Support vital for schools to remain open in fuel crisis - PPTA

 "The Government says it doesn’t want schools moving to online learning, even if the fuel situation gets much worse. We want to avoid that kind of disruption for students and teachers too, but there is a need to be realistic about the pressures we are facing and what the Government would need to do for face-to-face learning to remain viable.

“Hard data, not just hopeful sentiments and conversations, is needed to inform measures to support schools to stay open as fuel costs continue to rise.”

In a bid to help provide hard data, PPTA is urgently surveying its 21,000 members to fill the information gap on what teachers' current travel arrangements are and how they will be affected by the current international crisis.

It is clear, from Census data, that schools are heavily reliant on car use for their students to get to and from school.  Nearly half (44%) of 10-14 year olds travel to school in a car, truck or van, compared to about a quarter (24%) who go by bus. But there is no systematic data about how teachers get to and from the schools where they teach, or how far they need to travel.

“That’s why we are stepping up and asking teachers to take a few minutes of their time – even though it’s the busy last week of term – to help guide better Government decisions at this challenging time.

“We need evidence-based policy- making that reflects the reality of teachers’ lives and the costs they face.

“The Ministry of Education says it wants to understand what schools’ concerns are and how it can best support them. We are walking the walk to give them that information. Then the ball will be in the Government’s court to provide the support that’s needed to keep schools open.”