Tertiary Education in New Zealand: Investing in the Future

1. Tertiary Education in New Zealand:Investing in the Future

2. Tertiary Education Strategy (TES) and Statement of Tertiary Education Priorities (STEP)

3. Why do we need change? To provide clear directions and consistent expectations across the sector and within New Zealand • We need change to ensure: • students are more likely to succeed in tertiary education • Tertiary Education Organisations are clearer about what is expected of them and resourced to achieve their goals • government and the public have confidence that the New Zealand Tertiary Education system offers value for money and produces good outcomes for students • The TES, STEP and the tertiary reforms all play a role

4. ContributingtoNewZealand Tertiary education is important for all areas of New Zealand’s identity • Tertiary education contributes to economic transformation, families young & old and national identity through: • enabling the workforce to become and remain appropriately skilled, adaptable and flexible; • providing an underpinning ‘knowledge base’ for economic and social activity through research activities, addressing a range of needs from fundamental research to industry-specific research, to cutting edge innovation; • supporting the population to develop the skills necessary to participate fully in society including civic and cultural life through access to quality, relevant education; • contributing to a culture of inquiry and innovation within New Zealand society. • To be effective the strategy needs to be based on evidence of where tertiary education can make the greatest contribution

5. Focused on now New Zealand’s ageing population and the development of the global economy places importance on getting it right • The new TES and STEP address the challenges and opportunities of this decade • These include considering the implications of: • the baby blip generation and the importance of ensuring their potential is achieved • up-skilling the workforce in a tight labour market through encouragement and support for workplace learning • growing globally competitive firms through improving the creation, transfer and application of knowledge

6. Contributing to Education The discussion document proposes three strategic areas of contribution These need to address regional issues and make the most of opportunities • Educational success through lifelong learning • Ensuring maximum educational opportunity for all • Strong foundations in literacy, numeracy and language • Successful transitions from school to tertiary and work • Building relevant skills and competencies for productivity and innovation • Building skills and competencies for social and cultural development • Creating and applying knowledge for innovation • Improving the transfer and application of knowledge • Strengthening research-led teaching • Focusing resources for greatest effect • Stronger connections • Connections to improve quality and relevance of education and knowledge • Connections to support economic transformation • Connections to support social and cultural outcomes

7. Potential priorities The discussion document proposes four priorities Each must respond to the needs of New Zealand and be an achievable shift • The discussion document suggests four areas of potential priorities: • Increase the number of New Zealanders achieving qualifications at level 4 and above by the age of 25 • Increase the level of literacy and numeracy in the workforce • Increase the delivery of skills to meet regional and national industry needs • Improve research connections and linkages to create economic opportunities

8. Strategy + investment Outcomes for students, and New Zealand, are considered against what tertiary education providers propose to deliver • The TES, STEP and Reforms work together: • TES and STEP set the expectations on the outcomes (linked to the government goals for New Zealand) the providers should focus on • the TEC needs a STEP that clearly specifies the government’s priorities to set the parameters for discussion with tertiary education organisations about Investing in a Plan • new funding, monitoring, and quality system supports providers to focus on outcomes • TES, STEP and distinctive contributions set the direction for the tertiary education sector • Funding, monitoring and quality systems help achieve that direction

9. Direction Setting • Tertiary Education Strategy • Statement of Tertiary Education Priorities • Distinctive Contribution • Performance & • Quality • Quality • Assurance • Monitoring • Investment • Investing in a • Plan • Funding • Capability Performance assessed against investment Investment informed by performance How does it fit together? The performance of tertiary education organisationsagainst their proposed plan is a key component of the decision making process

10. What can you tell us? Businesses and communities are key stakeholders It is important that you provide feedback • The new TES and STEP require quality information and current evidence to ensure they are heading in the right direction • The discussion document proposes: • three areas of TES contributions • government actions to achieve the contributions • tertiary education priorities in the STEP • areas to monitor and build evidence

11. Have your say Post: Tertiary Education Strategy Ministry of Education PO Box 1666 Thorndon Wellington E-mail tertiary.strategy@minedu.govt.nz • The new TES/ STEP discussion document is available on www.minedu.govt.nz • Extensive public consultation will continue until late October • Encourage you to make submissions and attend consultation meetings • Submissions can be made by post or email • Submissions on the new TES/ STEP will close 27 October 2006

12. The Tertiary Reforms:Investing in the Future October 2006

13. What are the reforms trying to achieve? • A sector focused on delivering against government, national, regional and local priorities • A system that enables stakeholders to communicate clearly their expectations of the sector, and for the sector to respond • Greater financial certainty for the government and tertiary education organisations • Public confidence in the tertiary sector

14. Dr Michael Cullen, 4 April 2006 • “These are vital next steps in developing a tertiary system that will better fulfil our needs in terms of national identity, economic transformation and support for families young and old. “At the same time, the system needs to provide better value for money for taxpayers and students. “We want to engage fully with the sector to develop the details.”

15. Feedback / response • Business New Zealand believes that the key drivers of the reforms should be engagement, relevance, quality and value • CTU: The delivery of high quality tertiary education links to the fundamental CTU goal of building a high wage, high skill and high quality economy • NZAPEP: A flexible, responsive system must be developed which gives the correct market signals to learners and providers • ITF: The majority of ITOs see the proposed reforms as a positive step in the right direction

16. Feedback / response • ITP New Zealand supports the key principles of the reforms particularly encouraging a stronger culture around teaching excellence • NZVCC: The Government should invest in tertiary education in a way that recognises and supports distinctive contributions within the sector • Wānanga: We propose a funding mechanism that focuses on more than merely the number of enrolments allocated to an institution

17. Cabinet papers - July 2006 • Overview • Distinctive Contributions • Investing in a Plan • A New Tertiary Funding System • Quality Assurance and Monitoring • Transfer of the Tertiary Advisory and Monitoring Unit (TAMU) from the Ministry of Education to the TEC

18. Distinctive contributions Universities • Research-led degree and post-graduate education • Undertake research • Disseminate knowledge and promote learning ITPs (Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics) • Regional facilitators – build shared understanding about the tertiary education needs of a region • Skills for employment and productivity that contribute to a network of provision • Foundation education

19. Distinctive contributions ITOs (Industry Training Organisations) • Qualifications design • Arranging for the delivery of training • Providing leadership within the sector on matters relating to skill and training needs

20. Distinctive contributions Need to report back to Cabinet by December 2006 on: • The distinctive characteristics of wānanga • The role of PTEs (Private Training Establishments) • Regional facilitation role

21. Wānanga • Discussions are underway on the distinctive contribution of wānanga • Wānanga will continue to play a pivotal role in: • Foundation learning • Encouraging people back in to the education system, and • Continuing to maintain learning environments centred on āhuatanga Māori

22. PTEs • Contribution of PTEs still the subject of discussion with sector peak bodies • Proposed role of PTEs is to contribute to the broadening and strengthening of tertiary education system by providing for flexibility in regional/national networks of provision • The draft description focuses on: • distinctive characteristics of the sector, and • the range of different areas in which PTEs can bring a specific focus

23. Adult and Community Education (ACE) Three key changes: • new funding model promoting provision related to community learning priorities • quality assurance arrangements that promote and support continuous improvement • professional development strategy to strengthen the capacity of the whole sector.

24. Regional facilitation role • Outcome is a common understanding of regional needs, gaps and priorities • Key to the role is facilitating conversations amongst providers and stakeholders in a region • Need to build on what is already happening • Will support collaboration between providers in the long term

25. Investing in a Plan Stakeholders advise on priorities:Government (STEP), learners, employers, iwi, ITOs, etc Quality assurance of provision and organisations TEC provides investment guidance TECmonitors the outcomes Organisationsoffer plans for investment TEC & organisations agree outcomes for the approved plan, areas for capability building TECassesses plan according to outcomes to date, viability/governance, distinctive contribution, and quality

26. Investing in a Plan • Plans will set out: • Stakeholder needs • How the organisation will respond to government priorities • Three year outlook • Summary of provision • Performance and outcome commitments • TEC will evaluate the plans • Do they meet stakeholder needs and contribute to government priorities? • Funding will follow the plan • Variations will need to be agreed with the TEC

27. Funding • Student component funding system to be redesigned • New system will have two components: • Student Achievement Component • Tertiary Education Organisation Component • Decisions need to be made about the split • Also about what to do with existing capability development funds • New system implemented by 1 January 2008

28. Network of provision information STEP "Entry" processes • Accreditation • Course Approval • Registration Engagement between the TEC and TEO TEO’s Plan Investment decision Assurance and Performance Monitoring Information Common Quality Assurance and Monitoring Framework • Performance and capability information • Self Assessment • External validation Quality assurance and monitoring

29. Next steps • Number of Cabinet report backs in October and December 2006, and March 2007 • Will continue to work in partnership with the sector and its stakeholders to develop and refine policy • Implementation will be the subject of ongoing discussion

30. To close • We must remember what the reforms are all about • The end is greater than the means • There is no short term fix • On track to have key parts of the new system in place by 2008 • Send input to 2006reforms@tec.govt.nz

31. Tertiary ReformsThe role of Quality Assurance Tony Davies Programme Manager New Zealand Qualifications Authority

32. Network of provision information "Entry" processes • Accreditation • Course Approval • Registration Investment decision Quality assurance and monitoring STEP Engagement between the TEC and TEO TEO’s Plan Assurance and Performance Monitoring Information Common Quality Assurance and Monitoring Framework • Performance and capability information • Self Assessment • External validation

33. Commissioning • In the new investment system the TEC needs assurance that quality will be delivered and that public money is being well spent. • There is a number of ways to achieve this, including commissioning a quality assurance system • June Cabinet paper identified ‘commissioning’ as the preferred arrangement between TEC and NZQA for the review and external validation of providers. • Work is underway to define what will be the relationship between TEC and NZQA. • A separate relationship will be established between Tertiary Education Commission and NZVCC to provide information and assurance for the university sector. • Self-assessment, external review and validation, along with monitoring information will inform decision making for Investing in a Plan.

34. International Quality Assurance Principles • Quality assurance should be an integral part of the internal management of education and training providers • Quality assurance should include regular evaluation of providers programmes by external monitoring bodies or agencies • External monitoring bodies or agencies carrying out quality assurance should be subject to regular review • Quality assurance should include context, input, process and output dimensions, while giving emphasis to outcomes

35. International - Elements of Quality Assurance Systems • Clear and measurable objectives • Effective stakeholder involvement • Appropriate resources • Consistent evaluation methods, self-assessment and external review and validation. • Feedback mechanisms and procedures for improvement • Widely accessible evaluation results.

36. External Review and Validation • External review and validation of provider’s self assessment: • will provide assurance about the robustness of a TEO’s self assessment • will ensure that there is an independence of quality assurance for the funding agency and the provider • has an advantage for maintaining the international credibility of New Zealand qualifications.

37. Self-assessment, External Review and Validation • It is likely that external review and validation of the processes that the providers have in place for self-assessing will include: • Quality of teaching and learning (including research) • Relevance of the provision • Organisational capability to deliver on the plan • Continuous improvement focus • Guidelines or standards for this process could be issued • Aim is to ensure that the process assists providers as well as giving assurance to the TEC • Focus is on continuous improvement

38. Quality of teaching, learning and research • This could include seeking evidence on the provider’s process for: • course and programme design, development and review • availability and use of appropriate learning resources • learner assessment practices • managing student progression and pathways • research quality (particularly in the case of degree granting institutions).

39. Relevant Provision • This could include seeking evidence on the provider’s process for: • collection, analysis and use of information about local, national, industry and community needs • ensuring that learner intake characteristics are addressed in course design, development and provision • ascertaining graduate destination, employment and income • employment

40. Organisational capability to deliver on the plan • This could include seeking evidence on the provider’s process for: • establishing and monitoring educational goals and objectives for the organisation • effective governance and management structures and procedures including financial and other organisational activity • appropriate physical resources • success planning • collation, analysis, use and reporting of learner achievement.

41. Continuous improvement focus • This could include seeking evidence on the provider’s process for: • Robust internal assessment that identifies and builds on strengths, and addresses weaknesses and areas for development • Inclusion of stakeholder perspectives in the institution’s self assessment and improvement process • Consideration of student progress and achievement in institution self-assessment • Information generated is used in organisation planning, development and decision-making.

42. The role of Quality Assurance Review and external validation will provide assurance to the Tertiary Education Commission and providers about the quality of provision. It will also provide certainty to students and employers that qualifications and courses are relevant and good quality in terms of the economy and the needs of the labour market.

43. Please feel free to write to us about your views on self-assessment, external review and validation qaresponse@nzqa.govt.nz P O Box 160 Wellington New Zealand For further information: Tony Davies Programme Manager NZQA P O Box 160 Wellington New Zealand E-mail tony.davies@nzqa.govt.nz Phone: 04 4802 3070 Facsimile: 04 4802 3115 Next Steps