Rewards for high-rating schools

By MATHEW DEARNALEY

At least 10 per cent of schools will gain extra Government money in a scheme to reward and inspire higher performance.

Education Minister Trevor Mallard has announced that 250 to 270 of the country's 2500 state schools will benefit directly from the scheme, sharing an extra $5.3 million for each of four years from 2006.

Others will benefit indirectly, as the money will go only to schools committed to sharing recipes for success with their neighbours.

But the scheme has received mixed reviews from some members of the Auckland Primary Principals Association, who fear it will be yet another "hoop" to jump through in a bid to bridge a widening gap between Government funding and school costs.

Mr Mallard warned it would not be "easy money to get". Applications would be by invitation only, rather than a free-for-all.

Schools could use the money for research on better practices, for example, or to hire more staff to give teachers more non-contact time for professional development.

The minister admitted taking "a bit of a risk" to spread a gospel of "best practice" in the school system.

But he resented the large sums - about $10.55 million a year - spent on bailing out poorly performing schools and would prefer to spend money "at the top of the cliff" by encouraging high-performing schools.

Mr Mallard told the Herald that the risk lay in how the scheme would be perceived, as identifying good schools and developing them further may not always fit the New Zealand culture.

He distinguished it from a British school achievement awards scheme that dished out £180 million ($484 million) over three years but had been wound up after an evaluation found no hard evidence of a positive impact on teaching and learning.

That scheme was too focused on those already at the top rather than encouraging progress on a broader front, he said.

Freemans Bay School principal Malcolm Milner pointed to a Council for Education Research report in September of a widening gap between school running costs and Government operations grants, and an increasing reliance on local fundraising to make ends meet.

Mr Mallard suggested the report, commissioned by the School Trustees Association, was not fair as it did not count an extra $200 million spent annually on 2000 more teachers hired to cope with higher rolls, or $180 million on professional development and computers.

Mr Milner said his school had to raise $220,000 this year through activities such as discos, chocolate sales and international student enrolments to supplement a $300,000 operation grant.

Principals association president Anne Malcolm, of Ponsonby Primary, welcomed the emphasis on collaboration between schools but questioned the term "best practice".

"It should be called effective practice because it is a never-ending goal and best practice means we have got there."

Class distinction

* The extra money will be aimed at high-performance schools across the socio-economic range, from deciles one to 10.

* Schools at the top of their game may not qualify as recipients will have to show potential to improve over four years.

* Eligibility criteria will be worked out over the next six to nine months by the Ministry of Education in consultation with schools and other groups such as teacher unions.