Initial Teacher Education Programme Requirements Review

In mid-May the Initial Teacher Education Reference Group met to discuss the draft requirements for the approval and monitoring of all initial teacher education (ITE) programmes in New Zealand.

“The responsibility for setting the requirements for ITE programmes falls within the mandate of the New Zealand Teachers Council, and we have now reached the final stages of developing new requirements following an extensive review and consultation with the sector,” said Barbara Benson, Manager of Teacher Education.

“The reference group now has five weeks to provide final submissions on behalf of sector representatives prior to the new requirements being finalised.”

In 2007, the Council began its initial review and feedback gave a clear signal that any requirements needed to be fair, transparent, research informed and sector consistent and acceptable.

In 2009, the Council consulted with the wider education sector on a number of aspects of ITE programmes and the processes for approval, continuing approval and monitoring. We received responses from across the education sector including providers of ITE and teacher educators in the university and non-university sectors, teachers and groups in early childhood education, primary and secondary schools, and responses from educational groups including the teacher unions.

“The consultation asked about issues such as entry requirements, selection into ITE programmes, length of the teaching practicum, practicum visiting, programme design and the process for approval and monitoring of programmes.

“The responses have been analysed for their major trends and themes. There are distinct differences in many of the responses across the sector with the ITE provider institutions seeking a high trust model, allowing them to exercise their intellectual freedom across most aspects of their programmes.

“The profession has spoken with teachers, centres and schools, along with a number of large educational groups who are seeking more nationally defined and described aspects for ITE programmes.  The sector is clearly expressing a strong voice for more active involvement in ITE with provider institutions and the employing sector is expecting new graduates from ITE programmes to be ready to begin their teaching careers upon graduation.

“The proposed approval and monitoring process has taken account of the need for reduced costs for providers in both the university and non-university sectors and a higher trust model with a focus on self-review and self-reporting,” said Mrs Benson.

This review will see the Graduating Teacher Standards (established in 2007) as the benchmark standards for ITE programmes and graduates in New Zealand, with a set of stated requirements for all new approved and reviewed programmes from 1 January 2011.

The timeline is shown here

A cover letter for Draft Two refers to the revised timelines 

The pdf documents are:

Webpage versions are available at

Previous draft versions may be accessed below

  • (June) Draft Proposed Requirements for Initial Teacher Education programmes (webpage) or (397KB PDF)