Teachers want more status for courses

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34046, 9 January 1976, Page 10

Teachers want more status for courses

'New Zealand Press Association;

WANGANUI, January’ 8.

The Educational Institute, the primary teachers’ association, would like the three-year teachers’ college courses upgraded so that students who complete it need to do only one year’s full-time university study to gain a degree.

The president of the institute (Mr B. W. Kelly), of Wellington, said in Wanganui last night that he saw this as part of the concept of unification of the teaching service. which the institute strongly supported.

At present there was co-operation between Massey University and the Palmerston North Teachers’ College. Mr Kelly said he would like to see this extended to cover all teachers’ colleges and their neighbouring universities.

Mr Kelly is in Wanganui for the national executive meeting at the institute. “We would like students to be able to gain their bachelor nf education degree through the teachers’ college programme." he said. Mr Kelly said this would probably result in more people with degrees serving tn the primary system, and thts was desirable. “Obviously staff at differ-

'ent levels would be required to have different backgrounds,” Mr Kelly said. “A >person teaching seventh • formers needs a detailed specialist knowledge in a particular field, but a person teaching seven-year-olds needs a detailed knowledge of child development.” Mr Kelly said that the unification of the service had been mentioned in both the main political parties’ elecition manifestos. FEDERATION GOAL It was also the policy ofthe Educational Institute to work towards federation of : teachers’ organisations. Mr Kelly said that the in- ; stitute and the Post-Primary Teachers’ Association execu- ■ tives were already working closely on an increasing number of matters —including ' teacher education. Federation might take time. The executive committee would formalise its policy on i this early next week, Mr ■Kelly said. | The institute felt that teachers’ organisations should be directly involved in the registration of teachers when

; they had finished their training. At present this was done [by the Department of EduI cation. Common conditions of service also came under the heading of unification, as did the question of the difference in length of the primary and secondary teaching year. SCHOOL YEAR Mr Kelly said there seemed ito be no sound reason whyprimary and secondary schools worked years of different length. The length of the year appeared to be related to historical rather i than educational reasons. “It seems particularly strange that older children should work a shorter year than younger children.” The differences in school 'years posed particular difficulties for country education, where school buses served ■ both primary and secondary (schools, and for families in which children attended both ■ types of schools. ' “It would require legislative changes to alter the ■present situation.” The executive had agreed •to discuss the question of i school working terms with other interested parties—in particular the P.P.T.A.