Dangerous charter plans continue despite strong opposition

Dangerous charter school plans continue despite strong opposition

The Government is continuing its dangerous and ideologically-driven path towards charter schools despite continued strong opposition from educational professionals and school communities.

Today is the final day for organisations and individuals to lodge applications for Government funding if they want to set up charter schools.

“But we won’t be seeing who they are. Already the Government has refused to disclose which organisations have expressed an interest in applying for public funding for these schools,” says NZEI Te Riu Roa National President, Judith Nowotarski.

She says the secrecy is in line with the Government’s management of its charter school plans right from the beginning.

“Remember that neither the National-led Government nor the Act party campaigned at the last election on charter schools. This was a policy that was kept well under wraps until immediately after the election when it was unveiled as part of a deal between the Government and the Act party.

Ms Nowotarski says charter schools will be able to use public money but operate behind closed doors and, apart from matters of student expulsions and exclusions, will be able to operate outside the scrutiny of the Ombudsman.

She says the weekend rallies made it very clear that New Zealanders want to retain a quality public education system and that includes having qualified teachers in the classroom.

More than ten thousand educators and school supporters took to the streets around the country at the weekend to show their concerns about the Government’s education direction.

“It is very obvious that the Government is determined to plough ahead with this dangerous experiment despite all the expert evidence that charter schools will be bad for children’s education and for the future of our quality public education system.

“It appears that no amount of evidence or opposition will sway this Government. It is motivated by ideology and an agenda to privatise education – and not on what’s best for all children’s education.”

ENDS

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