A Cry from the Heart: lack of assistance for chidren's needs

TTPA Press Release

A CRY FROM THE HEART.

Another te Tai Tokerau Principal voices her feelings on the lack of assistance to cover the needs of children up here and the harm this is causing!

“Yes and young kids are resorting to self-harm actions, or considering / at risk of doing this, with the language of 'suicide' and 'self-harm' being mentioned in kids' classroom conversations, more casually than you would ever imagine, or want to imagine. (These are Primary Children she is referring to by the way!)

Parents can't access counselling help for months...meanwhile our kids are suffering.

Teachers, principals and support staff are buckling under these pressures, compromising their health, their family lives and their core roles of education.

When, oh when oh when are we going to have the ambulance positioned at the top of the cliff??? 

- All schools should be assigned / shared out quality counsellor / social work support.

-Sir Peter Gluckman's research has been poorly trialled and dismissed - big mistake

-Our children and their futures are seriously undervalued - from what we experience day by day as educators

Teachers are continually hammered to provide quality teaching, and I don't disagree with the need to have quality teaching, but new initiatives that ignore the exponential growth of social, emotional, complex learning needs is a recipe for disaster and is utterly demoralising.

However, we just seem to pick ourselves up day after day, look up if we can, but oh the cost is high, too high.”

Pat Newman, President Te Tai Tokerau Principals Association said, “The fact this principal wishes to stay anonymous, does not detract from the validity of the message she puts before us all.

Northland has never been resourced to cover the real needs up here, and this continues. The number of children, the levels of violence and need, the lack of adequate are growing like a festering sore,” he said.

He continued, “What is really sad, is the response from the Ministry of Education National Office, shows a total lack of understanding of the complexity and seriousness of the problem, when its spokesperson, David Wales response for the call for help was… call the police!!

As another fellow principal just emailed, “Last time I called the police to help in Kaitaia they told me very politely not to do it again. They took 2 hours to get here and the kid could have really hurt himself. “

SO MINISTRY , WHAT’S THE NEXT BRIGHT IDEA… CALL THE MINISTRY PERHAPS??

Pat Newman

President Te Tai Tokerau Principals Association

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