A student's book at Te Kura Kaupapa Maori O Takapu Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
Kura Kaupapa Māori have expressed concern about the government's proposal to replace NCEA with a new qualification model, saying kura kaupapa students have only just mastered the current system.
Co-chairperson of Te Rūnanga Nui o ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori o Aotearoa Rawiri Wright said he supports the establishment of an assessment framework that ensures integrity and mana for Māori learners, but the current proposal fails to accommodate the proven strengths of Kura Kaupapa Māori.
"My gut reaction is it's a return to the bad old days of the school certificate regime and that didn't do us any favours as Māori people."
But Wright said there could be an opportunity for kura to consider their own qualifications.
"Perhaps the time has come for Kura Kaupapa Māori and Te Aho Matua schools to consider establishing our own qualifications and assessment strategies, aligned with the learning programmes of the Māori wānanga across the country."
Education Minister Erica Stanford told Nine to Noon there was "too much credit counting" with NCEA.
"I can see the system is being gamed... Credits are being used to get students across the line, like participating in a group activity or filling out a form," she said.
Rawiri Wright says the proposed replacement was a monocultural, Eurocentric approach to education, he said. Photo: Te Rawhitiroa Bosch
But Wright said the NCEA model has provided greater flexibility for Kura Kaupapa. He questioned why the game was being changed now.
"It seems to us that our Kura Kaupapa Māori kids and kaiako (teachers) and kura, we got really familiar, we learnt how to play the NCEA game really well, to the point where the ministry now has 15 years of data which shows that our kids have outperformed all other schooling options in the country in terms of NCEA achievement."
A Qualifications Authority report from 2024 showed that students at kaupapa Māori schools achieved better NCEA results than their peers at comparable English-medium schools.
They had NCEA achievement rates of 63 percent at level 1, 72 percent at level 2 and 73 percent at level 3.
Achievement rates for all students in the comparator group of English-medium schools were 54, 66 and 61 percent and for Māori students in those schools the rates were 50, 64 and 56 percent.
Wright said the consultation process, which closes 15 September, is a very short window to pull together a high quality meaningful response to the governments proposal.
"The minister and the prime minister have said themselves that they want to get something in place before the end of the year so it just means that we all have to be on our game and get our submissions together quickly."
The proposed NCEA replacement was a monocultural, Eurocentric approach to education, he said.
"The process of education that they're still insisting on foisting upon us is that of a mono-cultural Eurocentric education system which has been in place in the country for 269 years. It has not worked for thousands of Māori and Pasifika students, why on earth would they think these changes are going to make any significant difference to that."
