John MacDonald: I judge a school on more than just test results

They used to be called school inspectors, these days it’s the Education Review Office and the Government is planning a shake-up, promising that we’re going to know more about what schools are getting right and what they aren’t. 

And, when you listen to what the Prime Minister and Education Minister Erica Stanford have been saying, there’s going to be a much bigger focus on results. Which I get. But which I also think is very risky. 

I also think it’s pandering to parents who turn everything into a competition, even with their own kids. Because what the Government is doing could take us back to the times when kids were labelled bright or thick from a very young age.  

And I know the Government will say ‘oh no, no, no’ we’re going to look at the results these kids are getting and if they need extra help, we’ll be sending extra resourcing in so they can get over any hurdles and catch up with everyone else. 

Which is how a middle-aged politician thinks. Because middle-aged politicians are like me —and you, maybe— we’ve had life experience and we know that, just because you’re not as good at maths as some of the other kids in your class at primary school, it doesn’t mean you’re stupid. It doesn’t mean you’re a no-hoper and that you should stop trying. 

But tell that to an eight-year-old. Or a nine-year-old or a 10-year-old. And this is the stumbling block I have with all this extra testing of primary school kids that the Government plans to do. 

Don’t get me wrong, when our kids were going through school, of course I wanted to know if there were things they might have been struggling with. And, if you’re a parent, you’ll know that sometimes it can be very easy to get sucked into obsessing over every little thing. 

I’ll be honest with you. When I think back to some of the things I got fixated on when it came to our kids going through school - in hindsight, it was ridiculous. 

Which is why I would tell parents with young kids now to take a bit of a chill pill and not agonise over everything. Because, what I’ve come to realise over the years and through personal experience —both as someone who went to school and as a parent who’s had three kids go through school— is that school is just a stepping stone. 

And marks, when it comes down to it, don’t mean much in the bigger scheme of things, especially, when a kid’s at primary school. 

I’ve come to the realisation that school doesn’t define a person. It doesn’t decide whether they’re going to make a go of life or not. 

But the Government feels a little bit differently about it than I do. Which is why it’s doing the changes with the curriculum but also making these major changes at the Education Review Office. 

It wants the review office to focus more on the basics.  

I was on a school board in Christchurch for six years and, during that time, we had a visit from the school inspectors. They’re done every few years. 

And it was almost like it was back when I was a kid - when I remember the old school inspectors turning up and the teachers suddenly being very friendly and putting on a real show. 

These days, though, they look at more than just what’s going on in the classroom and in the playground - there’s a whole lot of data for them to trawl through. And it’s this data that the Government wants the Education Review Office —or the school inspectors— to pay more attention to. 

But I don’t judge a school just on the basics. Reading, writing, maths. Those things.  

I judge a school on the type of people it turns out. I judge a school on the citizens that walk out the gate each day. I judge a school on the way you feel when you go there for an event.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Canterbury Morning's podcast with John McDonald
from News Talk ZB.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
They used to be called school inspectors, remember those. These
days it's the Education Review Office either way, pretty much
the same thing. And the government's planning is shake up,
promising that we are going to know more about what
schools are getting right and what they aren't getting right.
And when you listen to what the Prime Minister and

(00:33):
Education Minister Eric Stamford have been saying in the past
twenty four hours, is going to be a much bigger
focus on results, which I get, I get where they're
coming from, but which I also think is very risky,
very risky, because I also think that it's pandering to
parents who turn everything into a competition, even with their

(00:55):
own kids. Because what the government's doing could take us
back to the times and you remember this if you're
old enough, could take us back to the times when
kids were labeled or thick from a very young age.
And I know the government will say, oh no, no, no, no,
no no no, We're going to look at the results
these kids are getting and if they need extra help,

(01:16):
we'll be sending extra resourcing in so they can get
over any hurdles and they can catch up with everybody else.
Everything will be awesome, which is how a middle aged
politician thinks, right, because middle aged politicians are like me,
they're like you. I hope I'm not aging you there.
But what I'm getting at is we have had life

(01:38):
experience and we know it, don't we that just because
you're not as good at maths as some of the
other kids in your class at primary school doesn't mean
you're stupid, doesn't mean you're a no hoper, and you
can stop trying, or you should stop trying. But tell
that to an eight year old, or a nine year
old or a ten year old. And this is the
stumbling block, or one of the stumbling blocks I have

(02:01):
with all this extra testing of primary school kids that
the government plans to do and the chain just with
the Education Review Office. Now, look, do not get me wrong.
When our kids were going through school, of course I
wanted to know if there was anything that they might
have been struggling with. And if you're a parent, you
will know that sometimes it can be so easy to

(02:23):
get sucked into obsessing over every little thing. And I'll
be honest with you when I think back to some
of the things I got fixated and obsessed with when
our kids were going through school. I mean, in hindsight,
it was just ridiculous, which is why I would tell
parents with young kids, now that's you, if you're listening,
just take a chill pill. Just take a chill pill,

(02:45):
and do not agonize over everything. Because what I've come
to realize over the years, and through personal experience by
the someone who went to school, believe it or not,
and as a parent who's had three kids go through school,
I've come to realize and accept that school is just
a stepping stone and marks when it comes down to it,

(03:06):
don't much in the biggest scheme of things, especially when
the kids at primary school. I've come to the realization
that school does not define a person. It doesn't decide
whether they're going to make a go of life or not.
But the government feels a little bit differently about it
than I do, which is why it's doing the changes
to the curriculum, but also making these major changes at
the Education Review Office, which as I say, does the

(03:28):
job of what the old school inspectors used to do.
So once the Review Office this is what it's what,
or not once is what it's telling them you'll focus
more on the basics, reading, writing, maths, et cetera. Hold on, actually,
there's no etcetera, just reading, writing, maths. And the Prime
Minister made it very clear why when he was on

(03:48):
with Mike this morning.

Speaker 3 (03:49):
But when four out of five of our kids are
not ready to go to do math high school, that
is a major, major problem. When three out of five
of them are actually more than a year behind where
they should be, major major problems.

Speaker 2 (03:59):
Yeah, don't get me wrong. Do not get me wrong.
I'm not saying that those stats that the Prime Minister
referred to a brilliant I'm not saying that nothing should
be done to improve them. I mean I was on
a school board in christ Church for six years and
during that time we had a visit from the school inspectors.
They do it every few years. It was the Education

(04:21):
Review Office, not the school inspectors. But it was almost
like it was back when I was a kid, and
I remember when the old school inspectors turned up and
the teachers were suddenly very friendly and putting on a
real show. These days, though, they look at more than
just what's going on in the classroom and what the
teachers are wearing and who's smiling, And there was a
whole lot of data for them to trool through. And
as announced yesterday, it's this data that the government wants

(04:44):
the Education Review Office or the school inspectors wants them
to pay more attention to. But I don't just judge
a school on the basics, reading, writing and maths those things.
I judge the school on the type of people it
turns out. I judge the school on the citizens that
walk out of the gate each day. I judge the

(05:05):
school on the way that you feel when you go
there for an event or something, or for a meeting.
I judge a school on whether you get the sense
that it's just going through the motions or whether it
actually walks the talk and all the brochures and on
the website. That's what I judge a school on. And
maybe one day the government will be able to point
to better marks in this and better marks in that,

(05:29):
But that won't tell me a thing about how well
prepared these kids are for life and all the things
that life can throw.

Speaker 1 (05:37):
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