Report: Five transformative shifts to redesign Aotearoa’s economics curriculum
Rethinking how we teach economics could equip students for the 21st century and position NZ as a global leader
Our new report, Redesigning Aotearoa’s Economics Curriculum: Five transformative shifts, outlines the bold reforms needed to equip students for modern economic challenges and bring New Zealand’s economics curriculum into the 21st century.
Co-authored by Regenerative Economics (international) and WEAll Aotearoa, the report has been timed to support the Ministry of Education in its review of the economics curriculum.
Lead author Jennifer Brandsberg-Engelmann says this is New Zealand’s chance to lead internationally:
“New Zealand's review is well-timed to be part of a much wider conversation about economics education. The Netherlands, Scotland, Ireland, and the International Baccalaureate are all reviewing economics this year. There’s growing interest in teaching economics through a wider lens that reveals more ways that societies organise economic life, and explores how those choices and relationships shape people, communities, and the wider web of life now and into the future."
This momentum for change is reflected in classrooms, with teachers supporting the need for reform. Wellington High School Economics Teacher Henry Lockhart says: “I’m excited by the prospect of rethinking Economics education so that students’ learning reflects the full complexity of real-world economies and the challenges they face in the 21st century.”
The report’s proposals are grounded in both established thinking and emerging global practice. As Jennifer notes:
“The paper suggests some significant changes to the economics curriculum, but they reflect well-established economic thinking and practice, mātauranga Māori, and the same reform signals coming from organisations like the UN, OECD, IMF, and the World Economic Forum.”
At its core, the review reimagines what economics education can offer young people. Jennifer explains: “The curriculum review is a chance to help students get a wider view of the economy, seeing it as embedded in social and ecological systems, shaped by our values, choices, cooperation and care for each other and our shared home. Economics is ultimately about the diverse ways we can organise to ensure a good life for all within planetary boundaries.”
Henry adds: “This is a generational opportunity to ensure the Economics curriculum adequately addresses the assumptions and limitations of a broad range of models and theories and becomes more relevant to the economic challenges societies face in Aotearoa and globally".
