Will’s Word: Why charter schools breaking the mould deserve a chance

I'll never understand the doomsayers. The people who automatically rubbish the idea of charter schools, like somehow giving kids a different way to learn is a threat, rather than an opportunity.

Because here's the thing, a one-size-fits-all approach to education just doesn't work. At least it didn't work for me, I never did well in high school. I struggled to fit into that rigid traditional model.

I know I'm not the only one and now we're seeing these really exciting developments. The country's first school for teenagers with autism is set to open next year. The Autism New Zealand Education Hub will start in Term 3 for neurodivergent secondary students who just weren't thriving in traditional schools.

As someone with a nephew on the spectrum, I can tell you this is such good news. I often worry about his education, about whether the system will be able to meet his needs, and so ideas like this charter school give me hope.

Each student will apparently have a personalised learning plan built around their strengths, their interests, and their needs. Core education will be balanced with life skills and social-emotional learning. That sounds fantastic.

And there are more examples. Take the Pasifika Girls' School, Sisters United Academy, opening next year. It's a future-focused, culture-centred school. Girls will learn through their own language, storytelling and culture.

Mornings will be academic, with afternoons devoted to life skills, passions, and project-based learning. Honestly, it's personalised, it's meaningful, and it's exactly what education should look like for kids who don't fit a single mould.

Listen to Will’s Word on Facebook below.

I come back to the point: education isn't one-size-fits-all, it never has been. For some kids, sure, traditional schools work beautifully. For others, they don't.

And charter schools like these, whether they're focused on neurodivergent students or Pasifika culture, are giving young people a chance to thrive in ways they never could before.

That is something we should celebrate, not attack. Yes, I've heard the capitalist arguments made against charter schools. But until I see real, tangible alternatives put up, I'll continue to back the idea of charter schools.

That's Will's Word.