STOP the bullying culture against pupils and staff at Te Hihi.

Te Hihi School is currently experiencing a high number of pupils showing Inappropriate Behaviour.

 Such Inappropriate Behaviours, some of which to be qualified as Extreme under the School Policy, is continuing without effective consequence through lack of Management’s procedures.

Violence and intimidation must be stopped NOW. Inappropriate Behaviour addressed effectively. Student achievement rewards given to deserving pupils through effective and recorded due diligence processes.

The ineffectiveness of the consequences to Inappropriate Behaviour, due to non-compliance with School Policies, is having a seriously detrimental effect on students and staff:

·        It is creating a culture of Inappropriate Behaviour and worse of violence in that pupils are made to believe that the only way to prove a point or defend themselves is by being disrespectful and worse by applying violence.

·        The School is living in a clear clash with the School motto: Character, Kindness and Courtesy. are left to become empty words adorning the school building.

·        It is jeopardising the safety and wellbeing of the pupils, both physical and mental. The violence puts all pupils at risk including the “Perpetrators” (as defined in the School Policy).

·        The levels of Inappropriate Behaviours are bringing the learning to a halt as teachers are fending off the Inappropriate Behaviours without being given the support from the Leadership to be effective.

·        It is putting an enormous strain on teachers, who instead of teaching end up having to focus on managing the disruption generated by Inappropriate Behaviours of pupils who feel empowered to persist as no effective consequence follows their behaviours. This is bringing teachers to breaking point and to lose their enthusiasm and passion for teaching. Instead, they may leave the school exhausted and disheartened.

·        It is creating an unhealthy environment to work in for staff in general who are confronted on a daily basis by the defiance of pupils who are empowered in their Inappropriate Behaviours.

·        Parents are taking their children out of school and relocating them to other schools to protect them from further exposure to Inappropriate Behaviour. These departures are jeopardising the future of the School.

In fact, the number of enrolled children has fallen over the last few years:

o   2020: 198[1]

o   2022: 167[2]

o   2023: 158[3]

Considering the housing boom in this area and the large number of families moving into the area (leading the School few years ago to plan the built of another two storey school block) the decrease of pupils is a serious concern. Further families may consider leaving at the time of this writing.

·        The School’s reputation as a “good school” is jeopardised and the hard work of parents of current and past pupils at risk.

Enough is enough. It is time to restore the school to being a "physically and emotionally safe place for all students and staff" pursuant to section 127(1) of the Education and Training Act 2020[4] for the pupils and the teachers to thrive.

To this end we ask to follow governance protocol and immediately proceed to implement the necessary changes and to take “all reasonable steps to eliminate racism, stigma, bullying, and any other forms of discrimination with the school”[5] and ensure that “every student at the school is able to attain their highest possible standard in educational achievement”[6]. Namely we ask that the School Behaviour Management Policies are applied, and Inappropriate Behaviour taken into account in respect of student achievement rewards.

Our asks are nothing more than what the Ministry of Education’s requests the Schools of New Zealand to provide and each and every parent and member of the local school community would expect.

[1] https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/find-school/school/population/trends?district=&region=&school=1532
[2] https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/find-school/school/population/age?district=&region=&school=1532
[3] https://ero.govt.nz/institution/1532/te-hihi-school
[4] https://www.education.govt.nz/school/boards-information/board-objectives-conduct/#obj
[5] https://www.education.govt.nz/school/boards-information/board-objectives-conduct/#obj
[6] https://www.education.govt.nz/school/boards-information/board-objectives-conduct/#ob