Editorial notes strong demand for faith-based schools

An August 17 editorial in The New Zealand Herald editorial was titled “Faith-based school demand: What parents are seeking beyond academic results.”

The editorial asked “ . . . what are parents seeking from faith-based schools that they aren’t finding elsewhere?”

“Do growing waitlists reflect declining confidence in mainstream education and what is being done about it? Are parents including a school’s community values as well as academic clout when it comes to deciding where to go?”

The editorial noted the growing demand for faith-based schooling at a time when the Census figures that show more New Zealanders say they have “no religion”.

“These two sets of opposing trends don’t necessarily equal a call for a return to organised religion, rather a need for religious-adjacent values and ideals,” the editorial stated.

“Schools are organisations where communities gather around a shared identity – faith-based schools understand the pull towards that.

“That may explain the apparent contradiction between a less religious New Zealand and the growing popularity of religious schools. Parents do not have to attend church every Sunday to appreciate a school that emphasises service, respect, responsibility and community.”

The editorial said that while most state school are of a high quality, “parents are looking for something beyond academic or sporting achievement” – something more than just reading, writing and arithmetic.

“[Schools] help shape identity, character and a sense of place in the world. Perhaps the trend behind growing faith-based school demand is that even in an increasingly secular New Zealand, parents still want their children to belong to something bigger than themselves.”

FULL STORY

Faith-based school demand: What parents are seeking beyond academic results (New Zealand Herald – subscription required)