Qualifications system must enable all learners to thrive

Commenting on the Government’s announcement today of proposed changes to the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA), Chris Abercrombie said there were many positive aspects of NCEA that should be retained and built on.

“PPTA Te Wehengarua, and secondary teachers, have been the guardians of the NCEA over many years, because we can see the undoubted benefits for students. As a standards-based assessment system that is based on the principle that all students should have opportunities to succeed, be rewarded for what they know, and can demonstrate and fulfil their potential, the NCEA has clear advantages over the previous qualification system, which had a built-in failure rate.

“Of course, no system is perfect, and in recent years there has been widespread agreement on improvements to NCEA, including fewer and larger standards, clearer vocational pathways, and a simpler structure.

“However, to the great frustration of teachers these changes either failed to be implemented or resourced adequately. The lack of adequate support for, and political flip flopping on, NCEA means teachers are left trying to fill the gaps. We need stability and certainty.”

Chris Abercrombie said teachers had not been involved in the development of the proposals announced today, so it would take some time to work through the details.

“However, teachers know already that the last thing anyone needs is change for change’s sake or political legacy.

“It's good to see that there seems to be a broad consensus among politicians that our standards-based qualifications system is what Aotearoa New Zealand is committed to having. The task of government is to ensure that ours is the very best system that can be developed. Our students deserve nothing less.”