PAYMENT BY PARENTS CIRCULAR

Boards of Trustees and proprietors need to be award of this recent circular, which updates what may be charged for, and what can only be a donation. While the information has not changed the layout and explanatory information has been redeveloped.  Read more.

EDUCATION SUMMIT INFORMATION

Excerpts from a press release on 11 July 2018 from Hon Chris Hipkins, Minister of Education, about the Summit:

“More than 14,000 New Zealanders have told us, via our online survey, how we can help every learner to be successful, and about the education changes they want to see,” Chris Hipkins said.
“Themes from the responses so far include:

  • No students should be disadvantaged due to financial or family circumstances
  • Children with additional learning needs require more funding and support
  • Students should be resilient, capable, resourceful, independent, socially competent and curious
  • Students need recognising for their contribution to family/whānau, hapu, iwi, and community
  • Students need to be able to think critically, innovate, respect others, and take responsibility. They need good communication skills, and strong foundation skills in literacy and numeracy
  • Young people feel there is too much focus on assessments; this is a burden on them and their teachers.
  • Many parents identified reducing bullying as a priority
  • Teachers need better remuneration and to have better supporting staff and strategies to improve teaching practice
  • Many felt the curriculum should focus on progress rather than testing or benchmarking
  • Differences in achievement between Māori and Pacific students and Pākehā need addressing, and there should be better teaching of Māori culture and history. Some felt te reo Māori should be compulsory, at least in primary schools.”

You can also read about these themes online here.

CHARTERS – STRATEGIC PLANS

Schools have recently been reminded that they must submit their Charters (to be renamed Strategic Plans) by 1 March 2019.  While the information provided by the Ministry does not specifically refer to Proprietors, they are part of the integrated school community and should be involved at the planning stage, to identify the shared vision for the school.  It is to be expected that there is specific reference to the school’s special character, and to a goal which involves special character.

BOARD APPLICATIONS – NZCER
The Minister for Education is seeking to appoint a new member to the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) Board. Applications are open until 20 August. Read more.

STAND-DOWNS, SUSPENSIONS, EXCLUSIONS AND EXPULSIONS

This data has been updated through 2017 and shows that rates of age-standardised stand-downs, suspensions, exclusions, and expulsions had dropped significantly but are now rising again. The report may be accesed at EducationCounts.govt.nz, link here.

NEW AWARDS, WITH CATEGORIES SUITABLE FOR SCHOOLS

The inaugural GirlBoss Awards is a nationwide search for trailblazing young women (ages 11–18). Categories such as Emerging Leader and Community could be of particular interest to integrated schools. Link here.

RECENT ERO REPORTS

Building Genuine Learning partnerships with Parents – Teaching Approaches and Strategies that Work, July 2018. This looks like a particularly useful and helpful report. It includes simple strategies a few of the schools used to involve parents more in supporting the things children were learning in school. Read more.

What Drives Learning in the Senior Secondary School?, May 2018. Read more.

Teaching Strategies that Work: Reading, May 2018. Read more.

Responding to Language Diversity in Auckland, May 2018. Read more.

Evaluation at a glance – a decade of assessment in New Zealand Primary Schools – Practice and Trends, April 2018. Read more.

Resource Teachers Learning and Behaviour, Governing and Managing RTLB Clusters, April 2018. Read more.

Leading Innovative Learning in New Zealand Schools, April 2018. Congratulations to St Thomas of Canterbury College, Christchurch, one of the twelve schools featured in this publication. Read more.

Appraisal as a Catalyst for Learning – Two Years On, March 2018. Read more.

OTHER LINKS

NCEA have your say (link here)
Curriculum progress and achievement (link here)
Early learning strategic plan (link here)
International education strategy (link here)