Principals’ Study Tour, Mercure Hotel, Auckland

E nga mana, e nga reo, e nga hau e wha.Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa.

Good morning everyone and thank you for your warm welcome. I am delighted to be here with you all today as Minister of Education to open your 2009 Study Tour.

I am also pleased to have been asked to speak on your role as school leaders and careers advisors in relation to Government policy and initiatives that directly relate to you - including Trades in Schools, School-based Apprenticeships, and Trades Academies.

Without wanting to steal the thunder of Paul Spoonley who will be speaking on labour market dynamics, I do want to begin by saying that the education portfolio is critical to achieving the Government’s vision and ambition for New Zealand, and essential for determining our country’s position in the OECD – both in terms of our economic, education and social outcomes.

Strengthening our economy requires a productive labour market underpinned by skilled workers. The first step in ensuring our country is made up of people with a wide range of complementary skills that are designed to boost productivity is a sound education system. This begins with the work you are all doing in your own schools.

We want to make changes that ensure all students stay interested in learning. We want all young people who leave secondary school to be ready for work, training or further study. This means raising levels of achievement. It also means helping schools to provide a wider range of opportunities for students to access trades and industry-based education at school.

School remains the best place for young people to get their education. But we all realise that traditional study may not necessarily be relevant for all students. This is why we will work with schools, tertiary organisations and industry training organisations to provide more flexibility for students to learn beyond the school gates.

For those 16 and 17 year-olds who have left school and not continued with their education, the Youth Guarantee will be available to help them gain the skills and qualifications they need to succeed in the 21st century.

Today I want to focus on secondary schools. This Government is committed to putting trades back in schools.  Putting trades back in schools is about getting more young people interested in school, and achieving more while they are there.  We want young people to have opportunities to engage in hands-on learning in everything from traditional areas such as plumbing and hairdressing, to newer opportunities in ICT. However, we also want young people to be able to keep all their options open by using this industry-related learning to work towards the career of their choice while they continue with NCEA. 

Our Trades in Schools policy includes implementing School-based Apprenticeships and establishing Trades Academies.

There is a lot of interest from the trades sector from organisations such as IPENZ which provides professional development for teachers, to businesses that want to ensure trade qualifications remain relevant in our current market. I know there is a current shortage of teachers in technology and one way the Government is responding to this is through our voluntary bonding scheme for trainee teachers. This initiative helps attract teachers to schools that have had problems finding and keeping staff, and will boost numbers in subjects where there have been shortages.

We are committed to expanding the availability of school-based apprenticeships.  I have asked the Ministry to review a range of successful overseas examples - including the programme run in Australia, and I will be taking into consideration the capacity and needs of New Zealand industry. 

I am also looking at the fit between such programmes and our Trades Academies initiative. 

The Government is committed to establishing at least five Trades Academies over the next three years. These will be for students in Years 9-13 who are interested in a career in trades and industry. We want these students to be encouraged and supported to stay in education and engaged in learning.  Trades Academies will give them the opportunity to make significant progress towards national qualifications in a range of industries - and combine this with their NCEA Levels 1-3. 

We want to ensure students are provided with clear pathways and given a head start towards gaining industry qualifications that meet their future employers’ needs.

In establishing Trades Academies we will aim to build on existing successful programmes but offer greater flexibility to students. We have made no decisions on a definitive shape of these Trades Academies. This will depend on the sort of partnerships schools, tertiary providers and business can build, and the capability of the supporting schools or bodies in the partnership.

Each partnership may have differing characteristics to meet the needs of their different communities. So, flexibility is the key and this means considering innovative options including:

• a particular school offering education and training to students from several schools in partnership with tertiary and local industry.


• stand-alone facilities, perhaps under a trust, offering education to students from a number of schools and tertiary institutions, plus local industry involvement.


• tertiary institutions offering education and training to students from a number of schools on a full or part-time basis with industry backing.


• virtual academies acting as brokers for students so that they can move between standard school delivery, tertiary providers, and employer/industry based experience in their education.

I have recently called for expressions of interest for providers who would like to be part of the Trades Academies programme.

Proposals will be investigated thoroughly and a short-list of applicants will be invited to develop business plans for further review. Trades Academies will be based on the following criteria:

• A commitment to partnership between local businesses and other training institutions, and the supporting school or other schools


• Local skill shortages (or clearly identified demand and relevance for the skills being taught)


• Evidence of sufficient demand within the supporting school (and other contributing schools) from students for the education or training a Trades Academy will provide


• Capability of the supporting school and/or body to establish and govern a Trades Academy


• A demonstrated ability to deliver successful vocational education.

I was told there might be some Careers Advisors here from Auckland schools…. I have some remarks I want to address to you particularly.

Some of you may know that I met with your National Executive last month to discuss the role of Careers Advisors.  What I said at that time about the important role of careers guidance stands.  Our young people need:

• excellent careers information


• accurate and impartial careers advice, and


• quality guidance.


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They need guidance to choose their subjects and plan their pathway from school to further education, training or work.

It is especially important that schools provide the right kind of guidance to students who might be at risk of leaving school unprepared or with no sense of direction about what they want to do next, or how to do it. 

Young people need to be able to have the opportunity to know what options are available and the consequences of the choices they make.

Professional development by Career Services and School Support Services has contributed to making career practitioners more aware of what schools need. The CPaBL programme has improved the quality of careers education in secondary schools - particularly where there has been senior management support to make it part of processes and curriculum planning in the school.

The valuable resources developed by Career Services have been collated. All schools are now able to access from the Career Services website, which includes a web chat room open to all who visit.

So now to the principals. This Study Tour is about you and I have a number of things I want to say share with you about leadership in this time of change.  This Government places high trust and confidence in leaders like yourselves who are at the forefront of our education services. We need strong, forward-thinking educational leadership in every school to achieve excellent outcomes for young New Zealanders.

We are committed to a devolved system of decision-making. This means strong professional leadership in every school is vital to bringing about the sustained changes required. Our Government wants principals to be able to be ‘true leaders of learning’ in their schools - for schools to be able to get on with the core work of teaching and learning. We do not want you pre-occupied with mountains of bureaucracy.

I would like to thank all of you who have taken time to share with me via Hightrust@parliament.govt.nz, your personal experiences with the paper war, and would like to convey my commitment to addressing this. I want to be made aware, personally, of what you think should be changed to make your leadership role easier – please keep the emails coming.

When you are an effective leader, you are a role model for others and You build effective leadership in others. Through this, you also improve learning outcomes for every student in your school. 

We have a lot of evidence on what leadership practices make a significant difference for student learning outcomes in schools. Firstly, we know that good principals and leaders communicate, and act on the goals and expectations set for them. I hope I have been clear that this Government’s overarching priority is to raise educational achievement. All other goals, including engagement of students and provision of suitable learning opportunities, relate to this priority.

Secondly, we know that effective principals and leaders meet priority teaching goals through strategic resourcing. This is especially important in today’s climate. We must get good outcomes for students, and good value for money for taxpayers. Thirdly, we know that effective principals are, first and foremost, the leaders of education As I said earlier, this Government is determined to reduce the burden of unnecessary bureaucracy so that you can focus on your educational leadership.

I realise that you are dealing with new initiatives, and that you need to manage these within what is an increasingly complex role. I also acknowledge that diverse student populations and complex school environments call for you to be effective change managers.  But I want you to know that I am committed to assisting you to focus on being an educational leader.

This Government does not underestimate your critical role in the education system or the country’s development as a whole. We know from research that after quality teaching, educational leadership has the next biggest influence on student learning. 

As I said, your role is critical, but the Government does not expect you to do it alone. Professional development and support is vital. I am currently considering the ways in which we can attract, develop and support talented leaders who can lead necessary change in our education system.

Today I have focused on the importance of your role in relation to Trades in Schools, School-based Apprenticeships, and Trades Academies.  These are the areas you will be most concerned with.  I began by saying that this Government wants to build a sound education system - and one that brings about the economic and social changes our country needs.

We are committed to ensuring schools deliver initiatives that provide flexibility and choice to schools, students and parents.  The initiatives I have outlined today will mean there will be :

• more young people interested in being at school because they can combine hands-on training with academic study


• more young people gaining worthwhile qualifications at school that lead to work, training or further study, and


• more young people being given an opportunity to fulfil their potential.

Thank you for inviting me to be here with you today. I wish you all the best for your 2009 Study Tour.