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Education Minister Hekia Parata wants iwi leaders to back education initiatives such as her partnership or charter schools, in the face of continued resistance from education unions.
Ms Parata spoke to the Iwi Leaders Forum in Gisborne last week.
She encouraged Northland iwi leaders to give more active support to the first two kura hourua in Whangarei and Whangaruru, because they are targeting Maori boys.
She says the system must be open to different approaches.
"There isn’t a one size fits all. We do have a very good education system but for too long it has not been meeting the education needs of Maori, of Pasifika, of kids with special education needs. So we can’t keep doing what we have always done because we will keep getting what we have always gotten and partnership kura are one new model that is available to see if we can be more successful," Ms Parata says.
The Education Ministry has asked Whangarei’s five largest secondary schools to formalise a commitment to help the district's new charter schools, such as sharing classes.
The Post-Primary Teachers' Association has called on its members not to interact with employees of the schools in a professional capacity.
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