16 February 2001 Kiwis urged to catch 'new wave' of education

New Zealanders must not be afraid to grasp the electronic, distance learning and other innovative opportunities offered by the "new wave" in the education system, Lincoln University's Chancellor Margaret Austin told the in-coming class of Regional Education students at their introductory meeting in Christchurch this week.

Distance education, off-campus courses, on-line access to teaching and new opportunities to experience campus life, are all developments in the wider provision of tertiary education in New Zealand, she said.

"The Government has recognised the importance of adult and community education and has set up a working party to advise on how to encourage life­ long learning, how to help New Zealanders reach levels of literacy and numeracy which will allow them to function at work and enter tertiary studies, and how to assist those with poor school records to gain entry to tertiary courses.

"New Zealand is at a crossroads. We face a number of choices as we move to create the environment for a knowledge economy.

"We are a biologically based economy but unless we shift to applying knowledge to production and adding value to our products we are not going to succeed in the global market and are likely to get left behind. Indeed that we have not done well is well documented - we have slipped behind."

Mrs Austin told the students that the choice they had made to take up study was a "response to New Zealand's needs". The country's future was in the hands of its people, she said.

"The OECD makes the point that high tertiary participation rates help to ensure the development and maintenance of a highly educated population and labour force.

"It also says that tertiary institutions will be challenged not only to meet the demand through an expansion of places but also to adapt programmes, teaching and learning to match the diverse needs of the new generation of students.

"Part of Lincoln University's response to this challenge is the Regional Education Programme." (Note: Regional Education is a "distance learning" or "off-campus study" option offered by Lincoln University.)

She told the students that the University wanted them to have a sense of achievement and satisfaction and to experience the "empowerment that education gives".

Access to information led to knowledge, she said, and knowledge gave power and opened doors to opportunities where it could be put to good use and the achievement of economic and social independence.

Ian Collins, Journalist, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand.