No. Way.
Education Minister overrules ministry’s advice on charter school report
The Education Minister shut down comparing student achievement results from charter schools with those of state schools despite ministry advice to do so.A report by consultancy firm, Martin Jenkins, was commissioned by the Government to look at whether three of the first five charter schools set up in 2014 were delivering anything new.
The chair of the Partnership Schools Authorisation Board, Catherine Isaac, wrote to Education Minister Hekia Parata in November last year concerned that the board hadn’t been consulted about the report and recommended changes to the scope of it.
Isaac said the report intended to evaluate outcomes not essential to the success of charter schools yet had no plans to measure important aspects like “educational performance results”.
But on March 18 Parata overruled the ministry and its intentions to supplement the independent report with information about student achievement.
This is just outrageous. The reason National are pushing ahead with their right wing experiment in education through Charter Schools is to lower the cost of teachers, it’s portrayed to the public as an option for helping the most disadvantaged students, but that’s just a smokescreen.
Here we have an opportunity to compare the charter schools with public education and Hekia shoots it down because she doesn’t want those details getting out to the public.
This is just another failed privatisation of public services, just like prisons, just like state houses, just like CYFS will be.
The middle classes will continue to support this however because their house valuations are still going up. We will have to wait for the bubble to pop before they start caring again.
What a corrupt lot they are Martyn,
No scruples or moral fibre in any of them at all.
Pity their offspring and reckon many will be forced to send their kids to further away schools or just home school them in future.
Then these parents should refuse to pay any taxes that go to the Ministers project private schools.
Charter schools have been funded with taxpayers’ dollars, and we have the right to demand to know how it is being spent. Nobody – Minister or otherwise – can refuse to make this information public. Surely this is a matter for the Ombudsman?
The information is made public in the form of NCEA results. If you are interested you can access the data at http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/studying-in-new-zealand/secondary-school-and-ncea/find-information-about-a-school/secondary-school-statistics/consolidated-files/.
Is the Minister aware of this, Sandfly?
Or is the information you’re presenting not quite the same which Parata is refusing to collect?
I’m sure she is. I’d be interested to know the terms of reference for the Martin Jenkins – it may well be these comparisons are outside of these terms? In any event, I would consider it essential for any comparison to include educational outcomes. These are schools, after all! (Sarc.)
Hmmm, you seem to show a keen interest in Charter Schools, Sandfly…
I wouldn’t claim a ‘keen’ interest, but I am curious as to how these will work out. I’m not ideologically married to either side, just wanting good outcomes for our young people.
If you’re not ideologically wedded to Charter Schools, Sandpoint, you certainly seem to make a good effort at it.
Tell you what, set up a charter school by all means. Just don’t use my money to do it. If it’s such a good deal, people will rush to invest their money in your enterprise.
Otherwise, look up the term “crony capitalism”.
“The reason National are pushing ahead with their right wing experiment in education through Charter Schools is to lower the cost of teachers, …”
Well of course, why would the “elite” want to squander their money on the “masses”, perfectly logical if you are an arrogant, selfish, soulless Nat
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