Kia ora e te whānau

For the past few years, NZPF’s goal has been to ‘get off the side-line’ and ‘get into the game’. In its advocacy role, NZPF has often been reactive - responding to government policy as it pertains to schooling, rather than being active participants in setting the agenda. The Government’s new approach to working more collaboratively gives us an opportunity to help set policies and help design changes for the system in partnership with the Ministry.

I am pleased to announce two significant examples of NZPF ‘getting into the game’.

This past year, The Minister of Education invited the Teaching Council to establish a leadership centre which, amongst other things, would help strengthen principal leadership. We knew that the best way to do this was to have principals take the reins in working with principals throughout the country to design a leadership proposal that reflects the aspirations of principals. To achieve this, NZPF has joined with other principal peak bodies in a collective: Secondary Principals’ Association of New Zealand (SPANZ); Te Akatea (New Zealand Maori Principals’ Association); New Zealand Association of Intermediate and Middle Schools (NZAIMS); New Zealand Pacific Principals’ Association (NZPPA); Association of Integrated Schools New Zealand (AISNZ); New Zealand Area Schools Association (NZASA); and the Teaching Council.

Our principal peak body collective will shortly announce an opportunity for two seconded principals to be employed fulltime for term 2 and 3 2021, to lead the consultation with principals throughout the country and establish a principal leadership proposal.

This work falls within a broader scope of work on leadership that the Teaching Council is curating right across the profession. It is work that ultimately will need to be approved and funded by Government. Our job as principals is to contribute to the design of a leadership proposal that will genuinely grow our capabilities and nurture the ethos of principalship.

This is an opportunity to have ‘skin in the game’ so look out for the advertisement of the two seconded principal leads and fasten your seatbelts for a consultation process in term 2 and 3 that enables the establishment of a principal leadership strategy to be by principals, for principals.

NZPF’s second commitment to action is in the New Zealand Curriculum Refresh. Curriculum, Teaching and Learning is core business for principals. The voice of principals as senior pedagogical leaders in our schools must be central to the refresh.

There is no doubt that the refresh needs careful thought so that it makes clear the learning that can not be left to chance, without the encumbrance of tight and detailed outcome-based achievement objectives. Detailed achievement objectives subjugate teaching to the curriculum that is detrimental to creativity and the design of pedagogy that enables deep learning processes to flourish. There is a balance to be won and it is critical that principals deliberate on what that looks like.

To assist the Ministry of Education to progress the Curriculum Refresh, NZPF has committed to ensuring principals voice is influential. NZPF has partnered with the Ministry of Education to consult principals on the nature of the change needed.

This week, 15 principals met in Wellington for a working day on the Mathematics curriculum, co-led by NZPF and the Ministry of Education. My thanks to Pauline Cleaver (Associate Deputy Secretary, Curriculum, Pathways & Progress) for partnering us so we could hold this excellent discussion.

My thanks also to principals Sarah Brown, Shirley Winters, Sue Cattell, Stephen Kendall-Jones, Kyle Brewerton, Mary O’Regan, Kay Tester, Nigel Frater, Zac Mills, John Armstrong , Penny O’Brien, Vicki Nicolson, Sue Graham (LSC), Sharon Livingstone, Anna Harrison who partnered with NZPF, our Ministry colleagues of Kaylene Mcnee and Esa Samani, and The Learner First's Rob Proffitt-White who participated in the practitioner discussion about the mathematics curriculum, achievement, and teaching and learning.

We are writing a summary report of the day and will provide that to you and the Ministry once completed.

I am also grateful to the many principals who offered to assist in this work. While we couldn’t host you all on the working day, I think it speaks to the enthusiasm and expertise of our profession that there is so much excitement about this crucial work.

Two further significant opportunities beckon.

At our NZPF Moot on Friday March 26, Ministers Hipkins and Tinetti will be speaking about the New Zealand Curriculum refresh. NZPF has invited Kaylene Mcnee (Chief Advisor Minedu) and our own curriculum expert, Kay Tester (NZPF Executive) to co-lead a consultation with Moot delegates on the Curriculum Refresh. Senior Ministry of Education curriculum leaders will attend to observe the feedback of delegates focusing on what is working well in curriculum and where the opportunities for change lie.

Finally, NZPF in partnership with the Ministry of Education, will hit the road shortly on a 20-centre road trip to hear your thoughts about curriculum change. Watch this space as we will detail the dates of this engagement shortly.

I am excited that principals have these opportunities to be influential. Please seize them and make sure your views are heard!

Ngā manaakitanga

Perry Rush
perry@nzpf.ac.nz