Striving at school now 'a crime'

Moerewa School's crime is having the audacity to set high goals for pupils of a Decile 1 school according to the founder of a very successful Maori school outside Kaitaia.

Hilda Halkyard-Harawira, a former principal at Te Rangi Aniwaniwa, said she had been struck by the positive attitude and achievements of Moerewa's senior students.

"They're so positive. They want to go to school, and they want to go to that school," she said.

The students' achievements were exemplified by one of the senior girls who was currently in London and about to perform kapa haka for the Queen.

Instead of shutting down the unit, Education Minister Hekia Parata should see Moerewa School as "an oasis of opportunity" and a template for other communities.

Principal Keri Milne-Ihimaera and the ousted board of trustees were "a flower in the desert of educational paucity," Mrs Halkyard-Harawira added.

"Now Tai Tokerau will have to watch while some commissioner comes in and botches up the smooth running of Moerewa School."

The school had shown it could make a positive difference for Year 9-10 students, and should have been allowed to make a case for Year 11-13.

In the case of her school, it had taken almost two years to satisfy the ministry's requirements for wharekura (secondary school) status. Te Rangi Aniwaniwa faced some of the same challenges as Moerewa, such as its small size and lack of specialist teachers, but that had been overcome with video-conferencing, using units prepared by other schools, and making use of Correspondence School workshops.

Ms Halkyard-Harawira said it was ironic that the National government had opened the door for charter schools to be run by business people with little or no educational experience, but slammed a school that was delivering better results than some established schools were.