It’s as true now as it ever has been: nowhere else offers an education experience like that of Dunedin. But rather than resting on their laurels, the University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic have plans to make the city an even more inspiring place for students. From high in the summit beyond Pine Hill on … Read more
Two Māori University of Auckland students tell Sherry Zhang about their struggle to get coffee with racist imagery removed from campus – and why they think it’s emblematic of a bigger problem. A few weeks ago, The Spinoff received a peculiar email: Subject: Auckland University Racist Coffee!! Body: Please investigate! Photos Attached: Caricatures of a … Read more
Raiha Cook grew up attending kura Māori, but when she decided to study at the University of Otago she found the move from te ao Māori to European-style learning difficult. Now she’s researching that transition to help make it easier for students to feel safe at mainstream universities. Set in the spray of Raukawa Moana, … Read more
As tertiary institutions round the halfway mark of semester two, The Spinoff spoke to students and their universities about how they’re adapting to the changes wrought by the pandemic. With New Zealand’s alert levels confirmed to be shifting down this week, we’re edging closer to something approaching normality. But what does it mean for university … Read more
Students are confused, uncertain and stressed by a flurry of institutional changes, writes Isabella Lenihan-Ikin, president of the NZ Union of Students’ Associations. In the last week, several universities have faced heavy criticisms from staff and students about their decisions to shift learning and teaching wholly or partially into online learning environments ahead of semester … Read more
Online and blended learning could be the future for universities but that doesn’t mean it’s cheaper to deliver, writes Massey University provost Giselle Byrnes. Recently, politicians and students both here and abroad have been calling for a reduction in fees for courses and qualifications taught partially or fully online. There have also been discussions around “fair … Read more
The weight of Covid-19 will be very unequally distributed. Duncan Greive writes about where it will land, and how those it hits might come out from under it. This is the second of a two part series – read the first here There’s a graph I keep thinking about which shows the potential strangeness of … Read more
Final year law student Elliott Harris has been researching the new pastoral care code of practice, and in a piece he worked on with NZUSA’s Isabella Lenihan-Ikin, says universities are already attempting to push the boundaries of acceptable behaviour. The decision of several New Zealand universities to charge accommodation fees even though Covid-19 restrictions prevent … Read more
A tertiary support package was announced by the government this week in an effort to help students financially struggling due to Covid-19. However, Isabella Lenihan-Ikin from the New Zealand Union of Students’ Associations argues that the new measures are simply not enough. On Tuesday, the government announced a Covid-19 support package for tertiary students. It … Read more
Four PhD students engaged a clinical psychologist to help them navigate an uncertain time in their studies. They share their findings here. As four PhD students from Massey University’s Joint Centre for Disaster Research we, like many others, can’t stop reading and talking about the unfolding events that have gripped our communities and the world … Read more
Te Huka Mātauraka, the University of Otago Māori Centre, celebrates its 30th birthday this year as a crucial part of life for the university’s Māori students. Its manager Pearl Matahiki and student Sarafina Tipene reflect on what the centre means for them. In 2017 when Sarafina Tipene left home to attend the University of Otago … Read more
Proceeds from the sales of a new cookbook that shares recipes and stories from people from refugee and migrant backgrounds will go towards funding a new scholarship. Sakina Ewazi, a visual arts graduate originally from Afghanistan, weeps quietly during the minute’s silence. We’re at Ōtāhuhu library in south Auckland for the launch of Tastes of … Read more
A study using salary data, employment prospects, skill shortages and training positions suggests aspiring engineers, builders, teachers, midwives and panel beaters are off to a great start. First published in February 2019. One of the most difficult choices in a young person’s life is deciding what they want to study. They have to think about … Read more
The chair of Universities New Zealand appears to think that training programmes alone will solve the gender imbalance in the academic workforce. But we need to stop trying to fix the women and focus on fixing the system, write Sandra Grey, Cat Pausé and Sarah Proctor-Thomson, representing the Tertiary Education Union. One of the key … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. In our monthly Business Chat special, Simon Pound speaks with Maria Slade of Callaghan Innovation and Duncan Greive, managing editor of The Spinoff, about the business stories making the news that month. This month Simon, Maria and Duncan chat … Read more
To grasp why the push to change has caused such a fuss, and to appreciate why it’s so muddle-minded, we need to consider how the university got its name, and what names mean to the university community, writes André Brett Universities are funny things. They have evolved from rarefied campuses of privileged elites into mass educators, … Read more
Should you fear the future of work? Rose Hoare looks at where your job is going, and what you can do to future-proof your career. You are probably aware of the disheartening predictions about robots coming to steal your job. They are expected to appear one day, smiling pleasantly and speaking grammatically perfect English (and … Read more
International students caught out by the closure of the New Zealand National College have had their lives here put on hold, and may be unable ever to return. Don Rowe reports. The closure of the failing New Zealand National College in Auckland has left at least two international students stranded in their home countries after their student … Read more
The University of Auckland’s Mark C. Wilson spent three years fighting to discover how much New Zealand universities are spending on journal subscriptions. Here’s what he found. University research is generally funded from the public purse. The results, however, are published in peer-reviewed academic journals, many of which charge subscription fees. I had to use … Read more
There’s an increasing belief that you don’t need a degree to get a 21st century career. In the first of a two-part series on the future of tertiary education, AUT vice-chancellor Derek McCormack argues that New Zealand’s universities have an essential role to play in our changing world. I’m constantly asked about the relevance of … Read more
New Zealand recently topped an international study for ‘educating for the future’. But education futurist Frances Valintine says that, far from punching above our weight, our system is preparing students for a world that no longer exists. This week I found my 17-year-old son busy sanding (yes, with sandpaper) his name off his calculator, as … Read more
If robots are going to be the accountants, what is the point of getting a degree? Rebecca Stevenson reports on the future of work, and finds old skills are getting a new relevance. Late last month 100 New Zealand companies including Xero, Fonterra, The Warehouse, Spark and Fisher & Paykel signed an open letter that … Read more
Michelle Sharp was a corporate go-getter, working for Vodafone before co-founding a successful tech company. But the Kilmarnock Enterprises CEO says she found her path to happiness when she stepped off the business treadmill. Steve Jobs said “the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do”. … Read more
Kath Cooper, an early childhood lecturer who parents four children with her wife, believes all parents need to actively support LGBTQI-friendly environments at their children’s schools. With input from the Rainbow Families NZ community, she’s sharing this article in the hope that it will spark conversations at your child’s early childhood education centre, primary school, … Read more
Following an outcry, the NZQA has agreed to a review of its policy of publishing exemplar answers that students have been memorising and reproducing. It’s all part of a larger problem, writes AUT lecturer Peter Gilderdale, of ‘academic obedience’ over actual learning. Think of a place where doping is both prevalent and systemic in a … Read more
As the debate around the value of private tertiary education providers sharpens with Labour’s immigration policy release, a new bill proposes substantial changes to the wider sector. Nicola Gaston has some serious reservations. “Increase funding flexibility in the tertiary education system, strengthen the accountability, and monitoring of tertiary education organisations, and ensure consistent treatment of … Read more