Reform of NCEA delayed for two years

Principals welcome slower, more considered pace in Govt move

A Government move to delay changes to NCEA for two years has the backing of education leaders and experts — and gives those already studying towards NCEA certainty, a top principal says.

Significant changes to the former Labour Government’s NCEA Change Programme mean reforms to the main qualification for Kiwi high school students would be delayed by two years, Education Minister Erica Stanford announced yesterday.

“The current NCEA Change Programme . . . is fundamentally flawed, in that it designs the assessments before writing the curriculum that details what students should be learning,” Stanford said.

NCEA Level 2 and a revised NCEA Level 1 would be in place by 2028, and NCEA Level 3 by 2029.

The announcement was good news for students currently working towards their NCEA, Papatoetoe High School principal Vaughan Couillault said.

“Those that are in the new standards at Level 1 . . . those standards are still valid, they’re still going and then next year it’s the standards that currently exist — the standards we’re using currently at Level 2, we’ll just simply use them again next year.”

A bigger challenge was the implications of the literacy and numeracy co-requisites, he said.

“And how we can make sure students reach the required standard through whatever pathway they’re using.

“That’s cause for concern in many communities.”

Couillault, who is also the Secondary Principals’ Association president, expected principals would back the delay.

“[There] would be a degree of frustration for some — we’re keen to get our teeth into ‘What next?’ in terms of the qualification. But I’d rather do it properly than quickly . . . [and] this is an area of pressure that’s been released a little bit.”

School leaders were already dealing with staffing shortages, the curriculum refresh and — especially in Auckland — immigration-boosted rolls.

There was a “sense of relief ” when Stanford’s announcement came through during the association’s executive meeting yesterday.

“For all sorts of reasons, and Covid being part of that, the NCEA implementation timeline has been fraught with problems. It’s been an illfitting shirt for some time.”

Post Primary Teachers’ Association president Chris Abercrombie also backed the move.

“It’s really important that we get a really good curriculum base . . . good assessment folds out of good curriculum.”

But it was equally important the extra time wasn’t wasted.

“The ministry and the Government are giving themselves an excellent opportunity to properly consult with the sector and get the mahi done that needs to be done . . . we really need to make sure we get the work done, and it’s the best it can be.”

Dr Nina Hood — who founded The Education Hub in 2017 to bridge the gap between research and practice in education — said she, too, supported the delay.

“Assessments should be based on the curriculum,” said Hood, a former high school teacher.

“Therefore we need to finalise the curriculum refresh before redeveloping NCEA. The delay will also hopefully provide time and the opportunity to ensure that NCEA is a robust and fit-for-purpose qualification.”

Under the NCEA Change Programme brought in by the former Labour Government in 2020 — now set to be re-worked under the extended timeframe — the qualification was to be made more accessible, with a simpler structure, stronger literacy and numeracy requirements, and to provide clearer pathways to further education or work.

Reforms were also aimed at giving equal status to mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) and to make NCEA Level 1 optional.

But when principals and teachers around the country said the sector wasn’t ready for the roll-out of NCEA Level 1 changes, the changes went ahead anyway, Stanford said.

As a result, some schools stopped offering Level 1 NCEA at all, she said.

“[That’s why] I’ll be delaying the programme’s start by two years. It’s essential to change the approach, give certainty to teachers, parents and students about the implementation timeline of the NCEA Change Programme and put in place a clear, knowledge-rich curriculum.

“Teachers have repeatedly called for greater clarity about what to teach. Only 40 per cent of schools reported being ready for the introduction of the new NCEA Level 1.”

The delay would allow the Government to develop the secondary curriculum of Year 11-13 subject areas before the introduction of new assessments, Stanford said.

More announcements were planned in the “coming weeks” on the curriculum reform package, Stanford said.