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  • From the CE: An update on our response to COVID-19

    COVID-19 continues to be a major focus for us, as it is for you.

    The World Health Organisation declared COVID-19 a pandemic on 12 March. As Director-General of Health, Dr Ashley Bloomfield says, we have been planning for and acting as if COVID-19 was a pandemic since the beginning of the outbreak.

    The New Zealand Government’s number one priority is the health of people in New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. International students are a valued part of New Zealand’s education system and of our community. New Zealand provides quality education to many thousands of international students each year, and we want that to continue.

    The health and well-being of our international students is of uppermost importance – both the students whose travel to New Zealand has been delayed and those who are currently here, far from home, during a period of uncertainty. We are all working together to ensure they have the care, support and information they need.

    The international situation around COVID-19 continues to evolve and the international education sector is working in an environment of rapid change and a lot of uncertainty, as things develop on a daily basis.

    We are working with providers and agencies across government to map out the way forward. In the short-term, we wanted to give you an idea of some of the immediate steps that ENZ has in train. These include: 

    • Ongoing monitoring of global responses and flow-on impacts for the international education sector – which we will share with providers
    • Tailored communication to and support of agents around the globe through AgentLab (March)
    • Market intelligence soundings (ongoing)
    • Testing market sentiment in China and other affected countries (March)
    • Enhancing our content on WeChat (March)
    • Continuing to develop NauMai NZ as a platform to get information to international students (March)
    • Taking our regular pulse check of the health of the brand globally (from April)
    • Exploring online delivery of ENZ events globally (March/April).

    We are very keen to work collaboratively with the sector. We look forward to the discussion with provider representatives at the peak bodies’ forum on 18 March.

    We are continuing to update ENZ’s COVID-19 webpage to provide links to the latest information for students and their families, agents and sector peak bodies.

    Impacts on our work

    Because of the COVID-19 outbreak and travel restrictions, ENZ has cancelled or postponed a range of events and initiatives. Our offshore activities in particular have been impacted by the responses of host countries to COVID-19. We will continue to communicate these developments directly to affected New Zealand industry and other stakeholders. 

    In addition, we have postponed the applications for the Prime Minister’s Scholarship for Asia (the Prime Minister’s Scholarships for Latin America are unaffected). We cannot support scholars to travel to the Asian region at this time. We will review the situation later in the year. Please check our webpage for further updates.

    Similarly, ICEF Australia New Zealand (ANZA) has been postponed to 3-5 August 2020;  APAIE 2020 (Asia Pacific Association for International Education) has been postponed until March next year; and the IALC 2020 Auckland Workshop (26-29 March) has been cancelled. Other postponements and cancellations continued to be advised and we expect this trend to continue.

    Other measures 

    • Offshore or blended delivery
      • We have been asked about alternative delivery for students not yet able to enter New Zealand.
      • NZQA has advised it is enabling non-university tertiary education providers to temporarily support students who are affected by COVID-19 travel restrictions through online/blended learning options.
      • If you have a programme that is approved for online/blended delivery, please contact NZQA on 0800 697 296 for more information.
      • This temporary approval does not apply to training schemes
    • 3% surplus not required this year

    Student eligibility for health care

    Also in response to sector questions, the National Health Coordination Centre, which is part of the Ministry of Health, has confirmed that “people who have or who are suspected of having an infectious and/or quarantinable disease are eligible for publicly funded health services to address the risks to other people.” Further information is available on the Ministry’s website.

    Further information

    Here in New Zealand, the Ministry of Health is the key source of information on current entry restrictions and advice for people travelling to New Zealand, self-isolation and prevention measures. The Government has extended entry restrictions and entry requirements into New Zealand as a precautionary measure to protect against the spread of COVID-19.

    Other key sources of information on COVID-19 are the: Ministry of Education and Immigration New Zealand, as well as ENZ’s webpage for students, agents and peak bodies.

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  • New Pastoral Care Code of Practice for Tertiary and International Learners Released

    Today, the Government released a new Code of practice for the pastoral care of tertiary and international learners, to take effect by 1 January 2022, as required under the Education and Training Act 2020.   

    This revised Code is the product of many conversations, engagements, emails, phone calls, and hui.  We are thankful to everyone that has spent time to help improve the wellbeing and safety of tertiary and international ākonga. 

    The overall purpose of this work is to develop a system of supports for the wellbeing and safety of domestic tertiary and international learners, through one set of clear rules and expectations for providers that can be tailored to their learners’ needs. 

    We have summarised the key changes and provided links to the new code and Ministerial Press release, below  

    What does the new Code mean for tertiary providers?

    Tertiary providers will need to consider how their overall systems and resources support learners’ wellbeing and safety. 

    It will be important for providers to build and maintain strong relationships with learners and other interested stakeholders to identify and define the issues that are important for their communities and develop appropriate strategic goals, plans and practices around them. 

    Providers are expected to:

    • build capacity across their organisation to engage and empower learners to manage their own wellbeing
    • proactively identify and respond to learners who may face additional challenges as early as possible and tailor extra support to meet their needs.
    • respond effectively in an emergency.

    The new Code continues to focus on outcomes and flexible practices that enable providers to support their learners in ways that best meet their needs.

    What does the new Code mean for tertiary and international ākonga?

    The Code will make providers more accountable to learners, their families and community. The new Code expects tertiary providers to consult with learners, and other stakeholders when developing, reviewing, and improving their strategic goals, plans and practices. It also expects providers to be transparent about their wellbeing structures, strategies, practices and performances.

    What’s changed for international ākonga?

    The new Code covers domestic and international tertiary students and international students in schools. The goal is to ensure consistency within tertiary providers rather than having separate Codes for international and domestic learners in the same provider. The new Code continues to spell out the expectations that apply now for providers regarding the specific needs of international learners. There are no changes to requirements for schools, in New Zealand, who host international students.

  • Cancellation of NZIEC 2020

    The decision was made following discussion and consultation with sector representatives in relation to COVID-19.

    Although we are disappointed to have to make this decision, the health and safety of international education sector representatives is of paramount importance.

    While August may seem some time away, the nature of conference planning timeframes mean that a decision was required now. This decision provides certainty for all involved and also allows us to focus on other priorities during this unprecedented time.

    We will continue to look for ways to keep international education professionals informed and connected in the coming times. Keep an eye on E-News for the latest information.

    We look forward to being in touch later in the year as we start preparing for NZIEC 2021. 

  • Meet the team: Miranda Herbert

    Hi Miranda. Could you tell us a bit about your professional background?

    Quite a few people who work in education say that they ‘fell into’ education. I’m the same.

    When I was younger I was always interested in languages. I did Japanese right through high school, I decided to continue with it at university. I asked my Dad what other language I should study, and he said I had to learn Chinese because it’s going to be an important language in the future.

    I then spent four and a half years living and working in China, and became quite involved in education. I ended up working for a PTE in New Zealand, and then I moved to the University of Auckland. There I worked my way up to the deputy director of international.

    What has it been like in Beijing during the outbreak of COVID-19?

    I was actually in China when SARS broke out, 20 years ago, too [while at a previous role]. This time seems quite different to then. The level that China has mobilised this year has been quite amazing to experience firsthand.

    It’s been really surreal, particularly during the January and February months. Despite Beijing having a population of over 20 million people, for weeks we saw no-one on the street - you could cross the road with your eyes closed, which never happens here. At other times, it could get quite depressing having to stay in all the time.

    Now, things are starting to get back to normal. It really varies across China, but here in Beijing, businesses are opening again, people are starting to go into the office for work, people are going to restaurants and dining out – while still following physical distancing etiquette.

    We feel really lucky that we were able to stay here, because safety comes first and foremost in China. There’s still a lot of temperature checks, for example, if you order food on the receipt it will tell you the temperature of the chef and the person who delivered it to you.

    Most of Team China is working at home, and will come into the office when they need to. We’re working our butts off at the moment to keep things rolling. We’re involved in digital events almost every day. And although we’re not going out to meet people, we’re working closely alongside our agent contacts and partnership network.

    What would you advise to people trying to conduct business in China?

    You have to be patient and not expect results straight away. You have to nurture relationships. It’s about understanding that cultural difference, because the way China does business is quite different to back home.

    A profile of Miranda wouldn’t be complete without you introducing us to your cats. Could you tell us about them?

    I have two cats, one boy and one girl. They are my babies. I don’t have real babies, I have cats.

    The boy is called Nonga; he’s a real big personality, everyone around here knows him and he’s becoming famous on WeChat! Even though he has stage four renal failure, he still makes us laugh. My girl is called Missy Moo – she’s more shy and is quite happy to stay at home on your lap.

  • Student visa processing update

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