Independence in education 'brings rewards'

Independent schooling has great benefits for families and should be accessible to people from all walks of life, says Deborah James, the new executive director of Independent Schools of New Zealand (ISNZ).

Ms James comes to the role with a passionate belief that every family in New Zealand should, if they choose to, have access to all available types of educational opportunities. "I fully support a robust state school system but the reality is that every local school will not suit every local child. They should have access to the type of education that suits the needs of the child. "As a parent, I should have the right to choose where and how my children should be educated; and the government should be willing to finance that education. Why would it not want to have New Zealand's children getting the best possible start in life?" ISNZ represents schools that teach 80 percent of New Zealand's 31,000 private sector-educated children.

Public awareness

Ms James says a key role at ISNZ will be to create a far greater public awareness of the benefits of independent schooling.

Those benefits have been apparent in Ms James' personal life as well as professional life. Two of her children could have been labelled 'precocious and lateral thinking'; and they needed a school that could understand how to channel those traits into positive, life-supporting behaviours.

"If they had been put in to a school that did not have the teacher resources or student/teacher ratio to cater for their learning styles they could easily have rebelled, it’s as simple as that. What we needed for them was a school that offered the resources and teaching skills to help shape their abilities and give them the self-belief to use them positively."

Ms James' choice was independent schooling in Christchurch, the family's home town, at schools that had a reputation for being able to focus on each child’s individual needs. "It gave my children the chance to be who they are."

Ms James says she firmly believes her 26-year-old eldest daughter's experiences since leaving school can be put down to not only the education she received at an independent school but also the school’s push to encourage students to dare to be different.

Her daughter works for a international law firm in New York, following study in India for the International Baccalaureate Diploma, under-graduate law studies in the United States; an Honours law degree from Cambridge University; a Masters law degree from Columbia University; and work experience in Cambodia, India and Afghanistan in international human rights.

Funding

Funding is a key issue for independent schools.

"Our rolls are increasing at a faster rate than state schools, because parents clearly want the types of education independent schools offer, but they have been hamstrung by the government's cap in overall funding for private schools. We have more pupils than ever but the eight-year-old cap means the funding per student is going down.

"We know that independent school rolls would increase dramatically if the funding was available and was more equitable for all taxpayers.

"The restricted government funding currently makes it a real struggle for many families. It has been evident from numerous surveys over recent years that parents want choice, want the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of an independent education and would exercise that choice if it were a less expensive option."

Parents make sacrifices

Ms James was previously director of development at private Christchurch school St Margaret's College, and she says many parents there made great sacrifices to give the children an independent education.

"We had families where parents were taking on second and third jobs, mortgaging their house, or getting help from their children’s grandparents to help cover the cost of their children's education. We know that is also happening for schools right around New Zealand.

"If a school is doing a good job, and parents want to send their children to that school, there is no good reason why they should have to take such financially damaging steps to get them there."

Parents were already funding the state education system through their taxes. The GST paid on tuition fees by parents of children at ISNZ Member Schools was greater than the grant received from the state.

Best interests

"It is definitely in the country's best interests – social and economic – that the government helps provide education opportunity and choice for all children, irrespective of a family's income.

"There are so many wonderful schools around the country doing amazing things for children, and I am looking forward to working with them and promoting a sector in education that I passionately believe in. On a personal level I feel privileged to be in a position to be giving back to a sector that has served me and my family well."