Teaching applicable skills Delivering the tools students need to navigate the adult world

By Timmi Aplin-Barrett

In a world of constantly changing requirements and skills, it’s important to ensure education is still working.

The education system, thankfully, is something that’s constantly changing and evolving to meet the needs of the working world. It’s also important to question whether schools are providing necessary life skills, not just academic skills. Are students being taught how to navigate the adult world after school?

The Ministry of Education’s associate deputy secretary of Curriculum, Pathways and Progress, Pauline Cleaver, says Aotearoa New Zealand schools design their own local curriculum, guided by the New Zealand curriculum, to best meet the needs of their students.

“Schools design a curriculum that includes teacher and learning that is relevant to the learners and their community.

“Life skills are an important component of the education system envisaged in the National Education and Learning Priorities and we are committed to ensuring that schools and kura have the flexibility and support to teach these skills in a range of contexts according to local needs,” Pauline says.

Pauline says The Ministry of Education is working hard to ensure that all ākonga receive a high-quality education that responds to their individual strengths and needs.

“The refresh of The New Zealand Curriculum will identify skills and capabilities across all learning areas, including financial, information, sustainability (global citizenship) and civics and citizenship capability.”

She says life skills and capabilities are cross curricular; they are experienced in all learning areas. The refresh of the curriculum will make these easier to identify and more purposeful in each learning area.

“For example, in the refreshed social sciences learning area, ākonga develop understanding, knowledge and skills in relation to social, cultural, economic and political processes,” Pauline says.

“This enables them to contribute to and participate in society as critically informed, ethical and empathetic citizens with a concern for the wellbeing of communities and a commitment to a fair society for all.”

In the technology learning area, ākonga learn to apply technological knowledge, skills and practices to benefit themselves and others. This can involve sewing, food processing and working with hard materials as well as digital design and coding. These processes are expected to take place in authentic contexts, supporting students to understand the realworld applications of their learning.

There are several resources aimed at assisting both students and teachers with ensuring ākonga have the skills they need to enter the work out of school.

Pauline says the teacher-focused School Leavers Toolkit website supports schools and kaiako in the teaching of critical life skills. The student-focused School Leavers Toolkit is a resource that helps young people gain critical life skills on topics such as government and voting, moving out of home, getting a job, and money and tax.

Pauline says new content is currently being developed for the website, with new sections on study and training options, student loans, student allowance and scholarships, planning to move out and budgeting and banking.

“As part of the Youth Guarantee package, there are also a range of initiatives which aim to support learners in developing their own pathways towards future work and careers, and help educations meet the needs of their students,” Pauline says.

“These options are available to all young people whether still enrolled at school or for those who have left.”

• Trades Academies (SecondaryTertiary Programmes) aim to engage young people in education and equip them with the relevant vocational skills and training

• The Services Academies programme is run with secondary schools in partnership with the New Zealand Defence Force

• Gateway enables schools to provide senior students with opportunities to access structured workplace learning that has a formalised arrangement set in the workplace

• The Secondary Tertiary Alignment Resource (STAR) delivers additional operational grant funding to all State and State-Integrated schools with year 11-13+ students

• Youth Guarantee Fund courses help young people access foundation learning without paying course fees.

For more information, visit: www.education.govt.nz

The teacher-focused school leavers toolkit: www.sltk-resources.tki.org.nz

The student focussed school leavers toolkit: www.schools-leavers-toolkit. education.govt.nz