Tags >> education
Posted by: PPTAweb
on 10, Oct, 2011
Tagged in: teaching , teachers , students , student achievement , secondary schools , PPTA , Performance pay , MOE , Ministry of Education , learning , education spending , education politics , education , Class size , annual conference
Sitting on the train wondering where to begin with this week's blog. Class size seems a good place to start as Kate Gainsford, PPTA vice president, was on breakfast TV yesterday morning discussing class size - and in the twitterverse a couple of commentators suggested performance pay for teachers would be better value for money in improving student achievement.
Posted by: PPTAweb
on 03, Oct, 2011
Tagged in: unions , teaching , teachers , STCA , staffing , secondary schools , representation , professional , PPTA , education , collective agreement , annual conference
Having just read Teacher in a strange land: Regular Teachers, Regular Schools it got me thinking about conferences/forums and how often (when I do go to these events) I get to meet 'regular teachers'. It certainly can be an issue, who speaks for teachers - who the experts are and who nominated those experts to speak for and/or about teachers/teaching? An issue that extends beyond the boundaries of conferences and forums to areas such as submissions processes and the workings of advisory groups.
Although, you could add 'who is a regular teacher and what is a regular school' given the number of extraordinary teachers working in extraordinary schools :-)
PPTA National office this week has annual conference on the collective mind. Conference is where the elected representatives of NZ secondary teachers get to discuss and work towards a better secondary school education system. PPTA Annual Conference is 18-20 October - the programme is online and conference papers include:
Posted by: PPTAweb
on 07, Jun, 2011
Tagged in: working conditions , schools , school support staff , power , pay , NZEI , Ministry of Education , education spending , education politics , education , conditions , collective agreement , bargaining
The Wellington High School PPTA branch unanimously passed the following resolution today:
"That the WHS PPTA branch supports the NZEI Support Staff claim against the Ministry of Education's offer."
Support staff are grossly underpaid and their skilled work allows us to focus on the learning needs of our students. Support Staff do not get paid during any of the school holidays and very few get any school time for professional development. They are largely expected to do it in their own time.
WHS would like other schools to support our colleagues and write to the Minister, Ministry of Education and NZEI as we are doing.
NZEI Fair Deal for Support Staff campaign
(posted on behalf of WHS PPTA branch)
Posted by: blogger
on 06, Dec, 2010
Tagged in: teaching , STCA , schools , PPTA , pay , John Key , funding , education spending , education , conditions , Australia , Anne Tolley
By David
I am a New Zealand trained teacher who was lured over the Tasman by the need to live in a country that respects and values education.
Throughout Australia, various levels of government are injecting over $16 Billion into schools in a program called the Building Education Revolution. We have new halls, gyms and state of the art classrooms in our public schools.
The Digital Education Revolution (valued at over $2 Billion) is delivering laptops, broadband and essential ICT services to schools – often resulting in a ratio of 1 computer to one student.
As a teacher in Australia I feel empowered by salaries that can surpass $80,000 per year (although this is still inadequate) and the security of ongoing professional development from a well-organised State Government.
One day I would love to return to my homeland of New Zealand, and see my family live the Kiwi childhoods that my wife and I enjoyed whilst growing up.
There really is no place like New Zealand – believe me.
But the idea of returning to teach in New Zealand is laughable.
I am not prepared to sacrifice my career and all that I have worked for to live as an undervalued, overworked educator living on a pauper’s wage.
Don’t give in to the insulting and belittling rhetoric of John Key and Anne Tolley. It is time for the teachers of New Zealand to stand up for what is fair.
So from one former member of PPTA to those who have done the right thing and continue to believe in the New Zealand educational system, I have one request. Please don’t back down.
Keep fighting for the pay and conditions that our profession requires to thrive.
Kia kaha!
Posted by: Cynic
on 23, Jul, 2010
In 2005 ERO came up with the 20% gap - no data, no proof, no evidence. In nearly every government and education press release since then you will find this expanded myth - that teachers and schools are "failing 1 in 5" students.
Now ERO are re-using the 20% in their latest report - this is not a fact but a convenient reusable guesstimate:
"As a result, little statistical data is provided in this report. Schools are evaluated against highly variable contexts in terms of the different proportions of students with high needs they have and the range of needs these students may exhibit."(p.12)
How can ERO bring about change and improvement in the sector when their strategy appears so negatively focused on blame and bringing schools and teaching into disrepute. A strategy that values teachers, values schools, and aims to work together to improve one of the better functioning education systems in the world, would surely be better placed to promote successful learning. Together we can make it the best education system for all students.
A strategy that says there are schools that are fabulous role models, we will work out why, perhaps parts of their model will work elsewhere. There are schools not coping, we will resource them to investigate why and work together to improve learning opportunities for students, teachers and school communities.
NAH way too hard - let's drive up the crises, let's diss the teachers, diss the schools, and put the jackals out to feed on the bones of an education system that was doing reasonably well but nobody wanted to defend.
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