More claims of Education Ministry staff trying to avoid OIA come to light

More whistleblowers have contacted RNZ with fresh allegations of Education Ministry managers actively trying to avoid scrutiny via the Official Information Act.One described a manager instructing staff not to record teachers' criticism of the curriculum because it was out of scope and might be discovered via the OIA.Two others said senior ministry managers often told staff not to write things down because they could be obtained through the OIA and they also received verbal instructions to remove Māori words from ministry documents.The revelations follow the publication this week of a video showing a senior ministry manager telling staff not to mention in writing feedback about draft curriculum documents from staff in the office of Education Minister Erica Stanford.The person who provided the footage told RNZ that they and other ministry staff were repeatedly asked to delete the word "Aotearoa" and other Māori terms from draft curriculums - but the instructions were deliberately verbal and never put into writing.The ministry said the content of the video did not meet its standards and it was investigating to ensure it was an isolated incident.However, RNZ has been told of a second instance of ministry staff trying to avoid the Official Information Act.The person who RNZ has agreed not to name said she was present when a ministry manager told her staff to stop taking notes at a hui of about 60 teachers during a discussion of the place of te reo Māori in the languages curriculum and other curriculum documents.The whistleblower said the manager said the discussion was "out of scope" but also that she did not want the criticism included in notes that could be discovered through the Official Information Act."There was a massive, massive amount of negative feedback in the room," she said."Everybody agreed that the curriculum was terrible and that's when we were asked - the people from ministry at each table who are writing down our responses - were asked to stop recording that. We were told it was beyond the scope and it would be OIAed and she didn't want that on there."She said many people at the hui were calling for a better te reo Māori curriculum and for more te reo through other curriculum areas.The informant told RNZ they did not agree the discussion was beyond the scope of the hui."I think that discussing the te reo Māori curriculum as part of feedback for curriculum writing as part of a sector-insight hui to the curriculum - I don't know, it feels like it sits right there for me," she said.Two other people with direct experience of working for the ministry told RNZ that it was common to receive verbal instructions for changes or work that might be considered controversial.Both said that included removing Māori words from ministry documents including curriculum drafts.Chief ombudsman John Allen.SuppliedOne said there had been a deliberate attempt to obscure what was going on in the ministry.Asked to comment on the latest allegations, the Education Ministry said: "While the matters reflected in your questions cover a range of circumstances, they relate to common themes of transparency, record-keeping, compliance with the Official Information Act, and the ministry's responsibility for its advice and materials. These are matters the ministry is actively addressing.""We recognise that broader conclusions are being drawn from these accounts. The ministry's responsibility is to establish the relevant facts, assess any concerns through its established processes, and determine whether any action or changes are required. That work is underway."It also restated its previous statement that the comments in the leaked video did not meet the ministry's expectations for transparency, record-keeping or compliance with the Official Information Act.The chief ombudsman, John Allen, said he had significant concerns and was considering a broader investigation under the Ombudsmen Act.