From 2013, the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) will adopt a new approach to purchasing Student Achievement Component (SAC) funded provision at Levels 1 and 2 and New Zealand Qualifications Framework (NZQF).
This new approach is to make sure that the investments of TEC reflect the Government’s new policy objectives for SAC funded provision at levels 1 & 2.
These are (a) to provide people who do not already have essential foundation skills with a low-cost way to gain those skills (b) to provide progression to higher-level study and skilled employment (c) to avoid the costs to individuals of student loan borrowing for acquiring essential foundation skills (d) to build the language, literacy and numeracy skills of eligible students (d) to enable beginning students to learn English or Te Reo Māori and (e) to reward those providers who are best able to meet the needs of foundation education students.
Foundation skills do not only mean just literacy, language and numeracy (LLN, which includes digital literacy), but also life and communication skills that prepare learners for further study or for entering/re-entering the workforce.
The exception is for language learning, where the term ‘foundation skills’ just refers to entry level skills.
TEC will set new quality standards and eligibility requirements to Levels 1 & 2 from 2013 to reflect these objectives.
An increasing proportion of SAC investment in NZQF Levels 1 & 2 will be allocated through a competitive process, starting with approximately one third of Level 1 & 2 funding in 2013.
Further information and documentation associated with the competitive process will be published shortly on the TEC website.
The Commission will notify all tertiary education organisations.
Source: The Tertiary Education Commission
The above is only an extract. Please visit www.tec.govt.nz to read the full document.
