Rankings, Assessment, and Quality: The Politics of Accountability

Disciplining the unruly subjects: Tertiary education in NZ Sandra Grey NZ Tertiary Education Union

Our union, our sector NZ Tertiary Education Union • 10,500 general and academic staff at around 50 institutions NZ Tertiary Education Sector • Policy and funding – the Ministry of Education and the Tertiary Education Commission • Quality assurance – New Zealand Qualifications Authority and Universities New Zealand • Public and private providers – universities, polytehcnics, wānanga, and other providers

Creating a ‘single market’ • Single sector created in legislation in 1989 • From elite higher education to mass market

New Zealand’s Tertiary Education Sector: Profile and trends 1998, Ministry of Education, December 1999

• Rising costs and sinking funding

Strategic steering

Strategic steering Culture of performativity • Performance based research fund • Enrolment targets • Completions, retentions, progression • Better public service goals

Strategic steering Governance and decision‐making • Government appointed ‘boards’ • Voluntary student unionism • State sector act changes • Increasing competition and marketisation Minister of Tertiary Education: “The Government is not concerned about whether provision comes from the public or private sector – we just want high‐quality provision that delivers results.”

The impact • From broad objectives to a focus on economic outcomes • Narrowed who can study; what, when, and where they can study • Deprofessionalisation and loss of voice

The impact • • • • • • •

Rising student/staff ratios Workload intensification Constant restructuring Programme closures Limiting student services Casualisation Limiting PD and RSL access

Turning it around Creating an alternative vision • that values social; scientific; human; and economic progress • Decision‐making processes that value the voices of staff, students, and the community • An education system that enables autonomy, diversity, and creativity Fighting for that vision