10-year action plan for Pacific Education launched (Reflection)

 A new educational action plan focusing on ensuring Pacific learners and families reach their full potential was released in New Zealand. The Action Plan for Pacific Education 2020-2030 responds to the feedback of Pacific communities from across the country and outlines the shifts they want to see in the education system. This action plan is a blueprint for transforming outcomes for Pacific learners and families and is a key part of our wellbeing programme. It will drive systemic change in and across the education system to support the education and wellbeing of our Pacific children and young people. Pacific students, educators, teachers and parents discussed experiences of racism and bullying and challenges to their well-being being impediments to their educational success. The action plan guides education agencies to work collaboratively with Pacific communities over the next 10 years, and signals how early learning services, schools and tertiary providers can achieve change for Pacific learners and families.

There were five key shifts that were recognised by the Pacific communities in New Zealand:

1. Working reciprocally with diverse Pacific communities to respond to unmet needs, with an initial focus on needs arising from the Covid-19 pandemic;

2. Confronting systematic racism and discrimination in education;

3. Enabling every teacher, leader, and education professional to take co-ordinated action to become culturally competent with diverse Pacific learners;

4. Partnering with families to design education opportunities together with teachers, leaders and educational professionals so aspirations for learning and employment can be met; and

5. Growing, retaining, and valuing highly competent teachers, leaders, and educational professionals of diverse Pacific heritages.

The Ministry of Education currently has a cultural competencies framework for teachers of Pacific learners called Tapasā. Tapasā is a tool designed to help improve the way teachers and leaders engage with Pacific learners and to extent parents, families and their communities.