EIT Hawke’s Bay is undertaking a major initiative to embrace literacy and numeracy in teaching the institute’s certificate programmes.
Project leader for foundation education Elly Govers says EIT will start by teaching nine programmes with embedded literacy and numeracy next year.
“Every field of study has its own language,” she explains. “To succeed in a study programme, a person needs to acquire the associated literacy and numeracy skills as well as the subject knowledge. These are areas that can’t be regarded as separate.”
EIT teaching staff had found that students who struggle often had difficulties with literacy and numeracy and language associated aspects of their programmes.
“The major change process being undertaken at EIT is a refocusing exercise. Many programmes already have literacy and numeracy aspects in them but they are hidden, and what we are going to do is make it explicit and deliberate to better help students succeed.”
Elly said it made sense to effect the changes in all EIT’s programmes, and the institute would do that progressively.
“We are starting with levels 1-3 because they form the foundation to everything else we do. We envisage widening the exercise so that it becomes the accepted process at EIT.”
The initial six programmes that will be ready for February intakes are Introduction to Food and Meat Processing, National Certificate in Community Support, Certificate in Māori Studies (Level 2), Certificate in Collision Repair, Certificate in Introduction to Fashion and Certificate in Introduction to Social Services.
Three others will be ready for the July intake – National Certificate in Hairdressing (Year 1), Certificate in Mechanical Maintenance and Certificate in Carpentry.
All other levels 1-3 programmes are to be redesigned over the following two years.
EIT applied last month to the Tertiary Education Commission for funding for the initiative.
“The exercise is aligned with the Government’s skill strategy,” Elly said, “and we think it is a good thing.”