Is distance learning necessary or hopeless?

Families of children enrolled at Te Kura have variously described the national distance learning school as essential, hopeless and lifesaving.

Some told RNZ the school had too little work to do, while others insisted it was an important last resort for young people struggling to cope with regular learning.

Wildly contradictory descriptions emerge experts warn the school needs an independent review.

A former Te Kura teacher told RNZ that at-risk students had “no chance” in a distance learning school.

But parent Kim Watts told RNZ her almost 13-year-old son Mark had difficulty learning in mainstream schools and enrolled in a distance learning facility after being referred by the Ministry of Education more than four years ago.

She said it works well.

“It’s a really amazing resource, if used properly… it has really positive results,” she said.

“There are ups and downs, but from an eight-year-old child whose teachers told him he would never learn to read or write, to having a 12-, almost-13-year-old who is really confident, can create a storm on a computer, can read, understand and understand… it was a positive experience.”

Watts stated that her son’s teacher was attentive and tailored his education to his needs.

She said he benefited from not being in class and comparing his progress with other children.

She said she was able to support her son’s education and understood some families would have difficulty with Te Kura.

“Rescue for these students”

Speech therapist Shannon Hennig said Te Kura was essential for neurodiverse young people who cannot attend mainstream school.

“I would describe Te Kura as a lifesaver for these students. They often can’t cope with really large schools, they can really struggle with any educational system where they don’t have enough individual support and enough breaks.

“That said, sometimes students feel that Te Kura was designed for a different type of student,” she said.

Hennig said Te Kura worked for some neurodiverse students but not for others, especially those who needed the support of a teacher or someone to help them understand what work was required of them.

She said demand for the school is growing.

Parent Alannah told RNZ Te Kura she had failed all four of her children, with one of them continuing to attend school because she had no other choice.

“In our experience, there is not enough work, not enough to fill even a few hours, let alone a full school day. The quality of work is very low. Taking photos on a family trip we went on for the weekend, if they submit it, that’s a month’s work, if they draw a picture, that’s a month’s work, if they write a three-sentence story about the trip they went on, that’s a month’s work.” – she said.

Alannah said her two children recently returned to regular schools and found they were falling behind their peers by about a year.

She said the school did not provide any support for her daughter’s special needs and if she had a choice, she would take her elsewhere.

The woman, who asked not to be named, said Te Kura was essential to her three children, who were enrolled in the facility temporarily due to difficult family circumstances.

“It was absolutely fantastic for at-risk people,” she said.

“The staff is exceptional.”

A grandfather told RNZ her neurodivergent granddaughter struggled with Te Kura.

“My granddaughter’s teachers were really great, but she really needed teacher assistance, which was not available. So it didn’t work for her. “It was like a dumping ground for this group because the support they needed wasn’t available,” she said.

“The Hardest Way to Learn”

A former Te Kura teacher told RNZ the Ministry of Education was enrolling “very mentally ill” students at Te Kura.

“Many of these teenagers are so depressed that they never leave their bedroom. Some people are addicted to games and spend whole nights on the Internet. Others have serious difficulties learning or socializing. There are also young single mothers who must also “enroll in school” to receive their benefit.

“Therefore, the most mentally and socially vulnerable students, who find learning really difficult, are enrolled in online school, which is the most difficult method of learning. To be successful in online learning, a student must be able to use a computer, write texts, be organized, motivated, in a stable and supportive environment, at-risk students at TK have no chance, and at TK, unlike regular schools, there are no internal advisors nor social workers to whom they could turn,” said the former teacher.

The teacher said Te Kura teachers would “bend over backwards” to try to establish relationships with students and keep them in good standing at school, hoping it would lead to greater engagement and learning.

For many students, “success” was measured by whether they left the classroom rather than by whether they completed NCEA standards or similar work.