Limited Alignment Between Strategy, 9-Point Plan
The release of the draft Tertiary Education Strategy
(TES) for the period 2010-2015 for consultation reveals
limited alignment with the nine-point plan contained in the
university briefing document to the current Government. The
key difference between the two documents is the strategy’s
emphasis on improved tertiary education system performance
as opposed to the plan’s call for increased public
investment in universities.
There is common ground
over boosting the achievement of Māori and Pasifika
students. The strategy lists a Government priority for
tertiary education as assisting these students to achieve at
higher levels. Under a heading “A Step change for Māori
and Pasifika”, the universities’ plan for “Government
and university action” talks about all universities having
strategies in place to strengthen the engagement of Māori
and Pasifika communities with university
education.
Another tertiary education priority
contained in the draft TES for the next five years is an
increase in the number of young people achieving at level
four and above of the National Qualifications Framework,
particularly completing degree-level qualifications.
Releasing the draft TES, Tertiary Education Minister Anne
Tolley made the following remarks in a media statement:
“With a growth in demand we need to ensure the best return
on the public’s investment. It (the strategy) also sets
out the improvements Government is seeking in the
performance of the system. In particular, providers need to
be more responsive to students and industry and make better
use of resources.” Those remarks encompass a further
strategy priority; “improving the educational and
financial performance of providers”.
However, the
nine-point plan advocates increased public investment in
universities, indexation of that investment, differentiated
public investment in tertiary education and a commitment to
universities’ distinctive contribution through research
and research-led teaching. Increased public investment in
university education would appear to be an obvious way of
addressing the strategy goal of more young people completing
degree-level qualifications.
On the research issue,
the draft TES does list strengthening research outcomes as a
tertiary education priority. Universities called for
increased and accessible research funding in their plan,
enabling them to support greater numbers of research
students, particularly at doctoral level, for the benefit of
New Zealand.
The remaining TES priorities are
continuing to assist adult learners to gain literacy,
language and numeracy skills that lead to higher-level study
or skilled employment, and increasing the number of young
people moving successfully from school to tertiary
education.
On the latter priority, the nine-point plan
drew attention to universities’ engagement with lower
decile schools to promote interventions to encourage
students to achieve at secondary school level, thereby
ensuring those students were more likely to progress
successfully to university education. Bridging programmes
for secondary school pupils were employed along with
mentoring and other forms of support once students enrolled
at university.
The NZVCC will make the universities’
view known by the time submissions on the draft strategy
close on November 6.
Other items …
Importance
of Marsden Fund support emphasised
The record $66
million investment from the 2009 Marsden Fund round was
welcomed by the NZVCC through a media release which said the
increased funding underlined the importance of university
research and its value to society.
NZVCC Research
Committee chair Professor Sir David Skegg said the 99
university research projects supported by the 2009
allocation should deliver a wide range of outcomes,
including improving the health of mothers and their babies
and “teaching an old brain new tricks” – a reference
to a research project on whether the use of Prozac can
increase brain plasticity.
“It is good to see
increased government support for basic research covered by
the Marsden Fund. Basic research is about discovery and
largely takes place in universities. Such research is the
most likely source of a breakthrough that will contribute to
New Zealand’s economic growth. Further, university
research on social issues is vital in understanding and
alleviating societal impacts such as those caused by
recession and rising unemployment.”
All told, 111
research projects attracted support from the fund this year,
including two project extensions and 36 fast-start awards to
assist outstanding researchers early in their careers. The
University of Otago was successful with 25 projects worth a
total of $18 million over three years, the University of
Auckland 26 projects ($12.4 million), Victoria University of
Wellington 16 projects ($9.7 million), Massey University 11
projects ($7 million), the University of Canterbury 14
projects ($6.8 million), the University of Waikato four
projects ($2.6 million) and Auckland University of
Technology one project worth $300,000.
Universities
accounted for $57 million of the $66 million allocated from
the Marsden Fund in 2009. A total of 934 preliminary
proposals were received by the fund administrator, the Royal
Society of New Zealand, with 214 parties subsequently
invited to submit a full proposal. The overall success rate
for Marsden applications this year was 12 per cent, well up
on previous years.
Southland to host 2010 University
Games
A Southland consortium led by Sport Southland
and involving the Invercargill City Council, Invercargill
Licensing Trust, Stadium Southland, Venture Southland and
the Southern Institute of Technology has been successful
with a bid to host the 2010 University Games in
April.
The successful bid was announced recently by
University Sport New Zealand (USNZ) which evaluated two
other proposals. After a call to member campuses to express
their interest in being involved in the bid process,
personnel from two universities accompanied USNZ staff to
the bid cities to meet the proposed games consortia and
visit facilities.
The 2010 University Games will run
from April 13 to 16 with Stadium Southland being the hub for
events, serving as games headquarters and the venue for some
of the social programme. Track cycling events will take
place in the world-class ILT Velodrome. Further information
is available from: http://http://www.universitysport.org.nz
.
More schools to use KAREN
Education Minister
Anne Tolley has announced an extension of the national
education network trial to June 2011 with an expansion to
include more schools. A business case is being prepared for
an education network which could potentially incorporate all
schools.
The existing trial provides 23 schools, or
around 16,000 students, with access to a range of content
and services across the Kiwi Advanced Research and Education
Network (KAREN). The trial is of interest to universities
as major stakeholders in KAREN and is being carried out amid
concerns about the on-going operating costs of the
network.
The estimated 200 schools that will be on a
fibre service midway through next year will be able to join
the extended trial. Schools on the trial will be able to
access a range of content and services at speeds of up to
100 megabits per second. It will also provide opportunities
to further test and implement design elements and
content.
ENDS