NZEI: Teachers Council Doing Its Job Well

NZEI Te Riu Roa, the union representing early childhood and primary teachers, says the Teachers Council processes are fair and robust. The Teachers Council has just released information on decisions made in the 14 months since its inception.

"The Council is doing exactly what it is supposed to do," says Irene Cooper, NZEI National President. "It is looking at each case and making a decision based on its merits."

"The Council is clearly putting children first," says Irene. "In 14 of the 17 cases, the teachers in question were de-registered. In the remaining 3 cases, 1 teacher voluntarily de-registered and the other two were only allowed to teach again on strict conditions - including, in one case, supervision directly from a Teachers Council member."

"As in any court of law, a case is not always black and white. An opinion should only be made after careful consideration of evidence from all sides. This is what the Teachers Council has been and is continuing to do."

"I want to emphasise that parents should have full confidence in both the Teachers Council and in their teachers," says Irene Cooper. "As a teacher, a mother and a grandmother, I have full confidence in both."

"There are 86,000 registered teachers in New Zealand, and only 17 decisions that have gone through the Council in last 14 months, so the percentage we're talking about here is extremely small to begin with."

"Teachers must go through a large amount of training and supervision before they are allowed to teach. In addition to their tertiary degree and mandatory police vetting, teachers must go through a documented and robust advice and guidance progamme for 2 years before they can become fully registered. They must then show proof of professional development to keep their registration," says Irene.

NZEI has been fully supportive of the move to register all Early Childhood Teachers in New Zealand, as is required of teachers in primary and secondary.

"It is ironic that the National Party is screaming about these cases brought before the Council, and yet they have been against registration of all early childhood education teachers," says Irene, referring to an October press release by Hon Tau Henare MP, National Party Education Spokesman in charge of early childhood education.

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