Principals NCEA Coalition Goes Nationwide

PRINCIPALS NCEA COALITION
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JULY 3 2018

Principals NCEA Coalition Goes Nationwide – Momentum Growing
& Call for Acting PM Rt Hon Winston Peters to Halt Review

The Principals NCEA Coalition formed last week to challenge Education Minister Chris Hipkins’ flawed NCEA review process is growing fast – another 23 secondary schools have joined over the past 24 hours – and the movement has gone nationwide.

The group, which gave Mr Hipkins a Fail in full page advertisements in the Sunday newspapers for a fraught review process, began with 37 principals from the full range of schools in the Greater Auckland area. This includes year 9-13 secondary schools and composite year 7-13; co-educational and single-sex schools; schools offering more traditional and more progressive styles of teaching and learning; state schools in low-, medium- and high-decile communities; as well as integrated schools, private schools and charter schools.

Another 21 Principals from schools from the Far North (Kaikohe) of New Zealand, to the Far South (Invercargill), have joined the challenge to the Minister’s flawed review process over the past day – asking it to be stopped and a proper consultation process to be launched with professional educators at its core.

“Our coalition has been blown away by the support we have received – and the calls keep coming through from schools throughout the country. Principals are appalled at the lack of consultation and how this bizarre process is going to hurt the life prospects of a generation of young New Zealanders,” the group’s spokesperson, Glen Denham of Massey High School said today.

“We agree NCEA needs to be reviewed and can be improved, but Mr Hipkins is going about it all the wrong way. The Acting Prime Minister, Rt Hon. Winston Peters, needs to order a reset, review the review, and implore his minister to conduct the ongoing evolution of the school system in a way which respects the importance of the role principals, teachers, parents and school trustees have in the future of our young people and our country.”

The 23 new schools that have joined the coalition in geographical order from North to South are:

Northland College, Kaikohe
Whangarei Boys' High School
Middle School West Auckland
Mt Hobson Middle School, Auckland
South Auckland Middle School
St Peter's School, Cambridge
Rotorua Boys' High School
St John's College, Hastings
Palmerston North Boys' High School
Queen Elizabeth College, Palmerston North
Rongotai College, Wellington
St Catherine’s College, Wellington
Christ's College, Christchurch
Timaru Boys' High School
St Kevin's College, Oamaru
John McGlashan College, Dunedin
Kavanagh College, Dunedin
King's High School, Dunedin
Otago Boys' High School, Dunedin
Queen's High School, Dunedin
Taieri College, Mosgiel
Menzies College, Wyndham
James Hargest College, Invercargill

They join the previous schools, who appeared in the Sunday newspaper advertisements:

Avondale College
Baradene College
Birkenhead College
Rangitoto College
De la Salle College
Glenfield College
Kaipara College
King’s College
Liston College
Long Bay College
Macleans College
One Tree Hill College
Rosmini College
Rutherford College
Sacred Heart College
Southern Cross Campus
St Cuthbert’s College
St Paul’s College
St Peter’s College
Waitakere College
Wesley College
Auckland Grammar School
Pinehurst School
Dilworth School
Diocesan School for Girls
Henderson High School
James Cook High School
Kelston Boys’ High School
Massey High School
Mt Albert Grammar School
Takapuna Grammar School
Vanguard Military School
Westlake Boys’ High School
Westlake Girls’ High School
Past Headmaster Auckland Grammar
Past Headmaster King’s College
Past Principal Macleans College

Mr Denham said they were also overwhelmed with the support coming in from parents and other concerned members of the community who were asking how a process so crucial to the future of our young people could be conducted so poorly.

Mr Hipkins said yesterday in a media interview that the coalition should contact his office. The coalition made contact with his parliamentary staff and is awaiting a response. With schools drawn from around New Zealand, the coalition would be happy to meet with the minister in Wellington at any time.

Ends

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