The University
The university referred to in this study was established in 1984 (NUS Corporate Plan, 2009) and comprises of two institutes, the Institute of Higher Education and the Institute of Technology. The Institute of Higher Education has five faculties: Business and Entrepreneurship, Arts, Science, Nursing and Health Science, and Education. The Institute of Technology is comprised of three Schools: Engineering, Maritime, Business Studies Tourism and Hospitality.
The university is not self-sufficient financially with the main source of revenue being an annual Government grant and tuition fees. The fact that the government grant has not increased despite an increasing student roll has meant that the University has had to operate under financial constraints. Hence the University needs to continue to find avenues to bridge the gap between the Government grant and funds required to deliver quality education to the increasing number of students as required to achieve their vision of excellence (NUS Corporate Plan 2009).
MESC
The Ministry of Education in Samoa (MESC) is responsible for policy, planning and research, corporate services, schools operations, curriculum development and assessment, sports, and culture. Primary education in Samoa extends through an eight-year cycle and is divided into lower primary (years 1-3), middle primary (years 4-6) and upper primary (years 7 and 8), corresponding to the 5 to 14 year-old age group (Chan Mow, Strigel & Vaa, 2007). Funding of schools is through partnership between government and communities, except for four senior colleges, which are fully government owned. The government provides salaries, stationery and curriculum whilst local communities, which mostly own the land, carry the costs of maintenance and facilities. Education is compulsory until year 8 or age 14. As of 2006, there were 131 preschools in the country in addition to the 208 primary and secondary schools. In 2006 there were 141 government primary schools, 13 mission primary schools, and six private primary schools. Mission schools are operated by a variety of church groups, including Roman Catholic, Baptist, Congregationalist, Methodist, Seventh Day Adventist, Mormon, and Bahai churches. The number of children in the education system is estimated at 54,743 (MESC Statistical Digest, 2007). Current figures show 39,578 students in primary schools.
Secondary Colleges operate from years 9 to 13 and are currently streamed, based on academic performance. Entrance to secondary level is determined by a national exam at the end of year 8. Secondary schools, which operate from years 9 to 12, currently follow a slightly different curriculum and are generally community-focused and built and managed by the districts. The number of children in the secondary school system is estimated at 15,165, with a total of 791 teachers teaching at this level (MESC Statistical Digest, 2007). Despite a marked improvement at the secondary level since 1996, still a large percentage of students do not continue from year 12 to 13. Key examinations for secondary education include the Samoa School Certificate taken at year 12 level and the Pacific Senior Secondary Certificate examinations at the year 13 level.