TIGHTER draft out-of-area guidelines for parents around which school they can send their child to are expected to increase the workload for some principals, according to the state's principals association.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Education Department released the revised out-of-area guidelines on its website on Wednesday.
Education Minister Nick McKim is calling for submissions until August 30, after which time the school home-area reference group will discuss the options and any changes due to come into force from January 1, 2015.
Tasmanian Principals Association president David Raw said yesterday it was difficult to say what the impact would be on principals and schools.
``There'll be some schools that will see a lot of work, but not all will be like this,'' Mr Raw said.
``But this is an opportunity for everyone to take part in the review and have their say on all things and how they are done.''
He said schools such as King Island would more than likely not experience much change, but some city school principals may see a lot of parents coming to them for a variety of reasons.
The proposed guidelines have seen only minor differences made to school boundaries, but there have been some changes regarding which primary schools feed into certain high schools.
In the case of West Launceston Primary School pupils, they will be expected to attend to Prospect High and no longer Riverside High.
West Launceston Primary School Association chairwoman Christine Murfet said they would discuss the proposed changes with parents at their meeting on Monday night.
Opposition education spokesman Michael Ferguson described the new guidelines as ``death of choice''.
``With his new nine-step procedure, the minister has created a bureaucratic brick wall for parents who want to enrol their children in an out-of-area school,'' Mr Ferguson said.
Mr McKim condemned Mr Ferguson's comments as deliberately trying to mislead Tasmanians about the draft guidelines.
``This draft procedure is in no way whatsoever trying to take choice away from parents,'' Mr McKim said.
``It is simply aimed at ensuring that if parents want to apply to send their children to an out-of-home area school that they can do so under a consistent framework.''
