27 Sep 2012

NZQA putting whanau first in Maori education plan

8:34 am on 27 September 2012

The Qualifications Authority is putting whanau at the centre of its strategy to enable Maori to do better at school.

Its focus in the just released five-year strategic plan is to enhance Matauranga Maori, which means knowledge.

The NZQA's deputy chief executive of Maori says the key to this is working in collaboration with other agencies such as the Ministry of Education, Careers New Zealand, the Tertiary Education Commission and iwi across the country.

Daryn Bean says through a practical strategy called NCEA in the whanau, the aim is to also get whanau providing input into learning strategies.

Mr Bean says there is a sense of urgency as success of Maori learners in education has implications beyond 2017 for the labour market and national economy.