| November | Noema | Whiringa-ā-rangi |
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Ngā mihi mahana ki a koe
This has been a difficult year. The uncertainty and disruption caused by Covid-19 has left many feeling anxious and weary, particularly with the holiday season fast approaching. With less than two months to go, let’s focus on finishing strong. It has been said before, but I don’t believe it can be said too much—you have all done an amazing job leading the country through uncharted waters. Thank you.
At the Council, we’ve received messages from some about what mandatory vaccinations mean for registration and certification. Let me preface this by saying, I acknowledge this is a polarizing and difficult subject to talk about, and there are many diverse views. As leaders in society, we encourage teachers to get fully vaccinated to protect the safety of learners. However, we also acknowledge this is a personal choice. If you choose not to be vaccinated; it is not a matter considered at the time of registration or certification. You are also not breaching the Code and Standards | Ngā Tikanga Matatika as this remains a personal health choice. If you have concerns about the vaccine, we encourage you to talk to your health practitioner.
These are unusual times, and given the pressures teachers and education leaders are facing around the country, it’s a good reminder for us all to be responsible for acting in ways that are mana-enhancing. We’ve heard the “be kind” message, so from me to you, thank you for being kind and respectful of others in the profession, your learners and their whānau. We may have different opinions and diversity of thought, but we all want the best for children and young people in this country. That is our unifying mahi.
Noho ora mai
Lesley Hoskin
Chief Executive
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| Your professional practice |
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Consultation on increasing fees and levies
The Education and Training (Teaching Council fees, levies, and costs) Amendment Bill is currently progressing through Parliament. It addresses the Act being out of alignment; when it has received Royal ascent, it will enable the Council to recover the actual and reasonable costs of performing its functions through the charging of fees and levies.
In our submission to the Education and Workforce Select Committee on the Amendment Bill, we stated our intention to invite stakeholders to co-design a new consultation to ensure all voices are heard and everyone can understand the costs and reasons for them. Over the last few weeks, we have extensively engaged with key stakeholders, unions, and peak bodies to share detailed information. This includes the Council’s activities and costs, and to get feedback to help us shape the design of a thorough consultation process with teachers on Council funding, fees, and levies.
This first step of engagement is still ongoing, but we are committed to learning from our mistakes in 2020 and will keep you updated as things progress. At this stage, it is our intention to consult with all teachers and education leaders again early in 2022.
Two-step consultation approach
Following the outcome of the Judicial Review between the PPTA and the Teaching Council, we will soon be consulting with the profession on fees. In the meantime, we are working with key stakeholders, peak bodies and unions to design the process for consulting with you on changes to fees and levies. It’s particularly important that we keep you informed along the way, while acknowledging every single stakeholder and kaiako. We’ll be taking a two-step process, as follows;
Step one: Share | Listen | Shape | Design
- extensively engage with stakeholders, peak bodies, and community groups to share information
- get feedback
- shape the design of the future consultation with all teachers.
Step two: Ask | Respond
- undertake a formal consultation process with all teachers based on the outcomes of step one.
We’re currently working through stage one—the key for us in designing the consultation process is that it’s Te Tiriti led, values-based and that we listen to your feedback. We’ll keep you informed as we work through the two-step process, including sharing with you the information gathered during the engagement in step one..
Payment by instalments
The Teaching Council is conducting a feasibility study to investigate the ability to introduce a payment-by-instalment option for practising certificates fees and levies. We’d like to understand if this is an option you'd want, and how implementation might work, for example, how often you make the payments. Deductions from your pay are not always feasible; however, they may be an option in some situations, and this will be explored in the study. We’ll be meeting with representative groups and surveying a sample of teachers to hear their thoughts and feedback, so we know what’s important to you. If you’re contacted to take part, we’d appreciate your feedback!
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Nominations are open for the Teaching Council Board Elections 2022!
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If you’re passionate about education in New Zealand, and are interested in making positive change, then consider standing for the Teaching Council Board Elections 2022!
Elected Board members must be registered teachers holding a current practising certificate, except for the teacher educator who must be a registered teacher with five or more years of experience and currently working in either the field of initial teacher education and/or ongoing teacher education.
Nomination forms, the Candidate Handbook and FAQs can be found on our website here. Nominations close at 12pm, 30 December 2021.
If you’re looking to spread the word in your own school, kura or centre, please click here to download Teaching Council Board elections posters from our website!
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Council challenges qualified-teacher targets for ECE teachers in submission
The Teaching Council this month filed a submission in relation to Tranche Two of the Ministry of Education’s Early Learning |
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Regulatory Review consultation, which aims to ensure the ECE regulatory system is clear and fit for purpose to support high quality educational outcomes for our youngest tamariki. Tranche One changes are already in the process of being implemented—see here for more information about the overall review and where things are at.
Tranche Two proposed three options for regulating for 80% qualified teachers (the aim longer-term is to regulate for 100%). Under the current regulations, teacher-led services are required to have 50% of staff holding an early childhood qualification recognised by the Council. The three options proposed a mix of formulas for achieving the 80%, including requiring services to employ or engage 80% qualified teachers. The Council recommended an alternative option that strengthens regulating for 80% by requiring that whenever children attend, there must be 80% ECE-qualified and certificated teachers in contact with children. The Council also recommended developing an implementation plan to support services achieving the increase from 50% to 80%.
We’ve recommended that a teacher holding a person responsible role undergoes a formal induction to understand their responsibilities. We support the proposal that this role be held only by persons holding a Full practising certificate – a Tūturu | Full (Category One) Practising Certificate or a Pūmau | Full (Category Two) Practising Certificate.
We’ve supported the introduction of ‘home-based service qualification’ as a definition and have proposed clarifying the status of roles such as ‘educators’ and ‘other teachers’ to help more clearly distinguish between qualified teachers and other staff working in early childhood centres and services.
The Council recognises the complexity of this sector, and also acknowledges the challenges facing the sector in terms of the availability of qualified teachers and the impact of Covid-19. However, this is one of the most significant opportunities to make a difference for the lives of our tamariki, which is why the Council supports committing to achieving more challenging targets that place more qualified teachers before our tamariki.
The Teaching Council’s submission on Tranche Two of the Early Learning Regulatory Review can be viewed here.
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Impacts of Covid-19 for the Professional Growth Cycle
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The Professional Growth Cycle (PGC) for teachers and kaiako in Covid-19 alert levels 3/4
Many Professional Growth Cycle (PGC) designs, planned discussions, feedback and observations may have been significantly interrupted by Covid-19 alert levels and lockdowns. We want to reassure principals, tumuaki and professional leaders that changes to the PGC design can be made (as appropriate) based on what's most valuable for teachers and learners in each setting.
We realise there’s significant learning occurring for teachers as an outcome of their responsive and adaptive practice. The PGC encourages ongoing discussion and feedback on practice and emphasises collaboration in learning. This means that it's very unlikely that teachers have not already received feedback and engaged in discussion over the course of their PGC.
Observations and annual summary statements
We’ve had specific inquiries about observations and annual summary statements. The PGC elements don't require a specific number or design to the observations. However, we believe it’s likely that some informal/formal opportunities will have arisen for teachers to have been seen in action in their roles. Please make any adaptations that are valuable in your place to any planned observations in your PGC. With the change from appraisal to PGC, there is no need now to have a summary report each year. Each teacher simply needs a statement that outlines whether they are meeting the Standards| Ngā Paerewa, and that they have participated in the PGC (as described in elements e—f), which you can read on our website here.
Professional Growth Cycle for Principals, Tumuaki and ECE Professional Leaders
If you missed the announcement in last month’s Matatū about the Professional Growth Cycle for principal’s tumuaki and early childhood education professional leaders you can read it here.
Check out our PGC webinars!
If you’d like to register for our range of PGC webinars for teachers, kaiako, tumuaki, principals in English medium and Māori medium settings (and newly added teachers who are casual relievers), follow this link to our website.
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| Registration and certification |
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Changes to renewing provisional certificates and overseas experience requirements
Recent changes to the registration and certification policy mean there’s an additional option to utilise a refresh process for teachers seeking to renew their Tōmua | Provisional practising certificate—for the first time, who do not yet have teaching experience.
If you’re in this category, you can now use a New/Beginning Teacher Practice Plan, if you’re not able to meet the requirements for satisfactory recent teaching (when you submit your application, your Registration Officer will advise if you need to complete this refresh process).
Read the rules setting out teacher refresh processes for renewing practising certificates here.
Additionally, we're now able to consider overseas teaching experience for practising certificate renewals, where this service is equivalent to a teaching position in New Zealand! When you submit your application, you will be directed to an online form which provides further information on what evidence we require to support this consideration.
Read the registration and certification policy on our website.
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Welcome to our 2022 graduands!
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Many of our current Initial Teacher Education (ITE) students are nearing the end of their study and preparing to join us as members of the teaching profession!
The Teaching Council has worked with the ITE sector to understand the unique challenges of Covid-19, and as a result we’ve worked on developing our emergency response policy, collaboratively with the Ministry of Education, New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) and Committee on University Academic Programmes (CUAP). It's been designed to maintain the integrity of the qualification, by enabling minor changes to practical experience placements, and has included opportunities for many students to complete their practical experience online.
Assessment of practical experience changed to enable student teachers to receive feedback and an opportunity to reflect deeply on their practice—through virtual visits, scenario-based teaching examples, micro-teaching and alternative assessment practices. Many providers in our ITE field-based programmes have asked their student teachers to participate in a block practical experience placement in their home school or centre. This has supported learner well-being where students have already formed strong working relationships with learners (and their families) and can support their mentor teacher as they return to centre or school-based practice.
Thank you for taking a student teacher under your wing this year and guiding them as part of your teaching team! We appreciate that their experience of teacher education may not be what we expected, and they may feel a little anxious as they make the next step into employment. However, we are confident that this group of graduates are well prepared, resilient, innovative and most importantly ready to join this great profession. Many will also have the opportunity to be part of the Enhanced Induction and Mentoring programme in 2022, specifically designed for those who have had a reduction in practical experience in their final year of study.
Further information about the emergency change policy and the impact of Covid-19 for initial teacher education can be found on our website, here.
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Research project on the lives of exemplary educators: call for nominations
Bruce Maxwell, of the Faculty of Education of the University of Montreal (Canada), is conducting a study on the lives of exemplary educators, and he is looking for nominations! |
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The study’s goal is to compile a set of biographical profiles of exceptionally committed educators from many countries, including New Zealand. If you know a teacher whose career has demonstrated a sustained commitment to the teaching profession and who has been an inspiration to others, please contact bruce.maxwell@umontreal.ca for more information.
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| Your Governing Council at Work |
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At the October hui, your Governing Council:
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agreed to a hui with the ECE sector to share information on initiatives, and to meet kaiako and kaimahi
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discussed possible changes to the Complaints Assessment Committee once legislation is passed; including approving membership renewals
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agreed to the creation of a Pasifika Strategic Plan for the upcoming year to be created by the Pacific Education Steerage Group (PESG)
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continued planning the upcoming consultation on the proposed changes to fees and levies, with the Strategic Plan scheduled to begin shortly.
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Advisory group discussions:
The Pacific Education Steerage Group (PESG) met on 13 October, and discussed:
The Teaching Council Inclusive Education Advisory Group (TCIEAG) met on 5 November and discussed:
- the 2021 ‘Disabled Studies’ conference
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upcoming ‘International Day of Disabled Persons’
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Tranche Three of the ECE regulation review
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ITE symposium
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proposed change to the conduct and competence processes.
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