New Zealand Principals' Federation eNewsletter

President's Message

He toa taumata rau.
Bravery has many resting places.

Kia ora e te whānau,

While many of you continue to work through COVID logistics, a whiff of optimism is rising. Omicron looks like it’s peaking, at least in Auckland. International flights have resumed and there are new mandate announcements this week.

For most schools, mandate changes will not significantly affect staff, whānau or students. For a few though, where vaccination mandates put school staff jobs in jeopardy, there will be relationships to restore, and divisions to be mended, and this will take tact, tolerance and time.

Leadership PLD: The ‘Raranga Tira Framework’

This week, Principal PEAK Body leaders and external PLD providers were invited to discuss an NZPF leadership PLD proposal. Called the ‘Raranga Tira Framework’, this has been developed in response to the Teaching Council’s ‘Rauhuia: Principals’ Voice Report’ and Rauhuia Leadership Strategy proposal.

New Zealand principals have random leadership PLD experiences throughout their careers. Availability of principals’ PLD is dependent on circumstances such as where you live, how big your schools’ PLD budget is, what PLD is relevant for your context, or how much you can afford to pay for your own PLD.

The ‘Raranga Tira Framework’ provides an opportunity to address key issues in our current Leadership PLD system, which include

Lack of equity of access to Leadership PLD
Lack of a plan for systemic progression in development of leadership capabilities
Lack of principal input in to the design of personalized, leadership PLD
Lack of opportunity to do specialist leadership PLD (e.g. leadership of special character schools)

An inequitable PLD leadership resourcing structure, within a fragmented centrally-funded leadership PLD system

So what is the ‘Raranga Tira Framework’?

The ‘Raranga Tira Framework’ is a series of broad strands of professional development for principals to engage in as they move through their careers. Using a modular approach, principals would choose professional development options appropriate for their stage of principalship, their context, their strengths and interests. Modules could have micro credentials attached to them. They could involve secondments into ERO and the MOE at regional and national levels.

The ‘Raranga Tira Framework’ is designed to coordinate leadership professional development delivery so there is equitable access to PLD and coverage of a broad range of leadership PLD dimensions. The framework would offer flexibility so principals can personalize their leadership learning pathway. Principals have been clear they want to be able to access PLD in different ways. Coordination of delivery would ensure there is a mix of residential courses, collaborative projects, online and face-to-face PLD delivery options.

Peak Body leaders and external providers have been invited to give feedback on this initiative. We will send out a second iteration of the proposal for your consideration and input in the next two weeks. There are many organizations involved in delivering professional development. How to create equity of access and PLD that builds leadership capacity at each stage of a principals’ career are key goals we all want to achieve.

If quality leadership and quality teaching are one of five national education priorities, then principal PLD needs to be a priority!

Submissions:

It is definitely ‘submissions season’! The ‘International Students Under Year 9 Submission’ was submitted on 11 March. You can read the submission here. Three more submissions are due by the end of March or early April 2022.

The draft NZPF ‘Physical Restraints Submission’ is available for your consideration here. We will be finalizing the submission on Tuesday 29 March. We welcome your feedback.

The draft NZPF ‘Teaching Council Submission’ is also in process. The members’ survey will close on Monday 28 March, so results can be collated to inform the submission. If you have not already done so, please follow the link – https://nzpf.schoolzineplus.com/survey/4.

Collective Bargaining - 2022:

PPCB is an NZPF member-led union, formed as a result of the response to the outcomes of the 2019 Principals’ Collective Bargaining process. In 2021, the PPCB team canvassed members and prepared claims for the 2022 collective bargaining round. In the interim, NZEI did the same.

Because of the work of both PPCB and NZEI, the claims going forward in 2022 will be robust, well researched and comprehensive.

The PPCB team is preparing for the 2022 Collective Bargaining Round, and will be seeking outcomes in addition to NZEI claims which will be a positive outcome for all principals.

I would like to acknowledge all our colleagues who have contributed time, energy, expertise and effort to prepare for the 2022 Collective Bargaining round. Principals’ work has never been so important, so complex and so demanding as in the last two years. It is time this was recognized.