Published on the 25/08/2022 | Written by Heather Wright

Creating new opportunities to do things differently…

Paul Irwin has a pragmatic approach to technology in education. 

Irwin, Education New Zealand Manapou ki te Ao (ENZ) general manager, diversification, is adamant that technology itself can’t be the driver – but equally, that there is, in fact, a strong correlation between educators who are innovating and those who have a strong technology focus or background. 

“In theory we can learn as much from failure as commercial success.”

“Technology is both a disrupter and an enabler. Advances in technology force changes in thinking, but also create opportunities for doing things differently,” Irwin told iStart. 

“Just because a new technology is available, doesn’t necessarily mean it should be used. We have to make sure the needs of the learner are driving the innovation and that technology is used to enhance the experience and outcomes for the learner,” he says.  

Education New Zealand recently handed out just over NZ$1.6 million in International Education Product Innovation Funding for six pilot projects for new products and services to ‘reimagine’ New Zealand’s international education sector – a sector slammed by Covid lockdowns which saw international students locked out of the country. It’s that sort of hammering that Education NZ is trying to avoid in future, with a more diversified sector.  

Irwin sees many opportunities for technologies to enhance and transform international education. Online platforms and delivery can be used to scale to reach global audiences without the need for a global footprint or for learners to come to New Zealand, and Irwin points to the increased interest in micro-credentials, with their smaller units of learning, as lending themselves to online delivery more readily. 

Technology also offers the ability to rapidly prototype, test, learn and refine across audiences, marketing approach, product offerings, learner experience and more, he says, and to be adaptive to the learners needs and particular stages of learning through the use of AI, machine learning and other data driven technology.  

Technologies such as VR also hold the opportunity to remove the limitations and constraints of traditional face to face learning, providing students with the opportunity to experience environments and situations which might otherwise be difficult to do.  

Several VR initiatives were among those to gain support from the Innovation Fund, including virtual midwifery training to enable students to see and assist in childbirth simulations, both with and without complications.  

“The jury is still out in terms of what exactly the opportunity is for VR to enhance learning, and what a sustainable commercial model is that leverages VR,” Irwin says.  

However, because of the strong interest in the application of VR for education, Irwin says Education NZ is hoping to find some of those answers. 

“At this stage, it would seem there is good opportunity for VR to enhance the learning experience, working in partnership with academics and teachers, than in a direct to learner environment,” he says. 

“Digital and online technology clearly offer a tremendous opportunity to enhance our capability to generate data about learning, and draw connections between marketing, enrolment, learning, demographics and data on outcomes to give a tremendous boost to this sector and to learners.” 

That capability, however, comes with increased challenges around data sovereignty and privacy. 

“That is something to be mindful of – especially as we take a more global view of education delivery, and a more culturally responsive approach. “ 

He’s also an advocate for using technology to help democratise learning. 

“At present, higher education options can be too expensive for some audiences, inflexible (fixed semesters and timetables), not adaptive to learning needs or stages, and require significant on-going commitment.  

“Technology can make education more affordable, accessible, adaptable and flexible to a wide range of audiences – from those living in remote areas or with poor education options, to parents, those in work and those who cannot afford university education.” 

He’s hoping the PIF projects will point the way for technology in the international education sector.  

“The primary objective is to learn what works and what doesn’t, and how ENZ and government can best support education innovators. We want to identify not only the capability needs that help foster innovation, and new product opportunities, but also to understand system factors that may hinder the ability to innovate. “In theory we can learn as much from failure as commercial success, however we are setting out with the intention to help our partners achieve commercial success in ways that they themselves define – whether it’s by achieving a certain number of enrolments, producing a set of concrete data on which to develop future products, or even achieving revenue targets – successful outcomes such as these will produce the strongest evidence that government can add value in this space.” 

The results of the pilots will inform recommendations to government in September 2023 around investment in the development and diversification of New Zealand’s international education sector.