While many like the flexibility of NCEA, some would like the qualification to focus more on learning than assessment, a new report from the New Zealand Council for Education Research (NZCER) has found.
They were among thousands of views on NCEA and its future captured in a report released by the Ministry of Education yesterday.
Ministry early learning and student achievement deputy secretary Ellen MacGregor-Reid said the NZCER report analysed feedback gathered from surveys, formal submissions, workshops, in-depth interviews and focus groups from around the country.
"Earlier this year the Minister of Education put out a call to action for all New Zealanders to have a say on the future of NCEA.
"We’ve heard from students, principals, teachers, whanau, business owners, tertiary groups and many more diverse voices.
"We’re delighted that so many New Zealanders got involved, and how passionate people are about sharing their experiences with NCEA.
"Through targeted engagement, we’ve also been able to hear from people who haven’t always been well served by the education system."
Ms MacGregor-Reid said more than 16,000 people engaged directly in the NCEA review, more than 8000 filled in surveys or detailed submissions, and about 8000 others attended workshops, meetings, hui, fono, focus groups, in-depth interviews or debates.
"This report summarises what we’ve heard. It highlights the things that people like about NCEA and areas where it could be strengthened.
"Similarly there are a wide range of ideas about how we could do this and what a more future-focused NCEA might look like."
She said many people had told the ministry they "value" NCEA.
"Across all groups, the thing people like most about NCEA is its flexibility."In particular, many like NCEA’s mixture of external and internal credits, and the range of ways students can achieve credits."
However, she said some also said there could be challenges as to how the qualification was implemented.
"They told us that the qualification could have more focus on learning than on assessment, which could include less emphasis on credit accumulation.
"People also suggested that we could also look at ways to change the structure of NCEA. For example, changing the number and content of NCEA levels and offering more support around how NCEA is understood and used."
She said the ministry was working with the Ministerial Advisory Group, Professional Advisory Group, Reference Group, the education profession, pupils, employers and the wider community to prepare recommendations for the Education Minister to take to Cabinet in April.
A plan for the future of NCEA would be released for consultation later in 2019.
