of the five publicly-funded private schools, Rise Up and South Auckland Middle School, have contracts that allow a Christian focus.
The minister, Hekia Parata, said on Tuesday that none of the five schools would teach creationism alongside or instead of evolutionary theory.
But on Thursday she told the House two of the schools will offer religious education alongside the curriculum.
Ms Parata did not specify how the two would be differentiated in the classroom.
South Auckland Middle School has told Radio New Zealand it plans to teach a number of theories about the origins of life, including intelligent design and evolution.
