Early Childhood Education:
- Birth to school age children.
- The government fully funds ECE 20 hours per week for all children aged 3 to 4.
- ECE licensed centers include:
- Pre-School (called Kindergarten), which are teacher-led programs
- Play-centers and playgroups, which can be teacher or parent-led programs
- All use a curriculum framework called Te Whariki (this is a metaphor using the Maori word for woven mat). The curriculum focuses on child-centered, play based activities.
- The Ministry of Education states that currently there are over 4,000 centers across the country.
Primary School Education:
- Most students start primary school on their 5th birthday (Year 0), but it is not compulsory until age 6 (Year 1).
- Full primary schools teach years 1 – 8, and contributing primary schools teach years 1 – 6. Students who attend a contributing school, go on to intermediate school for years 7 and 8.
- According to the Education Counts site, New Zealand currently has 1,945 primary schools, with enrollment ranging from 10 to 2,000 students.
- English-medium primary schools use the New Zealand Curriculum, which focuses on 5 key competencies and 8 learning areas.
- Maori-medium schools, where at least half the curriculum is taught in Te Reo Maori, use Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. This curriculum has 9 learning areas because it separately teaches Maori language/literature and English language.
- Interesting note: All of the English-medium schools I visited incorporated some level of Maori words and phrases into their classrooms.
Secondary Education (referred to as college/high school):
- This is for Years 9 – 13 (ages 13 – 19)
- For 6 to 16 years old – school is compulsory; 16 to 19 years old – school is optional, depending on the scores from their National Certificate in Educational Achievement (NCEA) and plans to transition to further education, training or a career.
- According to the Education Counts site New Zealand currently has 374 secondary schools, which includes 25 teen parent units and a few other specialized correspondence-type schools.
- The country also has 173 Composite schools, which encompass Years 1 – 15 (years 14 & 15 would be considered tertiary, and include technology, polytechnic, and workplace training programs).
Tertiary Education:
- Tertiary education covers all education after secondary school, and includes both higher education and vocational training.
- Beginning January 1, 2018 the Government declared that all New Zealand students, who finish schooling in 2017-18, can receive their first year of tertiary education (including industry training) fees-free. They also introduced other monetary boosts for student allowances and certain living costs. The Ministry of Education predicts 80,000 students will use this benefit.
