18 September 2012

Parata defiant on education bombshell

Hekia Parata’s defence of her decision to only give school principals and board of trustee chairs a quick heads-up before the devastating announcement that their school was earmarked for closure or merger is overly defiant, says Labour’s Earthquake Recovery spokesperson Lianne Dalziel.

“This Minister had a choice – she could have arranged a sensitive briefing for affected schools so they could start the process of understanding why the government has made the decision and start working through all the issues. Instead she chose to make a public announcement and drop a bombshell on an already shell-shocked community.

“I asked her why she hadn’t briefed the affected schools before the day of the public announcement, to minimise the impact of unexpected news on the parents who have relied on these schools for stability and normality in their children’s lives since the earthquakes.

“But she didn’t have an answer for that other than this was the way she had decided it would be announced.

“I also asked whether the consultation period provided for now was the statutory process required for closure or merger, or an opportunity to genuinely influence a different outcome from the closure or merger proposals.

“We now have it on the record from Hekia Parata that the formal phase of consultation would take place after this current consultation.

“It is important that all school communities who are concerned about the announcements use this period to engage in this process.

“The Minister must, in turn, immediately provide all the information she has about each school and its cluster so communities can understand the issues and be sure all the issues are on the table.

“The Ministry of Education asks boards to consider a range of issues before considering merger and we expect no less from the Minister,” said Lianne Dalziel

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