Knowing the change: Prepare to implement the curriculum with vision and clarity

Lead the shift to Te Mātaiaho with confidence. This guide gives you a fast, clear overview of the curriculum changes — what’s new, why it matters, and how to prepare your staff and school for successful implementation.

Designed for busy leaders, it highlights the key shifts, shows you where to find reliable updates, and helps you set a strong, future‑focused vision for teaching and learning. If you want a quick, practical starting point to steer curriculum change with clarity and purpose, this guide is your go‑to.

See Materials that come with this resource to download:  

• CLPLD-Guide-1-Knowing-the-change.pdf

Leading the change: Implementing the curriculum with purpose and impact

This guide supports school leaders to lead the implementation of The New Zealand Curriculum | Te Mātaiaho. It provides high‑level guidance to help shape strategic direction, support effective curriculum change, and strengthen improvement practices, with learners at the centre. It is designed to be used collaboratively with teachers to support coherent, confident curriculum enactment across the school.

See Materials that come with this resource to download:  

• CLPLD-Guide-2-Leading-the-change.pdf

Online Modules

The online modules for the Curriculum Leadership resources are available on the Ministry's LMS. You will need your Education Sector Logon (ESL) to access these resources.

Module 1: Knowing the Change – Prepare to Implement the Curriculum with Vision and Clarity

This self‑directed module supports school leaders to confidently prepare for the implementation of Te Mātaiaho. Over 90 minutes, leaders explore how to stay up to date with curriculum changes, position the change effectively with staff, understand the structure and expectations of the updated curriculum, and develop a clear, shared vision for implementation. Through practical examples, reflective activities, and leadership-focused guidance, this module builds the knowledge and confidence needed to lead curriculum change with purpose, coherence, and clarity.
Running Time: 90 minutes

Module 2: Leading curriculum implementation strategically

This module provides high‑level guidance to support school leaders in leading curriculum implementation with purpose and coherence. It focuses on strategic approaches to change, leadership for improvement, and maintaining a clear focus on learners throughout the implementation process.

Module 3: Leading the implementation of quality teaching and assessment

This module offers high‑level guidance for school leaders to support quality teaching and assessment through curriculum implementation. It focuses on building capability, strengthening assessment practices, and engaging with learners, staff, and communities to support improved outcomes.

Webinar 1: Leading people

Curriculum implementation is ultimately about people - how leaders bring their teams with them through change. This webinar explores the leadership dispositions that build trust and collective efficacy: open-mindedness, courage, empathy and perseverance. It examines how to distinguish change from improvement, how to understand and engage with teachers’ existing beliefs rather than bypass them, and create the conditions for collaborative, inquiry-focused cultures that keep ākonga at the centre.

Hosted by Lisa Morresey, Leadership Consultant at Evaluation Associates | Te Huinga Kākākura Mātauranga.

To download the slides in this webinar, see Materials that come with this resource to download:  

• CLPLD-Webinar-1-Leading-the-People.pptx

Webinar 2: Leading the curriculum

Effective curriculum implementation doesn’t happen through one-off initiatives. It requires a deliberate, staged process grounded in clarity and coherence. This webinar walks school leaders through a practical four-stage implementation cycle: Explore, Prepare, Deliver, and Sustain. It explores how to lead sense-making with your team, build readiness and capability, support teachers as new practices take hold in classrooms, and embed change so it lasts — with improved outcomes for ākonga at the centre.

Hosted by Lisa Morresey, Leadership Consultant at Evaluation Associates | Te Huinga Kākākura Mātauranga.

To download the slides in this webinar, see Materials that come with this resource to download:  

• CLPLD-Webinar-2-Leading-the-curriculum.pptx

Podcast 1: Why Te Mātaiaho is important - what’s the opportunity? 

In this episode, we explore what Te Mātaiaho, the refreshed New Zealand Curriculum, means for school leaders navigating curriculum change. We discuss how tumuaki can lead implementation with clarity and purpose, how to support teachers in understanding the intent behind the refresh, and key actions for school leaders signalled in the curriculum. Our guests share what has worked in their own kura and offer practical advice for principals at any stage of the journey. 

Hosted by Lisa Morresey, Leadership Consultant at Evaluation Associates | Te Huinga Kākākura Mātauranga. 

Our guests are:  

• Bryan Rehutai, Tumuaki of Te Uru Karaka Newton Central School  

• Vaughan Couillault, Principal of Papatoetoe High School, currently seconded to the Ministry of Education as Programme Lead – Qualification | Engagement. 

Listen to Podcast 1 here:

Podcast 2: Building trust as you lead curriculum implementation

In this episode, we explore how leaders build trust, support people through change, and use simple, effective tools alongside their middle leaders to implement curriculum well. We discuss how to create a culture where adults and students feel safe to learn and grow together, how to navigate tension when views on teaching and learning differ, and the practical tools and routines — big and small — that help leaders keep implementation clear, doable, and well-supported. Our guests share what has worked in their own kura and offer practical advice for leaders at any stage of the journey.

Hosted by Lisa Morresey, Leadership Consultant at Evaluation Associates | Te Huinga Kākākura Mātauranga.

Our guests are:

• Suzanne Billington, Principal of Tauriko School, Tauranga
• Cameron Mitchell, Principal of Tauranga Intermediate School

Listen to Podcast 2 here:

Podcast 3: Leading and shaping your teaching programmes in primary, intermediate and rural schools

In this episode, we explore how primary and intermediate leaders are shaping teaching programs and building coherent year-by-year pathways, particularly in multi-level and composite class settings. We discuss how tumuaki are pacing curriculum implementation with their teams, making sense of the year-by-year sequence in English and mathematics, and strengthening consistent, high-quality teaching practice across their schools. Our guests share practical approaches that are working in their own kura and offer advice for school leaders at any stage of the journey.

Hosted by Lisa Morresey, Leadership Consultant at Evaluation Associates | Te Huinga Kākākura Mātauranga.

Our guests are:

• Jane Corcoran, Tumuaki of Brunswick School, Whanganui, and Vice President of the New Zealand Rural and Area Schools Leadership Association (RASLA)
• Darryl Gibbs, Principal of Cambridge Middle School | Te Kura Takawaenga o Kemureti, and President of the New Zealand Association of Intermediate and Middle Schools (NZAIMS)

Listen to Podcast 3 here: