Hipkins Chris: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers Questions to MembersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeHipkins Chris: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members[Sitting date: 23 October 2014. Volume:701;Page:207. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]6.CHRIS HIPKINS (Labour—Rimutaka)to the Minister of Education: Is she satisfied that the introduction of partnership schools is resulting in better educational outcomes for all of the students who are attending them; if so why?Hon HEKIA PARATA (Minister of Education):Tēnā koe Mr Speaker. At the stage they are at and in all the circumstances yes. The schools have however completed just over 8 months of a first-year start-up. Nevertheless the flexibility that the model provides is already showing some early positive results. For example the latest reports from the Education Review Office on two of the five schools show signs of success and we look forward to further reviews. I am satisfied that the partnership schools are meeting their contractual requirements and are working to do the best for all their students but of course there will continue to be challenges as there are in schools across our system.Chris Hipkins: If charter schools are supposed to be about increased flexibility which of the following innovations does she believe will do the most to raise student achievement: students making a bong to smoke marijuana out of apples supplied by the school the incorporation of daily surfing into the curriculum high staff turnover and lack of qualified teaching staff or reports of bullying racism and vandalism?Hon HEKIA PARATA: Regrettably every one of those examples given we have seen across our system of over 2500 schools.Hon Ruth Dyson: So it’s all right then?Hon HEKIA PARATA: It is not all right and that is why we have levers in place to deal with them and so we are dealing with them. The flexibilities that we are talking about are the hours of operation the curriculum the ability to have cashed-up funding instead of it being already paid on behalf of other schools the range of subjects taught the way in which they are taught and the engagement of parents whānau aiga and communities. There is a whole range of flexibilities that these schools offer that we think will bring success for students who have not been successful for many years in other alternatives.Chris Hipkins: Why does she believe that these students are better served in an experimental charter school that is funded at considerably higher levels than State schools resulting in a teacher-student ratio of 1:8 at that particular school when existing schools could arguably do a much better job if provided with the same level of resourcing?Hon HEKIA PARATA: The member is quite wrong in his assertion. In fact these schools are funded comparative to decile 3 schools. The difference is that whereas in a mainstream State school the ministry pays directly to provide for instance for property for insurance premiums and for the provision of professional learning and development those elements for partnership schools are cashed up. But the comparisons are almost exactly the same. To the first part of the member’s question none of the students are compelled to attend these schools; their parents freely choose for them to do so.Chris Hipkins: How is it fair and equitable for a charter school to be funded with guaranteed funding every year for 71 students when in fact it enrolled only 61 students at the beginning of the year and that number has already dropped to below 50 and the Ministry of Education figures show that it is lucky to get 30 kids regularly showing up? That is half the number that it is funded for.Hon HEKIA PARATA: Perhaps if the member was more familiar with the way our entire education system runs he would know that in start-up years for every school there is a projection of what that roll might be but it will fluctuate before it settles down. That is equally true for very long-established schools.Chris Hipkins: Does she believe that charter schools conducting random searches of students to detect drugs or other prohibited items is consistent with the Education Act 1989 and the changes that this Government made last year that prevents State schools from doing the same thing?Hon HEKIA PARATA: If the member has specific incidents that he would like brought to my attention I am very happy to—Chris Hipkins: It says so on their websites and in the documents with the ministry.Hon HEKIA PARATA: And perhaps if the member would like to wait for my answer to his question then I would be very happy to answer it. What I can tell the member is that these schools are subject to review by the Education Review Office two of which have returned very positive reviews—and thank you to the member for celebrating that—and three are still to come. In terms of their further monitoring the authorisation board also does that and the Ministry of Education reviews and works with each and every one of these schools.