Revolution in the classroom
An independent taskforce has made its recommendations for reforming the school system. Adele Redmond examines the key points.
It could be a seismic shift in education, tearing apart the model schools have operated on for more than 30 years. School leaders are ‘‘cautiously optimistic’’ about radical reforms recommended by an independent taskforce last week, which said there was no evidence self-governance had helped schools improve equity or lift student achievement.
Its proposals are open for public consultation until April 7, when Education Minister Chris Hipkins will consider what changes to pursue.
The taskforce’s main recommendation is that New Zealand establish 20 ‘‘education hubs’’ to act as the middlemen between the government and individual schools.
The hubs would take over many of school boards of trustees’ business and governance responsibilities, leaving them to focus on student achievement, strategic planning, community engagement and local fundraising.
The idea has caused some uneasiness in the education sector, partly because it is not known exactly who or how many people would act as ministerappointed directors of these Crown entities.
But the main cause of angst has been the hubs’ potentially wide-reaching powers over property, employment, advisory services, professional development, and funding for up to 125 schools each.
‘‘The one thing I do like is the personalisation and communication to communities that we currently have; I would hate to lose that,’’ Canterbury West Coast Principals’ Association president and Burnside High School principal Phil Holstein says.
‘‘It’s another layer of administration and I’m not sure how that would look.’’
Beyond a massive restructure of school governance, the independent taskforce has made several other game-changing recommendations.
CREATING MIDDLE SCHOOLS
The review places a big question mark over the future of New Zealand’s 115 intermediate schools.
Three options for reorganising public schooling have been proposed: Having solely year 1-to-13 composite schools; a system of year 1-to-8 primaries and year 9-to-13 high schools; or establishing year 7-to-10 middle schools, with senior secondary schools from year 11 – the taskforce’s preferred model.
Intermediate school students undergo ‘‘an additional significant transition’’, changing half their peers from one year to the next during a key period of early adolescence, the report says.
Principals say intermediate schools have their advantages. A good-sized intermediate can offer a broad curriculum and make children ‘‘feel more adult’’ before starting high school, according to Richard Edmundson, principal of year 7-to-13 Linwood College in Christchurch.
Justin Fields, principal of Chisnallwood Intermediate School, also in Christchurch, says it already has the arts, science and technology resources – and the desire – to become a middle school.
‘‘The advantage of a year 7-to10 school is the focus can be on learning, rather than NCEA.’’
Auckland Primary Principals’ Association president and Target Road Primary School principal Helen Varney says the introduction of middle schools could benefit the whole school network – not just intermediate school students and teachers.
‘‘Those middle schools will grow, rather than having these massive secondary schools with 2000 students.
‘‘How amazing would it be if we can actually work within that framework for a little longer, build [students’] confidence and then have them go on to secondary school and be really successful?’’
FIVE-YEAR PRINCIPALS
The taskforce has proposed principals spend only five years at a school before they move on elsewhere.
The proposal came as a surprise to New Zealand Principals’ Federation president Whetu Cormick, principal of Bathgate Park School in Dunedin.
‘‘We would all be thinking,