Targeting support for reaching the teacher registration targets

The Government will invest $1.3 billion in ECE in 2010/11, an increase of $107 million from the previous year.

In order to control future unsustainable costs, the Government has reallocated ECE funding to its main priorities. Changes to the ECE teacher supply policies will create savings of $42.7 million over four years for other Government priorities, such as improving ECE participation among children who are currently missing out.

What decisions have been made regarding the financial support for reaching the teacher registration targets?

*This does not affect applications approved before 30 June 2010.

Why has the financial support for reaching the teacher registration targets changed?

There is less need for government support for ECE services to reach the teacher registration targets.

Changes to the teacher registration targets are expected to ease ECE teacher supply pressures. 64% of the early childhood workforce is already qualified and registered teachers.

More than two thirds of teacher-led, centre-based ECE services already meet the 80% target for registered and qualified teachers. Ministry of Education data indicates that the 80% registered teacher target is achievable by 2012 at a national level.

Where is the financial support being targeted?

Although more than two thirds of teacher-led, centre-based ECE services already meet the 80% target for registered and qualified teachers, there is an uneven distribution across all ECE centres. The Government wants to provide support to services with the greatest need to encourage their staff to gain teaching qualifications. This will ensure a more even distribution of registered teachers.

The services with the greatest need of support include those services:

• that continue to have a shortage of qualified and registered teachers
• with Māori or Pasifika language, skills and cultural knowledge
• in lower socio-economic areas
• in rural and isolated areas.

Ministry of Education data indicates that the 80% registered teacher target is achievable by 2012 at a national level.

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Does the Government support a fully qualified workforce?

Services can choose to employ 100% qualified and registered ECE teachers, however, Government will only provide funding for up to 80%.

Will these changes affect quality in ECE?

The Government is committed to high standards in early childhood education and recognises that qualified and registered teachers play an important role in this. Achieving a minimum level of 80% registered teachers in teacher-led, centre-based early childhood services by 2012 will maintain quality early childhood provision and continue to help prepare children for lifelong learning. There is no evidence to suggest that a fully registered workforce is necessary to achieve high standards.

There are other ways to measure quality than qualifications, especially in language and cultural skills. Responding to children’s language and, culture and identity is crucial to them achieving educational success.

What is happening to the support grant for provisionally registered teachers?

The support grant will be refocused to provide more targeted support. Further details will be available early in 2011.

What about services in hard to staff areas?

The Government no longer considers any one area to be hard to staff. However, there are individual services that continue to have difficulty meeting staffing requirements. Support will be targeted at improving the quality of ECE for areas and services that continue to have difficulty finding qualified and registered staff.

The Ministry of Education provides significant financial funding to ECE services and it is up to individual services to decide how they can use this funding to attract and support staff.

What financial support/incentives are there for people to study for an ECE qualification?

The Government is continuing to provide financial support to students, on a priority basis, through TeachNZ scholarships, study grants and the ECE Service Teacher Education Grant.

Why is the Government no longer funding Recognition of Prior Learning?

There has been a steady decrease in applications for government-funded RPL in recent years.  Contracts with the four tertiary education providers to offer government funded RPL are due to end in June 2011 and these will not be renewed.

Tertiary education providers can offer their own recognition of prior learning and students wanting to get previous qualifications assessed through a RPL process should contact the tertiary education providers directly.

When will the outcome of the further reviews of the study grant, TeachNZ scholarships and the support grant for provisionally registered teachers be available?

The study grant is being reviewed and there will be no mid-year round for 2010. The outcome of the review will be communicated as soon as it has been finalised.

ECE TeachNZ scholarships remained unchanged for 2010, however stream 3 (Counties Manukau) will not be an option for the mid-year round. Information on the 2011 scholarship round will be available in late 2010.

The support grant for provisionally registered teachers will continue to be administered in the current way until the review has been completed. The outcome of the review will be communicated early in 2011.