This study is a collaboration between NZCER and the Educational Assessment Research Unit (EARU) of the University of Otago, on contract to the Ministry of Education. The project director is Alison Gilmore, from the University of Otago.
The aim is to assess and understand student achievement. It will monitor a nationally representative sample of students in Years 4 and 8 in English-medium schools, using a combination of survey assessments (involving 2000-4000 students) and in-depth assessments (600-800 students). These assessments will cover all learning areas of the New Zealand Curriculum, including key competencies.
NZCER began regular surveys of primary schools in 1989, focusing on the impact of the educational reforms that began then. Over the years the surveys have given us a picture of what is happening in our education services and enabled us to see changes over time. In 2003 secondary schools and a one-time survey of early childhood education services were added to the series.
NZCER & Stout Centre, Victoria University of Wellington
Research report
Professional collaboration within schools, supporting ongoing adult learning, is one of the most promising ways to improve student performance. This paper charts teacher experiences of a range of collaborative activities in New Zealand schools. Although these schools enjoy considerable flexibility that should support such collaboration, national survey data shows that it varies widely and is not widespread at the high school level.
This report tracks principal vacancies advertised in the Education Gazette in 2009 and 2010. A survey was also sent to the boards of trustees of schools advertising vacancies, asking about the applicants, the appointment and the destination of the departing principal. The report makes some comparison with data from the NZCER 2008 report, and includes related material on principal career paths from the NZCER national survey series.
Josie Roberts, Ben Gardiner, Jane Gilbert, and Karen Vaughan
2008
NZCER for Ministry of Women's Affairs
Research report
This report draws on the narratives of 86 young men and women (in pathways dominated by their own — or the opposite — sex). The findings help to explain why many trades-related occupations continue to be heavily gender segregated despite today’s emphasis on equal opportunities, individual choice, and limitless possibilities.
What is alternative education today? What is the nature of its relationship to mainstream schooling? What is and is not possible within a framework that now encompasses alternative as well as mainstream education?
The review of Special Education 2000 policy highlighted the fragmentation of responsibilities and provision, which undermined the policy’s intentions to improve educational experiences and outcomes for students with special needs. While New Zealand has now started to develop a more systematic approach, the recent Daniells decision could head New Zealand provision for students with special needs in the opposite direction.
At the end of 2001, Auckland Metropolitan College ('Metro'), the only state-funded alternative secondary school in New Zealand, was finally closed. The closure came after six years of intense debate between the school community and the Ministry of Education over Metro's future and followed eight highly critical Education Review Office (ERO) reviews in as many years, making it one of the most reviewed schools in New Zealand.
This paper uses the assessment and qualification reforms in the senior secondary school as a case study of change. To provide the context of the paper the first section presents an overview of the New Zealand secondary school sector and the educational reforms of the 1990s. This is followed by a brief outline of the ideas that led to the development of the National Qualifications Framework NQF; a description of NQF; and a review of the associated development of assessment regimes for senior secondary school qualifications.
In December 2001, Auckland Metropolitan College (Metro), the only state-funded alternative secondary school in New Zealand, closed after eight highly critical ERO reviews in eight years. Despite support from its own community, other schools, and the Schools Support Programme, Metro closed amidst long-standing confusion over its status and role in the New Zealand education system.
An emerging influence in early childhood education policy and practice is a focus on the rights and perspective of the child.
This 2001 NZCER conference explored the role of early childhood services in fostering competent children, active in their own contribution to society, and engaged in settings that are inclusive of all children and their families. An emphasis was on the implications for policy, practice, and research, considered alongside the long-term strategic plan for early childhood education.
Education vouchers are controversial. Advocates call them a panacea; critics say they exacerbate existing inequalities of education opportunity. What does the research say?
This literature review examines the findings of international and New Zealand research on education systems which use the main elements of the voucher approach to education: parental choice, per-student funding formulae, and self-managing schools.
