Key Findings

Increasing the horticultural skills of Pasifika people to enable them to train and work in New Zealand’s horticulture industry would not only contribute to filling employment gaps in the industry, but would also contribute to reducing the economic and social disparities between
Pasifika people and other groups in New Zealand.

A horticulture foundation programme for Pasifika people would make them work-ready, so that they understand the skill requirements of the industry, and would enable them to become familiar with the industry’s training culture.

There is not currently a horticulture foundation training programme in existence that meets the needs of people who wish to enter New Zealand’s horticulture industry. For these reasons, the New Zealand Horticulture ITO (NZ Hort ITO) wishes to develop its own horticulture foundation training programme. 

Key Recommendations

Recommendations for teachers and tutors

• Consider English language knowledge | English skills may be a barrier to some students ability to learn. Consider using strategies such as simple language and breaking important concepts and information down into bite-sized pieces. Use some Pacific language too.
• Draw on cultural references | Where possible Pasifika models, symbols, metaphors and visual aids should be incorporated into teaching.
• Check understanding | Pasifika students may have grown up in a culture that discourages questioning and encourages interpersonal, rather than analytical, ways of thinking. To check understanding and encourage analytical thinking among Pasifika students, tutors can use different techniques such as asking students to summarise or put into their own words what the tutor or another student has said.
• Use team collaboration | Pasifika students may often have a preference for collaborative methods of learning, and using these techniques to teach them may encourage them to feel safe in articulating their ideas and opinions.
• Develop good relationships | Pasifika students’ learning success can be augmented through good relationships with their tutors. Tutors might encourage good relationships with their students in different ways such as allowing students adequate time to complete assignments and understand learning material and encouraging and facilitating the student-tutor relationship.
• Use different teaching styles | Some Pasifika students may learn best through practical rather than academic or theoretical style teaching.

Recommendations for programme designers

• Incorporate themes relevant to the Pacific | Appropriate themes for a Pasifika foundation horticulture programme are organic agriculture and sustainable agriculture.
• Align programmes to funding | A Pasifika foundation horticulture programme could be aligned with funding schemes such as Cadet MAX Scheme (Ministry of Social Development), the Youth Guarantee (Tertiary Education Commission) and Straight 2 Work (Work and Income).
• Link to national qualifications | The national qualifications that could be embedded within a Pasifika foundation horticulture programme include National Certificate in Employment Skills (Level 1) (55-58 credits) and National Certificate in Horticulture (Level 2) (70 credits).
• Link to a pathway | A Pasifika foundation horticulture programme could be part of a pathway that leads trainees through a modern apprenticeship or other adult training programme such as the National Certificate in Horticulture (Level 4).

Recommendations for employers

• Consider resourcing and staffing | The main resource necessary for delivery of a Pasifika foundation horticulture course would be the provision of a full-time staff member to deliver the course and develop learning materials
• Ensure staff are skilled | Staff associated with a Pasifika foundation horticulture course need a range of skills and qualifications such as a horticulture background and the National Certificate in Adult Education and Training (Level 4) qualification or its equivalent.