In March, the government confirmed the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) would be replaced by two subject-based qualifications.
More details were released this month.
The major changes are the axing of NCEA level 1 from 2028 and the introduction of the New Zealand Certificate of Education (NZCE) at year 12 in 2029 and the New Zealand Advanced Certificate of Education (NZACE) at year 13 in 2030.
Every subject included in the new secondary school qualification framework will be assessed internally and by examinations.
James Hargest College principal Anna McDowall said the rate of change happening in education was ‘‘hard to fathom’’ and it would not be easy to implement the changes well.
‘‘Teachers already work so hard and finding time to unpack, evaluate, plan and prepare for significant change, without compromising the great job they do every day for the young people in their care, seems beyond difficult.’’
For example, the year 9 and 10 curriculum due to be implemented next year had not been released yet and there had been no announcements of teacher-only time to work together on the changes, Mrs McDowall said.
‘‘For teachers to be able to implement these significant changes, without enough preparation time, alongside what are already fulltime, demanding jobs, is the greatest concern.’’
There was not enough clarity about how the new qualification grades would be achieved, she said.
The college had already actioned some of the changes, including the removal of NCEA level 1 in 2024 and making English, science and mathematics compulsory at year 11.
‘‘This has definitely been the right decision for us and our community.
Southland Girls’ High School principal John Grogan said there were still significant details to be worked out as to how the new qualifications would work in practice.
‘‘It is essential that any assessment system supports inclusive pathways, enabling all students to succeed and remain engaged in education and training in ways that best meet their individual needs.’’
Aurora College principal Craig Taylor said it was unfortunate little detail was given about the new qualifications, which made it difficult to make an informed judgement.
‘‘On first thought, it looks like a step back towards the old system, pre-NCEA. ‘‘
He questioned whether the qualifications would widen the achievement gaps between high and low equity schools.
In theory, developing students’ science knowledge was a good thing, but given the present difficulty in finding specialist teachers he had ‘‘grave concerns’’ about staffing those compulsory classes in year 11, he said.
Fiordland College principal Steven Mustor said he believed the timeframe was unrealistic if the change was to be effective.
‘‘We try to reduce staff administrative load on our teachers so they can focus on teaching and learning.
‘‘Forcing a qualification rewrite on to teachers this quickly, while possible, is far from ideal.’’
The school had already phased out NCEA level 1 to ‘‘prioritise deeper learning over credit hunting’’.
Making science, English and mathematics compulsory in year 11 contradicted the college’s push to give students choice, he said.
