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Get modern and think of the kids.
That’s what Education Minister Hekia Parata is telling Kohanga Reo National Trust board members who refuse to release their grip on the embattled organisation.
The trustees say they have consulted with kohanga reo whanau who say they don’t want them to step down until they negotiate settlement for the movement’s Waitangi Tribunal claim.
Ms Parata says she gave the movement time to sort itself out, but the board hasn’t delivered.
"This idea of lifetime appointments to a board is part of the past. It is not relevant or appropriate for a new forward-looking, future-oriented, modern governance. Being accountable. Being transparent. Having representation from kohanga whanau themselves. These are not radical ideas. These are the characteristics of modern governance. That is what I am insisting on. That's what I thought we had agreement to pursue over the last 18 months," she says.
Hekia Parata says the number of children in kohanga reo has plateaued at about 9000 wile other parts to the early childhood education sector have grown, and only one in five goes on to kura kaupapa.
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