Details of the institutions received funding to provide Level 1 and 2 tertiary education courses next year show that the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) is favouring providers promising cheapest courses, rather than those which offer high quality courses.
We should not assume that because a course is cheaper or delivered in bulk, it is the best for our students.
Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce has announced that only six polytechnics out of 18 and only one wananga would receive funding to teach Level 1 and 2 courses next year, but 17 for-profit private providers would get funding that had previously gone to publicly-owned polytechnics.
After the Commission released more information about the successful tenders, it was clear that one of the deciding factors was the ability of an institution to teach its course more cheaply than its competitors.
If this competitive funding model continues, not only will we see more and more public education money in the hands of private for profit companies but also see a downward spiral in quality as polytechnics and wananga respond to the expectations of the tertiary education quality and design courses that are cheap rather than high quality.
Sandra Grey is President of the Tertiary Education Union
