Source: Post Primary Teachers Association (PPTA)
Our strong belief is that the oversight of initial teacher education should be “by the profession, for the profession”. We do not support the proposal from the Minister of Education to move oversight of Initial Teacher Education from the Teaching Council to the Ministry of Education.
The Minister already has the ability to communicate her expectations to the Council and appoints members to its governing board. Direct political control of professional programmes and standards by Ministers through the Ministry would be an over-reach and is tantamount to political interference. Such Ministerial direction does not occur with the training of lawyers, doctors, nurses or other professions and would be inappropriate for the teaching profession.
Moving oversight and approval of initial teacher education programmes to the Ministry of Education would remove it from oversight by an independent statutory body governed by a council jointly elected by teachers and appointed by the Minister — and would therefore reduce partially or wholly both the professional independence and voice of teachers in terms of who determines teacher education standards.
No evidence has been provided by the Ministry about how it could improve initial teacher education and it has neither the capability, capacity or confidence from the profession to take on this role.
Removing ITE oversight from the Teaching Council is a significant change, with implications for key stakeholders – particularly the more than 100,000 teachers who pay Council fees, who vote for Council representatives and who have fought for an independent professional body.
There are also implications for the Crown’s Te Tiriti obligations to kaiako Māori if this decision is taken without adequate consultation with kaiako Māori and the outcome is a new agency and framework for ITE established without their input.
A short, “targeted” consultation period is therefore rushed and inadequate.
