'Tomorrow's Schools': reform for NZ education

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 274, 14 February 1989, Page 10

'Tomorrow's Schools': reform for NZ education

What will happen to education in New Zealand? What effect will reform of education have on schools, parents and the community?

Our primary schools are facing a major overhaul in the way they are run. The Government is calling this reform programme "Tomorrow's Schools," which has been developed after the Picot report, released last year. This press release is from the Ministry of Education and aims to explain how "Tomorrow's Schools" will affect parents, teachers and, ultimately, students.

Misunderstandings about education reform have risen from a combination of lack of information, some active programmes of misinformation by certain groups and the education reforms coming at a time when other major changes are underway in the New Zealand economy. But the key question remains - how will Tomorrow's Schools affect you - as a parent, student or teacher? First, what is the

system all about? The broad answer is that schools will become largely self-managed instead of being controlled directly by Government. Education will be more democratic, allow for more parental and community involvement, and more importantly, will provide a better education for children. The Picot report in education provided the Government with the fundamental reform ideas for self-manage-

ment in schools. After seeking (and receiving 20,000) responses to that report, the Government decided on the programme outlined in the document Tomorrow's Schools. Concept not new The concept of selfmanagement isn't new - it has been up and running for over a decade in Canada and more re- ; cently in most states in Australia and the ! UK. It has been shown | that more parental involvement means betj ter education for children. As in other countries, the changes to New Zealand schools, which concern primary and secondary at this stage, will be felt on two levels. There will be a transfer of power to schools, with a board of trustees made up of parents elected from the community, the principal, one staff member and one student setting the general directions, policies and priorities for that particular school. At the same time, the Government will still have an active role in establishing national guidelines for education in New Zealand. The Government (through the new Ministry of Education) will therefore act as planner, guide and backstop, while the schools will control administration and set their special directions.

The boards of trustees will organise and allocate funds given to schools by the Government and calculated on the basis of a nationally determined formula. Staff salaries will be dispensed through a separate fund. There will be no competition between schools for resources and the Ministry will be takinginto account the different requirements for each school at changeover time. Aside from the lump sum, the Ministry will pay for repairs of damage caused by fire, major vandalism, flood and earthquake. Boards of Trustees will also appoint the principal and approve the appointment of ba-sic-level staff, as recommended by the principal. Limited power All this makes the board's role very important. However, its power is limited to some extent. It will have no say in professional matters such as core school curriculum or teaching methods. Core Curriculum will be laid down by the Government as part of the National Guidelines while the principal and teaching staff will be responsible for teaching methods. Parents elected onto a board should not have any doubts about

their ability to do the job or the time it will take. Dr Brian Caldwell, senior lecture in Educational studies at the University of Tasmania, who has made a thorough investigation of self-managed schools, is an expert in the field. He visited New Zealand just before Christmas to advise on our reform process. He says the basic skills required by board members can be learned in a two-day serrpnar, especially where there is a willingness to learn. "We found parents who were doubtful about their ability and responsibility gained confidence quickly, as soon as they were shown what to do," said Dr Caldwell. "Of course the learning process is continuous and it may take a number of years for everyone to acquire all the skills of self-manage-mept, but the learning process and changeover can proceed together. Training is ongoing so new board members will always have the opportunity to learn." Training will be provided for board members. That is essential to the reforms. The skills required are quite basic. Private and secondary schools have been run by boards for years and those members have not had to sit any special test before election to office. Nor have they had to buy the toilet paper, paint the buildings, do the cleaning or keep the accounts. They simply

employ agencies or individuals to do such tasks. Clear accountability As for accountability, this will be very clear. Schools and boards will be accountable to the Government through the central Review and Audit Agency. This Agency will look into what is being taught and how the School is being managed every two years, or sooner if a board requests it. Trustees will not be liable for "loss in good faith" but naturally they will be individually liable for fraud or deliberate wrongdoing. The board will also be accountable to the community through the school's charter. This document, which is the responsibility of the boards, will be produced jointly by the principal, staff and community and approved by the Minister (on recommendation of the Ministry). It will outline the purpose of the school and what it intends to achieve for the students. In other words, it will set out the school's priorities and standards to be achieved within the national guidelines. To ensure the charter is kept in focus, the board will report regularly to its community which will assess how well its objectives are being met. School staff Some teachers have expressed concern at the board's powers to hire and fire. It will be the principal who makes all the recommendations on staffing and staff will continue to be protected by their union award against any unfair practices. Principals themselves will be hired on contract which will clearly spell out the responsibilities of both parties. As with all staff appointments, the board will have to adopt equal employment opportunity guidelines to ensure ethnic or cultural groups are not disadvantaged. The Review and Audit Agency will check on this as part of its regular review. This may sound like a lot of work for the board members. However, the Ministry's Implementation Unit, which is responsible for getting the Tomorrow's Schools programme underway, considers that trustees will only have to spend one half day a month on board matters. Members will be paid fees to compensate for substantial financial disadvantage. A scale will be established to guide boards on compensation for lost income, childcare, travel and other costs.

The Government is also considering the possibility of requiring employers to give up to six days unpaid leave a year to employees who are board members. Active role As with other community work, the financial rewards are not the greatest incentive to be involved. Participation will come with the knowledge that parents who help can create a school environment in which every child's educational and cultural needs are better met. Also, children who see their parents showing an active interest in their education perform better at school than those whose parents don't. Teachers should share that degree of satisfaction because under the new system they will have more involvement in determining their resources and therefore more input in decisions which will affect their work. Teachers in similar systems overseas have found that greater involvement has led to a higher level of job satisfaction. Although the national curriculum will be fixed, optional elements which fit with the national guidelines will be determined by the school. Staff will have the opportunity to develop areas of study which interest them and which reflect special community interests. It should be stressed that the teachers will do the teaching. They'll also receive training on a continuous basis to assist with their work. Sceptical Brian Caldwell says teachers have always been the most sceptical about the concept of self-management because they've felt the community wouldn't be able to meet the requirements of managing a school. In Canada, few teachers supported the system initially, but surveys taken after a period revealed an eighty to ninety per cent acceptance, which is extremely high. Also, the general view now is that tfyey would never revert to the old centralised system. Students will be the prime beneficiaries of Tomorrow's Schools because the quality of education has been shown to improve with the type of reforms being introduced here. Fair treatment and equal opportunity for all students is the prime concern. In the foreward of Tomorrow's Schools , the Minister of Education, David lange, says the reformed administration will be sufficiently flexible and responsive Turn page 11

'Tomorrow's Schools': reform for NZ education

FrompagelO to meet the particular needs of Maori education. It is hoped that the new system will also cater for all other ethnic and cultural groups. In fact the increased flexibility and community authority should place the educational aspirations of all community groups within their control. Students resources Students should have greater access to resources because less money will be spent on bureaucratic overheads and their school and community will decide on the most appropriate resources for their particular school. Right now a team of experts is looking at the needs of all schools so that each institution will be funded according to its needs and the cost of providing for them at that location. Given the differences which now exist between

schools, it will take time for all schools to receive fair treatment, but it will happen simply because communities will insist that it does. For students with special needs, extra services will be available. A Special Education Service will offer psychologists, speechlanguage therapists, advisers for the education of the handicapped, deaf and visually impaired students. General advisers will be attached to teacher's colleges. Both the Special Education Service and the Teachers Colleges will be contracted by the Ministry to provide these services. Parents who want to withdraw their children from existing schools and start their own will be able to do so, provided they have at least 21 students and can develop a charter which meets the Ministry's approval. The

new institution will be funded in the same way as all the others. Realistically, this step is acknowledged to be a last resort. Safety net It is also worth noting that if schools feel unable to manage their own affairs during the first two years, the Ministry will do so for them if requested under the safety-net provision. For those who believe the changes are taking place too quickly, it should be realised that New Zealand is not conducting some sort of international experiment in education. While some features are unique to New Zealand, the general system of reform is well tried and bound to work. Every day longer we wait is another day during which we expose our children to the inequalities of the existing system. Dr Caldwell also noted in his visit here that the tradition of a high level of community involvement in New Zealand will stand us in good stead with self-management schooling. He was also extremely impressed with the strategies for change which he said have been carefully planned and well exe-

cuted so far. No doubt debate on the perceived merits and demerits of Tomorrow's Schools will continue long after implementation date of October 1. But overseas experience shows that schools which

demonstrated a willingness and flexibility to change, achieved their goals with speed and efficiency to the direct benefit of students and the community. Throughout this process there is a total

commitment by Government to keep the community informed of the reforms. In the end, though, it will be the involvement by the community that will determine the ultimate success of these reforms. New Zealanders

will have the opportunity to determine the future of education and their children through the reforms. That is a great leap forward in any democratic society and, arguably one that is long overdue in New Zealand.