Dowie calls education meeting
Invercargill MP Sarah Dowie says the formation of education hubs could mean the power school boards have over the governance of Southland schools would go to Christchurch and Dunedin.
But Education Minister Chris Hipkins said Dowie was getting ahead of herself, and she should ‘‘stop scaremongering’’.
Dowie will host National education spokeswoman Nikki Kaye at a public meeting in Invercargill on Friday to discuss the Government’s education review.
The Government is consulting on recommendations made by the Tomorrow’s Schools Review Independent Taskforce, which was appointed by the minister to carry out a review of the compulsory schooling sector.
One recommendation was to establish education hubs, which would take over most of the powers held by school boards of trustees. About 20 hubs would be established throughout the country, each responsible for around 125 schools.
Appointed by the minister, the hubs would be independent but monitored by the Ministry of Education. School boards would keep responsibility for things like student achievement and community engagement.
Boards would probably have a veto or final approval rights over principals, who would be appointed by their hub on a five-year contract, and could ask for control over some or all of their property funding.
Dowie said a one-size-fits-all approach of 20 hubs across the whole country did not recognise the different interests communities in New Zealand have.
‘‘While there is no detail on where the hub locations would be ... it’s pretty clear some large parts of the country will be left with a hub some distance to certain communities. The needs of an isolated island like Stewart Island are very different to even Invercargill.
‘‘I believe strongly that Southland parents and teachers are best placed to assess and deliver the education needs of our students. There may be some things in the review that could benefit Invercargill and wider . . . But the shift
towards centralisation of schools across the board erodes our autonomy, stifles innovation in the classroom and would disempower community in our schools.’’
‘‘She might think the way all schools are currently managed and run are perfect but many parents and schools do not and are up for the discussion,’’ Hipkins said.
He said the review of Tomorrow’s Schools was being undertaken by an independent task force that was travelling the country to get the views of parents and the wider school community.
‘‘Only after this consultation ends will the Government consider how to respond.’’
The NZEI said it was seeking feedback from its members about the workability of the proposals, including the independent regional hubs.
President Lynda Stuart said the NZEI agrees with the Tomorrow School’s Taskforce analysis that there needs to be a more ‘‘connected and networked education ecosystem’’ than the highly decentralised model of Tomorrow’s Schools there is now.
‘‘Balancing better support to schools with the ability for them to be responsive to local communities will be critical so it is essential that educators and their communities are engaged in the change process, and we encourage parents and educators to submit their views to the taskforce.’’
Public consultation on the Tomorrow’s Schools Review report, Our Schooling Futures, Stronger Together l Whiria Nga¯ Kura Tu¯a¯tinitini, is open until April 7.
The public meeting will be held at the Windsor Community Church Hall at 4pm on Friday.