The National Curriculum in Aotearoa New Zealand includes both The New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) and Te Marautanga o Aotearoa (TMoA).

Responding to feedback that a clear curriculum should be the foundation of senior secondary teaching and learning, the Ministry of Education has been undertaking a refresh of the National Curriculum.

Yesterday the Minister of Education, Hon Erica Stanford, announced a future focused range of senior secondary school subjects, read the full announcement here.  

Curriculum subjects for Years 11-13 will provide students greater choice, clear pathways and opportunities for specialisation, setting them up for success in future study or their chosen profession. These subjects will support the important shift to an internationally comparable, knowledge-rich curriculum underpinned by the science of learning. (Subject list attached)

Many of these subjects are already available through NCEA. Some are new, while others have been renamed, reorganised or refocused to ensure they are knowledge-rich subjects and provide clear pathways. Some subjects will be developed by the Ministry, and some by industry.

New subjects developed across the curriculum include: 

·         Electronics & Mechatronics

·         Media, Journalism & Communication

·         Music Technology

·         Civics, Politics & Philosophy 

·         Te Mātai i te Ao Māori

·         Pacific Studies

·         New Pacific language areas 

·         Specialisations at Year 13 such as Further Mathematics, and Statistics & Data Science.

Te Mātai i te Ao Māori, an exciting new Māori Studies subject, will be available through NZC. It will provide learners in English-medium settings with the opportunity to study Māori cultural practices, protocols, knowledge, and philosophies.

A new Pacific Studies subject will allow students to explore histories and cultures of Pacific peoples. It will cover knowledge related to the impact of change, development, sustainability, and leadership in the region.

Outdoor Education will be developed into an industry-led subject at Year 12 and 13 as well as continuing to be used as an assessment context for Physical Education. 

Comprehensive industry-led subjects are also being developed. These include areas such as Primary Industries, Health & Wellbeing Services, Outdoor Education, Automotive Engineering, Building & Construction, Infrastructure Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Tourism & Hospitality, with further options to be considered as the Ministry work with the industry skills boards. 

Each subject’s curriculum will clearly outline the essential learning for students, teachers and kaiako ensuring that teaching and learning are driven by the curriculum, rather than the qualification.

The first year of implementation for new subjects will be 2028 for Year 11, 2029 for Year 12 and 2030 for Year 13.