Hon Heather Roy address to the Auckland Disability Law Workshop on the Review of Special Education; Western Springs Garden Community Hall, Western Springs, Auckland; Friday, February 12 2010.

Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa. Good morning.  Thank you Huhanna for your warm welcome.  I am delighted to be here.

Your presence today indicates your commitment to getting better outcomes for children and young people with special needs in our schools and communities, your interest in the Review of Special Education and what it seeks to achieve:

"providing the very best education and support for students with special education needs so that they can participate, contribute and achieve not just in education, but in their communities and society.  Not just while they are in education but for the rest of their lives."

Since becoming Associate Minister of Education with responsibility for special education just over a year ago, I have visited many schools and organisations that provide education and services for children with special needs.  Many students, parents, principals, teachers and sector groups have told me there are things that need fixing in special education.  I've been told that although there are many good things happening there is more we could do; that attitudes need to change.

I've been told different things by different people - there is a wide range of perspectives on the improvements required in special education, and on how to make them.

I have been moved and concerned over some of the things I have heard, and am determined to find ways we can do better.  The Review of Special Education is an important step in that direction.

Last August I announced the Review's Terms of Reference.  The Review is about working out how we provide support in the future so all students have the opportunity to leave school with the skills they need to reach their potential.

We need to make the education system more responsive, effective and flexible.  And, while not all choices can be funded, we need to maximise the opportunities for parents to make important schooling and programme choices.  Wherever a parent chooses to send their child to school, we must ensure that the right services and support are available to make that the best choice.

Choice, access to schooling, and access to additional special education support are important dimensions of the review.  Quality provision, value for money and outcomes and accountability will also be considered as part of the Review.

Wherever I go I hear about the need for teacher training in special education - how important it is for families to have teachers who know how to work in partnership with them and support a child with a disability to learn.  I hear about the need for professional development for all teachers so students with special needs can have their needs met irrespective of the class they are in or the subjects they choose.  And of course, none of this will be effective if there is not strong leadership from the top so principal training is also critical.  These areas are also part of the Review.

Last week I visited Evan's Bay Intermediate School in Wellington to open public consultation on the Special Education Review.  This was a fitting environment to launch the Review of Special Education Discussion Document.  EBIS is to have a satellite unit of Kimi Ora School, a special school, opened on its grounds.  The school already provides an excellent programme for students with very high special education needs and has now gone to great lengths to ensure the satellite unit will be well-integrated with the school.

There have been positive changes to the way students with special education needs have been supported over the past two decades.

Students who need extra assistance to learn are no longer tucked away; or expected to fit into the school environment.  Today, we expect schools to adapt to fit all students' needs - whatever those needs may be.  Added to that, parents have a right to choose which local school their child attends.

While we have done much, there is still more we can do.  Special education has its challenges, but I am always impressed by the commitment of those working in the area.  I am equally impressed by the dedication of many in the wider Education and Disability sectors who, although not having 'special education' in their job title, are motivated to do the best for all students.

We are achieving great outcomes for some students with special education needs.  The challenge now is to ensure that more students achieve - how do we develop schools, practice, programmes and policy that adds value to the work of committed teachers, practitioners and principals?

In November I announced the ORRS Extension for children and young people who had previously missed out on ORRS funding by frustratingly narrow margins.  ORRS extension means that an extra 400 students with special education needs started 2010 able to receive the additional teacher time, specialist programmes and therapies, and teacher aide support they need to achieve their education goals.

However, we cannot rely solely on regular increases in special education funding to make the improvements that parents and others are demanding.  We currently spend $450 million per year on special education.  An extra 51 million over four years was announced in Budget 2009 but the assumption looking at the review must be that there is no extra money available in the current economic climate.

We must look at how we can do things better with what we already have.  We must be sure that we are getting the best for students and their families.

I know that - within current budgets - many schools, their students and parent community successfully welcome and support all students.  I want to examine what is required to build the capability of the broader education system - not just the 'special education' part.

This is important because special education students have the same needs as other students - what is special is the level, intensity, and type of support they require.

The Special Education 2000 policy has been in place for 10 years.  Although this policy increased provision of funding and services, there continues to be high expectations and demand for effective and responsive services.

Increased funding has often led to increased fragmentation of provision within education, and life can become even more complex for families when other agencies are involved in providing support and services.

Students with special education needs and their families are often in contact with multiple agencies - especially health, ACC and the Ministry of Social Development.  This can cause stress, gaps in service delivery, and duplication of effort.  We need families to tell us how services could be better co-ordinated and focused on the needs of their child.  This way we can improve how Government agencies work together, and with schools and NGOs.

Education is not 'one size fits all' - especially not special education.  But I am aware that many parents do not always have the level of choice about provision and schooling that enables them to be positively involved in the planning and support for their child.

Some schools are reluctant to welcome students with special education needs, so parents choosing the local school are sometimes not welcomed there.  At times the choice of a special school can be discouraged through tensions arising from a bureaucratic process.

The Discussion Document includes questions such as: how could schools work together for students with special education needs?  What arrangements should we have for funding, decision-making, verification, the ORRS verification process, and fund-holding of special education funds?  What does successful special education look like and how should we measure it?

I want to know how to help schools, teachers and organisations feel confident to successfully teach, support and include every student.  That means we need schools to be adaptable and capable, and services to be flexible and efficient.

The Review offers us an opportunity to step outside our comfort zone and look ahead to where we want to be in the future.  To get the outcomes we are looking for we will need to think differently about the resources we already have.

There has already been widespread interest in the four options about schooling offered for consideration in the Discussion Document.  The options include a) the system as it is now; b) no special schools - all children in regular schools with a possible increase in units; c) special schools as resource centres (no students enrolled but the specialist teachers used to support regular schools); d) open access to special schools - enrolments not limited as they are currently.  There will be different thoughts in the room about these options but again I do urge you to think about what will make the biggest difference for all students with special needs within the resources that we currently have in the system.

Services should be of high quality no matter where you live - whether that is in Auckland, Wellington or a small rural area like the West Coast of the South Island.  One of the most important ways we can improve outcomes for students is to improve accountability of provision across schools and within specialist services throughout New Zealand. 

Parents and caregivers - along with Government - need to have a better sense of what students are achieving and what further changes we need to be certain that the system works for all students.  I want to know how you think accountability can be improved.

It is important to remember that the best results will be achieved when there is commitment and positive attitudes from all those people within the Education and Disability sectors.

The Document proposes a vision for students with special education needs, outlines how the system works, and asks what needs to change.  I encourage all parents, families, teachers, students, and the Education and Disability sectors, with an interest, to submit their views.

Together we can make changes to ensure that all students can participate at school and achieve in the community.  If we can provide the right support for students with special education needs, everyone will benefit.  I see the opportunity to do better for our students as an opportunity for us all.