Kia ora e te whānau

This week, I acknowledge our colleague, Vaughan Couillault, Principal at Papatoetoe High School, for his outstanding leadership throughout the recent COVID challenge in South Auckland.  You have represented our profession superbly, been a rock for your community, and a voice of common-sense and encouragement. Thank you, Vaughan. You have exemplified the strong and authoritative leadership that from time to time is required of principals. Ngā mihi e hoa.  

ERO Independent Evaluation of New Partnership Model

I note the wider rollout of ERO’s partnership model to schools outside of the initial 75 involved in the trial. This has surprised me because the trial has only just begun. When I queried the progress of the independent evaluation of the partnership model, I was informed that ERO was currently taking feedback from the independent evaluator, Dr Delwyn Goodrick, and that her final report would be published in June 2021, some 4 months away.

I immediately wrote to all 75 trial schools to ascertain what engagement they have had with Dr Goodrick. Not one has reported having had any contact from the evaluator.  I subsequently wrote to ERO and my letter is here. I want to understand what evaluation of the partnership model is occurring and whether it is appropriate for a national rollout. I await ERO’s response.

Excluded Students Directed for Enrolment

NZPF holds serious concerns about students who have been excluded from schools for violence and the subsequent ‘direction’ of these students under the Education and Training Act for enrolment at other schools. NZPF has advocated strongly for an alternative pathway to better support these students and eliminate the emotional and physical harm to other students and staff caused by young people who are traumatised, violent, and experiencing dysfunction.

NZPF does not believe it is appropriate to force a Board of Trustees to enrol a young person where that young person places the safety of staff and students ‘at risk’.

NZPF is currently supporting a school which is contesting a ‘directed enrolment’ because it places at risk the safety and wellbeing of students. In the absence of immediate help from government to deal with severe behaviour, we suggest you question whether to comply with or contest any ‘directed enrolment’ of a violent student. It is time that a test case was established that pits the Health and Safety in the workplace legislation against the requirement to accept ‘directed enrolments’ in the Education and Training Act. The law, in this respect, is an ass!

The urgent response of government to violent students is overdue. Action is required!

ORS Funding Feedback – Message from Bryce Coleman, President, Mana Principals’ Association

The rise in the number of children with high learning needs enrolling in our schools continues at a fast rate. The difficulty in accessing Ongoing Resourcing Scheme (ORS) funding for these students, many with a diagnosed learning disability, is evident as more and more applications are being declined. Students with high learning needs who would have been successful in gaining ORS 10 years ago, are now unable to access funding.

There is a pattern emerging in the ORS letters declining applications. The Ministry is ignoring longitudinal evidence of children’s low achievement levels and medical diagnosis reports, submitted with applications. The reasons the Ministry states for not awarding ORS funding are often taken out of context and at times, do not relate to the student's learning disability in the application.

With no funding provided by the Ministry, the financial demands on schools’ operations grants are rapidly increasing as the cost of providing an inclusive education for our tamariki becomes the biggest operational expense annually. Schools unable to access ORS funding are now having to fund high needs pupils with Teacher Aide support for up to 5-6 hours per day, 5 days per week, depending on whether the school has been able to access In-Class Support through the RTLB service. 

To get a nationwide snapshot of what schools are experiencing please can you fill out this very short survey. The data will be collated and used to address the issue.

Professional Growth Cycle

Occasionally one gets the opportunity to say job well done! I think the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand deserve a bouquet for their work in partnership with the sector on what replaces appraisal for principals including the process to sign off the practicing certificate.

The aptly named professional growth cycle is wonderful. It shifts the focus away from a summative and evidence laden process to one of growth and development in the professional domain. Employment matters are not a focus of the professional growth cycle.

The process involves agreeing with your Board Chair professional learning that reflects the Standards, engaging in this learning within a professional learning network of colleagues, receiving feedback on your practice from a range of sources, and having your practising certificate endorsed annually by a professional learning network colleague.

That is a huge leap forward in common-sense and an investment in the professional trust and integrity of principals to support principals to drive for high standards in our profession with the focus on professional matters.

I congratulate the Teaching Council for this work.

Consultation on the Professional Growth Cycle closes 1 March. Please make it a priority to fill out the simple survey in the embedded link in the consultation found here.

Refunds of APPA/NZPF Trans-Tasman Conference

If you have registered and paid to attend the Trans-Tasman in Melbourne in July and given the inability to attend in person, wish to cancel your registration and receive a reimbursement, then please email the organiser at  info@theconferencemanager.com.au

Please mark 2-4 August 2021 in your diary for the NZPF National Conference in Rotorua. Details of the conference and the early bird registration will be made available very soon.

Please note, all NZPF awards given for the purpose of attendance at the Trans-Tasman can be used for the NZPF National Conference in Rotorua.

Ngā manaakitanga

Perry Rush
perry@nzpf.ac.nz