Myth busting
You don’t need to be a qualified teacher to work in a charter school
Charter school teachers must all either hold a current practising certificate or a Limited Authority to Teach (LAT).
Just like state schools, charter schools can employ teachers with a LAT issued by the Teaching Council.
At least 75 percent of teaching positions must be filled by people holding a current practising certificate. The remaining teaching positions must be filled by people holding a LAT or practising certificate.
There are no restrictions on the number of LATs employed in state schools.
You can’t be a member of a union if you teach at a charter school
Teachers can work in charter schools and belong to a union.
The only difference is unions can only initiate single employer collective bargaining with the sponsor. Unions can negotiate on behalf of one or multiple employees in a charter school. In other words, a union can't negotiate a multi-employer agreement across more than one sponsor, or across any sponsor and other types of schools.
That’s because multi-employer collective agreements would affect a school sponsor’s level of influence over the types of terms and conditions offered to their employees.
Charter schools are only for rich people
All domestic students can attend a charter school, in the same way that they can attend a state school. Charter schools can’t select students, and if their rolls are full, they must prioritise applicants in the order set out in Section 212U of the Education and Training Act.
Just like state schools, charter schools provide free education and enrolment. Sponsors can’t charge tuition fees.
State integrated schools that had an integration agreement that allowed them to charge attendance dues prior to converting to a charter school will be able to charge parents a property maintenance fee, subject to it being agreed in the charter school contract.
There’s nothing in place to measure charter schools’ performance and no consequences if they underperform
Charter school sponsors have flexibility around teaching, curriculum, governance, hours and days of operation. They can decide how to use their funding and can set their own curriculum. But in turn for this flexibility, there is greater accountability.
Sponsors are required to show they are meeting performance outcomes specified in their contracts. They are held to account by a performance management framework. This includes measures and targets for student outcomes of achievement and attendance, financial performance and compliance with regulatory requirements in a number of specific areas.
The Charter School Authorisation Board is responsible for overseeing the performance of charter schools and deciding on interventions if a sponsor doesn’t meet its contractual and legislative requirements.
If a sponsor isn’t meeting its contracted targets, the Authorisation Board decides what interventions are necessary. Options could include terminating a contract, or terminating a contract and replacing the sponsor.
The Authorisation Board receives regular reports from the Charter School Agency on a range of aspects relating to performance along with six monthly reports on student outcomes, financial performance and compliance with regulatory requirements in a number of specific areas.
Charter schools failed last time and now they are back, and nothing has changed. More money is being thrown at a flawed model
There are differences between partnership schools and charter schools.
Partnership schools:
- Ministers decided which partnership schools would be funded.
- Only new schools could become partnership schools.
- Partnership schools focused on at-risk learners only.
Charter schools:
- The independent Authorisation Board approves a sponsor to operate a charter school.
- Sponsors have clear performance targets that are subject to management by the Board through the use of interventions.
- As well as new schools, state and state integrated schools can convert to charter schools.
- Charter schools accept all domestic students offering diversity, innovation and choice in the school network.
- The charter school contract contains protections for crown funding and the taxpayers’ dollars
- At least 75 percent of teaching positions must be filled by people holding a current practising certificate. The remaining teaching positions must be filled by people holding a LAT or practising certificate.
Charter schools can invent their own curriculum
Charter schools can use the same curriculum as state schools, or, just like private schools, they can choose what curriculum they provide. For secondary schools, the qualification offered needs to be nationally and/or internationally recognised.
You need a lot of money to be a sponsor
Charter schools are funded by the state. This funding is broadly equivalent to state schools, but does not preclude the sponsor from having alternative revenue streams.
Budget 24 set aside $153.09m in new funding for the charter schools initiative. This will be provided over four years to establish and operate up to 15 new charter schools and convert 35 state schools to charter schools in 2025 and 2026.
A sponsor is responsible for operating and managing the school, and can use the funding at their discretion.
Anyone can be a sponsor
For new schools, the Authorisation Board accepts applications from:
- a body corporate
- corporation sole
- limited partnership, institution, or related entity.
For converting schools, it accepts applications from
- the school’s board with the support of the proposed sponsor
- one or more members of the school community with the support of the proposed sponsor.
Unlike state schools, the Education Review Office isn’t involved in assessing the performance of charter schools
ERO checks new charter schools before they open to ensure key child protection and health and safety policies are in place. Feedback on ERO’s findings are reported to the Charter School Agency. After a school has been opened for a year, ERO completes another verification check to ensure policies have been applied. After that, ERO conducts a three-yearly regular review cycle to review the delivery of education services and compliance with health and safety legislation. These reports are published on ERO’s website as is the case for all schools.
Converting schools don’t have the new school check. Their review cycle begins three years after converting. The Education Minister, the Authorisation Board, and the Chief Review Officer can ask ERO to conduct special reviews of aspects of the governance and management of charter schools on a case-by-case basis.
ERO can also proactively review a school in line with its legislative powers and can inform the Agency if it identifies any concerns when it reviews a school.
State schools have lots of ability to innovate without becoming a charter school
Charter schools provide an opportunity for greater innovation and the ability to tailor their education approach to their students and community beyond what a state school can do.
Some examples of this include:
- Offering different school hours and term dates.
- Flexible funding use.
- Tailoring education for specific groups of students, such as those who are neuro diverse
- Learning through culture.
- Expanding the number or age of children that can attend the school.
- Different governance structure.
Funding that is put aside for charter schools takes funding away from state schools
Charter schools are largely funded on a per student basis and funding follows the student, regardless of which school they are enrolled in. That means when a child changes schools the funding goes with them. Funding for charter schools is broadly equivalent to that for state schools with similar rolls and characteristics.
There’s no evidence that charter schools are making any difference to the students that attend them
Charter schools have only been open for a short period, so the best evidence we have at this point comes from the students themselves. Here’s a selection of student testimonies:
“A positive experience that I have had at this school would be the last day of term 1, receiving a certificate for being at the school for a term. I haven’t received a certificate since primary school. It was a massive win for me. I felt seen and heard for putting in effort to get my life back on track. Honestly every day at the busy school is a positive experience for me. I feel happy to go to school, and excited to see where the day takes me.”
“It been good the school helps me every time, the school vibe is so nice that I don't wanna (sic) miss a day off. The relationship here is so cool even with the teachers and students and I feel safe here as well. My attendance been good which is a good change from my other school so as my listening skills been improving a lot. I talk to more people than I used to, I used to be shy as at my old school, so I didn't really have a group of friends. Now I have a good relationship with my peers and with the teachers as well.”
“(This school) has been the best experience in education for me my whole life. I love it, I genuinely feel like being at school every day not only have I been completing my work and understanding but creating new bonds in my life and getting my life on track.”
Charter schools don’t have exams, so they’ll leave these schools without any qualifications whatsoever
Charter schools are required to provide a nationally or internationally recognised qualification for secondary schools so students can leave school with a formal qualification. They can opt for NCEA, for example, or like private schools they can provide recognised qualifications such as the International Baccalaureate, Cambridge or American SATs.
Sponsors are businesses that make money out of operating a charter school
While charter schools themselves are publicly funded and cannot charge tuition fees, the private entities that sponsor and operate them can elect to operate either for or not for profit. Most sponsors operate on a not for profit basis.
Many charter schools will be established by educators, parents, and community leaders aiming to provide innovative educational opportunities. Their primary focus is on student achievement and addressing specific community needs, rather than generating profits.
Lifting educational achievement is a key aim of charter schools, and sponsors that operate for-profit must ensure they meet contractual obligations before any profit or dividends from the school can be used at the sponsor’s discretion.
Charter schools are all religious
Charter schools are not all religiously based.
Sponsors can apply to establish a charter school with a particular focus, such as a specific religion.
Charter schools undermine the public education system
The introduction of charter schools is one of the ways in which the government is aiming to improve educational outcomes.
Charter schools offer a complementary, not a competitive pathway to the state school system. Charter schools are an integral part of the overall network of state funding education provision in New Zealand. This means that charter schools realise a student’s right to a free, secular, and reasonably convenient education. They aim to strengthen and diversify the state education system and provide choice within the schooling network.
They also create new options in areas of the country where there may be fewer options.
Charter schools don’t have attendance targets like state schools
Charter schools are required to meet contracted attendance rates and are accountable to meet these as part of their contracted outcomes.
The interest in charter schools is so low that $4 million was taken out of money set aside for charter schools
$4.011M was reprioritised from the Charter School Agency’s departmental budget for the 2024/25 financial year. This budget isn’t used to fund charter schools.
These savings related to operating efficiencies introduced by the Agency, such as bringing activities like negotiations inhouse and using existing resources within the education sector.