New Zealand Certificate in Education Support and Care (Teacher Aiding) (Level 3)

Graduates of this qualification will have the skills and knowledge for roles such as:

• Education support worker, teacher aide, ICT assistant, librarian assistant, administrator assistant in school and early childhood settings
• Community support worker in the disability sector
• Out of school care worker in school holiday programmes and after school care

As part of gaining this qualification, students need to complete a minimum of 120 hours of in class teacher aiding. Some of these hours need to be completed in each paper of the programme (see the Course Content for more detail), but the times may be varied to suit the practicum venue and students’ studies. 

It is possible for these hours to be done with schools, out of school or after school care programmes, early childhood settings, or in the disability sector. However, you must be supervised by a suitably qualified person.

All applicants wishing to undertake this programme of study are required to submit a completed Placement & Supervisor Confirmation Form with their application:

ESC Placement and Supervisor Confirmation form

This form includes confirmation of:

• A practicum venue
• Supervisor qualifications
• Completing a safety check to comply with the Vulnerable Children Act 2014 (the education provider may do this as part of their processes, or may ask you to complete this yourself)

School Leavers
Applicants should be a minimum of 16 years of age, and have attained NCEA Level 2.

Mature Applicants
Applicants over the age of 20 years at time of enrolment will be considered where they can demonstrate the ability to succeed in a programme. Examples of demonstration of ability to succeed are the provision of evidence of successful completion of a programme of study at level 2 or above in a related discipline and/or employment in the related sector for one or more years. They may be admitted subject to programme regulations approved by the Head of Faculty in consultation with the Programme Manager as appropriate.  Personal commitment and a belief in one’s own ability to succeed are important personal traits and will always be taken into consideration during the selection process.

English Language Requirements

Applicants, whose first language is not English, or who come from a country where the language of instruction in schools is not English, are required to provide evidence of having achieved one of the following

NCEA Level 3 with University Entrance, or

an International Baccalaureate Diploma or Cambridge A- level qualification for which the teaching and assessment was conducted in English; or

Cambridge Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (CELTA),or Trinity College London Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (CertTESOL);or

Successful completion of all primary education (being the equivalent of New Zealand primary school years 1 to 8) and at least three years of secondary education (being the equivalent of three years from New Zealand secondary school years 9 to 13) at schools in either New Zealand,,Australia,Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States one of the countries listed in Rule 18.5 where the student was taught using English as the language of instruction; or

Successful completion of at least five years of secondary education (being the equivalent of New Zealand secondary school years 9 to 13) at schools in either New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States where the student was taught using English as the language of instruction; or

Successful completion of a Bachelor's Degree, Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma, Bachelor Honours degree, Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma, Masters' Degree or Doctoral Degree, the language of instruction of which must be in English and which must be from a tertiary education provider from New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom or the United States or

Successful completion of one of the following internationally recognised proficiency tests listed below to the level required of the programme of study and with all scores achieved in a single test during the two years preceding the proposed date of enrolment

IELTS test - General or Academic score of 5 with no band score lower than 5 
TOEFL Paper based test (pBT) - Score of 500 (with an essay score of 4 TWE) 
TOEFL Internet based test (iBT) - Score of 35 (with a writing score of 14) 
Cambridge English Examination - B2 First or B2 First for schools with a score of 154. No less than 154 in each skill. 
OET - Minimum of Grade C or 200 in all sub-tests 
NZCEL - a) Expiring Level b) Current: a) Level 4 (Academic) b) Level 4 (Academic) 
Pearson Test of English (Academic) - PTE (Academic) score of 36 with no band score lower than 36 
Language Cert - B1 Achiever IESOL (LRWS) with PASS and no less than PASS in each skill 
Trinity ISE - ISE I with no less than distinction in any band

* New versions of some NZCEL qualifications, and in some cases new qualifications, were published on 13 June 2017. These are intended to replace pre-existing versions and qualifications, which have been given expiring status until discontinued on 31 December 2019. (a) denotes expiring (b) denotes current

Suggested study options

Full-time study

Full time study is completing all 40 credits in one intake. However, due to the intensive workload of the programme when taking the practicum hours into account, we do not recommend that students enrol in full time study. Full time acceptance into the programme is at the Programme Manager’s discretion.

Part-time study

Part time study is recommended for this qualification as the first three papers allow you to build sufficient knowledge prior to completing the practicum paper in which you need to apply this knowledge in working with and developing learning plans and resources for specific learners.

Students should complete papers in the order that they are listed. Suggested part-time study pathways are: 

• taking ESC3101 and ESC3102 in one intake (total of 20 credits), then taking ESC3103 and ESC3104 in (20 credits) a following intake. 
• taking ESC3101, ESC3102, and ESC3103 in one intake (total of 25 credits), and then taking ESC3104 (15 credits) in a following intake 

However, these study pathways are a guide only; the number of credits selected per intake will depend on work, family, and other commitments.

Additional information

• As a guideline, one credit equates to approximately 10 hours study within an intake period. Click HERE to download a Study Load Calculator (spreadsheet)
• All papers selected within a particular intake must be completed within that intake unless a transfer is requested (conditions apply; see FAQs)
• Online enrolments are on a year by year basis and students are welcome to apply for multiple intakes in one enrolment.  Further enrolment is the responsibility of individual students.  There is no automatic enrolment rollover

Cross Credits

Students who have previously completed any of the above units at SIT or another learning institution can apply to have the unit(s) cross credited to their record of learning at SIT. This is done by filling in a cross credit application form and attaching proof of achievement. If you wish to apply for a cross credit, please attach the completed form to your application. Forms can be found at:

http://www.sit.ac.nz/Students/Academic-Support

Please use the following checklist to ensure that all relevant information and documentation has been included. Remember, your application will be assessed based on the information that you provide us with.  Processing of your application will be delayed if we need to come back to you for missing information.

• I have read all sections of the programme information on this page
• I have read the SIT2LRN Frequently Asked Questions section
• I have met all admission criteria for the programme (found under "Application Criteria")
• I have read the outline for all individual papers (found under "Course Content")
• I have selected the papers I wish to study in each intake(s), and I have selected alternate intakes rather than overlapping intakes (eg Intakes 1 & 3 or 2 & 4 etc.)
• I confirm that I have agreement from an education provider to give me 100 supervised hours of practicum experience (paid or unpaid) necessary to meet assignment requirements, and I have attached the completed Placement & Supervisor Confirmation Form
• I have confirmed I will have completed a safety check to comply with the Vulnerable Children Act 2014 (if requested to do so independently by my education provider)
• I know my intended payment method
• If my organisation/company is paying for my studies, I have a completed an approved purchase order to attach to my online application. I am aware that should my organisation or company not pay my fees, these will become my responsibility
• New students – I have provided an active NSN in the name I am enrolling in, or I have verified ID and will attach it to my online application
• I have completed and attached a cross credit form (if applying for a cross credit)
• New students – I will attach academic documentation (NZQA record of achievement/academic transcripts/certificates). These do not need to be verified. (If you do not have any academic documentation to support your application, please attach a comprehensive CV outlining your education and work experience). 
• I have computer access, an Internet connection and access to software to create electronic documents eg Microsoft Word or Open Office

To satisfactorily complete the teacher aiding programme of study leading to the New Zealand Certificate in Education Support and Care (Level 3), and be awarded this qualification the student must successfully achieve:

• A minimum of 40 credits in accordance with the Programme Schedule for the New Zealand Certificate in Education Support and Care (Level 3)
• The student will normally be expected to complete the teacher aiding programme of study leading to the New Zealand Certificate in Education Support and Care (Level 3) full-time over three months or part-time over two years

Please Note: Students failing to engage in study as per programme requirements may forfeit Zero Fees entitlement