Presentations to the Education and Workforce Committee about Charter Schools

I made a short presentation yesterday and said the things you would expect from someone who researches the NZ system intently and has successful designed and provided models/curriculum to counter the mode of the schools that are failing.

Peter Boshier (Ombudsman) made a fair point that, as the Charter Schools will receive most of their funding from the taxpayer then they should be subject to OIA. I have always held the view that even when not legally required the Charter Schools should be fully transparent.

The rest of the anti-presentations were pretty much all appalling parroting of the NZEI and PPTA talking points.

1. The Charter Schools can have “unqualified teachers”. This was stated with bland illustrations like – I would not like to fly in plane with an untrained pilot, I would not like butt implants from a dodgy surgeon, I would not like a beer poured by someone who hasn’t done a block course, etc.

Charter Schools are allowed to employ people with skill sets and experiences not readily available and … don’t tell the unions but so are State schools and there are – at last count – 1,832 of these interlopers on a Limited Authority to Teach in State schools around the nation.

2. Charter Schools are not accountable. State schools are visited by the Education review Office approx. every three years. They hate incisive data about them being researched and published (I know as I do the researching and publishing). They are not required to set achievement goals. They refuse to have their attendance data published by school name.

Charter Schools will publish attendance by school, have academic and other goals set and report quarterly to the Minister and publicly.

3. Charter Schools are not needed as we already have a range of choices in New Zealand and/or these schools could always begin as Designated Character Schools. That the unions expose this is not only and attempt to delude the public but it anathema to their stated aim of standing with the poor and down trodden or with Maori and Pasifika.

Choice in New Zealand schooling is, currently, the realm of the wealthy. The top 30 schools in NZ for leavers qualifications are made up of: 22 Private Schools, 1 Designated Character School, 6 Integrated Schools, 1 State School. 22 of these schools are in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch or Dunedin. In the bottom 30 schools: Ten of these are geographically isolated and are schools that struggle to fully resource with well qualified staff. Others are schools in small provincial towns or schools in the poorer parts of cities. In many of these areas there is simply no other choice for those that stay and try and make their way there. Wealthy families in rural areas often send their children to boarding school or drive incredible distances twice a day.

4. That $153m (over 4 years) being spent on Charters would solve all problems in State Schools by providing 0.3 of a teacher aid per school.

Not much I can even say here as this assertion is so very stupid – and also the worst kind of false dichotomy. Why has no one tried to say that the $70 million spent on maintenance in two years on the PMs plane could get schools closer to having a whole teacher aid each?

5. Apparently profit is appalling.

This of course ignores architects, builders, product providers, micro-soft, etc ad nauseum who make oodles of money from education. It should also be noted – the funding for Charter Schooling is equal to comparable State schools and any providers who think that can make substantial profits can also squeeze blood from a stone.

6. There is no evidence of success.

This is actually humorous. Especially as – in NZ – we have MASSIVE evidence of State School failure.

There are many thousand examples of successful Charter Schools worldwide and the hordes of people trying to get their children into them in many cities get ignored by the unions as parents simply do not know best according to any unionist. To a unionist the State always knows best – except during pay negotiations.

In terms of two schools established last time based on my model – here is what an independent review stated:

[B]oth schools, the management and staff are actively involved in continuous development, and the delivery, of a unique programme of teaching and learning which is based on a comprehensive ‘local’ curriculum that is aligned with the New Zealand Curriculum, and which provides for the personalised needs of priority learners ‘many of whom have been failed by the current education system.

The one aspect the unions have stopped lying about is one they spouted in the last rounds – “that NZ has a world class education system.”

Time for change for the students who are stuck in failing schools or not even enrolled (10,000) – let alone attending. The charter schools will show how to do it.

Update: Paul Steven – Rangitoto College Art Teacher and PPTA Exec – just went full retard (see Tropic Thunder) and called Charter Schools apocalyptic. He clearly thinks that NZ having Charter Schools will cause the end of the world and Jesus to return.

Alwyn Poole
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