Get over league table scaremongering

Media Release

Get over league table scaremongering says head of trustee organisation

School trustees say that scaremongering over league tables should not be allowed to overshadow parents’ right to know how their children are doing at school.

New Zealand School Trustees Association President Lorraine Kerr says the amount of recent “noise” over the possibility of league tables has all but overshadowed sensible consideration of the national standards policy and what those standards might mean for students and the parent community.

“And the groups responsible for that scaremongering now need to get over it,” she says.

“NZSTA views the national standards as an important opportunity to give full effect to parents right to know how their child is doing at school in respect both their classmates and how they compare nationally, warts and all,” says Lorraine Kerr.

She says it is important that reporting is done in a way which is readily understood by the parent community.

“It needs to provide real data so that parents know exactly how their child is doing compared to national norms in the key areas of maths, reading, comprehension and spelling.”

Lorraine Kerr says there may be some concerns or apprehension in schools as some parents will see, perhaps for the first time, exactly how their child is doing at school.

“But there is also a potential upside. Boards are accountable to both the government and the school community for student achievement. The focus on reporting will provide a valuable opportunity for boards and principals to talk with their school community about their expectations, and how the school intends to respond to them.”

Lorraine Kerr says the national standards are ultimately about students and school communities, and the change within schools to give effect to those standards may be uncomfortable for some staff.

“But if we truly subscribe to the notion that our schools exist for our students, and that students are at the centre of all quality teaching and learning, then a degree of discomfort is an acceptable price to pay for a very real opportunity to improve the lot of every student,” says Lorraine Kerr. “We are saying let’s just get on with it.”

ENDS

© Scoop Media