Domestic students enrolled in ITE for the first time

Overall trends (see Figure 1 and 2) Last Updated: April 2021

Overall

Between 2019 and 2020, the number of domestic students enrolling in an ITE qualification for the first time decreased by 4.1% to reach 4,170. This represented a decrease of 180 students. This was the result of:

• a decrease of 5.9% in ECE ITE students (a decrease of 85 students),
• a decrease of 5.4% in primary ITE students (a decrease of 110 students)
• an increase of 1.7% in secondary ITE students (an increase of 15 students)

There was also an increase of 22% in Māori medium ITE students which represented an increase of 45 students (these students are already included in the sector data above).

ECE

The decrease in first time domestic ECE students in 2020 followed consecutive years of increases in 2018 and 2019. This recent increase in domestic first-time students followed a period of several years where numbers declined from a peak in 2010 that coincided with the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and funding changes in the ECE sector.

Primary

As with the other ITE sectors, the number of first-time primary students declined in the years following the high rates of participation in tertiary education of the GFC and reached a low point in 2016. Following a significant increase in first-time primary ITE students in 2018, the last two years have seen back to back decreases in first timers. Nevertheless, the number of first-timers in 2020 remains 9.1% above the recent low point in 2016.

Secondary

After a decrease in first-time students following the GFC, over the last four years the number of first-time domestic secondary ITE students has stabilised. The number of students has remained within a narrow band between a low of 875 (in 2019) and a high of 905 (in 2018). The increase in secondary ITE in 2020, although small, helped to partially offset the decrease in students seen in the previous year.

Figure 1: Number of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Note: where students enrol in or complete an ITE qualification which prepares them to teach in more than one sector, we report them in each of these sectors.

Māori medium

In 2020, the number of first-time ITE Māori medium students increased by 22% to reach 250. This followed a decrease of 23% in 2019 and an increase of 29% in 2018. These large swings in the number of starters is due in part to the relatively small numbers involved in Māori medium ITE.

In 2020, well over half (70%) of Māori medium first-time ITE students were enrolled in immersion programmes.

The vast majority of Māori medium first-time ITE students were enrolled in programmes at the primary sector level. In 2020, 92% of first-time students were enrolled in primary programmes. The remaining students were enrolled in programmes at the ECE level.

Domestic students enrolled in Māori medium ITE qualifications

Figure 2: Number of students enrolling in Māori medium ITE qualifications who were enrolling in ITE for the first time, by indicative teaching sector

Demographic characteristics (see Figures 3-5)

Over time, first-time ITE students have been generally been getting younger (under 35 years) in the ECE sector. In 2020, 76% of first-time ECE students were aged under 35 years, compared with 67% in 2010. In the primary sector, the proportion of first-time students aged under 35 peaked at 82% in 2017 and has since decreased slightly to reach 77% in 2020. In the secondary sector, the proportion of first-time students aged under 35 was 79% in 2020, down from 83% in 2015.

First-time students in the ECE sector were almost exclusively women (96% in 2020), with lower proportions of women in the primary (81% in 2020) and secondary sectors (60% in 2020). These proportions have not changed significantly over time.

The proportion of first-time domestic students who were Māori was relatively stable in the ECE and secondary sectors in 2020, while there was an increase in the proportion of primary ITE students who were Māori. In 2020, 16% of ECE first-time students were Māori, the same as in 2019, while the proportion of secondary ITE students who were Māori was down slightly to 13% in 2020 from 14% in 2019. In the primary sector, the proportion of first-time students who were Māori was 26% in 2020, compared with 22% in 2019.

The low number of first-time students who are Pacific People makes identifying trends difficult. But, the proportion of first-time students in the primary sector in the Pacific Peoples ethnic group has increased over time from 5.0% in 2010 to 10% in 2020.

Figure 3: Age distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Figure 4: Gender distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Figure 5: Ethnic group distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Study-related characteristics (see Figures 6 and 7)

With the phasing out of diploma-level qualifications, the majority of first-time students in the ECE and primary sectors study at the bachelors degree level. In 2020, 77% of ECE students and 66% of primary students were enrolled in bachelors degrees. In the secondary sector, bachelors degree provision has decreased in recent years so that now first-time students are enrolled exclusively at the graduate diploma, postgraduate diploma, and masters degree level.

Since the last of the colleges of education (CoEs) were merged with them in the mid-2000s, universities have dominated first-time ITE student provision in the primary and secondary teaching sectors. In 2020, 84% of primary sector students and 85% of secondary sector students were studying at universities. Provision in the ECE sector is more evenly distributed, with private training establishments (PTEs) having the largest proportion of first-time students in this sector in 2020 (52%) followed by ITPs (26%) and universities (21%).

In 2020, around half of first-time ECE students studied on an extramural basis, compared with 19% of primary students and 25% of secondary students.

In 2020, almost all first-time primary sector students were studying full-time (95%), compared with 86% of students in the secondary sector and 71% in the ECE sector.

Figure 6: Distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by qualification type and indicative teaching sector

Figure 7: Distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by sub-sector and indicative teaching sector

International students enrolled in ITE for the first time

The number of international students studying an ITE qualification for the first time is relatively low, meaning the data exhibits volatility. The numbers of first-time international students ranged between 715 and 145 over the period between 2005 and 2020. In 2020, around 78% of first-time international students were enrolled in an ECE qualification.

Domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time

Overall trends (see Figures 8 and 9) Last Updated: July 2021

Overall

Between 2019 and 2020 the number of domestic students completing their first ITE qualification increased by 0.6% to reach 3,325 (an increase of 20). This was the result of:

• an increase of 6.9% in early childhood education (ECE) ITE graduates (an increase of 65)
• a decrease of 2.0% in primary ITE graduates (a decrease of 30)
• a decrease of 2.4% in secondary ITE graduates (a decrease of 20)

There was also a decrease of 35% in Māori medium ITE graduates which represented a decrease of 65 (these graduates are already included in the sector data above).

ECE

The number of first-time domestic ECE ITE graduates in 2020 (1,010) represented the highest number of graduates over the last three years. The increase in completions in 2020 followed seven years of decreases.

Primary

Although decreasing in 2020, the number of first-time domestic primary ITE graduates in 2020 (1,495) is 1.7% higher than the low point in graduates in 2016 (1,470).

The number of first-time primary ITE graduates has remained roughly around 1,500 over the last four years. This period of relative stability in completions followed a decrease of around 30% between 2012 and 2016.

Secondary

The number of first-time domestic secondary ITE graduates decreased for the second year in a row in 2020 to reach 815 but remains 6.5% above the low point in 2016 (765).

Figure 8: Number of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Note: where students enrol in or complete an ITE qualification which prepares them to teach in more than one sector, we report them in each of these sectors.

Māori medium

In 2020, the number of first-time ITE Māori medium graduates decreased by 35% to reach 120 (a decrease of 65). This followed an increase of 15 graduates in 2019.

Although the number of completions (and enrolments) in Māori medium qualifications tends to show significant variation over time due to the relatively small size of the cohorts entering Māori medium ITE, at least some of the decline in 2020 appears to be a result of  the impact of COVID-19 (and online learning) leading some students to withdraw from their studies.

In 2020, 71% of graduates were from immersion programmes.

In 2020, 92% of graduates were in primary sector programmes. The remaining students were in ECE-level programmes.

Figure 9: Number of domestic students completing Māori medium ITE qualifications who were completing their first ITE qualification

Demographic characteristics by teaching sector (see Figures 10-12)

First-time ITE graduates have generally been getting younger in the ECE sector. The proportion of ECE graduates aged under 35 years has increased from 53% in 2007 to 71% in 2020. In recent years, graduates in primary ITE have generally been getting older reflecting a shift away from undergraduate ITE provision in these sectors. In 2020, the proportion of graduates aged under 35 was 74%, compared with 80% in 2016. In secondary ITE, the proportion of graduates aged under 35 had decreased from 83% in 2015 to 75% in 2019, before increasing to 80% in 2020.

First-time graduates in the ECE sector were almost exclusively women (97% in 2020). But women were relatively smaller proportions, but still majorities, of primary (82% in 2020) and secondary (61% in 2020) sector graduates.

In 2020, the proportion of ITE graduates who were Māori decreased in all sectors, with the largest decrease in ECE. Of the three teaching sectors, primary ITE (22%) has the highest proportion of Māori graduates.

The low number of first-time graduates who are Pacific People makes identifying trends difficult. In 2020, the proportion of graduates who were Pacific People increased in all sectors, with primary ITE having the highest proportion of Pacific People graduates (8.7%).

Figure 10: Age distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Figure 11: Gender distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Figure 12: Ethnic group distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Study-related characteristics by teaching sector (see Figures 13 and 14)

In the ECE and primary sectors, the majority of first-time graduates now complete bachelors degrees. In 2020, 75% of ECE graduates and 56% of primary graduates completed an ITE bachelors degree, with the remainder completing ITE graduate diplomas, postgraduate diplomas, and masters degrees. In secondary ITE, first-time graduates mainly complete graduate diplomas and masters degrees. In 2020, 80% competed graduate diplomas and 17% completed masters degrees.

Universities continue to produce the vast majority of first-time graduates in primary and secondary ITE. In 2020, 90% of graduates in primary and 85% in secondary were from universities. PTEs now produce the largest number of first-time ECE graduates. In 2020, 48% of ECE graduates were from PTEs, compared with 26% from ITPs and 24% from universities.

Figure 13: Distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by type of qualification and indicative teaching sector

Figure 14: Distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by sub-sector and indicative teaching sector

Note: The last of the colleges of education (CoEs) were merged with universities in 2007.

Across the curriculum subject areas that secondary ITE graduates have studied to teach at school, relatively little change happened between 2019 and 2020 in the distribution of the broad teaching subjects. Two-thirds of broad subjects showed decreases in the number of graduates in 2020, with the exceptions being Languages and The Arts which showed increases, while Technology remained stable.

At the more detailed subject level, the data shows the biggest change related to a decrease in graduates in Social Studies in 2020, while some specialist subjects such as Chemistry and Physics showed increases in graduates.

International students completing an ITE qualification for the first time

The number of first-time ITE international graduates with an ITE qualification increased by 54% in 2020 to reach 540 (an increase of 190). Of these 2020 graduates, 73% were in the ECE sector, with the remainder relatively evenly split between the primary and secondary sectors.

Technical Notes

How do these initial teacher education (ITE) statistics differ from other field of study data published by the Ministry of Education?

Although the Ministry of Education publishes other enrolment and graduate data for students who studied in the field of education, the ITE statistics exclude qualifications that do not lead to provisional teacher registration (such as certificates that are preparatory qualifications). In doing so, the initial teacher education statistics present a more accurate picture of teacher training in New Zealand.

Determining the likely sector of teaching of initial teacher education students/graduates

Using the administrative data reported to the Ministry of Education by tertiary education providers, the following process was used to determine the likely sector of teaching (early childhood education (ECE), primary, or secondary) for each student/graduate:

Step 1:

The New Zealand Classification of Education (NZSCED) code for the initial teacher education qualification the student was enrolled in (or completed) was used to map the qualification to a sector of teaching. The mapping used is presented in Table 1. For example, a student enrolled in or completing a qualification with an NZSCED code of 070101, 070118, or 070120, was assigned to the ECE sector.

Step 2:

A number of initial teacher education qualifications do not identify a single sector of teaching via an NZSCED code, as they can produce graduates for more than one teaching sector.

In these cases, to determine the likely sector of teaching for each student/graduate, the courses a student enrolled in as part of the initial teacher education qualification were analysed. The study load (as measured by equivalent full-time students (EFTS)) in courses assigned to any of the initial teacher education NZSCED codes in Table 1 (or in courses that had a name that identified a sector of teaching) was then aggregated and a student was assigned to a teaching sector where they had the largest study load.

Where the likely sector of teaching for a student/graduate could not be identified using Step1 and Step 2 the sector was treated as "unknown".

Because the likely sector of teaching is a derived characteristic, it should be treated as indicative only.

Determining who is enrolling in ITE for the first time or completing their first ITE qualification

People can enrol in and complete additional ITE qualifications throughout their career. They do this for a variety of purposes, including: career progression, specialisation and remuneration gains. These people will already be qualified to teach.

To get a sense of people who are new to teacher training we split the enrolment data into those enrolling in ITE for the first time in that year and those who have been enrolled in ITE qualifications in previous years.

To identify the students new to ITE, we look back to 1994 using historical datasets to see if they have studied previously. If we don’t see a prior enrolment, they are treated as new to ITE in that year. As the unit record data only goes back to 1994, there may be older students who we identify as being new to ITE who may in fact already have studied an ITE qualification in the period prior to 1994.

Similarly, for ITE completion data, we report who is completing an ITE qualification for the first time and those who have already completed an ITE qualification in the past. This gives a sense of how many graduates may be available to join the teaching profession.

Focusing on 'first-time' students gives a more accurate picture of who may be available to join the teaching profession for the first time in the future.

More detail on this is provided in the Technical notes sheet in the Excel statistical tables.

Treatment of multi-teaching sector qualifications

In the reporting of official ITE statistics, where students enrol in or complete an ITE qualification which prepares them to teach in more than one sector, we report them in each of these sectors.

More detail on this is provided in the Technical notes sheet in the Excel statistical tables.

Region of study

In the ITE enrolment statistics, where a student is studying intramurally, the delivery site of the courses they enrolled in is used to identify study region. Where a student is studying extramurally, the postal code of the term address of the student is used to determine study region. Where study region cannot be determined we treat the study region as unknown.

For the ITE completions data, the study region of the last year of enrolment in the qualification is used to determine the study region.

It should be noted that the region an ITE student studies in may not be related to the region where they commence teaching.

Assigning a student as intramural or extramural

To assign a student as intramural or extramural the study load in courses/papers they are enrolled in within the qualification in a year is examined and if the majority of the study load is on an intramural basis they are assigned to that status (and vice versa). So a student who is classified as intramural may still be doing an extramural based paper.

The teaching subjects of secondary sector graduates

The initial teacher education data in sheet ITE.COM8 presents the teaching subject(s) of secondary sector graduates. Tertiary education providers can report up to three teaching subjects for each graduate via the Single Data Return and the data is available from 2019.

The subjects reported in sheet ITE.COM8 do not necessarily represent the subjects that the graduate may teach at school.

The initial teacher education data is compiled at the qualification level

The initial teacher education statistics reported here were compiled at the qualification level. Therefore, if a student was assigned to a particular sector of teaching, all of the EFTS for that student in that qualification in that year were assigned to that sector.

Māori medium statistics

The Māori medium statistics are reported for programmes that meet Teaching Council requirements for Māori medium. The Māori medium data is available from 2016 onwards as the Teaching Council requirements for Māori medium came into force on 1 January 2016.

As well as reporting the total number of students enrolled in and completing Māori medium ITE qualifications, we have split the data into bilingual or immersion provision. This terminology is in line with NZSCED definitions.