Building Bridges Delegation to Germany
- Emma Godwin
The overarching aim of the project is to address a pressing need to establish a flexible and adaptive vocational education framework in New Zealand, aligned with the evolving demands of the construction and building industry. The delegation sought to glean insights, strategies, and methodologies from Germany's well-established system to inform and inspire innovative approaches back home.
This report summarises the collective experiences, observations, and perspectives of the delegation participants. It encapsulates their diverse insights and the invaluable exchanges that were facilitated. Further, it outlines a vision for next steps towards realising a robust and responsive vocational education ecosystem in New Zealand.
The report includes a table of a concise overview of key observations derived from various reports presented subsequently. It highlights a prevailing sentiment that New Zealand's Vocational Training Sector does not provide a consistent experience for trainees. This underscores a necessity to establish systems that outlive political cycles to ensure consistency, to the benefit of employers and apprentices alike. We acknowledge an alignment between the te ao Māori approach of planning for generations into the future and the German vocational education system. There is potential to integrate elements of Māori long-term planning ethos with vocational education practices, thereby enhancing the robustness and sustainability of New Zealand’s education framework.
The visit was facilitated by the German-New Zealand Chamber of Commerce (GNZCC), in conjunction with our partners including the Handwerkskammer für München und Oberbayern, iMOVE at the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB), and the Federal Ministry for Economics and Climate Action (BMWK).