Some Policy Considerations in the Changing Relationship between Area Schools and New Zealand Rural Communities

Ken Stevens

Small rural schools in New Zealand have traditionally struggled to offer a full curriculum, especially at secondary level. At a time when the economic and educational viability of many of these institutions is being questioned by New Zealand policy makers, many small rural schools (usually known as “area schools”) are developing inter-institutional electronic networks and adapting distance education technologies (eg, email, facsimile, Internet) to provide new educational opportunities. Area schools have been increasingly forming consortia to teach to and from one another (eg, CASA tech, the Canterbury Area Schools Technology Project).

This paper looks at the educational and policy implications of these developments. In particular, “virtual” classrooms mean teachers can teach to several schools simultaneously, so the question arises as to whether schools can continue to be seen (and funded) as autonomous units.

Currently the rapid proliferation of virtual classrooms is being driven by the infrastructure provider (Telecom), with no government control or co-ordination. Most significantly, this increasingly consensual and co-ordinated mode of operating conflicts with the policy of  Tomorrows Schools, which encourages competition. As a result, many rural schools now face a new form of isolation: isolation from those who make educational policy.