Western Bay of Plenty Principals' Association president Suzanne Billington. Photo / George Novak
Bay of Plenty principal Suzanne Billington has called for the Ministry of Education to put an end to school exclusions, with nearly 20 students in between schools in the region.
New Zealand Principals Federation president Perry Rush described the exclusion process as "troubling, upsetting and awful", while a Rotorua principal says schools have "inadequate" resourcing to address an "exponential rise" in serious behavioural problems.
Other principals say there is a lack of funding to help students that often came from homes plagued with housing issues and financial stress.
Moving a student did not, in their view, fix the problem but they acknowledged tough decisions were being made on behalf of all pupils.
The ministry was working to re-enrol 19 excluded Bay students into new schools — including six kicked out for physically assaulting other students, new figures reveal.
Another five were excluded for continual disobedience. Behaviour types of the eight other students could not be revealed for privacy reasons.
Only a school's board can decide to exclude or expel a student and the ministry said it was not done lightly.
Exclusion is for students aged 16 or younger and requires them to be enrolled at another school. Expulsion is for older students and they do not have to be enrolled elsewhere.
Behaviour types that could result in exclusion were continual disobedience, physical assault on other students, drugs and physical and verbal assault on staff.
Billington, the Western Bay of Plenty Principals' Association president and Tauriko School principal, said she was eager to see an end to school exclusions because the system had "the appropriate options and support to keep young people in education and get them the support they need".
Billington said challenged youth in the region deserved "linked-up, culturally responsive, therapeutic help".
All schools in the Western Bay "strive" to have young people engaged in learning and attending school but it was difficult for the students facing "quite complex challenges".
"Ideally, the solution for students and their whānau is that the [ministry] provides appropriate support for any student who finds it challenging to engage in learning at their local school."
But there was a "clear" lack of resourcing to provide appropriate support for these young people, she said.
"Any school in the process of enrolling a student ... who has been excluded from school wants to know that they too have the support in place right from the start to enable this student to experience success."
Pāpāmoa College principal Steve Lindsey said school exclusions were the "absolute end of the line" for a student and not a decision taken lightly by schools.
He said significant expertise and resource were needed to support students demonstrating extreme behaviours, some of which were facing "huge difficulties" in life.
"They need a journey of intervention. It has to be an ongoing process, it is not an overnight thing," he said.
"As soon as we can be better resourced then we will be in a better position to effect really good change in a young person life. It is a whole team effort."
He said stand-downs and exclusions were not a restorative or development tool but a "consequence of action".
"There needs to be a greater range of options for students demonstrating behaviours at that extreme end," he said.
Tauranga Boys' College Principal Robert Mangan agreed school exclusions were a last resort.
He said there was an expectation for schools to maintain the health and safety of teachers and other students, enabling teaching and learning to take place.
"Unfortunately there is a number of children who through no fault of their own are challenged within that sort of situation, through societal experiences they have had growing up.
"Sadly, societal issues and experiences play out in schools and resourcing needs to be in place to support those young people."
Rotorua Intermediate principal Garry de Thierry said the increase in family harm, drugs, housing and poverty was being reflected in the classroom and that was ''really sad''.
Some students were dealing with trauma and there was very little access to people to work them through these situations.
"That pent-up anger, frustration and anxiety that they bring into a school context. They arrive with all of that baggage, and then there is an expectation within a school that these students will be sitting there and engaging with learning. But these students have all this turmoil going on, and that is the challenge."
John Paul College principal Patrick Walsh said there was an exponential rise in the number of students presenting "serious behavioural problems".
"The resources available to schools to manage these behaviours is manifestly inadequate including teacher aide hours, PD for staff and long waitlists to access outside agencies such as child psychologists."
Rush described the process of excluding a student as a "troubling, upsetting and awful" set of circumstances for those involved.
Often when a student was redirected into a new school after being excluded appropriate resourcing and support was "completely missing", Rush said.
"You cannot simply exclude a student with significant issues, and then think that the new school in a different setting is going to resolve the core of the problems."
NZPF was strongly encouraging the government to provide more therapeutic support for these young people.
Ministry of Education deputy secretary sector enablement and support Helen Hurst said the ministry was aware some students in complex situations displayed "very challenging behaviours".
"This puts pressure on students and staff but often has little to do with the school itself, and more to do with a range of social factors."
A "range of supports" were available for schools needing help with these behaviours, but Hurst acknowledged there was always a demand for more.
"In response to the sector's immediate need for support, Budget 2021 provided $17.7 million over four years to expand the Te Kahu Toi, Intensive Wraparound Service."
Hurst said this would support up to 95 additional learners a year with significant wellbeing and behaviour needs who needed support at school and at home.
The ministry was shifting away from providing behaviour services focused on individual students towards "locally-led, flexible and preventative approaches".
The ministry's acting deputy secretary sector enablement and support Susan Howan previously said it was the ministry's responsibility to work with family and education providers of an excluded students to find an option for them to "engage and participate" in learning.
Support, including transport, in and out of school activities and learning support, was also available to ensure a student transitioned and integrated well into a new school.
According to the ministry website, a principal has 10 school days to try to arrange for a child to attend another school before the ministry steps in.
A school can refuse to enrol a child if they had been excluded or expelled from another school.
However, "the Ministry of Education can lift the exclusion to allow your child to return to the school which excluded them or direct another school to enrol your child".
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