Side effects to upgrading

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32566, 27 March 1971, Page 1

Side effects to upgrading

(By our education reporter)

The upgrading of primary teachers’ positions achieved as a result of salary increases late last year is having some unfortunate side effects among primary schools in Christchurch.

Two school committees are known to have threatened to resign because of the instability caused in school staffing through staff regrading. A spokesman for one school committee said last

evening that the introduction of the new staffing schedules had been apparently made in haste and rather belatedly.

The effect of this had been disruption among staffs affected and a feeling of uncertainty about their future. “While there is support for the upgrading of teaching positions, appointments to such positions should have been made either at the end of the year or before the school year commenced,” he said.

“The Department of Education seems to have admitted its haste in the Education Gazette on December 15 where it expressed its appreciation to Education Boards for having arranged advertisements at short notice for the new positions created.” j The spokesman said that I the Department of Education had been hampered because the Government decision on upgradings and salary increases was made late lin the year. He said that many teachers ’had been forced to move from their schools because of the upgrading; and at least one headmaster had also been obliged to vacate his position.

The president of the North Canterbury branch of the New Zealand Educational Institute (Mr D. F Stewart) said last night “It is an accepted principle of the teaching profession that the highest graded teacher wins the position. This, associated with the fact that teachers knew that the changes in schedules were likely, leave teachers with no cause for complaint. “In the long term all of this will be of lasting benefit ito children and teachers.”