Bring Back Teachers’ Country Service

As the country faces another of the professional debates that are a feature of the education sector, this time on the value and impact of school decile ratings, it may be time to re-introduce the Country Service concept for low-decile schools, suggests Bill Rayner, Grey Power Zone Director for the Auckland Region.

This was the policy where all teachers were required to spend time in country schools before becoming eligible for senior positions in the educations system.

“I attended Opotiki College in the 1950’s’ said Mr Rayner, “ and I have often wondered at the very high rate of achievement of my senior school mates, both Pakeha and Maori, from what was a very small pool in a rural community.”

A strong factor was clearly the quality of teaching coming with the Country Service rotation.

Opotiki College’s Principal Frank Tucker became founding Principal of Rangitoto College, and Dept. Head Des Thurston similarly at Lynfield College, with other staff ending up as highly respected educators.

Not only did rural schools bet the benefit of quality teaching, the teachers also gained wider cultural and social insights into New Zealand’s make-up and brought a larger vision and contact with the wider world to small communities.

Maybe it is a practice whose time has come again for our low-decile schools.

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