Preparation 1

I've had an insightful comment from a reader - thank you - to which I would like to respond:

"Hey Claire,I too have a son recently turned 16ys and back at school doing NCEA 1 cos he failed last years attempt. Anyway today I had a phone call to say he has been stood down for x2 days due to a fighting incident. This is not the first time and this stand down has come with a firm warning that any other incident will result in us going to the Board of Trustees and likely hood of permanent action. I am well aware of a students rights to safety when attending school and when I meet with the Principal I will no doubt have something to say. You see my child is not alone in our community and there is some responsibility upon them/us to help give our sons a hand up not a hand out cos they are just too hard to handle. I want our sons to get an education it is after all their right to have one in our society surely? I am not sure of your cultural background, but my child is Måori and the statistics get even worst if you leave school at 16yrs old with no qualification and with an anger problem. Your meeting would have happened by now so let us know how it went."Rina

Firstly, I want to offer cyber and heartfelt support to Rina who is facing with Mother Courage and insight, the consequences of her son's actions. We mothers, women, parents, are not alone, and this is my real reason for starting up this blog, to make connections, share experiences and support growth and learning.

Rina makes some good points which I think are helpful not just for parents about to face a School Board disciplinary hearing:

1. The responsibility lies within our community to give our children a hand up not a hand out.

I've posted already about the triangle of responsibility, and that it takes a village to raise a child.

I do think that our education system could do better in providing resources for children who are going through the worst of the teenage years. I don’t have the answers, and I know a lot of programmes are already in place, or have been piloted, and some ended after funding ran out or governments changed. But I think if we accept that some children are unable to rescue themselves from the tangled brain mess inside, coupled with environmental factors that may exacerbate their behaviour in a negative way, we as a community ought to have systems in place to catch them. Not after they’ve gotten into trouble, but before. If they are identified as heading down that tangled path, then let’s find ways to hold them fast within a system that can deliver a high quality education opportunity as well as strong boundaries. Even from just a fiscal perspective, early investment in quality education support systems should show a positive return on investment further down the track.

2. The right to education.

In our society we are blessed by having the right to an education. Sometimes, though, equal access to education is not there. I know this is getting into hot political and bleeding heart liberal territory, so I’m not going to go too far here. But if we accept the right to education, then isn’t there a responsibility to deliver a broader education delivery option to support those who don’t fit the discipline mould. If we chuck out those who don’t (or plainly won’t) conform, are we doing our society a massive disservice and potentially costing society more by not having better systems in place. The Government’s Tertiary Education Strategy states (in part) the intention to improve the country’s economy and support sustainable growth. By excluding large numbers of children from the education system, I’d contend that we are costing the country and limiting its growth and development.

The Government’s vision is for a world-leading education system that equips all New Zealanders with the knowledge, skills and values to be successful citizens in the 21st century.

Although this is written in relation to the tertiary sector, a large number of our kids might not get anywhere near tertiary education or vocational opportunities, if they get ‘excluded’ before their brains have unscrambled themselves.

3. Statistics on Maori school children.

Another curly issue. Rina is right, the statistics are sobering. There’s an inverted ‘V’ in the graphs that show a spike in total numbers of students between the ages of 13 and 15 being suspended from schools: 67% of children suspended are in this age group. If we dealt with the numbers within the inverted V, this would mean by my calculations that over 3,000 children per annum would have access to targeted programmes that supported them and nurtured them while their brains, specifically their prefrontal cortex or the 'seat of reason' can't. In addition to these statistics, Maori are being suspended and excluded from schools in disproportionate numbers. You can read about it here.

What else do we know? This is the age when “brain changes during adolescence are among the most dramatic and important to occur during the human life span” (based on a scientific review paper, Steinberg 2010). Studies into ‘neuroplasticity’ of the brain and new research into the adolescent brain development are way beyond my comprehension, but what I do know is this: that in this time of huge change there are many individual differences and that both parents and the community have a huge role to play in putting systems in place to support, guide and determine the pathways down which our children can travel.

Because, we know that our children won’t be able to successfully navigate the way all by themselves.

More later as I prepare to meet the Board later in the week. Hopefully what I have to say is more structured than the ramble above (I’m stressed…!).