Principals reject Minister’s funding plans

Education Minister Hekia Parata’s announcement to scrap the decile system of funding and link future school funding to student achievement has been roundly rejected by school principals.

“It is well known that there are more children in low decile areas of New Zealand who arrive at school ill-prepared for learning,” president of the New Zealand Principals’ Federation (NZPF) Denise Torrey said, “and these children take expert specialist teaching to help them catch up.

“We cannot expect that these children will achieve at the same rate as children from advantaged backgrounds and some children with severe special learning needs may never reach whatever target the Minister sets for achievement.

“It is counter-productive to withdraw funding from the very schools that require more support because they have a higher rate of disadvantaged and challenged learners,” Ms Torrey said.

Education sector leaders have been actively pursuing ways to work alongside the Minister to co-construct a fair and equitable school resourcing formula which can better accommodate the needs of all students.

“I find it disturbing that the Minister’s announcement today (October 2) ignores our request to help shape an alternative funding system and mirrors what has already happened in the UK where poorer public schools are starved of funds to make way for private charter schools. The results in the UK are disastrous and Kiwi kids deserve better,” she said.