 Annual Conference is the supreme decision making authority of PPTA. Annual Conference 2008 was held at the Brentwood Hotel, Kemp Street, Kilbirnie, Wellington. Conference debate, presentations and discussion was streamed live and the webstream archive can be viewed on the Mediasite website. Below are brief summaries of the papers that were on the 2008 agenda. The full papers are available for download in the Annual Conference Papers document library .
Disruptive and anti-social behavior in secondary schools The Hutt Valley region has prepared this paper to draw attention to the increasing incidence of disruptive, anti-social behaviour in New Zealand secondary schools and the need to address this trend through a changed staffing formula. It considers the problems caused by “high risk” students in secondary schools and calls for a funding model that better supports them. This paper looks at the heavy workload carried out by secondary teachers and seeks to fill in the gaps in our knowledge of the impact this has.
It asks if the PPTA should undertake research to answer questions on the duties required of secondary teachers and the health and safety and workload implications of these. The paper proposes to establish information on practices in this area before the association considers the 2010 collective agreement negotiations. The Auckland region has prepared this paper which looks at the considerable financial pressure on members required to live in areas where there are rising housing costs. Some are major urban centres where high and rising population density and limited housing development is creating above-average pressures on housing costs. Some are semi-urban areas with high property prices driven by factors more related to location.
The effect of these high housing costs is twofold: it is difficult to purchase a home, and the discretionary spending of teachers in these areas is significantly reduced. There is a perception that the high cost of obtaining a first home and servicing the subsequent mortgage is a disincentive to recruitment and retention in these areas and this adds to the financial and general stress of young teachers.
This paper recommends an inter-regional taskforce be set up to consider the impact of the housing process across the country and prepare a report for the 2009 Annual Conference. The report would look at the impacts of housing affordability on recruitment and retention of secondary and area school teachers across the country, with proposals for addressing any problems identified. A PPTA Annual Conference would not be the same without an NCEA paper for delegates to consider. Successive – almost annual – papers since the early 1990s provide an opportunity to track the union’s evolving approach to standards-based assessments for qualifications, something the PPTA has supported in principle since the late 1960s. The reality always presents much more complex questions, and the union has struggled since the early 1990s to find a comfortable stance that can be supported by the vast majority of members.
In term 2, 2008, PPTA conducted 22 highly successful regional seminars on the NCEA, seeking to identify possible ways forward with its design and implementation. Branches were asked to hold meetings before and after the seminars.
The comments and recommendations in this paper draw on PPTA’s detailed analysis of responses from members.
It is organised around four themes discussed in the seminars and branch meetings: putting learning back in the driving seat; reducing the quality of summative assessment; improving the credibility of NCEA; and other quality improvements.
The recommendations in this paper provide a pathway forward that has the support of PPTA members This paper reviews the existing staffing formula, its problems, and how it might be changed to meet a more needs-based model.
The staffing-related needs of modern secondary schools are discussed, and overseas practices and best-practice within New Zealand considered.
The failure of the current staffing resourcing model to meet the actual needs of secondary schools is identified as a factor undermining proposals for improving secondary student education outcomes such as Schools Plus.
The paper recommends PPTA insist that new needs-based staffing models are developed and resourced as a prerequisite to the implementation of Schools Plus. This paper looks at the case made for Tomorrow’s Schools in 1989 and examines where we are now. It asks whether the policy has delivered improvements in respect of educational achievement, self-management, fairness, democracy and value for the taxpayer’s dollar. It notes there is no evidence of educational gains attributable to the Tomorrow’s Schools revolution and that there are signs that self-management in a competitive environment has had the effect of boosting mistrust, parochialism, duplication and waste.
It also points out that New Zealand’s national system is a very costly one because of the systematic establishment of new schools that tend to be very small and lacking in economies of scale. It asks whether a system based around competition and self-interest is appropriate for the ICT-based, collaborative, multi-campus learning that is expected to characterise 21st century education.
The paper calls on PPTA to undertake an independent review of the Tomorrow’s Schools structure with a view to proposing possible changes. The requirements that provisionally registered teachers (PRTs) have to fulfill have increased significantly over the years, as secondary teaching has become more complex and demanding. This paper looks at the serious implications current PRT dissatisfaction has on the likelihood of many young teachers staying in the profession. It calls for adequate resources for professional development and guidance during the registration process.
It shows a wide variation in the induction processes in our secondary schools and that research has confirmed there is a clear need for improvements. PRT working conditions are not as they should be, with entitlements not fulfilled and timetables too arduous. Appropriate professional development resources and schemes are too often not available and the PRTs are frequently given too many responsibilities. The paper recommends PPTA call on government to resource professional development and high-quality mentoring for beginning teachers and the Teachers Council to ensure proper orientation programs and consistent, effective advice and guidance during the registration process. It also calls on PPTA to develop advice for branches on how to provide high-quality collegial support and advocacy for PRTs.
 |
Subscribe to this comment's feed
Show/hide comment form