• Māori summary
• Pacific summary
• Overall summary

Foreword

E ngā iwi, e ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā rau rangatira mā, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

He mihi nui ki tēnā, ki tēnā, e ako ana, e mahi ana, e tautoko ana i nga wahi mātauranga katoa puta noa I te motu.

I am pleased to present Ngā Ara o te Mātauranga – the pathways of education. This report, for the first time, spans early learning, schooling and tertiary education, and incorporates the requirements for school reporting under the Education and Training Act. It sets out the priorities that the Government has committed to in education, and the actions we are taking to realise these.

The past two and half years have been challenging for all New Zealanders, and especially for education. I am deeply grateful for the amazing work done by educators and whānau to support ākonga learning, in class or at home. I have been impressed by the willingness of everyone to adapt in the face of difficult and challenging circumstances.

The Government is committed to a bold 30-year vision to build an inclusive, equitable and connected education system for all New Zealanders

The Education and Training Act 2020 puts ākonga and their whānau at the centre of our education system. It supports their health, safety and wellbeing and the delivery of quality education, which honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi and supports Māori-Crown relationships.

In November 2020, I launched a joint Statement of National Education and Learning Priorities (NELP) and Tertiary Education Strategy (TES). These set the Government’s priorities across all parts of the education system, from young children starting in early learning through to adults broadening and updating their skills through tertiary education and training.

The Act and the priorities form the basis for the changes we have been, and are making, to address a number of long-standing equity and performance issues in our education system.

These changes include making the National Certificate of Educational Achievement a more robust and attainable qualification and various initiatives, such as Ka Ora Ka Ako | Healthy Lunches, and Ikura | Manaakitia te whare tangata - free period products, to improve ākonga wellbeing. Others include developing a more equitable school funding system, and reforming vocational education to better meet the needs of learners and employers.

Te Mahau has been created, within the Ministry of Education, to supply better local supports to principals, educators, learners and whānau, to improve learner achievement, wellbeing and engagement. We are building better pathways for Māori medium and Kaupapa Māori education. We are providing tertiary education organisations with the tools to lift ākonga success and have set requirements to ensure all tertiary and international ākonga are safe in their places of learning.

More recently, we launched a strategy to raise school attendance and engagement, working with whānau, hapū, iwi and communities, along with Action Plans to improve student achievement across maths, literacy, communication, te reo matatini and pāngarau.

This report shows that we are making great progress in moving our education system in the direction that New Zealanders want. We are already seeing many examples of improvement and success at a local level. But these examples will take time to build momentum and, as the report shows, we have more to do. Next year’s report will have a stronger focus on the real difference we are making at a local level in the lives of ākonga, whānau and their communities.

I am pleased to present to Parliament Ngā Ara o te Mātauranga – the pathways of education, 2021.

Hon Minister Chris Hipkins

Minister of Education