Programme requirements

Important note: All current ITE programmes must be approved by the Teaching Council under the new requirements no later than 1 January 2022. 

Download a digital copy of the new ITE Programme Approval, Monitoring and Review Requirements 

The new Requirements outline what is necessary for programme approval, monitoring and review. They represent a significant shift in the way teacher education programmes will be designed and delivered and how student teachers are assessed. 

They are primarily outcome-focused with provider discretion wherappropriate, and seek to give schools, centre and kura greater assurance that ITE graduates are well prepared to be effective beginning teachers from day one on the job.  The new Requirements change the expectation around the kind of practical experience student teachers need, the nature of the coaching and support and the kind of assessments that will demonstrate they meet the Standards | Ngā Paerewa (in a supported environment).

Applying for approval

The new online ITE portal allows providers to submit new programme applications in a secure environment. You can also edit contact and provider information, submit student exemptions and track the progress of applications. 

The basic steps for applying for approval of your programme are below, please contact your Teaching Council Lead Advisor for more detailed instructions and use the ITE provider toolkit for guidance when applying. 

Please note that your appointed Teaching Council Lead Advisor should be involved at each of these critical steps, as should NZQA evaluators in the case of PTE’s, wānanga, and polytechnic applications. 

  1. Early programme design – formulating a conceptual framework towards initial teacher education and working with partners towards a shared sense of programme needs.  
  2. Advanced programme design – programme partners consulted on aspects such as programme assessment, content, delivery and entry.  
  3. Programme documentation submission - all documentation submitted to Council (and NZQA for NZQA co-approved providers) through the Council ITE portal. Teaching Council (and NZQA) staff perform desktop analysis of documentation.  
  4. (On basis that documentation is sufficient) In cooperation with the provider, a panel of teaching professionals is convened to evaluate the application. This panel is usually convened on the providers campus, but in certain circumstances may be convened online.   
  5. Panel gives a recommendation to Teaching Council (and NZQA where necessary) whether to approve, approve with conditions or decline the application. 

Log in to ITE provider portal

The new online ITE portal allows providers to submit new programme applications easily and in a secure environment. Providers can edit contact information, submit student exemptions and extensions and track progress of applications.

Log in to the portal

Reference guide for ITE providers including getting set up, logging in, updating contact details, viewing programmes and applications.

Portal FAQs 

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Panel Information for ITE Providers

This is a guide for ITE providers about the composition and role of panels in the ITE programme approval process.

Click here to read the panel information for ITE providers — draft.

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Audio: Unpacking the new ITE requirements 

In this interview Pauline Barnes (General Manager, Teaching Council) and Alex Gunn (Chair of TEFANZ and Associate Dean of Teacher Education at the University of Otago) discuss the new requirements for initial teacher education programme approvals which were introduced in July 2019.

Alex and Pauline explore why the requirements were developed, some of the ins and outs of the new approach to programme approvals, and the critical role providers and their partners have in shaping their programmes so that graduates can meet the Standards | Ngā Paerewa (in a supported environment) from day one in their new teaching career. 

A transcript of the interview is also available.

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Language competency requirement 

Requirement 6.2, ITE Requirements document page 42 

The Council's policy for language competency gives provision for candidates skilled in either English or te reo Māori.  

The policy has been written in alignment with language policies from NZQA and NZ Immigration. Effective from January 2019, the Council policy gives the profession assurance that candidates seeking to enter initial teacher education (ITE) programmes and overseas trained teachers have the requisite level of language competency to communicate successfully at the level required.   

Features of the policy are:  

  • A single policy for entry to ITE, and overseas trained teachers applying for teacher registration
  • Applicable to domestic and international candidates
  • Works from an ‘evidence’ base, and does not distinguish on ‘first language’ or ‘other language’, etc  
  • A range of eight internationally accessible approved English language tests  
  • An exemptions process for exceptional cases – for use by ITE providers only.

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Police vetting requirement 

Requirement 6.5, ITE Requirements document page 51

Gaining a Police Vet is a common feature to:  

  •  Entry to initial teacher education  
  • Teacher registration  
  •  Any of the certifications in the 2020 Registration Policy (TōmuaPūmauTūturu).  

To meet the requirements of the Children’s Act, for the purposes of entry to ITE, all candidates must complete a Police vet application as part of the selection and entry process.  Most Police vet applications are processed within 20 working days  

Having a criminal record does not necessarily preclude a candidate from entering Initial Teacher Education, under the guidance notes in Requirement 6.2 there are considerations for the provider to exercise their discretion on whether to accept a candidate:  

  • severity and recency of offending  
  • age of candidate when offending occurred 
  • pattern of offending and whether the offending means the candidate is unlikely to be of 'good character and fit to teach'.  

ITE providers can decide on whether to enrol a candidate, however both the provider and the candidate need to be aware that the Teaching Council will go though its own process for registration which will involve consideration of a subsequent Police vet. Therefore, the process at entry to an ITE programme does not guarantee registration as a teacher.  For more details, please refer to this letter to providers.

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Culminating integrative assessment requirement and key teaching tasks requirement

Requirement 4.2 and 4.3, ITE Requirements document page 32

 Learning materials have been prepared for these requirements:

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Authentic partnerships

There is growing recognition that partnerships between ITE providers and key stakeholders enhance the learning of student teachers. 

A paper was written further outlining what is meant by an authentic partnership.

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