Foreign pupils wanted at nine

Schools desperate for more cash have asked the Government to let nine-year-olds move to New Zealand without their parents.

Education Minister Anne Tolley announced yesterday that she was considering the proposal and opened submissions on the plan.

"Greater flexibility could potentially allow more international students to be enrolled in New Zealand primary schools," Tolley said.

A Ministry of Education discussion document on the change said some schools had argued for the guardianship policy to be relaxed so they could enrol pupils aged 10 and under without having a parent or legal guardian living with them.

"It could alleviate some pressure on schools to unlawfully enrol young students on visitor visas or avoid compliance with the guardianship policy," it said.

The ministry suggested three alternatives to the current requirement that international pupils under 13 live with a parent or legal guardian.

International pupils in Years 5 or 6 (aged 9 or 10) could be allowed to study and live in New Zealand under the same circumstances as intermediate-age pupils.

They could live with close family members resident in New Zealand or at a newly designated "quality-assured" provider.

Another alternative was to maintain the status quo.

The discussion document said a change could be easy to implement.

Disadvantages included developmental problems associated with living away from parents and immediate family at a young age. There was a risk that young students could be sent here to live with a relative who may be a stranger.

There were also potential risks to New Zealand's reputation as a safe study destination.

In the latest survey to April this year, official figures show that 270 international pupils enrolled in Canterbury primary schools well ahead of the next highest regional tally of 167 in Auckland.

The New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI), the union representing primary-school staff, opposed the change, saying the idea reflected the growing financial importance of international pupils.

NZEI president Frances Nelson said schools knew if their operations grant did not cover their needs, international pupils provided an income stream.

It had usually been secondary schools relying on international pupils in the past, "but it's increasingly a way that primary and intermediate schools supplement their income".

"That notion of young children, particularly primary-aged children, being separated from their parents and their family is quite problematic," Nelson said. "Going in to homestays is a very, very tenuous kind of situation for children of that age."

Nelson said some foreign parents tricked schools into thinking they were living with their children in New Zealand.

Labour education spokesman Trevor Mallard said relaxing the requirements would make New Zealand a "dumping ground" for young children.

He said the rules had been introduced after it was discovered that young children with disabilities were being sent to New Zealand without parental support.

Mallard said Tolley was "trying to find ways for small children to be sent thousands of kilometres from their homes to a new and completely alien culture where without any parental support they will struggle to cope".

Post Primary Teachers' Association president Kate Gainsford said there was always concern about changes that "do not have the care of the student at the heart of the matter".

"We have seen a growing trend that money is frequently seen as the driver in such debates," Gainsford said.

"Once upon a time, schools took international students for no money. They did it for philosophical and philanthropic reasons, and now money is a very big driver."

Tolley said any change would only happen with "specific advice" from the sector on the safety of young international pupils educated in New Zealand without their parents.

Consultation on the proposal closes on Monday.

- © Fairfax NZ News