Email from Ministry of Education (dated 17 October 2022) is seeking nominations from within our sector to assist in content creation of the refreshed New Zealand Curriculum (NZC).  

This role is critical in 'getting it right' so please nominate educators if they fit the criteria below.

Tēnā koutou 

Helping us refresh The New Zealand Curriculum: Science, Arts and Technology 

The New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) is being refreshed over the next 3-4 years so that it honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi, is inclusive, clear, and easy for teachers and kaiako to use. This was announced by the Associate Ministers for Education Jan Tinetti and Kelvin Davis on 11 February 2021.  

The Ministry is setting up writing groups to work with content specialists from the sector to refresh the NZC. The Social Sciences learning area was refreshed in 2021 and will be available for use by schools and kura in term 4, 2022. The curriculum framework and the English and Mathematics & Statistics learning areas have been refreshed this year and are available for feedback. Next year, we’ll be refreshing the Science, Arts and Technology learning areas, followed by Health & Physical Education and Learning Languages in 2024.  

In preparation for refreshing the Science, Arts and Technology learning areas, we need your help to identify content specialists of these learning areas to fill the Ohu Mātanga/Team member positions.  

This role will require approximately 30 days’ commitment over the next 18 months, and these groups will initially get together in person early 2023 to get the work underway. They will continue to meet over the course of 2023, both in person and online, to refresh the current learning area content, as well as input into annotated exemplars and to develop supports and resources.  

What we need from you 

Using the criteria listed below, please nominate up to three people for the Ohu Mātanga/Team member positions for either the Science, Technology or Arts learning area by 18 November 2022.  

Criteria for Ohu Mātanga/Team member: We will be using the selection criteria to identify a small group of 4 – 6 people for each learning area. The nominations will need to reflect credible educators who demonstrate strong evidence of, and experience in, curriculum integration and a combination of the following:

• Relevant learning area discipline knowledge  
• Understanding of best practice pedagogy and current teaching experience in the NZC 
• Understanding and lived experience of te ao Māori, that will contribute a Māori worldview
• Understanding of how to integrate mātauranga Māori into teaching and learning design Experience and expertise in working with ākonga Māori – this will be inclusive of the diverse settings where ākonga Māori are located 
• Understanding of how to integrate Pacific peoples’ knowledge and cultures into teaching and learning design 
• Understanding of how to integrate Key Competencies, and literacy and numeracy into teaching and learning design
• Expertise and research in designing inclusive curriculum, including progressions 
• On balance, the group will have knowledge and expertise across these contexts
  • Teaching in schools with high Māori rolls  
  • Inclusive curriculum and education contexts  
  • Pacific education, i.e. a Pacific teacher of Pacific students; a teacher in schools with high Pacific rolls     
  • Relevant curriculum disciplines designed for primary context    
  • Relevant curriculum disciplines designed for a secondary context. 

Please send details of your nominee/s, which learning area you’re nominating them for (Science, Technology or The Arts), along with their name, region, email address, and a short bio that shows how they meet the criteria, to NationalCurriculum.Refresh@education.govt.nz.  

To ensure the credibility of the applicants, we are unable to consider EOIs that have not been endorsed by your organization, as we will not be undergoing reference checking. Whether the nominations are sent directly from the organisations, or by the individuals being nominated, please ensure the endorsement of each application is clearly stated and that the applicants know they are being nominated. 

How we would like to work with your organisation over this refresh period 

As part of our ongoing relationship with your organisation, we hope to work together to design and implement the refreshed NZC. We will have feedback opportunities throughout the year and opportunities to explore implementation of the NZC.  

We will send you the list of successful candidates for the writing group after the evaluation process this November, along with more details about the timeline and processes for feedback. We are also very interested in how you would like to share the development of this learning area with your members.  

Finally, we recognise that 2022 has been a disrupted year. The COVID-19 pandemic has continued to have a significant impact on schools and on the workloads of principals and teachers. We appreciate you taking the time to consider our request for submitting a nominee or nominees. 

If you have any issues with the timelines outlined, have any questions, or would like more information, please email NationalCurriculum.Refresh@education.govt.nz .  

Ngā mihi,

The New Zealand Curriculum Refresh Team