Bishop Viard College board chairwoman, Marian Blackford, does not believe reporting based on national standards could help students’ self-esteem.
“Our students are over-represented in the tail, we have 6 per cent Pasifika and 20 per cent Maori in our college. We have worked hard for a lot of years to keep them all moving along. I see a lot of what is happening at the moment is going to be really unhelpful to their continuing to believe that they can achieve”.
She was one of about 30 board chairmen and women and principals who were at the Mana Education Centre in Porirua last Thursday to express questions and concerns to Education Minister Hekia Parata.
Others at the meeting said achievement tables tended to play to the fears and prejudices people already had, and the data was not valid because it could not be compared effectively between schools.
The Dominion Post has asked schools across the Wellington region to release the information they were required to send to the Education Ministry about the number of pupils at, above, below or well below national standards in reading, writing and maths.
The ministry declined a request for the data, but acting senior manager Dennis Cribb said individual schools could be approached.
About 10 have already responded with information and others have indicated their data will be forthcoming.
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