Nothing New or Innovative in Charter School Announcement

Nothing New or Innovative in Charter School Announcement

The five charter schools announced by the Minister of Education this morning offers nothing new or innovative to lift the achievement of students. It reveals amediocrity of thinking by the Charter School Authorisation Board. Although promised a new model of charter schools for New Zealand we have the same tired approach that has not made the difference internationally.

Associate Professor Peter O’Connor, of the University of Auckland says that all the schools could have been approved under previous legislation allowing for special character schools. The key difference would have been that all teachers in those schools would have to be registered and qualified, and that there would have been greater transparency and accountability under the Official Information Act.

There are some serious anomalies arising from the announcement. For example, The South Auckland Middle School’s point of difference is that it offers small classroom sizes at a 1:15 ratio. Parents in South Auckland might wonder why one publically funded school will get this advantage. If the Government is accepting this makes a difference then surely all South Auckland schools should get the advantage of this generous level of funding. Kura kaupapa throughout the country will be wondering how they might be able to switch from their current funding and accountability regimes to meet the new generous funding and freedoms for the two Maori schools announced in the Far North.

Dr. O’Connor says that now the announcements have been made it will be increasingly difficult to find out how these schools intend to operate, or to ask the critical questions that need to be asked about publically funded schools.

ENDS

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