The idea behind "discovery learning" is to place the child at "the centre of the learning", ensuring that each child has the capacity to learn around their own passions and interests. The curriculum is woven around the individual, rather than being a uniform driving force. The child drives the learning. So that was what was behind the "designated character" that we sought to create.
The whole community is part of the learning environment, both in terms of learning opportunities, mentors, teachers and other learners and the physical community.
The Trust was philosophically committed to ensuring that innovation and creativity came within the state education system and did not become a privilege available only to those whose families could support such innovation in a private school.
The Trust initially aimed to achieve such options within existing state schools. Its aim was always to try to achieve a different style of education that better served the needs of children who were patently not enjoying or thriving within the present style of state education.
It first put its philosophy into practice with the help and close involvement of the then principal of Elmwood school in Christchurch, John Clough. It established the "learning lab" and then tried to create other such models with at least one other Christchurch school.
We trialled this, but along the way we discovered a number of things that lead us to think that our approach would need to be different…that our earlier concept of doing this within existing schools may not be the most effective way of achieving our aims.
We had also learned how strong the appeal of this style of learning was, and how much the students enjoyed the fact that they had a sense of control and direction over their learning. We saw those students thrive and learn. We saw how much they enjoyed the learning.
We also started to sense how much interest there was in this style of learning.
So our focus changed.
We discovered section 156A of the Education Act, 1989, and sought to create a whole school based on this style of learning.This was a process that sometimes seemed to take forever, not made easier by the fact that there had not been any new state schools established in Christchurch for many years. It actually took about three years and required that the Ministry get to grips with what processes were needed because they didn't yet exist, that we find a property, establish the community need, do a lot of community consultation, and generally be very persistent.
We acknowledge the help that was initially given so freely by Wyatt Creech, who was Minister of Education when we started the process and who was keen to see innovation in the state education system, and also the courage that Trevor Mallard, who was Minister at the time we finally got approved, and who opened the first school. We also acknowledge the help and support of Lianne Dalziell. We understand that there are very few rewards in politics for risk taking and we salute their courage and foresight.
Both schools are required to meet the same curriculum outcomes as any other state school and are funded in the same way as any other state school.
Discovery1 was set up in 2001 by the NZ Learning Discovery Trust as a special designated character school under Section 156A of the Education Act 1989. The process of approval took three years commencing under a National Government and being approved under a Labour Minister of Education, Hon Trevor Mallard.
This was the first school in New Zealand established under this section of the Education Act. It required a huge amount of persistence on the part of the Trust, and active help from the then head of the Southern Office of the Ministry of Education, John Mather.
Because no school had been established under this section, even though it had been in law for some years, the Ministry needed to develop a protocol of what they needed. This is now in place and available, we assume, from your local Ministry office.
Do we want to do more?
Absolutely. We have applied to be part , or all of the new state school to be established at Halswell and have received Ministerial approval to be promoted as an option within that process. We are also very keen to see this student centred style of learning established in other centres, and other countries and we are willing to help with that within the realms of the fact that we are all working on this voluntarily.
The philosophy of the schools is about innovation and creativity within a discovery learning framework. We think (no, we know) it's hard for a learning community that is constantly under the microscope from every education authority to be free to be as innovative and creative as it could otherwise be. We think having more than one Discovery in a community allows both to be much more creative in their approach.
In the last six years we have learned a great deal about what amazing things can happen with learning. We love what is possible with child directed learning. We have seen great learning and we have seen young students develop into confident, creative people.
We think the Ministry of Education needs people outside the Ministry to challenge the traditional thinking of a number of schools. We think it's hard for the Ministry to take that lead itself, even though we are sure some of the people we have met in the Ministry would be well suited to do so. We think it actually makes it easier for the Ministry to encourage and foster innovation if there are lots of real examples all around them.
In November 2002, (after a much shorter submission process of 12 months), Hon Trevor Mallard approved the establishment of the secondary equivalent, "unlimited paenga tawhiti". This started in January 2003 with a permitted roll of only 40 since the set up time was so brief (8 weeks). It took a further intake as allowed in July 2003. It now (2006) has a roll of almost 300 and will achieve its maximum roll of 400 by next year or the year after.
It could have grown bigger sooner, but wanted to ensure that the culture and philosophy of the school was not compromised by too rapid a growth.
