Kia ora e te whānau

This week I attended the quarterly meeting between Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated and education peak bodies, in Hastings.

Ngāti Kahungunu have developed an education strategy and have been energetic in marshalling education peak bodies around issues of equity.

Catherine Bentley, the Principal of Hastings Girls’ High School (HGHS), spoke to the group about the extraordinary journey of change in her school. HGHS has prioritised an approach that is culturally sustaining.

This approach has seen significant change in the school and in particular, the rejection of streaming.

Streaming was identified as racist and discriminatory by the recent research collaboration between Waikato-Tainui, Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, The Southern Initiative, and Business and Economic Research Limited (BERL).

The Minister of Education, Chris Hipkins, commented that streaming does more harm than good.

Catherine and her team at HGHS recognised the implicit damage of streaming particularly for Māori and Pasifika students. Research points to the correlation between teacher expectations for students and their educational attainment in schools. Grouping students in low streams communicates a pre-determined mindset about their potential. It is hugely damaging and is often based on narrow academic assessments that do not accurately represent the totality of a young person’s capabilities or potential.

I say to Catherine and the team at HGHS, congratulations! Making such changes places the wellbeing of every young person and their future at the very heart of their school.

It takes a brave educator to reject educational norms that are outdated and inappropriate. 

Streaming never had a halcyon day so let’s not give it any credence now!

Last Friday, Minister Hipkins announced the National Education Learning Priorities (NELP). Principals have been encouraged to familiarise themselves with them.

The NELP have a significant focus on equity and a culturally sustaining education system.

We must all consider how we respond to these priorities, not by doing more of the same with greater determination, rather by trying new approaches.

Remember that wise saying, “If you always do what you’ve always done then you’ll always get what you’ve always got’.

I am certain that Catherine and the team at HGHS took that mantra to heart in considering their change programme.

The NELP are high level so let’s allow them to prompt an innovative response from principals. As practice-based leaders, let’s not be constrained by what has gone before.

There are some exciting opportunities for us to make real change.

As you consider your Annual Plan for 2021 think about:

• Enabling staff to learn te Reo Māori. Te Ahu o te Reo Māori is being expanded to all regions in 2021. This is funded language learning for teachers. Visit the website to sign up your staff.
• Making creativity your curriculum goal and achievement target. Creativity is proven to positively influence the core curriculum. Reject the narrow focus on the core curriculum alone and have the courage to try new approaches. Over the past 15 years, the narrow focus on the core has had a negligible and, in some instances, negative impact on national achievement averages. This is all the evidence you need to innovate.
• Improving your attendance rates by deploying strategies to make attending school compelling! What is going to make your school the sort of place where young people are busting down the gates to get into?
• Exploring building a trauma informed staff so that your team constantly considers the needs of each student, why they act as they do and what a carefully considered trauma informed response to learning and behaviour looks like.
• Eliminating bullying from your school. Reported rates of bullying are stubbornly high in New Zealand. Let’s talk openly and often with our young people about what bullying is and isn’t. Let’s call it out when we see it and enlist the whole student body as partners, in an effort to eliminate bullying, racism and discrimination.
• Planning to purge streaming from your school. It is an anachronism and must go!

As we consider our professional foci for 2021, let us begin the process of drilling down on the NELP, set challenges that nurture every learner in our care, and grow schools that champion the ‘possibility’ and the ‘potential’ of young people.

Property Issues
NZPF is pleased to see government announce a $164m investment in school property yesterday.

NZPF is determined to see every school’s property portfolio dealt with fairly and in a timely manner so that all young people can have schools that are safe, modern and fit for purpose. NZPF, on your behalf, has been raising your property issues with the Secretary for Education and senior Ministry personnel. The Ministry are keen to be responsive. This week I have passed on details of concerns raised by 25 principals who are experiencing frustration and delays with property provision.

If you have an intractable issue and wish me to help you to get progress, then email me the details of the problem and I will pick this up directly with the Ministry of Education.

Principals’ Union
As you suggested through the road show earlier in the year, we continue investigation into the possibility of establishing a principals’ union arm for NZPF. NZPF has also had further meetings with NZEI to discuss how to better represent principals in the workplace and these discussions have been constructive.

The NZPF Executive wants to have the fullest possible information on which to consider the best outcome for principals. We meet for our final Executive meeting late next week when we expect to review all the information gathered to date and discuss the pros and cons of all options.  

I will be in touch before the conclusion of the year to inform you of the outcome.

Ngā manaakitanga

Perry Rush
perry@nzpf.ac.nz