Chief Executive's Overview

Throughout the year 2003-04, the Qualifications Authority has continued to refine its operations and expand the scope and quality of its work. It has been an exciting time: we are nearing the end of the implementation phase of NCEA; we have launched a world-leading register of qualifications online; and we have developed productive relationships with Maori stakeholders. We have also rebuilt many of our information systems, which has benefited the hundreds of thousands of people and organisations we interact with.

One of the achievements of which I am most proud this year is the launch of KiwiQuals, the website of the New Zealand Register of Quality Assured Qualifications, Te Āhurutanga. The Register is unique worldwide for its agreed quality criteria and qualification descriptors. It brings together all approved qualifications available in New Zealand's tertiary institutions and secondary schools. Students and employers can go to the KiwiQuals website, compare qualifications and make informed choices about qualification pathways. The project took shape over eight years of consultation and hard work, and the result is an enormous asset to New Zealand both here and internationally where it stands as a symbol of our consistent quality assurance regime. It signals to learners that we have an organised, open and transparent system, and gives them a resource they can use to make the most of the educational opportunities here.

Over the year, the Qualifications Authority continued with the successful implementation of NCEA level 2 and preparation for implementation of level 3 and New Zealand Scholarship.

In 2003, the first NCEA level 2 assessments took place and external assessments for University Bursaries were conducted for the last time. This was an enormous undertaking and some of the logistics involved included:

the preparation of 353 different exam papers and nearly 500,000 personalised answer booklets
the printing of over three million question and answer booklets
the translation of 71 papers into te reo Maori across the country (compared with 32 in 2002)
the holding of 34,650 examination sessions across the country (compared to 21,252 in 2002)
eighty-six percent of markers submitting their results via the web (compared with 70 percent in 2002).

We continue to emphasise to our stakeholders that the NCEA model is giving schools access to the whole NQF, and is designed for maximum learning opportunities and local flexibility. Parents and schools are best placed to decide what educational targets are appropriate for students and exactly how learning should be structured. The NCEA enables this to occur. Reports this year from the Education Review Office and the New Zealand Council for Educational Research confirm that, in this regard, the vast majority of schools are acting responsibly and in the best interests of their students.

As we near the end of the implementation phase for NCEA, we are beginning to see the benefits of a system that focuses on what a learner can achieve. Flexibility in the system is giving students more choice and, therefore, a greater incentive to get a qualification before leaving school and get a head start in some specialist national qualifications.

Because NCEA is data-rich it allows us to track learners' results on an individual basis. Schools, teachers and heads of departments now have, for the first time, 'real' statistical data with which to inform teaching and learning.

In 2004, the Qualifications Authority will face its biggest logistical challenge to date: running four sets of national examinations, involving more than twice the number of examination sessions in 2001. There will be assessment at three levels for the first time since 1968, as well as level 4 Scholarship examinations. This means administering annual examinations for more than 130,000 candidates.

Our fruitful partnerships with schools are fundamental to the success of secondary school assessment. There are moderation systems in place to check that consistent assessment decisions are being made nationwide.

Issues relating to New Zealand's export education industry have been significant for the Qualifications Authority this year. As a result of exchanges with government agencies in China and South East Asia, we have strengthened relevant policies and systems, including measures to protect student fees.

We have initiated a series of projects that will enhance the level of information available to learners about education providers in New Zealand. Internally, we have reviewed the capacity of provider audits to look more closely at financial viability, developed risk indicators and stepped up the scrutiny of providers that are likely to be in difficulty. We are also well advanced in revising the format of audit reports with a view to publishing them on the Qualifications Authority's website.

Changes to legislation during the year gave the Qualifications Authority increased powers. Our capacity to impose conditions on providers, generally interms of roll numbers, and to issue compliance notices requiring specific and immediate action to improve quality, has enhanced the stability of the sector.

Consultation with the education sector has been a keynote this year. A new forum of private training establishments (PTEs) ensures that we will interact with these providers on an on-going basis. This is central to our continued efforts to be proactive in our dealings with the private education sector.

More than one million New Zealanders are now registered on the NQF. They can now choose to download their Record of Learning from the Qualifications Authority's website.

Alongside every information and communication technology development there is a need to redefine business processes. This has been a major focus for the Qualifications Authority this year, resulting in efficiencies and improved quality of service.

Maori educators, both secondary and tertiary, have been at the forefront of seizing the opportunities offered by the NQF. The Qualifications Authority continues to develop national qualifications that meet the learning needs of Maori and that respect the taonga of Maori skills and knowledge. A new general qualification, Te Ngutu Awa, recognises learning across all of field Maori on the NQF.

Senior management and staff at the Qualifications Authority look forward to the coming year with confidence. We are aware that our work touches the lives of virtually every family in this country. We are equally aware that the devolved nature of New Zealand's unique qualifications model, in secondary schools, workplaces and tertiary organisations, is central to the growth of a vibrant national learning environment. We see ourselves as partners in that endeavour.

Karen Van Rooyen
Chief Executive

Page updated: 29 November 2004