Ed. Collective Encouraged by Long-Term Fiscal Position

Ed. Collective Encouraged by Long-Term Fiscal Position That Looks Beyond Traditional Education Models

Last week Treasury released its Statement on the Long-Term Fiscal Position and Ed. Collective is encouraged that its call for education development and upskilling in New Zealand extends beyond the traditional university pathways.

Crucially, Treasury acknowledges that “As the nature of work continues to evolve and skill requirements continue to change, education and training systems will be challenged to ensure New Zealanders are ready for the future”.

Luc Shorter, Executive Director of Ed. Collective said, “New Zealand’s approach to education urgently needs to catch up with today’s reality and adapt for the future of work. Disruption and new technologies will create career refugees and, as yet, there is too little thinking being done on how to deal with that.”

Insights from Ed. Collective’s regular research, such as its survey of employers last month, align with Treasury’s view that, “better outcomes are achieved when both formal and informal, technical and soft skill development work together”.

He Tirohanga Mokopuna discusses the so-called “attitude gap” between employers and employees in the context of groups from diverse backgrounds. Mr Shorter cautioned that this creates an impression that the gap only exists with groups from diverse backgrounds. “Sure, there are some challenges that arise out of cultural differences, but if you speak to employers it very quickly becomes clear that there is a ‘gap’ between them and young people generally”. Ed. Collective has found there is a wide-reaching mismatch between learners and employers when it comes to how a degree prepares graduates for employment, and how prepared employers are to take on new graduates.

“Employers have told us that having a new generation in the office can stir up the culture and thinking in a positive way, but unfortunately many organisations use graduates simply for manpower and boring jobs. Large student loans put pressure on graduates to progress extremely quickly, and this creates significant tension for employees and employers alike.”

He Tirohanga Mokopuna emphasised the importance of skilling new generations of workers - even with the rich source of diversity, productivity skill and talent that migrant workers bring to New Zealand. It speaks of, “encouraging employers to take responsibility for workforce planning rather than relying on migrant labour alone.”

Like Ed. Collective, Treasury appears to have high hopes for the Productivity Commission’s inquiry into new models of tertiary education. Ed. Collective has been widely quoted in the draft report where it urged for a tertiary system that put learners’ interests at the centre and for closer connections with employers. Along with He Tirohanga Mokopuna, it marks a step in the right direction, but rather than a step, a sea-change is what is needed.

Mr Shorter said, “It will take a shared belief that a prosperous social and economic future for New Zealand will be powered by our nation’s talent, and for all system stakeholders to work in concert with each other to achieve that aim.

For further information please visit www.edcollective.org.nz,

Ed. Collective: Standing Up for learners in New Zealand and lying in on Sundays.
At Ed. Collective our vision for the future of education is one of great learning experiences and strong learner communities.

Simply put, Ed. is a mate for learners. We care about their challenges and their big dreams. We listen, research and find game-changing insights for education. If you’re a learner, Ed. will go to bat for you. Ed. is that kind of mate. Find out more at www.edcollective.org.nz

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