Parmar’s bill challenges race-based university aid but highlights increasing educational wealth gap – Editorial

Efforts to increase the number of people from poorer economic backgrounds attending university have largely failed. Image / NZME

Editorial

THREE KEY FACTS

• A member’s bill by Dr Parmjeet Parmar aims to prevent universities from allocating resources based on race.
• The bill follows a Cabinet directive for a “colour-blind” public service, not applying to universities.
• A University of Otago study found students in health fields still come from privileged backgrounds, despite diversity efforts.

As reported in the Herald on Sunday, a member’s bill has been drafted to prevent universities from allocating resources, benefits or opportunities based on race.

The proposed legislation by Act tertiary education spokeswoman Dr Parmjeet Parmar is the latest in what has become a hot issue about so-called DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) hires and policies in many of our institutions and largest corporate entities.

It follows a Cabinet directive last year to create a “colour-blind” public service that came from the coalition agreement.

The directive does not apply to universities – hence Parmar’s bill.

But what politicians from both sides of the aisle have routinely failed to recognise is our largest diversity gap, particularly in our institutional halls, is not race but wealth.

Parmar last week wrote to the Minister for Tertiary Education to raise concerns about allocation of resources toward students based on ethnicity.

“This includes special allowances, separate study spaces, scholarships, and course entrance pathways in fields like medicine.”

To use Parmar’s example of medicine, earlier this year, a study conducted by the University of Otago found there had been a “notable increase” in the proportion of students from Māori, Pasifika or rural communities studying in the health fields.

Efforts have been made to specifically increase the number of students from those backgrounds between 1994 and 2023. So were the initiatives a success?

Well, not really.

What the report’s authors found was those students were still coming from highly privileged and wealthy backgrounds.

It was described as “a consistently bleak picture”, as the barrier for poorer students attending university had “persisted and, if anything, worsened over time”.

Students from poorer backgrounds were said to be “nearly absent” in Otago’s health courses.

It would not be surprising to find similar results across other disciplines, particularly our law schools.

The previous Labour Government had somewhat identified the issue but, as was the case with so many of their policies, the execution was lacking.

In what was a flagship policy in 2018, the taxpayer was told they would be picking up the tab for the first year of a student’s tertiary education.

However, all this resulted in was the proportion of students from wealthier backgrounds increasing, giving them an even greater leg up on those facing economic hardship.

The Act Party was right when it said the policy had “minimal impact on the number of tertiary enrolments”, but the coalition Government kept the bones of the policy anyway.

It decided instead to cover a student’s final-year fees – a move not worth the paperwork.

In reality, intervention is needed for students with less fortunate socioeconomic backgrounds years before they decide to attend university. The Herald’s own analysis this year found schools with higher NCEA pass rates generally tended to be in areas with higher property values.

It is easy to see Parmar’s Education and Training (Equal Treatment) Amendment Bill as a race-baiting dog whistle.

If passed, it would prevent institutions from awarding scholarships or any other assistance based on a person or group’s race or ethnic origin.

It should also be easy to see New Zealand’s wealth gap only widening and how education in this country is being increasingly divided by class.

Sign up to the Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.