New Chair, Fee increase consultation
Dr Peter Lind
New Zealand Teachers Council Director
Excel in teaching so our learners will excel in the futureDIRECTOR'S MESSAGE: 2 February 2010
Ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou
Warm greetings to you all.
This is the first message of 2010.
New Chair
Kathy Smith’s term as chair of the Council ended on 31 January 2010 and the Council is delighted to introduce you to the new chair, Alison McAlpine. The New Zealand Teachers Council wishes to acknowledge and thank Kathy Smith for her significant contribution and outstanding leadership as chair of the Council over the last three years.
Alison has held many and varied roles across all sectors in a long and distinguished career in education, most recently as Principal of Nelson College for Girls, but also as a School Inspector, Curriculum Adviser and Resource Writer. Recent Ministry of Education contracts have included Intervention work and she has represented the school sector both nationally and internationally on SPANZ External Reference Groups, and on representative missions to the Pacific and Asia through UNESCO.
Recognition for services to education has come in the form of a Woolf Fisher Scholarship, Queen's Service Order and the Annie Aitken Continuing Education Fellowship from Otago University.
Alison is currently on the Board of NZQA, is a Nelson City Councillor and has also held governance roles in the Hillary Commission, JP Association, Q Youth, Cancer Society, EEA and the Lotteries Committee for Nelson/West Coast. She is also a member of the Institute of Directors.
Consultation on Teacher Registration Fee Increase
The Council is consulting on the need for a teacher registration fee increase. Invitations for a meeting on the 16 February 2010 have been sent to teacher unions, professional leader groups, employers and other key agencies. At this meeting, we will outline the reasons for a registration fee increase.
The Registration Fee has not been increased since 2002. Quite simply, since 2002, our work has expanded and costs have gone up. The Council has signalled a review of the current fee since 2007 therefore a fee increase now should come as no surprise to the education sector.
Since 2002 we have increased our capability to deliver efficient service to teachers including the development of a new software system, TCR, which allows the electronic recording and processing of applications. In 2002, there were fewer than 65,000 teachers on the Council’s teacher register. There are now over 93,000 teachers on the register with a current practising certificate.
Other Council services and professional leadership projects have also been expanded and developed since 2002.
In 2002 any complaint about a teacher was dealt with by the Council at its monthly meeting. Since then, we have established a Complaints Assessment Committee which, in 2010, operates three panels - one in each of Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. We have also established an Impairment Committee.
In 2002 we did not have the Disciplinary Tribunal. Now the Disciplinary Tribunal is fully operational.
Since 2002 the Council has developed a number of professional leadership projects including a Code of Ethics for Teachers, a set of standards for teaching graduates and the revision of the criteria for recognising fully registered teachers. A number of other national projects targeting the induction of newly qualified teachers and the training of mentor teachers have also been initiated.
The level of the proposed new fee will cover the Council’s expansion of services and the substantial increase in the cost of goods and services, for example, the lease of property, communication costs, personnel costs, legal and other costs.
Until now we have absorbed these costs, but by 2012 we will not be able to do so without going into negative equity. We are being very transparent and there will be active consultation on the proposed increase from $40 a year to about $72. The ongoing need of the Council is to provide professional leadership that contributes to safe and high quality teaching and learning in New Zealand schools and early childhood services.
If you have any questions or concerns about this matter, you may contact me at peter.lind@teacherscouncil.govt.nz
Yours sincerely
Dr Peter Lind
Director
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