Yesterday I represented ACT at the Wellington Wairarapa School Trustees conference in Wellington. Other candidates on the panel were Allan Peachey, National MP and Education spokesperson, Grant Robertson, Wgtn Central Labour Candidate and Vaughan Smith, United Future Wgtn, who is the son of Murray Smith, Hutt South UF Candidate. Something of a breakthrough occurred for me when I was asked to speak for around 5 minutes and had nothing prepared. We were advised earlier it was a question and answer format but the chair, ex Listener writer Dennis Welch changed that.
Having two children in the education system - one in the state and one in the private system - and being a keen advocate for vouchers, made the task fairly easy. When I touched on the subject of secondary schools and lack of choice, namely the not uncommon reluctance to send one's child to Hutt Valley High, I was loudly interrupted by a school trustee from that board. It's a great school, she countered. The bad reports are all a media beat up, she said. I responded that I hadn't said it wasn't but it is TOO BIG. It does not suit every child's needs. That is the crux of the problem. State high schools take no account of children's individuality, needs and strengths.
Which took me into Rodney's championing of the Corelli School for Arts right down to accepting a part in their school production (when was the last time anyone wanted Trevor Mallard in their school play?) and why ACT's voucher policy would see schools like this flourish. As always there was considerable interest in the idea. Some cynicism, some approval but no hostility.
The ERO got a right royal drubbing and I now doubt their ability to provide the kind of vital information parents need. The decile rating system is still controversial with trustees worried about the low expectations decile 1,2 and 3 schools build in teachers. Low achievement was raised which I pointed out (at some length) is not going away while long term welfare dependence continues (which elicited some agreement). The lifting of the school leaving age wasn't sitting easily.
But the significant aspect of the 2 hour event was the leaning to the National MP. The Labour candidate was pushing it uphill. Allan Peachey is of course an expert in education given his background. He tackled the questions personally rather than as a party mouthpiece and was credible and sincere.
The mood for change goes beyond the poll indications.
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8 comments:
Allan is my MP, and a damn good bloke too. He spoke at the tertiary education debate at Auckland University last Thursday and he spoke very well.
Was the agenda of Allan Peachey markedly different from what we of ACT want to see?
Did his personal opinions vary significantly from the party line?
For example he does like Bulk funding which John Key does not want to do.
His main point of departure from National was his discomfit with NCEA being used as a political football. National's historical constant fault-finding with it. He lost friends over his support for NCEA apparently.
He didn't comment on vouchers and bulk funding wasn't raised, probably because, as I said, the crowd seemed to be leaning to him and favoured speakers don't get asked hard questions. His main "agenda" seemed to be a reduction in Ministry of Education bureaucracy and sorting the ERO.
(The ERO reports need to be tougher and name bad teachers, which the Labour candidate said sounded like "witch hunt".) Both improvements to the current system ACT would support I would imagine.
Lindsay ..
I suppose that if Mr Peachey did not talk about vouchers he did not talk about zoning and parent choice .. things that truly differentiate us?
HVHS used to have one of the best academic reputations in the country.
When the National Government of the 90s opened up all zoning, is it not true that popular schools got bigger and bigger, while less popular contracted. In fact I think we lost Petone College at about that time did we not?
Therefore is there not some danger of overcrowded facilities becoming even more overcrowded - and when a school like HVHS goes out of favour, the state has already flicked off the alternatives?
Where is National going with these kinds of issues do you know? It would be good to know as we approach a dead certain National - ACT coalition government in just a few weeks.
What's the problem?
We don't need "bulk funding" - we simply need - umm... fees
I don't see why we need ERO either.
When the National Government of the 90s opened up all zoning, is it not true that popular schools got bigger and bigger, while less popular contracted. In fact I think we lost Petone College at about that time did we not?
Therefore is there not some danger of overcrowded facilities becoming even more overcrowded
what's you're problem! This just shows that in education - as in everything else - the market works!
The sooner every state school is privatised, the meddlers at the "Education" ministry all fired; ERO closed down; and schools allowed to teach what parents want taught, how parents want it taught, to discipline kids the way parents want their kinds disciplined, and to accept the students they want to accept --- only then will NZ's economic performance start to climb back into the ranks of the OCED and out of company with Venezuela and Zimbabwe.
In response to previous posting - no, the example above regarding Petone highlights the flaws of open slather principal choice. (Not parent choice I stress)
Here is a picture of Petone today:
http://www.moggey.co.nz/weblog/labels/random%20photography.html
Guys I guess the issue is determining how the will of "parents" gets translated to the classroom. Capture by unelected (but organised and noisy) minorities and fundamentalists would be a concern.
Funnily enough, I always thought that is why we elected governments of various philosophies, so that the overall public need could be best served by state schools.
Also bear in mind that a school can go off the rails if they bow to all the folklore that one can find in local chattering communities. So much misinformation!
As a parent myself, I have learned much from constructive dialogue with the professionals at our state schools, and found (looking back) that the educator generally knows more about education than I do. After all, they have taken countless kids through the whole process before.
It is essential that schools have a STUDENT focus, not a parent focus! That is the bottom line for me - when I go to a school of my child, I go as an interested visitor - not to tell professionals where it is at. If they bowed to my parent aggression each time, how would that impact on the desires of the students?
Is there evidence that NZ achievement levels are in the same league as the third world. How insulting. We as a group need to show some respect in order to be taken seriously. At present we are frequently accused of greed and elitism and we need to dispel this as quickly as possible.
And remember there is a bigger picture. Read the book of Deborah Coddington to see the trouble she ran into trying to justify this.
It is clear that Education needs to be clarified for the benefit of all voters now. You can't have ACT confused about the intentions of National if indeed there there is to be a coalition. We need much stronger proof that remedies being described by CERTAIN national politicians in opposition will not be a worse problem than what they were trying to cure. The signs of tension within National camp are obvious - policy coming down from on high, Allan Peachey always wanting to speak his mind (a good thing if he has better ideas), and Anne Tolley helplessly squeezed in the middle. Did National really lose Katherine Rich. Anne is Katherine (2) without the heart. ACT,lets Beware!
How is HVHS getting on these days?
What has become of Petone College? It does not look good:
http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/old-schools-left-languish-taxpayers-expense-3819849
But that presumably is the ACT dream. Strong academic schools diversified by influx of low socio-economic kids and colleges like Petone like forgotten statues.
In fact does ACT just advocate huge schools in the final analysis?
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