A deep dive into Aotearoa’s education system

Source: Unsplash.  

It is undeniable, that the Covid-19 lockdowns which held firm grip over the country, stripped New Zealanders of normality in our everyday lives. Work, Sports, social and cultural events were tipped on their heads as people scrambled to adapt to a global pandemic, fighting for survival.  

But, perhaps the most vital – especially to young people – of the sectors affected was education.  

While to many, lockdown was an extended holiday due to the all too easy ability to skip Zoom classes and opt for lazy sleep ins, or gaming sessions. The effects were severe, forcing a complete reshuffle of all levels of schooling.  

Primary and secondary schools battled to conjure lesson plans for students that were in their formative learning stages, to universities who were under immense strain to still provide a world-class education for students paying thousands of dollars.  

While giving Canta insight into how the University of Canterbury navigated lockdowns and subsequent changes to rules and regulations, Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) Professor Catherine Moran noted there were a lot of internal changes.  

She cited measures including: “reorganising teaching timetables to reduce class sizes, providing lectures, tutorials, and assessments online, encouraging physical distancing, and introducing mask-wearing when required.” 

Moran said student welfare was a strong focus area, especially for those living in halls away from family.  

“During the peak period of Covid-19 cases in 2021 a group of 70 staff volunteered to deliver meals and parcels to residents’ rooms, amounting to approximately 16,000 deliveries,” she said.  

While these changes were a result of a rotten situation, Moran mentioned it fast tracked UC’s commitment to providing an education that is accessible, flexible, and future-focussed for students - a fair shout given the online accessibility current students have. 

There is no denying education providers like UC did a reasonable job in salvaging students’ education in an environment that the modern world had never faced. But in the same vein, there is no escaping the fact education rates in Aotearoa took a massive hit. 

A report published in 2023 by the Education Review Office (ERO) found passing rates for NCEA levels 2 and 3 as well as university entrance rates had both decreased since the pandemic began. Furthermore, without modifications made to NCEA over the three-year period (2020-2023) such as the learning recognition credits, passing rates would have been even lower.  

It's not just the academic sector that has teachers worried as student’s behaviour has also come under the spotlight. 41% of all principals nationwide said in the same report that they are “concerned” about behaviour displayed by their students. 

The real question now is, how will Aotearoa bounce back? 

After lockdowns more or less finished and our world went back to a new normal, it was only a matter of time before Government intervention came to the party. 

During their campaign run, The National Party made education reform a key policy and are now looking to implement changes within the sector that they believe will steer the ship in the right direction. Changes which will be made through the coalition government of National, Act, and New Zealand First.  

During a conversation with the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI), Canta asked whether the largest education sector union in the country believed proposed changes would create a feasible difference in Aotearoa kid’s education.  

Strong opinions circulated their message, particularly on how there was little to no consultation with those who do the job every day, such as teaching staff, with factors of the proposal, such as charter schools. 

“The reintroduction of charter schools is nothing but a repeat of a failed experiment which ran from 2014-2018 under the previous National government. Evaluations of charter schools showed that they didn’t lead to any real innovation in terms of curriculum, community, or whānau engagement,” the union said.  

However, it didn’t end with just charter schools, as the union also commented on how the introduction of standardised testing for primary school students is a good idea but glosses over the true problem – providing teachers with the support and tools that they need. 

“Teachers and principals have been asking for more teacher aides and learning support for tamariki – not more tests which have the potential to simply make children more anxious about their results, instead of focusing on supporting them to learn better.” 

It’s safe to say the pandemic has affected Aotearoa’s education in more than one way. Not only was three years of formulative learning crippled at the knee, but the argument also can be made that Kiwi kids have missed out on core social interactions.  

The many different perspectives to please makes it a slippery slope for the Government to go about fixing the problem of education in New Zealand. And while we as a country are slowly making up for the time lost from binge watching shows and countless other hobbies, there is still work to be done to revitalise and enhance the younger generation’s education.