Letters to the editor: Teacher-only days out of touch

Teacher-only days are a burden on our communities, says a reader. Photo / Getty Images

Most schools are hugely appreciative of their school community and the real support that the community provides to a school every day of the year.

Without such support in so many different ways, schools would struggle to present a positive, inclusive school togetherness focused on student learning success.

The decision by some schools to hold teacher-only days when school communities have been shattered by lockdowns and unemployment realities has been difficult to understand or appreciate.

To have such disregard for the very communities that are so very supportive of the work of every school and to ask parents to make alternative arrangements for yet another day during a school term after massive dislocation imposed by the virus is totally wrong.

Boards of trustees, principals and management will be currently planning for next year and beyond.

Schools can acknowledge their understanding and compassion for the traumas faced by school, communities in the last year.

Teacher-only days should be abandoned during a school term and held during school vacations for the next two years.

Jim McTamney
Tauranga

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It is commendable that Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta is prepared to appoint a commissioner to sort out Tauranga City Council.

A commissioner should provide stability and allow the city to operate under normal conditions in the period before a new council can be elected. (Abridged)

Terry Collett
Tauranga

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