Students face new responsibilities

Press, 12 April 1989, Page 16

Students face new responsibilities

Many secondary school students throughout New Zealand will soon have their first direct experience of an election. They may not be voting for a Government or the city mayor, but their decision could have a big impact on their lives for the next few years. Students will be voting for their own representative on the new board of trustees, which take over the running of schools later this year. The representatives and those who vote for them must be in form four or above. The student representative will be a full member of the board and will have a say and vote in all discussions, including funding matters, the school curriculum, and staff appointments. They could be the influencing voice on whether money is spent on a new tennis net in the playground or an improved standard of 100 paper in the toilets. They may be the difference between whether a new class is begun in Japanese language, or an unpopular class in technical drawing is dropped. It will be up to the student member to learn the opinions and wishes of their fellow students, take these to the board, and relay back any discussion or decision. A The boards of trustees are being set up under the Government’s “Tomorrow’s Schools” education reforms. Nominations for the student representatives closed last week, and voting must be completed by April 24. A total of 154 student nominations have been received from Christchurch’s 15 State and integrated schools. The largest number at any one school is 24 at Avonside

Girls’ High. Aranui High School had 19, and Hagley 16. Some people may view the position of student representative as demanding and scary. But members of the Christchurch Secondary Schools’ Youth Council say that most are positive about having a say on their school board for the first time. “It’s a good thing, because at the moment the boards don’t know what students want,” says Tracey Ellis, of Mairehau High School. “Students are the ones that make up the school so they should have a say in its running.” The students say that

‘Students should have say in school’s running’

young people who leave school at 15 or 16 are treated as adults, and those who remain at school should be given the same respect. Kylie Darling, of Christchurch Girls’ High, believes that young people are at school not only to learn theory, but to gain practical experience in a variety of areas. “This is the sort of thing you could come across later in life.” She and the other youth councillors believe there are a number of important qualities which student representatives should have. They need to be good listeners so they can learn the concerns of their fellow students, they need to be mature, confident about talking with teachers, parents and in school assemblies, and sensitive to the feelings of others. The students agree that their representative should not be excluded

By

SUZANNE KEEN

from any board discussion, such as staffing issues, and that it is therefore important that they are trustworthy and can keep confidentiality where required. “If they have been classified as mature enough to be on the board then they have to be mature enough to cope with staff discussions and issues like that,” says Tracey. Clare Geeves, of Cashmere High School, says that by the time students reach the sixth and seventh forms, they

have had experience with most teachers and are therefore ideally qualified to discuss their positions. “We have had firsthand experience of what they do, while teachers and parents get an edited version.” The students believe that while concern about repercussions from teachers could be a real fear for some representatives who speak out on controversial issues, teachers may also be worried about what they say in front of the student.

Jamie Billings, of Cashmere High, thinks there should be two student members on each board so that there is not just a “lone voice.” “It is a daunting task. It can be very difficult to put a view across to a lot of adults.”

Joanna Malcolm, of Avonside Girls’ High, is standing for the board alongside her father, who wishes to be a parent member. She says she is slightly worried about what other people may think, but is not concerned at the prospect of finding herself arguing against her father in a meeting.

“I believe I am mature enough to handle it.” Kylie adds that there could be pressure on student representatives from their peers. They could be labelled “greasers” or the teacher’s pet. All schools are taking their own approach to the student elections. While some are allowing lobbying, speeches in assem-

blies, and question and answer sessions with nominees, others are restricting campaigning to posters around the school and individual approaches to candidates. “Cashmere aren’t allowed to lobby because when they had a school council the person who got on was always the one who made the funniest speech,” says Jamie. Students are supposed to approach the nominees

‘Election is a

learning process’

and ask them what they hope to achieve on the council. However, this could be intimidating for a fourth former wishing to speak to a senior.

Joanna thinks that because Avonside Girls’ has so many nominees, the successful candidate is likely to be the most wellknown.

The youth councillors say that most students will

vote because they have generally been well briefed about the new boards of trustees and the changes to the school system.

Many schools are using the election itself as a learning process. They will set up polling booths and print official forms so that students can vote as they would in a General Election.

It is generally agreed that there could be only one disadvantage to having a student representative and that is if the wrong person got the job. The students suggest there should be a safety net. The student representative could initially be appointed for a trial period so that if he or she breached confidence or did not work out they could be replaced, suggests Jamie. They agree the proposal for student representatives has to work the first time round — if not, the politicians could always take the right of representation awav.