Relationships for Learning Guidance

Community relationships can support the learning of ākonga in your local curriculum community. Use the Relationships for Learning Tool to capture and share a community relationship.


Four main steps to create a Relationship for Learning

All four steps are important. Complete steps 1 through 3 before you can enter a relationship into the tool. This ensures that a relationship is confirmed, has purpose and strategy, and has the correct agreements.

The four steps are:

  1. Answer key questions and set up your project.
  2. Identify and classify key relationships.
  3. Develop an agreement for the relationship.
  4. Enter the relationship into the Relationships for Learning tool.

This page gives an overview of these steps. For detailed guidance, download this document:

Guidance on Relationships for Learning. [PDF, 378 KB]


Answer key questions and set up your project

Your leadership team may wish to consider key questions about a relationship before confirming it.

Discuss resourcing, communication, and review processes around the relationship. Consider how a relationship would support your teaching practices.

To guide your discussion, work through the Key Questions section of the PDF.


Identify and classify key relationships

Identify and classify your relationships using three sections of the PDF:

  • What is the nature of the relationships you want with your wider community?
  • Activity 1: Identify key relationships
  • Activity 2: Use synthesised data to make strategic decisions about relationships

These sections guide you through analysis and group discussion with your learning community.

There are four types of Relationship for Learning

Partnerships

Long-term relationships that are of mutual benefit. They help develop and share ownership of visions and strategies around ākonga. Examples: parents and whānau, local iwi, Board of Trustees representatives.

Collaborators

Relationships where individuals, groups and organisations outside of your learning community work with teachers to support learning. Examples: local libraries, tertiary providers, community service groups.

Professional education connections

Relationships that support the work of teachers and leaders, enabling them to provide quality programmes for their ākonga. Examples: expert partner, the Ministry of Education Regional Office.

Providers of resources and services

Relationships with people who enable those working directly with ākonga to provide rich curriculum experiences. Examples: local health services, a business offering work experience for students.


Develop agreements for relationships

Make decisions and develop agreements for the relationships. Use this section of the PDF:

  • Activity 3: Developing relationship agreements.

Activity 3 has steps to negotiate a relationship agreement with an individual or a representative from a group.


Enter the relationship into the Relationships for Learning tool

After relationship agreements are signed, you can publish the relationship. That means you can add the relationship details to the Relationships for Learning tool.

Assemble all the relationship’s information, including:

  • Details and contact information
  • Curriculum skills
  • If police vetting is required and related details
  • If a Memorandum of Understanding is required and related details
  • A complete copy of the Agreement

Use this information to enter the relationship into the Relationships for Learning tool.