Kia ora koutou,
You may have seen recent discussion in the media about the approach to vaccines in tertiary education. I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you the approach we are taking as a network.
We recently received feedback from your Chief Executives on a draft position statement on vaccine requirements. The draft position statement sets out our proposed approach for managing Covid-19 in the new Covid-19 Protection Framework.
To strike a balance between inclusion and equity, and our health and safety obligations, we’ve proposed that anyone visiting Te Pūkenga network locations must be vaccinated, unless a local risk assessment determines otherwise. This would include employees, learners, contractors and visitors and is intended to keep our ākonga and kaimahi safe.
We’ve shared a risk assessment tool with subsidiaries so your local leaders can consider their local situation. The outcome of the risk assessment will inform a local vaccine policy.
We have included feedback received from network Chief Executives in the draft position statement and we’ll ask Te Pūkenga Council to approve the statement at their next meeting on 7 December.
I acknowledge this can be a challenging time, as you work through what this means for you. I know many of you have also been navigating conversations and relationships, particularly with our ākonga, around these issues. I encourage us all to focus on the way our communities have come together to keep each other safe. Ninety-four percent of eligible people have had at least one dose of the vaccine and we’ve seen so much support for those moving in and out of lockdowns.
On that note, I wanted to extend a mihi to colleagues in Tāmaki Makaurau. I hope moving to the new system brings some relief after so long in restrictions.
Ngā mihi nui,
Stephen Town
Chief Executive
Our Updates
Aromātai Kaimahi survey coming in late January
Permanent and fixed term employees across the network will soon have the opportunity to let us know how they’re thinking and feeling about the transition via Aromātai Kaimahi.
Held approximately every six months, Aromātai Kaimahi is a short survey that allows us to check in with people in the network to see what’s working well and what we can improve. It’s confidential and anonymous, and we encourage everyone to be open and honest in their responses.
The survey will now run from late January for three weeks. We’ll be in touch in the New Year with more details.
What’s next with our proposed Operating Model?
Following the recent engagement on our proposed Operating Model, significant work has been done to analyse and understand the feedback received from across the network and the community.
An Operating Model Engagement Report is being finalised for Te Pūkenga Council’s endorsement next week. It includes a summary of feedback received from various audience groups and an indication of what will be done in response to your feedback.
The full report will be shared on our website before the end of the year, along with some initial information about what you can expect in terms of next steps early in the new year.
Any further feedback can be emailed to yourvoice@tepukenga.ac.nz. It continues to be noted and will be considered as we work toward the next phases of engagement on the Operating Model.
Graduate programme for supporting educators with online learning delivery
For nearly two years, we’ve had to find new and different ways to communicate with our learners. Online learning has become part of the norm and will continue to be to meet learner needs through different delivery options.
If you’d like to extend your online teaching skills to ensure you’re delivering effectively, Wintec’s Graduate Diploma of Information Technology in Education (GDITE) might be the right next step for you.
Delivered completely online, the GDITE programme provides practising teachers with the skills and knowledge to integrate information communication technology into the classroom to enhance teaching and learning for learners. This includes modules in developing and facilitating online courses.
More information about the programme can be found on Wintec’s website at Graduate Diploma of Information Technology in Education (Level 7).
Te Pūkenga te reo me ngā tikanga journey
Here at Te Pūkenga we know that te reo me ngā tikanga Māori are a critical part of the mahi we do, and therefore the way we seek to look at the world. As part of building our whare and making sure the foundations are right, we have instituted Te Pūkenga Ohu Reo Me Ngā Tikanga. TPORMNT is an operational support function made up or te reo, tikanga and mātauranga Māori experts from around the motu, both staff as well as externals. The aim is to not only do the mahi behind the scenes, but to also share these learnings throughout the network.
Click here to check out a snippet of one of the recent examples of how we are making te reo me ngā tikanga part of our everyday mahi lives. Recently two of our members, Rangi Mātāmua and Mataia Keepa, joined us to lead us in our wiki timatanga karakia, to explain more about the karakia that have been gifted to Te Pūkenga, why we do these karakia and much more.
EIT recognised in prestigious sustainability awards
Congratulations to Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT) who recently won the Benefitting Society Category in the prestigious Green Gown Awards Australasia.
The awards are open to all Australasian tertiary institutions and recognise exceptional sustainability initiatives. EIT were one of only two New Zealand tertiary organisations who got into the finals – the other being University of Otago.
EIT was recognised for its community-focused Learning in Nature (LIN) project – their entry “Ko au te taiao, ko te taiao ko au: I am nature, nature is me” describes the project’s increased community reach and how it enhances lives by connecting people with nature and cultural heritage, whilst supporting the connection of schools with their own local environment. The LIN project has advanced teacher ability to embed nature literacy and sustainability values within the region’s educational culture from early childhood to post-graduate level teaching.
You can read more about this awesome achievement on the EIT website.
Otago Polytechnic win TVNZ-NZ Marketing Award
Congratulations to Otago Polytechnic’s Marketing, Communications and Engagement team, who have been awarded the TVNZ-NZ Marketing Award in the Education category.
The Map Your Future campaign was planned, created and executed during the first level-4 lockdown. With no opportunity to film new content, they used what they had access to from their home offices.
The campaign was also named a finalist for the overall Supreme Marketing Award.
Check out the campaign here.