Education Minister Hekia Parata denies that school commissioners have no incentive to fix the problems at the schools they are sent in to administer.
The Principals' Federation is calling for urgent reform, saying commissioners are paid a great deal for as long as they themselves recommend continued administration of a school.
The call follows revelations that a commissioner has been paid nearly $150,000 a year to run Moerewa School in Northland part-time.
Ms Parata says she would have to examine the details of that case, but says commissioners are sent in to schools only in serious cases.
"Both the school and the ministry are highly incentivised. I should point out too that these commissioners are highly professional people. We seek them out for these roles which are not particularly popular roles."
Hekia Parata says the ministry is meeting with the Principals' Federation to discuss its worries.
The Ministry of Education and the Principals' Federation are to meet over concerns about the use of commissioners.
The ministry's head of sector enablement and support, Katrina Casey, says a review is being undertaken to determine whether a commissioner is still needed at the school.
"There have been ongoing issues at the school and ... we are very very close to being able to return that school to full self-governance."
Ms Casey told Radio New Zealand's Morning Report programme the operation of the school and student achievement are still being monitored.
Critics of the intervention system say because the commissioners themselves decide how long to stay in the job, there's little incentive to quickly fix running problems in schools.
On Monday, the NZEI, which represents primary school teachers, said commissioners should be paid to quickly sort out running problems in schools and some are staying in their roles far too long.
The Principals Federation said the system by which commissioners are appointed is in urgent need of an overhaul.
Northland federation says ministry wrong
The Northland Principals Federation says the Education Ministry is wrong to claim there have been serious problems at Moerewa School.
The federation's Tai Tokerau president, Pat Newman, has challenged it to explain why the commissioner was paid nearly $150,000 to run the school part-time.
A ministry spokesperson has said one of the issues facing Moerewa was students' qualifications. However, Mr Newman said primary school children are not involved with qualifications and the school has always had good Education Review Office reports.
Mr Newman said the sole reason the ministry appointed a commisisoner was to make sure the school shut down a senior unit the board wanted to keep open - but that was done before the commissioner arrived.
Ex-board chair wants principal reinstated
The former chair of an Invercargill school board says the school's principal has been suspended for no good reason and should be reinstated.
The trustees of Salford School resigned last month in an attempt to force the Ministry of Education to appoint a commissioner.
Former chair Aaron Fox says the school's limited statutory manager, Peter McDonald, stood down principal Marlene Campbell in an apparent parting shot last Friday.
Dr Fox says Ms Campbell is a fine educator, the school was operating well under her leadership and her suspension is inexplicable.
He says Mr McDonald as statutory manager did nothing to resolve the school's alleged management tensions and cost it so much in legal bills it had trouble paying for its winter heating.
