Parents should butt out says Education Dean

For an indication of near everything that is wrong with the education system, we need go no further than the column by Auckland Education Dean John Langley in the NZ Herald.

He is aghast that parents have a say in the education system, and are listened to. Even worse they sit on school boards. Their role it seems should be simply to applaud the decisions made of teachers who know best.

Dr Langley misses the point. The average parent has no desire to get involved with debates on what assessment system is best for their children. But when the system suffers from a lack of confidence by students, other parents and employers, then they will start to get involved. I suggest he goes and asks students who go through NCEA what they think of it. I employ a few dozen of them, and almost all of them think it is meaningless.

Dr Langley is on the NZQA Board. If he does not want parents pressuring schools to offer alternatives for NCEA, he should ensure policies change so that a all subjects sat are recorded, so that the 40% inaccuracy rate in internal assessment is lessened etc. But when the system is so obviously lacking, yes parents will challenge the professionals.