Is it too late to professionalise the Education Council? Prof John O’Neill Massey University
The National-led government has seriously misstepped to strengthen capability and quality. Logically, the capability and in creating the Education Council. One can only hope this does quality of registered teachers are substantively different from not prove to be a tragedy for both learners and teachers. the capability and quality of other education workers. The term To be clear, I have always been strongly in favour of an “education profession” is therefore a category error. It collapses independent professional body for teachers and still am. This multiple dissimilar occupational groups including those who are means, however, that it must be a body for teachers, it must focus not intended to be subject to the provisions of legislation (e.g., on professionalism and it must act independently. The present teacher aides, instructors, coaches, tutors, teaching assistants, body is in serious danger of educational psychologists and doing none of these three things. Focusing on conduct alone education support workers). A professional body for Establishment of the Council teachers must be focused solely is based on the view that teachers provided a unique and timely on the teaching profession. opportunity to distinguish Calling the professional body cannot be trusted to make registered teachers from all for teachers an education council professional and moral other education workgroups and is an oxymoron. It undermines professions and it was remiss or teaching. It deprofessionalises judgments about the best mischievous of the government the work of teaching. It is a slap not to do so for ideological, on the cheek for teachers. In fact interests of learners. political and fiscal reasons. it is a slap on both cheeks because Based on the precedent of, teachers themselves will pay handsomely for the privilege of say, the Medical Council, professional bodies are generally having their own professional body undermine their status. concerned with: (i) competence; (ii) conduct; and (iii) ethics. I The name of the new body should have been the “Teaching would wholeheartedly support this scope of oversight activity Council of Aotearoa New Zealand”. Designating a restricted with respect to the teaching profession by a Teaching Council scope of practice (i.e., “registered teacher”) for the new of Aotearoa New Zealand. Professionalism incorporates all independent statutory body is the only way to: (i) gain the active three areas: competent classroom practice informed by a body support and commitment of the teaching profession; and (ii) of professional knowledge and skills; appropriate professional provide assurance to the public and learners that the body will behaviour and relations; and moral judgments that place learners improve the quality of teaching and its statutory oversight. at the heart of everything teachers do. However, in my view the Use of the term education council conflates two quite different government has cackhandedly botched the professionalism occupational categories: “teaching profession” and “education dimension of the Council’s work from the outset by insisting profession”. These are not one and the same yet the body is named that a code of conduct should replace a code of ethics rather to imply that they are, and therefore that they should be overseen than sit alongside it. by the one professional body. This conflation is ideologically The overriding purpose of a professional body is to protect the and politically motivated and not in the interests of the public public interest in so far as it concerns the provision of services to or learners. It seeks to break the power of the existing teacher learners by registered teachers. In this regard, it is the interests of professional associations, NZEI and PPTA, and to dismantle learners that would be central to decisions about the competence, collective solidarity in favour of individual performativity. conduct and ethics of teachers. This is fundamentally important Yet central to securing improvements in the quality and to the credibility and effectiveness of the proposed Council. professionalism of teaching is a clear articulation of the difference Ditching the teachers’ code of ethics is more than a low-trust between the “teaching profession” and any other “education approach to professionalism, it is a no trust approach. Focusing profession” by delimiting the scope of practice and the eligibility on conduct alone is based on the view that teachers cannot be to practise. trusted to make professional and moral judgments about the The term “registered teacher” should be protected in law so that best interests of learners. It is also based on a mistaken view that only teachers registered by the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New when teachers speak out against education policy that they are Zealand would be permitted to describe themselves as such. This somehow putting their own interests ahead of those of learners seems entirely consistent with the primary purpose of the body, and being disloyal to their employers. On the contrary, my
experience is that teachers do this reluctantly and only when the this role. In this regard, while the Education Review Office is interests of learners are seriously threatened by flawed education often claimed by government to be “independent”, but to my policy. This is a matter of ethics, not conduct. knowledge it has never made critically informed comment on My enthusiasm for the establishment of an independent government policy in its national evaluation reports or public statutory body for teachers is based on the understanding statements. that such bodies are independent of both government and the This underlines the importance of such a requirement for the profession. Registered teachers would pay annual fees to the Education Council. Yet, the new Council risks accusations of independent statutory body. The body would be accountable political interference from the outset because its governance to registered teachers for the use of such fees. structure requires that all members are directly In all other matters, the interests of learners Fixing up appointed by the Minister, and the result of the first and the public would guide the strategic and round of Council appointments does not inspire operational decisions of the Council. In my the Council is confidence. In my view, the model of composition view, this would considerably strengthen the of the Medical Council would provide for a more teaching profession over time and also promote technically balanced, mixed representation of constituencies: greater public confidence in it. It would be a simple but (i) four teachers elected by the profession; (ii) four progressive agenda. Equally, the body’s work teachers appointed by the Minister of Education; and would complement rather than conflict with or politically (iii) four laypersons (not registered teachers). duplicate the essential professional and industrial These are early days for the Council. No doubt it activities already undertaken by the teacher and complex. will long outlast the current government and those principal professional associations in Aotearoa members of Cabinet who are ideologically opposed New Zealand. to teacher autonomy and who have little direct experience of or In order to serve the public interest and those of learners, interest in state education. Fixing up the Council is technically in their leadership role independent statutory bodies are simple but politically complex. A useful start would be for the permitted and expected to make critically informed comment current government to treat the teaching profession with the on government policy in so far as it concerns the teaching respect it deserves and to allow the Council the independence it profession, the public interest and the interests of learners. It is needs to be a genuinely professional independent statutory body. difficult to see how the proposed Council could meaningfully be called an “independent” body were it not enabled to undertake
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