ISSUE 1
A
P u b l i c a t i o n
o f
t h e
f a c u l t y
Child poverty
in ‘Godzone’?
Tensions and challenges
in Education - Looking
forward in 2013
Student-centred leadership
in action
o f
2013
e d u c a t i o n
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What’s in this Issue
Child poverty in ‘Godzone’?4
Pasifika early childhood educators gather to reclaim the future7
Student-centred leadership in action at Botany Downs Secondary College8
Tensions and challenges in education: Looking forward in 201310
Alumni News
-Linda’s story
12
-Our Alumni
13
News in brief14
Brent Mawson: Jack of all trades15
Feckless, feral and dysfunctional - exploring the media’s portrayal of the growing underclass in New Zealand16
If not performance pay, then what?18
Preparing for tomorrow in Nauru20
New books
22
Our students
-Nadeen Papali’i (Teach First NZ
programme)
23
TeKuaka
Te Kuaka is a publication of the Faculty of Education
at The University of Auckland.
The magazine title relates to the migrating Kuaka,
or godwit. In this context, the Kuaka’s journey is
used as a metaphor for our own students’ journeys
and the hope that they may return to the University
from time to time to gain new knowledge and
understanding in their profession.
Te Kuaka was the name of a newsletter first
published in 1990 by the former Auckland College
of Education (prior to its amalgamation with the
University). We retain this title for our faculty
magazine in recognition of our proud history and
heritage of excellence in teacher and social services
education.
We are pleased to be able to keep our wider
community up to date with news of the work the
faculty is engaged in and to share our successes
with you. We hope you enjoy reading this issue of Te Kuaka.
Editor:
Samantha Perry
Writer and researcher: Kate Backler
Designer:Craig Berry Website: www.education.auckland.ac.nz
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +64 9 623 8899
Te Kuaka Magazine
The University of Auckland
Faculty of Education
Private Bag 92601, Symonds Street
Auckland 1150
New Zealand
Dr Fiona Ell is a leading mathematics education researcher in the Faculty of
Education. In this guest editorial she offers some important insights into the dramatic
headlines and often over-simplified media debate that has recently developed around
mathematics education.
A complex business
Mathematics teaching and learning finds itself in the news again, and, as usual,
it is for all the wrong reasons. Recently we have had headlines calling for ‘back to
basics’, articles focusing on poor arithmetic results in international and national
tests, incensed talkback radio callers remembering the good old days when children
were taught ‘real mathematics’, and the release of Government reports suggesting
we have a long way to go in establishing responsive mathematics programmes in our
schools.
Do you want the good news, or the bad news about the teaching and learning of
mathematics in New Zealand? Because there is both. Whenever a large international
study is undertaken, or a national report is written, there are many stories that can
be told by the data. What makes it into the media are the headline-grabbing results
– aspects of the studies that can be quickly grasped and simply described. The more
complex stories remain untold.
In the recent TIMMS study of nine-year-olds’ and twelve-year-olds’ mathematics and
science knowledge, New Zealand students did poorly on some items. They did well
on others. This does not excuse their performance – no one would defend results
that showed that Year 5 students struggled with addition – but it does tell another,
equally important story. While our overall ranking is slightly lower in 2011 than in
2007, significantly more of our students are reaching the two lower benchmarks in
TIMMS 2011, showing a shift in the ‘tail of underachievement’ – perhaps a reflection
of policy emphasis in this area.
In PISA our fifteen-year-olds rank well in reading, mathematics and science. This
overall ranking masks the fact that we have one of the highest levels of within-school
variability in the participating countries, and we fall into the category of ‘high
achievement but low equity’.
The recent ERO report into mathematics teaching highlights the effectiveness of
using student achievement data to drive changes in organisation and practice – and
finds that not all schools have the capacity to do this yet.
Why is there good news and bad news? Because teaching and learning mathematics
is a complex business. The issues are international, and perennial. There is not one
cause or one solution, rather many causes and a need for multiple interventions at
all levels of education: early childhood provision, policy alignment, improved teacher
knowledge, innovative teacher preparation, engagement of family and whänau
to name a few. As educators we can help to inform public debate on these issues.
Working with the complexities of the system doesn’t make good headlines, but it does
make good education policy and practice. Let’s not let the perennial call for ‘back to
basics’ distract us from seeking to really understand how we can help all learners be
successful in mathematics.
DR FIONA ELL
School of Learning, Development and Professional Practice
Faculty of Education, The University of Auckland
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TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
3
Child poverty in ‘Godzone’?
Dr Airini, Head of the School of Critical Studies in Education at the Faculty of Education,
was part of an Expert Advisory Group charged with finding solutions to child poverty in
New Zealand. Since the group was established by the Children’s Commissioner in March
2012, they have examined international and New Zealand evidence and developed a
package of proposals to reduce child poverty and mitigate its effects. The report includes
78 recommendations and a list of initial priorities for action. We asked Dr Airini to write
about the issue of child poverty and the role Education plays in solving the problem.
As New Zealanders we like to believe our ‘Godzone’ is a great place for children. For most children this is true. But it is not true for children
living in poverty. As many as 25 percent of New Zealand’s children – about 270,000 – currently live in poverty. That’s one in every four
children. That’s like filling Auckland’s Eden Park to capacity five and half times, with children.
Child poverty is extremely costly. For individual children, it can mean going to school hungry and living in a cold, damp house. Important
childhood opportunities are missed like school outings and sports. This can influence educational achievement and health outcomes. In
New Zealand each year there is at least $6 billion in additional health and education costs associated with child poverty, as well as reduced
productivity.
Finding actions that will reduce child poverty is not simple. How can we make sure New Zealand is a great place to live for all our
children? What is the role of education for solutions to child poverty? Some answers can be found in the report to the New Zealand
Children’s Commissioner Solutions to Child Poverty in New Zealand: Evidence for action1. Hundreds of New Zealanders, including children,
contributed to this report. Overall it was clear that action is needed, now. No child should experience severe and persistent poverty, least of
all in our ‘land of plenty’.
Last year I had the sad honour of being invited by New Zealand’s Children’s Commissioner to join the Expert Advisory Group charged
with providing these solutions to child poverty. When Dr Russell Wills phoned me I stood up for the call. It sounded to me like I was being
called to serve my country. I went in as an educationalist with some understanding that child poverty happened in New Zealand, but I was
to be surprised by the extent to which it exists.
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FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
It was good work to do but difficult. It’s like Karl Jung said, “Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding
of ourselves”. New Zealanders have been active in responding to the information that has come out of the report, irritated by child poverty,
and sometimes irritating in their responses. Comments ranged from “Shame on New Zealand and us all” to blame (government, landlords,
teachers, parents), to suggestions to penalise or even sterilise low-income parents who “breed” as one correspondent called it. Most though
say, “This is enough. We are better than this”.
We have come to a decision point of fundamental importance to how we understand ourselves as a nation: Do we accept child poverty
as unavoidable, or do we decide child poverty is preventable. If it is unavoidable then the task is to minimise harm by number and by
degree. If child poverty is to be understood as preventable then the task is to deliberately adopt a child-centred focus, then find out what
causes child poverty and child wellbeing and intentionally set about supporting the reduction and elimination of child poverty.
Dr Russell Wills said earlier this year that there is compelling evidence that New Zealand does have real, abject child poverty and we
must take action now if we want to make a difference for New Zealand children. This is serious and urgent. Poverty damages children. The
New Zealand child living in poverty is more likely to die during infancy or childhood, three times more likely to be sick, twice as likely to be
admitted to hospital for acute infectious diseases, less likely to have fruit and vegetables, more likely to miss out on breakfast, 5.6 times
more likely to be hospitalised for injuries from assault, neglect or maltreatment, less likely to take part in early childhood education, and less
likely to leave school with NCEA Level 2 – the entry level qualification to most skilled employment. Many are saying we want to prevent child
poverty happening.
What is child poverty?
It’s important to have a clear definition of child poverty so that there’s a common purpose and agreed goals. The definition we used
in the Expert Advisory Group was consistent with international approaches to help us compare ourselves with other countries. We said
child poverty is about children who experience deprivation of material resources and income, leaving them unable to enjoy their rights
and achieve their full potential. That’s the systems level definition that helps with setting goals at government level – in health, education,
housing, income, employment, and importantly the rights of the child.
But on a day-to-day basis, one-on-one with children in schools I base it on them, and ask if they have the essentials: warm winter clothes,
sturdy shoes that aren’t worn out, access to the doctor, a separate bed, the opportunity to take part in school trips and sports, fresh fruit
and vegetables, and are living in a house that isn’t damp or mouldy but warm in winter. If the answer to many of these is “No”, then this is a
child missing out on the essentials and potentially deprived. However we describe child poverty, this is the time of transitions – from children
experiencing relative deprivation, to children experiencing shared levels of wellbeing. Education can be part of the solutions. Our hope is
that every child should be able to grow up in New Zealand without experiencing poverty.
However we describe child poverty, this is the time of transitions –
from children experiencing relative deprivation, to children experiencing
shared levels of wellbeing. Education can be part of the solutions.
Our hope is that every child should be able to grow up in New Zealand
without experiencing poverty.
Education solutions: Mitigating the effects
What we do in education cannot solve the problem of child poverty alone, but it can have a powerful impact on the lives of children
living in financially disadvantaged circumstances.
Given the Government’s focus on student achievement (eg, the Better Public Services targets to increase participation in early childhood
education, and increase the percentage of 18-year-olds with NCEA Level 2 or equivalent), the Expert Advisory Group’s recommendations
focused on what the education sector can do to mitigate the effects of poverty on children.
The recommendations for education are about public policy changes and include:
• Increase the quality and supply of ECE services to low-income families.
• Provide education/training for children and young people with disabilities who are living in poverty.
• Establish a collaborative food-in-schools programme, starting with decile 1 to 4 primary and intermediate schools.
• Continue evidence-based targeted behavioural support interventions.
• Fund youth-friendly health and social services in all secondary schools, starting with low-decile schools.
• Help young people who are pregnant and/or parenting to get effective support to stay engaged in education.
• Ensure all schools provide after-school opportunities for all children living in poverty.
• Expand before-school, after-school and school holiday programmes for children (aged 5 to 13 inclusive) living in poverty.
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
5
What could be done if you’re in an education organisation that
wants to take action locally? The first step requires no resource.
It’s about committing to being part of the solution then making
a plan to address child poverty issues that are real for your
community. Actions and priorities will come from that, along with
how outcomes will be monitored and reported. Four principles were
developed by the Expert Advisory Group that could be useful for
education organisations formulating their own plan:
1. Are children at the centre of the actions and priorities?
2. Are the actions and priorities guided by the provisions and
principles of the Treaty of Waitangi?
3.Do the actions and priorities reflect an investment approach,
that will generate long-term gains for children and wider
society?
4. Are the actions and priorities guided by a ‘social contract’
approach, that recognises the mutual responsibilities of
parents, the community and wider society for the care and
wellbeing of children, with support available for those who
need it?
The Expert Advisory Group report includes examples of
educators taking action to reduce child poverty. The Manaiakalani
project2 is a foundation project within the Tāmaki Transformation
Programme. The Tāmaki area is among the most deprived areas
in New Zealand. The vision is that every student from Years 5 to
13 within the Tāmaki catchment area will have a wireless enabled
net device and the ability to access school-based internet services
from their home and school. This approach supports families on low
incomes to achieve their aspirations for their children by enabling
engagement with their children’s learning whilst encouraging
knowledge and experience-sharing locally, nationally and
internationally. Families with children attending Tāmaki College
participate in a lease-to-own programme to purchase netbooks.
They make a $40 deposit and pay about $15 monthly, which
includes wireless internet access at the school. Parents are also able
to pay at the rate that works for them. There are now nine schools
participating in the wireless access project, with plans to continue
expanding.
Some of the three hundred children interviewed to assist the
Expert Advisory Group also had ideas about education solutions.
Some spoke about good food solutions: “Free fruit - schools start
growing their own fruit trees.” Some spoke of community hubs like
at Victory Primary in Nelson where the school is part of a ‘village’
and houses early childhood education, Parents as First Teachers,
PATHS (Pathways to Health Solutions) Te Hauora O Ngäti Rärua’s
Māori Diabetic Nurse and Men’s Health Coordinator. It also offers
a wide range of services such as budgeting advice, adult education,
midwives, a Plunket nurse, hearing tests, cervical screening and a
homework centre. Rooms in the centre are also used by Housing
New Zealand, Child, Youth and Family Services, Work and Income
and other government and community groups. Having the school
as a community hub means children and parents don’t have to
travel far to get advice and support.
Taking action
New Zealand is a first world nation with a child poverty
problem. We can make this better. From a moral stance it is about
doing what is right. Sociologists say it’s about agency to redress
inequity. Economists say it’s about achieving higher standards of
living. But the Kiwi girl in me just says, “What? Child poverty in
Godzone? This can’t happen here. It doesn’t have to happen here.”
When I was a teacher at Manning Intermediate in
Christchurch, we would sometimes sing Whitney Houston’s “I
believe the children are our future” during school assembly. A lot
of us still hum along believing this. But as I prepared for the first
meeting of the Expert Advisory Group I thought about how in order
for there to be a future for the children there has to be adults
prepared to take action in the present. We cannot reach our full
potential as individuals or as a country until we do take action –
communities, social services, education – to show we care about
every child in our land of plenty.
1
www.occ.org.nz/publications/child_poverty
2
www.manaiakalani.org
Making use of the report
Conscious that reports are nothing without action, on 6
March this year, Expert Advisory Group members, the
Commissioner for Children and representatives from
business, organisational, political and community groups,
together with frontline workers from across New Zealand
met to discuss seven immediate priorities identified in the
Group’s report.
Dr Jilly Evans, cancer researcher and 2013 Distinguished
Alumni of The University of Auckland, funded the meeting
that was hosted by the Faculty of Education. She summed
up the feeling of the group well when she said “Child
poverty statistics in New Zealand are appalling, and all
the reports that come out offering solutions are just not
being implemented to make the changes where they are
needed – at both the grassroots and political level. Every
day we procrastinate, children are still suffering through
poverty. We are frustrated and worried that child poverty
reduction priorities are not being taken seriously or being
implemented quick enough.”
The aim of the meeting was to work together and identify
practical solutions that can be implemented almost
immediately to alleviate child suffering and to have a list of
defined action points to achieve this.
The group will come together again in November to review
implementation and success of these actions.
www.facebook.com/AklUniEducation
6
FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
Pasifika early childhood
educators gather to reclaim
the future
The Faculty of Education hosted the first ever International Pasifika Early Childhood Education Conference in Auckland.
Bursts of radiant colour and the sweet smell of freshly cut flowers brought a touch of the Pacific to the Epsom Campus in Auckland earlier
this year when early childhood educators gathered for the first ever International Pasifika Early Childhood Education Conference, hosted by
the Faculty of Education.
Over 140 early childhood researchers, policy makers and educators from throughout New Zealand and the Pacific attended the
inaugural three-day event, which marked a significant milestone in the development of early childhood education in New Zealand, the Pacific
and internationally. “The impetus for the biennial conference, was to commence a process of talanoa, specifically focused on Pasifika early
childhood education,” says Dr Diane Mara, conference convenor and Associate Dean Pasifika at the Faculty of Education. “In other words
we wanted to create a space, or va, where we can come together as professionals to shape our future so that generations to come will know
and understand the passion and power that being together and talking together can generate.”
Hellen Puhipuhi, Seruwaia Koroi and Megan Newton travelled from their Pasifika early childhood centre in Whanganui to attend the
conference. “It was great to be amongst so many people with a passion for building strong foundations for our Pasifika children,” said
Hellen. “It was unique and very relevant for us. The nice mix of presentations from researchers and policy makers really connected with
the things that we do at grassroots level in our centre. It has also been validating to see how our desire for self-determination and the
preservation of our language, culture and identity exists not just here in Aotearoa but globally throughout the world.”
Over the three-day conference more than 30 seminars, workshops and discussion groups were presented by national and international
speakers around the theme: A Call from the Deep: Reclaiming our future.
In her keynote address Dr Diane Mara challenged the effectiveness of successive Pacific Education Plans and funding mechanisms in
the sector to provide a comprehensive overview of where Pasifika early childhood education is heading in terms of community and societal
outcomes. “I want to open discussion about two things,” she said. “Firstly, how we can develop partnerships with government and those
who have power to make decisions in early childhood education to establish joint goals and actions that result in real social and economic
change for the whole country. Also, how we can take ownership of our destiny through forming coalition Pasifika early childhood education
groups that will set some benchmarks and goals for the future instead of waiting for others to tell us what we need or want.”
Diane believes that moving forward will require collaboration and critical thinking. “Critical thinking is not the same as criticism or
making complaints or being disrespectful. It is about asking the searching questions that need to be asked to change and disrupt the
discourses of apathy, disempowerment and marginalisation.
International keynote speaker Professor Konai Helu Thaman, Chair of Pacific Education and Culture at the University of the South Pacific,
said in her address that education systems in the Pacific Islands had lost the important foundation of culture and language. She noted that
it was affirming to see what the early childhood sector is doing in New Zealand to protect and enhance culture and language for Pacific
children.
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
7
Student-centred
leadership
in action
at Botany Downs Secondary College
When a copy of Distinguished Professor Viviane Robinson’s book Student-Centered Leadership accidentally turned up on the desk of Botany
Downs Secondary College principal Mike Leach, he swiftly tucked it away for safe keeping. “The book was actually meant for Associate
Principal Karen Brinson and it was left on my desk by mistake,” says Mike with a grin. “I took it home, read it and thought wow, what a great
book to share with the leadership team at school.” So, the next day and twenty copies later every member of the leadership team at Botany
Downs Senior College received a personal copy of the book and Mike set about planning a professional development day to engage the
school’s leaders in discussion and critique about how they contributed to and supported student outcomes at the school.
Viviane Robinson is perhaps best known in New Zealand for her three-year research project that culminated in the publication in 2009
of the Ministry of Education’s Best Evidence Synthesis (BES) iteration School Leadership and Student Outcomes: What works and why. Her
research brought student-centred leadership to the cognisance of principals, teachers, researchers, professional development providers and
policy makers around the country by identifying the relative impact of five critical leadership dimensions on student achievement and the
knowledge and skills leaders needed to engage in the practices involved in each of the dimensions. In Student-Centered Leadership Viviane
builds on her research from the BES and transforms it into a digestible and practical resource that school leaders can use to experiment with
changing how they lead and transform schools for the better.
“I have been a principal for 14 years,” said Mike. “I was in Otara for six years when schools were bombarded with initiatives, research
and all sort of things being done to them. Most of the research we got given was written in a way that makes it hard to take, interpret
and embed into practice. Viviane’s book was not just a quick read, it was written in a way that was easy to understand and guides you
through the steps you need to take. It offers some challenging questions in itself but also creates good discussion points through some of the
comments Viviane makes in the book.”
As a principal, Mike understands that teachers come into leadership roles in a variety of different ways and for some it is simply a
matter of being in the right place at the right time. He believes that taking ownership and responsibility for raising student outcomes is
critical for school leaders and that his role, as principal, is to facilitate collaboration and professional discussion so that staff can critique and
present their various ideas.
“Schools are incredibly busy and with 1,800 kids and 150 staff at Botany, once the day starts it is full on,” says Mike. “Most school
leaders simply don’t get the time or opportunity to think and reflect about what leadership in education really looks like or how to distribute
it. After reading the book I wanted to create a space for the leadership team to engage in professional discussion around what student
engagement and student-centred learning looks like. As a Microsoft mentor school the leadership team were also talking about embedding
some of the Microsoft competencies around personalised learning, collaboration and self regulation — all of which fit nicely into the
leadership dimensions Viviane talks about.”
Mike organised a professional development day for the leadership team at the beginning of last year using the book as the primary
focus for discussion. “By creating the time and space for discussion before school started for the year our leadership team had the
opportunity to reflect on their practice,” says Mike. “I didn’t want to dictate what happened on the day so we worked in groups to discuss,
critique and present around each of Viviane’s five dimensions and three capabilities for effective student-centred leadership.”
8
FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
Each group consisted of a mix of whānau and department
leaders who were asked to read and focus on one chapter in
the book. Mike asked each group to consider the dimension or
capability, why it was important and how it translated into practice
in the school. They used the reflective questions at the end of each
chapter to guide discussion, critique and debate before relating it
back specifically to their school context.
Mike asked leaders to consider how each chapter related
specifically to their practice by asking them to consider the powerful
ideas in the chapter and what they meant for their own leadership.
Each group wrote a statement about what they thought the chapter
meant and presented back to the group. “The power of writing a
statement instead of a question creates discussion,” he says. “When
you write a question it can be open ended. A statement can be
critiqued because there is no right or wrong.”
Mike equates the process the leadership team went through
to a “mini inquiry” and emphasises the importance of driving
professional discussion internally rather than relying solely on
external consultants to deliver professional development. “Unless
external work is embedded into the school it will never be effective,”
says Mike. “We have so much expertise within the school that can
be shared through this process.” For many of the school leaders this
was the first opportunity they had to think about and reflect about
what educational leadership looks like and the responsibilities
they have as leaders to improve student outcomes. “It is certainly
hard to get the time to have these discussions but the rewards are
evident when the conversation in the staff room throughout the
year moves from administration issues into discussing key things
about teaching and learning at the school.”
All the discussion notes, ideas and outcomes from the day
were then loaded into a shared OneNote, a computer application
designed for freeform information gathering and collaboration, so
that teachers could continually build on the work and reflect on
what their outcomes were throughout the year. In his reflection and
review meetings with the leadership team each term, Mike includes
questions related to aspects of the five leadership dimensions and
their reflective practice. He also meets with heads of learning and
whānau leaders each week and makes sure to include a focus
on the dimensions and capabilities. “We will talk about how their
leadership is focused on improving student outcomes and the
evidence they have to support this,” says Mike. “We also discuss
departmental goals and specific targets they are focusing on in
their learning area and why.”
Deputy Principal Michael Hart says the chapter on ensuring
quality teaching (dimension three) has had a significant impact
on how he constructs and frames conversations with heads of
learning and whānau leaders to build their confidence using data
in the school. “Viviane explains the use of data really clearly which
reinforces our impetus to use data effectively in the school,” says
Michael. “It reinforces the way we are using it and the way we have
incorporated data into our appraisal process for teachers. I had
read the BES but the important thing about this book is that it is
palatable. It isn’t new - it is accessible and more meaningful.”
Michael is responsible for the data the school is collecting
and using. He is currently examining whether the data is making
a difference to teaching practice in the school and has introduced
data mentoring for students to help them understand and interpret
their data to inform their subject choices for NCEA. Parents also
have access to the data through a new parent portal which allows
them access to student’s data in real-time. “The next step for us is
to have the data used in formative feedback and assessment-based
reporting with students,” says Michael.
Michael is also using this chapter to review the staff appraisal
system. Teachers are required to use data from their NCEA or
junior subject areas in their appraisal and make comments on
it. He uses Viviane’s reflective questions to guide discussions in
appraisal meetings. “This encourages teachers to start thinking
about using data to inform and change their practice,” says
Michael. “Some of the key questions in their teacher appraisals
are ‘what have you done this year or are doing this year to raise
student achievement?’ and ‘what evidence do you have that
achievement has been raised’,” he says. “Teachers’ professional
development goals are constructed from these as an inquiry into
their own practice.”
Michael says that while the school is making good use of
school-wide and department based data they are working on
bridging the gap for continuous data use by teachers within the
classroom. “That would be a good inquiry for me this year,” he
considers. “Does this actually make a difference?”
Mike also found Viviane’s guidance on building relational
trust, one of the three capabilities of student–centred leadership,
particularly valuable when he faced some challenges managing
staff through change last year. He went back to the book and
realised they hadn’t spent enough time on building relational trust
with staff before implementing the changes. “It is so important to
embed change and bring staff alongside,” says Mike. “So we built
on this by attending a session run by Viviane. This certainly helped
to guide us through the process and look at how we could do things
differently.”
“One of the things about this book and what we have started
is that the potential is unlimited,” says Mike. “It is how you use it,
whether it is to start a professional discussion, or a reminder about
what it means to be a good leader. It is simple to read and gives
very good messages. There are few books you can read as an
educational leader in 2-3 hours and get a full picture of what you
should be doing.”
Michael agrees: “The key message for me is that our leadership
should be around raising student achievement. We have to manage
the school well, we have to do NZQA, we have to ensure the school
functions efficiently but the key to our leadership is to make sure we
are raising student outcomes and that we can verify what we are
doing.”
As a principal Mike feels it is important that professional
development opportunities like this are open to all teachers, and
this year he is planning to share what the leadership team have
learned with other teachers in the school. “I see leadership in
education every time a teacher walks into a classroom or into a
meeting,” he says. “Leadership is not bound by age or hierarchical
systems, it is bound by situation. We have teachers in the school
with incredible leadership capabilities. For me the value of StudentCentered Leadership is summed up in Viviane’s opening statement:
“The more leaders focus their leadership, their work, and their
learning on the core business of teaching and learning, the greater
will be their influence on student outcomes.”
Student Centered Leadership by Viviane Robinson is
available from Kohia Education Centre.
Order online at store.educationcentre.auckland.ac.nz/
student-centered-leadership
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
9
Tensions and challenges
in education – looking
forward in 2013
Education has been a hot topic in the media. Everything from charter schools, class sizes
and Christchurch school closures to Novopay, National Standards, Ministry of Education
restructures and resignations. What next for the sector? We ask leading academics
Distinguished Professor Viviane Robinson and Associate Professor Peter O’Connor what they
think is in store for education in 2013.
School Improvement: Give up or rethink?
At the end of 2012, as part of its Delivering Better Public Services initiative1, the government set a target of 85% of
school leavers holding at least a Level 2 NCEA qualification by 2017. The target is an ambitious one. In 2011 only
67% of all school leavers, 50% of Mäori and 40% of Pasifika, achieved that qualification level.
What is required to achieve this target? What lessons can be learned from the long history of school improvement
initiatives in New Zealand, many of which have failed to make progress on similar targets? Before abandoning
school improvement efforts, we should be open to the possibility that the fundamental assumptions on which it has been based need to be
rethought. From my twenty-year experience with New Zealand school improvement efforts, I would broadly characterise the assumptions of
educators and policy makers as follows:
• School improvement is a time-limited project or initiative.
• The project is additional to business as usual.
• The project or initiative should be innovative – that is different from business as usual.
• The implementation of the innovation or initiative requires additional time, expertise, effort and resources.
• The project will not be sustained and will soon be replaced by another.
These assumptions position school improvement as additional to, rather than embedded in, the day-to-day running of schools.
An alternative view is that learning how to improve is the daily work of school and system leaders. The challenge is not how to manage
an improvement project, but how to embed organisational, leadership and teacher learning into every aspect of school life, so that over time
school leaders solve the complex on-the-job problems that prevent the achievement of ambitious goals.
So what does this mean for reaching our ambitious NCEA targets? If such targets are to be achieved, principals and their leadership
teams will need a relentless focus on learning with their staff about how to identify and overcome any school-based barriers to success.
The problems that prevent, for example, high rates of attendance, reliable completion of worthwhile homework, high levels of student
responsibility for their learning, consistent and coherent teacher learning and effective parent involvement will need to be resolved so that,
for example, 95% rather than 75% of lessons are high quality learning opportunities for all students.
The good news about the high level of within-school variance in New Zealand schools is that pockets of excellence exist in nearly every
school. It is senior leaders’ responsibility to identify the teachers who, for example, can engage the students others cannot, to identify the
heads of department who are skilled appraisers and developers of their staff and to create the conditions that enable that expertise to be
shared by all, including the initially unwilling, so that good practice becomes standard practice.
Identifying, analysing and progressively overcoming the barriers that prevent goal attainment is the work of school improvement. Along
the way, school leaders may discover barriers that require external expertise – whether it be from facilitators, researchers or neighbouring
schools. The focus of the external support should be to build the capability of the leaders who have the responsibility for the problem
area, rather than to usurp or supplement their leadership. If school, departmental and teacher improvement becomes the central focus of
educational leaders, then how do schools need to be resourced and organised to make that expectation a reality? One thing is for sure - if
government is serious about achieving such ambitious goals, then leaders need the working conditions that make it possible for them to
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FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
learn how to achieve them. The barriers are long-standing, complex and some may prove intractable. Leaders need to be relieved of some
of their current responsibilities, so they can pursue these goals with the relentless and sustained focus that is required to achieve them. The debate about how to do that should start now.
1
Delivering Better Public Services: Boosting Skills and Employment by Increasing Education Achievement for Young People. Wellington, NZ: Ministry of Education, August 2012.
2013: It’s time to change the narrative
It is hard to imagine, but there is a distinct possibility that the chaos in the education sector we all experienced in
2012 will be even worse in 2013. Christchurch restructuring, Novopay, National Standards, performance pay and
national testing will continue to haunt the sector. The education sector seems to have little trust in the Minister
of Education and if it is at all possible there is even less trust in the Associate Minister of Education, John Banks,
who will lead the Education Amendment Bill through parliament to establish charter schools. Wherever you look in
education it seems that there is nothing but a sea of trouble. As National Standards and other government reforms with their unrelenting
focus on literacy and numeracy at the expense of everything else in the curriculum seemingly strangles the joy of teaching, I find my own
personal sense of hope comes from visiting schools. For although the future of education looks bleak in the media, in schools and classrooms
throughout the country miracles are happening on a daily basis. Children come to school and they feel loved, safe, valued and they learn.
Public education is a great national treasure that we take for granted at our peril. Public education remains, despite the relentless assaults
by government and the far right, the true guarantor of democracy. Public education is an intergenerational gift that ensures that we do not
have to die in the poverty we are born in and that we can hope for a better future for ourselves and our children.
As the government will continue to refuse to acknowledge, let alone work to repair the social dislocation and despair engendered by the
growing gap between the rich and the poor, those who have less at the expense of those who demand more, between the fearful and the
feared, teachers will continue to help feed, clothe and keep safe the victims of globalised capitalism. Teachers will again be at the forefront
of safeguarding the dream of equity, social justice and of possibility.
Charter schools, National Standards, league tables, performance pay and other aspects of the Global Education Reform Movement
(GERM) are not designed to improve the life chances of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged. They are designed to weaken teacher
unions, to replace a broad based curriculum with a technical skills based curriculum with an over reliance on testing. The reforms have the
potential to change the face of teaching in this country forever. As the great dream of a more privatised education sector seems ever more
possible for the reformers, teachers will have to be more than effective practitioners — they will need to be critical citizens willing and ready
to fight for the things they hold dear.
Maxine Greene, the great educational philosopher, said that the success of a democracy depends on citizens being wide-awake. She said
that the true goal of education was therefore to awaken people to the world in which they live and how they might gain agency to change it
for the better. In 2013 we will all need to be awake and awaken others to the possibilities and dangers inherent in living in our democracy.
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
11
Alumni
Linda’s story
When alumna Linda Liebenberg left New Zealand to teach in London she never imagined that her life
would be transformed so suddenly and in such a challenging way. Now, this inspiring young woman has
not only found love, but is back doing the two things she enjoys most in life, teaching and travelling.
When I was five years old, I decided that I wanted to be a teacher when I grew up. Luckily for me, I had a younger sister, Kirsten, to practise
on. In our many games of ‘boarding schools’, she was always the pupil (our mum was ‘the cook’) and I made her learn useful things like
counting to ten in French.
I did become a teacher, after attending Auckland College of Education and The University of Auckland. My father, Dr Roger Peddie, has
had an extensive career in teaching and research and still works in the Faculty of Education as an Honorary Research Fellow. I discovered a
love of working with five and six year olds, every time I went into a New Entrant or Year One classroom I just felt at home. After teaching for
six years at Warkworth Primary and Sherwood Primary, I decided the time was right to do the other thing I had always wanted to do, travel.
I arrived in the UK, with my backpack and a two-year working holiday visa, looking forward to the experience of teaching in another
country and fulfilling my dream of standing in the middle of Paris listening to French being spoken all around me. After the obligatory bar
work, I worked as a long-term supply (relief) teacher in London, but found after two years teaching and travelling I wasn’t ready to come
home yet - there were still more places I hadn’t seen.
I got a permanent teaching job in a deprived area of East London, then for something different, moved to an independent (private)
preparatory school in Central London. Having a class of 12 children and 17 weeks a year holiday was a definite perk, although expectations
were very high and I actually worked longer hours than at any other school.
I was just starting my third year at this school, when the unexpected happened. I was in a nightclub in Wimbledon, out celebrating my
friend’s 30th birthday. We were just about to leave and I had collected my coat from the cloakroom under the stairs. As I walked towards
the door, an extremely drunk man attempted to slide down the handrail of the stairs and fell over the side, landing on me and breaking my
neck.
I was in hospital for the next ten months. My family were all in New Zealand at the time, but took turns at coming over for a few weeks
each to support me in hospital for the first couple of months. I had many visits from school staff, and a parent organised a roster of families
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FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
Alumni
to visit on a regular basis throughout the
time I was in hospital. It was lovely still
seeing the children and keeping in contact
with the school. The accident left me
paralysed from the upper chest down, with
limited arm movement and no movement
in my hands or fingers. There are also other
medical complications, such as with my
breathing and blood pressure.
As a wheelchair user, my previous
flat was now not accessible and I was
discharged to a nursing home. Then after
two and a half years of waiting for my
life to start again, I finally moved into
an adapted flat. I have a full-time, live in
personal assistant who helps me live as
independently as possible.
The two things I wanted to continue
doing after my injury were teaching and
travelling, and I have found new ways of
doing both. I started by volunteering at
my local primary school twice a week,
working with low attaining readers. I also
completed a Reading Recovery course, and
through this approached another school to
offer my skills. I now work there part-time,
four afternoons a week, as a Literacy
Support Teacher. Although I miss having
my own class, I’m doing the part of the
job that I always loved the most, working
with Year One and Two children who are
having difficulty with reading and writing. I
use the Reading Recovery programme two
days a week and have figured out ways
of organising things so it works. Some of
the children don’t say anything about my
wheelchair, others just ask the obvious
“Why are you in that thing?”
Since my injury I have been skiing in
Sweden twice with a spinal injury charity,
scuba diving in Egypt, and to a wedding
in Poland. I met my amazing husband
Jacques and we got married in New
Zealand last year. We had our honeymoon
in New York, and have been to Namibia
where he’s from to visit family. I am now
learning Afrikaans as it’s his first language.
Jacques also has a spinal injury and
there are things we just don’t need to say
because we already understand. I think
it does take some of the spontaneity out
of life, things need a bit more planning
and preparation. Luckily I’ve always been
a positive person. Some things were just
meant to be - I wouldn’t have met Jacques
otherwise. This is me and I can’t imagine
my life any other way.
Our Alumni
Simon Robinson
PGDipEd, BEd(Tchg)Primary
West Harbour School
Tuesday 29 February 2013 was a great day for Simon. He met his
pupils in Year 2 and 3 Class for the first time and was quickly labelled
as ‘a cool teacher’ by some of his students. “After completing my
teaching degree I decided to complete my Postgraduate Diploma in
Education full-time,” says Simon who is one of West Harbour School’s newest teachers.
His apparent knack for managing multiple projects concurrently is evident – as a final
year student at University, Simon was also a research assistant in the area of Co-operative
Learning in Physical Education. He also did relief work while studying, and is now part of
the fundraising group at his school on top of his teaching load.
In his spare time, Simon enjoys kayaking and snowboarding and hopes to complete a
Masters degree in Education in the future. His interests are in Physical Education and
Mathematics and he aspires to become a senior teacher.
Marina Vaha
PGDipEd, BEd(Tchg) ECE, DipTchg (ECE)
Nukutukulea Aoga Niue
Completing her postgraduate diploma required a great deal of
support from family and friends as Marina, a mother of four, juggled
her commitments and work to fulfill her dream of advancing her
qualification at postgraduate level. And she’s not stopping there.
Marina is currently studying towards a masters degree focusing on Pacific issues in early
childhood education and says, “postgraduate studies keeps me informed of current issues,
changes and improvements in the field”.
After trying her hand at various career paths, including hospitality, bartending, retail
management and business studies, she says that nothing grounded her as much as
working in early childhood education did. She has now been involved in ECE for sixteen
years. Marina is the Education Service Manager for Nukutukulea Aoga Niue and oversees
a bilingual centre, a playgroup and was instrumental in setting up the first Pacific homebased ECE service, Pasifika Homebased ECE Network.
“My role is not limited to managing the curriculum areas of our services. I have a specific
responsibility to empower our Pasifika teachers to become effective teachers and leaders.
It’s a blessing to be part of this small organisation,” she says.
Young Han
BSW (Hons)
Problem Gambling Foundation of New Zealand
It might have been the opportunity for a fresh start in a different
country or it could have been the “wild landscape of New Zealand”
that drew Young, who loves tramping, to New Zealand. Either way,
Young has left a trail of success since her arrival from Korea in 2005.
Starting with teaching Korean language and culture to children, Young then went on to
work at the Chinese New Settlers Services Trust, initiating and developing social services
and educational programmes for the Korean community while completing her Bachelor
of Social Work with Honours at The University of Auckland. She graduated in 2011 with
First Class Honours and was also awarded a Senior Prize in Social Work for her academic
performance.
“This was a considerable achievement for me using English which is my second language,”
she says. Young is currently undertaking postgraduate research at masters level while
working as a counsellor and public health promoter at the Problem Gambling Foundation
of New Zealand. “As a Korean immigrant I have a better understanding and insight into
the issues of migrants in this country. I work with Asian people dealing with a variety of
issues including problem gambling, family matters and mental health issues.”
Stay Connected: Alumni can update their contact details at www.auckland.ac.nz/alumni
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
13
Woolf Fisher Lead Teacher Masters
Scholarships announced
Four outstanding teachers have been awarded the 2013 Woolf
Fisher Lead Teacher Masters Scholarships. The annual scholarships,
funded by the Woolf Fisher Trust, were launched in 2010 and
provide funding for release for teachers in Auckland and Northland
schools to complete a year’s study at masters level in school-based
research and development methods at the Woolf Fisher Research
Centre based at the Faculty of Education’s Epsom Campus in
Auckland.
This year’s recipients are: Catherine Biggs, Churchill Park School;
Jonathan Ramsay, Oranga Primary School; Aven Saleh, Randwick
Park School; and Susan Smith, Red Beach School.
Each scholarship recipient will spend the year working with
researchers at the Woolf Fisher Research Centre to conduct
research in their schools. “This opportunity provides recipients
with the evidence to design more effective teaching programmes
within their schools for the benefit of students,” says Professor
Stuart McNaughton, Director of the Woolf Fisher Research
Centre. “These teachers are exceptional professionals and have
already demonstrated high levels of skills in research. We know
from previous Woolf Fisher Lead Teachers Masters Scholarship
recipients that their research over the year will make an important
contribution to understanding pressing educational problems and
new developments, not only in their school but nationally.”
Musical evaluation of Sistema Aotearoa
looks sharp
Robyn Trinick, Faculty of Education music education specialist, with
the support of Professor Stuart McNaughton and the Woolf Fisher
Research Centre team, has recently completed an independent
evaluation of the trial programme, Sistema Aotearoa. This
evaluation was commissioned by Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra
(APO) to evaluate the music learning outcomes and to identify
features of effective implementation of the programme.
Sistema Aotearoa is a local adaptation of El Sistema, an orchestral
programme initiated in Venezuela in 1975, and is based in Otara,
Auckland. Students, aged between six and eight, are drawn
from seven local schools. There is an open selection policy, and
participation in the programme is voluntary. There is no financial
cost to participants, which is an important principle of El Sistema.
The programme promotes both orchestral string playing skills
and general musicianship skills with expert guidance and support
from tutors and conductors. Children are given opportunities to
perform in both large and small groups, which is a key feature of
the programme.
The evaluation involved a series of observations with students,
teachers and music tutors in addition to a questionnaire, and
analysis of documentation, which assessed the value of the
music learning outcomes for students. “Whilst the programme
promotes orchestral string playing skills, we were also looking at
the development of general musicianship that could be transferred
to other instruments. APO were also interested in an evaluation
of how the programme supports the achievement objectives
of the New Zealand curriculum,” says Robyn. “It is an excellent
programme that provides young students in low socio-economic
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FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
communities with an appreciation and exposure to genres of music
they may not otherwise experience.”
The report intends to provide useful feedback to APO, to enable
further refinement and development, and could provide a basis for
ongoing research.
The University of Auckland to host the
international Social Psychology of the
Classroom Conference in July
The University of Auckland will host the international Social
Psychology of the Classroom Conference at the City Campus from
15-18 July. The theme for the three-day conference is “Building
positive environments for learners” and will be the first of its kind to
bring together a stellar array of keynote speakers from around the
world.
Associate Professor Christine Rubie-Davies, Head of School in
the Faculty of Education School of Learning, Development and
Professional Practice is convening the conference that will include
keynote addresses from internationally acclaimed scholars such as
Professors Russell Bishop, Allan Wigfield, Kathy Wentzell, Robert
Pianta, Helen Patrick, Associate Professor Clark McKown, and a
video address from Professor Robert Rosenthal.
Presentations will cover a broad range of interests including
teacher expectations, motivation, class climate, student-teacher
relationships, behaviour management, teacher beliefs, stereotype
threat, academic integrity and emotions in the classroom.
Faculty researcher wins Fulbright-Ngā
Pae o te Māramatanga Travel Award
Earlier this year, Dr Melinda Webber (Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Kahu,
Ngāti Hau), Research Fellow for the Starpath Project and Senior
Lecturer in the School of Learning, Development and Professional
Practice at the Faculty of Education, was awarded a prestigious
Fulbright-Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga Travel Award in Indigenous
Studies.
The Fulbright award is sponsored by Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga, a
Centre of Research Excellence that conducts research of relevance
to Māori communities, and recognises academics, artists and
professionals who show the creative potential of Māori peoples to
bring about positive change and transformation in the world.
As a recipient of the award, Melinda travelled to the University
of Wisconsin-Green Bay in the USA at the end of February where
she shared her expertise in indigenous adolescent psychology
and cultural identity, together with her practical experience as a
qualitative researcher for the Starpath Project.
“Both New Zealand and the US face similar challenges in these
areas and it was such a privilege to have this opportunity to work
alongside international scholars in my field,” said Melinda. “To
connect with the community, academics, researchers and students
at the University as well as engage with staff at the Future Phoenix
Foundation, which has similar goals to the Starpath Project, was an
amazing opportunity for me to share my expertise and increase my
own knowledge and understanding.”
Brent
Jack o f all trade s
Brent Mawson is a jack of all trades. The new Associate Dean Tai Tokerau has worked in a myriad
of roles in education and is probably one of only a select few who can claim to have taught in
early childhood, primary, secondary and tertiary education.
With such vast experience in education, Brent is perfectly placed to lead the Faculty of Education’s Tai Tokerau Campus in Whangarei
through some exciting new changes. Aimed at re-energising and refocusing the campus, a range of new initiatives and developments are
being implemented to position the Campus as an important learning centre for the Māori and rural communities in Northland and a critical
stepping-stone into a wider range of University programmes, including education, commerce, arts and business degrees. “It is important
that the people of Northland have access to high quality tertiary education within their own area,” believes Brent. “Part of my job is to try
and make that a reality, rather than just a statement in a strategic plan.”
After completing his masters degree and teaching qualifications in his home town of Christchurch, Brent moved from the mainland to
start his career as a teacher at an intermediate school in Hastings. He moved to Whangarei in 1973 where he taught secondary history at
Whangarei Boys’ High School before securing a role as head of social sciences at Tikipunga High School.
He claims to have fallen into technology education by accident in 1993. “The government was thinking about introducing technology
education in schools and allocated some surplus funding to four schools to explore how schools might go about introducing technology,” he
recalls. “As head of curriculum development I was asked to write a proposal for the funding and surprisingly we were one of the four schools
from the 102 that applied that got it.”
After 22 years in Whangarei, Brent moved to Auckland to lead the newly created Centre for Technology Education at the former
Auckland College of Education. He spent seven years teaching in the primary programme before finding his niche in early childhood
education while completing his doctoral research. His research followed a group of children for their first three years at school to investigate
the progression of technological literacy in their early years. “It was my research into what knowledge they entered school with that sparked
off my interest and involvement in early childhood education,” says Brent. “I have been researching in this area for seven years now and
I especially love working with young children. The pedagogy fits perfectly with what I believe education and learning is all about. Young
children are honest, open and they see the world as a new experience every day. You start to see flowers and insects as though it is the first
time you have seen them. It refreshes your whole view about the wonders of life and you get to share new experiences and perspectives all
over again.”
While the focus of Tai Tokerau Campus has been on Teacher Education programmes and qualifying students to become teachers, Brent’s
vision for Tai Tokerau Campus is to provide a learning hub where students from throughout Northland with an interest in other areas,
such as arts, business or commerce, will be able to complete the first year of their undergraduate degree at Tai Tokerau before moving to
Auckland to complete their subsequent years. Helping to bridge the distance between the Northland campus and activities at Auckland is
the installation of two state of the art video conferencing units last year that now allow students at the Tai Tokerau Campus in Whangarei to
participate in lectures being delivered in Auckland in real time, and vice versa.
The technology has paved the way for the Campus to introduce a wider range of postgraduate courses to meet the needs of the
Northland community and supervision is now being offered to a wider scope of doctoral candidates. The Business School (Graduate
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
15
School of Management) introduced
its Postgraduate Diploma in Business
in Mäori Development at Tai Tokerau
Campus in 2010 with a second cohort
starting the two-year course in 2012.
“With large amounts of settlement money
coming into the North, this was an
important opportunity for Māori who are
charged with managing that money and
it was very well received,” says Brent. The
Business School now has 15 students in
Tai Tokerau using the new technology.
This year Brent is also overseeing
the introduction of a new First Year
Experience Programme for undergraduate
students studying at the campus.
Enhanced support services will equip
students with the academic, time
management and organisational skills
required to succeed in tertiary level study.
“The first year at university is often make
or break for students,” he says. “It can
be particularly hard for students who
come from small rural communities in
Northland. The Tai Tokerau Campus
can provide a pivotal stepping stone
to support students through that first
year and ensure they make a successful
transition into tertiary study.”
As well as leading new developments
at the campus, Brent keeps active by also
teaching on the Bachelor of Education
(Teaching) programme. “There are three
of us who cover the 24 courses in the
programme so we all have an important
part to play,” says Brent. “I am enjoying
it immensely. We have a lovely team
who are all excited about the changes.
Everybody knows everybody. The total
staff is less than 20 and with around 200
students it is like a large family - we all
look after one another.”
Maintaining his research in early
childhood education is also important
to Brent. This year he will build on his
research with a new project looking
specifically at how three early childhood
centres in Whangarei work in various
outdoor contexts. He is particularly
interested to learn how teaching practice
changes outside the centre environment
and will spend time each week with
teachers and children in various outdoor
settings to gain insight into what children
learn and how teaching practice changes.
So how does Brent find the time to
keep all the juggling balls in the air? He
replies simply: “It is hard work but the
rewards are immense.”
16
Summer research scholarship
recipient Ofa Toki explores the
media’s portrayal of the growing
underclass in New Zealand
While many of us spent the Christmas break at the beach, barbequing and basking
in the best summer weather the country has seen in years, Bachelor of Social Work
(Honours) student, Ofa Toki, was feverishly scouring the media archives for reports
on the feckless, feral and dysfunctional. As one of 25 Faculty of Education students
to be awarded Summer Research Scholarships at the end of last year, Ofa spent 10
busy weeks under the supervision of Associate Professor Liz Beddoe in the School
of Counselling, Human Services and Social Work learning about moral panics and
conducting a thematic review of the media’s portrayal of the growing underclass in
New Zealand.
Tongan born Ofa was on the cusp of completing her final practicum for her
honours year when she learned about the scholarships, which provide University
students in their final or penultimate undergraduate year with the opportunity
to conduct a special research project under the supervision of an academic staff
member.
The ever-busy wife, mother and aunt, Ofa has a self-confessed passion for
learning. As a young girl in Tonga she learned to read at her church Sunday School.
She was reading the weekly newspaper for her father and the bible to her grandfather
well before she started school. As part of a young team that pioneered Tonga’s first
FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
non-government censored newspaper, Taimi-‘o-Tonga, it wasn’t
long before the senior reporter and sub-editor discovered just how
government policies impact on the real lives of individuals, families
and communities.
Ofa met her husband through a contact at the newspaper and
the pair spent 15 years working on community and youth projects
in the Pacific and New Zealand. Having always dreamed of doing
her degree and after putting her study on hold for her family she
applied to The University of Auckland from their home in Fiji, in
secret, on the off chance that she would be accepted. The family
were visiting Ofa’s sister in New Zealand before their next project
in Hawaii when she learned that her application for the Bachelor of
Social Work was accepted. “My husband and I still laugh about how
it all happened really,” recalls Ofa. “Torn between moving to Hawaii
and studying in New Zealand it was my two teenage daughters
that finally dug their heels in and wouldn’t budge. They wanted to
stay in New Zealand so ultimately they made the decision for us.”
The explorative research project entitled Feckless, Feral
and Dysfunctional: The Media, the State and fear of a growing
‘Underclass’ in NZ Society culminated from Associate Professor
Liz Beddoe’s interest in moral panics and research into violence
and the media. The topic piqued Ofa’s interest immediately. “My
practicum projects enabled me to see the detrimental effects of
inequalities and social exclusion on the lives of real people,” says
Ofa. “Liz’s topic provided a view of social exclusion through the eyes
of the media, but I was particularly curious because this project
was dealing with a very real issue that is relevant to me and my
family. Racialising of the underclass as the brown underclass, the
Māori underclass or the Pacific underclass, puts us as at the heart
of the issue.”
The scholarship project is part of a series of linked projects
Liz is conducting around social work and the media, in particular
the way the media potentially shapes people’s perceptions of
social problems. She believes the media’s focus on one or two
episodes polarises social issues to the extent that they become a
moral panic. “The media paint a picture of dangerous families and
associate many social issues with those on welfare,” she says. “By
linking welfare beneficiaries with child abuse, family violence and
drug taking, the media actually sensationalise the issue and the
result is a moral panic, where the public believe there is widespread
social disorder that needs to be addressed by immediate changes
to policy or legislation.”
One of the reasons social workers worry about moral panics
is that they often take precious funding away from longer term
programmes that are making a difference in the community.
“Politicians get anxious about doing something and a moral panic
provides justification to take a hard line on welfare benefits,” says
Liz. “Benefit cuts almost always impact children the hardest. We
already have children living in poverty, more cuts just trickle down
to the children and make matters worse. Not only this, it pulls vital
money away from longer term projects that are really making a
difference in our communities.”
While juggling the needs of her four active teenagers and
a husband who is regularly away in the Pacific for work, Ofa
trawled through the media archives of the major daily newspapers,
magazines including Metro, Investigate and the New Zealand
Listener in addition to online content available on Stuff and Scoop.
She read literature around moral panics and, using sociologist
Stanley Cohen’s five stages of moral panics, conducted a thematic
content analysis of media stories about families on welfare benefits.
“There are perceptions that people on welfare are violent and that
all social problems are caused by particular parts of society,” says
Liz. “Ofa and I wanted to understand the extent to which the media
have created a moral panic and racialised this dangerous, growing
underclass in New Zealand.”
Ofa discovered that the vilification of people on welfare benefits
really gained momentum in the media from 2006 when young
twins Chris and Cru Kahui died in hospital after suffering serious
head injuries for which their father was charged and eventually
acquitted. “The media and state discussion of New Zealand’s
growing underclass has been ongoing for the past 20 years,”
says Ofa. “It has increased with greater momentum over recent
years with a marked shift in the language. Reporting has gone
from framing people as victims of various kinds of behavioural
weaknesses to vilifying them as dysfunctional. Not only is it
personal, as the panic has grown it has morphed into an issue of
dysfunctional families – it has become intergenerational.”
One of the labels that frequently turned up in the media really
resonated for Ofa. “Lazy came through a lot,” she reflects. “That
particular label certainly doesn’t help someone on a welfare benefit
when they turn up for a job interview.” ‘Dysfunctional underclass’,
‘welfare dependent’, ‘welfare cheats’, ‘drug and alcohol addicts’,
‘feral families’ were all used frequently to describe people on
welfare benefits. “The racialising of the issue doesn’t help me,
my husband or my daughters so this is a very real experience for
us all. The situation the country finds itself in today with welfare
and beneficiaries didn’t happen in a vacuum, there is a political
structure behind it and the journalists need to ask why more often.”
Liz agrees and asserts that public figures and regular
columnists in New Zealand newspapers such as Michael Laws
and Rodney Hide create these “mythical devil figures of welfare
bludgers that live with state of the art televisions, spending all
their money on alcohol and cigarettes, while abusing their children
and ripping people off,” she says. “This only exacerbates the issue
and creates a negative perception of everyone on welfare that is
potentially stigmatising and damaging.”
Both Liz and Ofa believe that the media has an important
role in educating the public about social issues. “If we begin to
understand this moral panic we can start to explore opportunities
to work more collaboratively with media and agencies to educate
the public about the actual reality,” says Liz. As a result of the
Summer Research Scholarship the pair hope to co-write several
academic articles for publication. “To have her research published
is a great opportunity,” says Liz. “Ofa’s work is sophisticated and
she has been dedicated to her research over what is normally a
very busy and social time.”
Ofa’s enthusiasm for learning is unrelenting. Within days of
submitting her final report for the scholarship she started in her
first job as a social worker, leading a team to support women
and their children in the community. She is also refining her
research topic in preparation for starting her Master of Social
Work in Semester Two this July. “I am going into my new position
with new eyes and information about the social structures and
policies behind people’s situations and circumstances. Critiquing
the state, media and social conversations around the poor and
socially excluded is essential as it enables me to understand the
consequences of those social conversations and prejudice on the
realities of people’s lives. The opportunity to learn from other
people, about other people is always exciting for me. I am looking
forward to my next adventure.”
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
17
???
If not
performance
pay, then what?
PERFORMANCE
In the previous edition of Te Kuaka (Issue 3, 2012),
Associate Professor Graeme Aitken, the Dean of
Education, argued that performance pay cannot work.
In this edition, he addressess the question: If we cannot
use performance pay to reward high quality teaching and
improve the profession then what alternatives are there?
Starting salaries for New Zealand teachers are 21st ranked in
the OECD1 ($28,127 equivalent USD) and our top salary is 22nd
ranked ($42,062 - cf. Finland 21st ranked at $42,879 and an OECD
average of $47,721). We are the 3rd ranked country for the lowest
number of years of service (8) to reach the top of the basic scale.
The OECD average is 24 years. So we start lower than most, we
finish lower than most and we get there much quicker than most.
A recent US study2 suggests that there may be aspects of this
salary structure that are already consistent with performance.
The research compared student outcomes in mathematics and
reading at Grades 4 and 8 between districts with frontloaded
salary schedules (giving larger raises early in a teacher’s career
and smaller raises later) and those with backloaded schedules
(concentrating raises on experienced teachers). The study concluded
that frontloaded schemes were associated with better student
performance across grades and throughout the achievement
distribution. Although the study was correlational (and therefore
did not conclude cause) the authors argued that the findings are
consistent with human capital theory that suggests increases in
pay should accrue to those who gain skills that make them more
valuable employees and that these gains tend to be greatest early
18
FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
in careers. Frontloading they argue also increases retention through
the period of greatest potential attrition and is also consistent with
evidence that when considering teaching as a career, prospective
teachers take more account of starting salary than longer
term future rewards – and so frontloading, it is argued, is more
competitive in attracting the strongest candidates and holds them
through the period when their skills are developing most rapidly but
when they are most likely to leave.
The New Zealand difficulty however is the relatively compressed
nature of the salary scale. The OECD average salary range (initial
salary to maximum) is $17,085. In New Zealand it is $13,985.
This implies that the benefits we may be getting from frontloading
are restricted because the value of each increase is relatively
small. Given that simply increasing the top end of the range is not
budget neutral, an alternative may be to consider larger steps to
a higher top salary with each step dependent upon application
for promotion. The initial application may be a significant stepped
increase at the point of registration (consistent with frontloading)
but after that increases would only be available to teachers
who are prepared to test themselves against the standards for
promotion - in other words, replacing time serving promotion (a
small increase each year until the top of the scale is reached) with
performance promotion (fewer and larger stepped increases to
a higher top of scale). Note that there is a significant difference
between performance pay and performance promotion – the
former is a reward based on the spurious connection between the
teacher and student achievement; the latter is a peer-reviewed
assessment of a broad range of teacher performance against
predetermined standards.
Performance Promotion
How might this work? There are two
elements that are critical to the success of
a performance promotion system – clear
and agreed standards, and accountable
peer review. There are many examples
internationally of standards that might be
used for promotion purposes and a set
of standards for New Zealand based on
an inquiry based model of teaching has
recently been proposed for graduating
teachers although it is argued by the
authors that the standards apply for all
teachers3 (see Figure 1).
Such standards need considerably
more development including the design
of rubrics and measurement protocols
but they offer a benchmark for teaching
quality that is strongly connected to, but
not exclusively dependent upon, student
outcomes. They also require on-going study
connected to teaching. There is evidence
internationally that advanced qualifications
for teachers per se are poorly correlated
with student achievement gains but this
evidence does not distinguish between
general masters study and postgraduate
study that is connected to and deeply
embedded in real problems of practice. The
challenge for universities in any role they
might have to play in qualifications related
to promotion would be to ensure that such
qualifications originated in, and richly
informed and improved practice.
The matter of peer review is equally
critical. Promotion should represent a
challenge and reflect a significant step
up in performance. As such, judgements
about performance need to be moderated
and cannot be restricted to peers in the
teacher’s school. The National Board
Certification process in the United States
offers one possible model. National Board
Certification is a voluntary assessment
programme in which candidates complete
10 assessments that are reviewed by
trained teachers in their certificate areas.
The assessments include four portfolio
entries that feature teaching practice and
six constructed response exercises that
assess content knowledge. Assessment
centre exercises and work portfolios are
scored by a minimum of 12 teachers who
already hold National Board Certification.
Figure 1: Graduating Teacher Standards based on Teaching for Better Learning Model (T4BL).
Defensible decisions on learning
for each of my learners
are made by…
Defensible decisions on teaching
strategies most likely to be
successful
are made by…
Teaching strategies most likely
to be successful
learning
by…
The impact of teaching on each
of my students’ learning is
examined by…
learning in response to inquiry
into the decisions on and the
enactment and impact of
teaching strategies aimed at
achieving
are
s
decided on and
by…
structures and policies that
teaching and the quality of
outcomes for learners are
…drawing on educa on’s body of
knowledge about all learners,
learning, society and culture,
content, pedagogy, content
pedagogy, curriculum and
assessment and knowledge of
te reo me ona kanga
…using cultural, intellectual, cri cal,
rela onal and technical
competencies
…demonstra ng disposi ons
including open-mindedness,
fallibility, discernment and agency
…applying ethical principles and
demonstra ng commitment to
learners, families / wh nau, the
profession and society
…demonstra ng commitment to
social jus ce by challenging racism,
inequity, deficit thinking, disparity
and injus ce
Certification is renewed every 10 years.
While the scale of this is beyond New
Zealand, the idea of peer-reviewed
promotion based on rich, authentic tasks
should not be. We cannot afford, or need, a
12 teacher review but a central or regional
assessment body comprising those with
extensive and practical teaching expertise
and those with current knowledge of
research should not be beyond us if we
are serious about raising the quality of
teaching by recognising expert, rather than
experienced, performance.
Under-performance
Unspoken in this discussion of
performance pay and performance
promotion is the matter of underperformance. Performance promotion
portrays the positive possibilities of
standards. Many teachers will not apply
for promotion but will continue to perform
well at their current level. But what of
those who do not meet the standards,
who slip back? The current performance
management process is long and involved.
It requires at least two assessments
with time between for action based on
“appropriate assistance and personal
guidance”. Competency procedures
are only commenced when this has not
remedied the situation and then at that
point a further period of time is granted for
“corrective action” by the teacher. While
this process is arguably fair to teachers it
is not without consequences for students.
For every day, week, month that an underperforming teacher is in front of students,
students are being disadvantaged. If we
are serious about improving the quality of
teaching we need to shorten the period of
time that under-performing teachers are
working with students. And that means
either significantly reducing the time
between assessments for the teacher to
show evidence of successful corrective
action, or fewer assessment steps.
OECD (2012), “Teachers’ salaries”, Education: Key
Tables from OECD, No. 6. doi: 10.1787/teachsaltable-2012-2-en
1
Grissom, J.A. & Strunk, K.O. (2012). How Should
School Districts Shape Teacher Salary Schedules?
Linking School Performance to Pay Structure in
Traditional Compensation Schemes. Educational
Policy 26(5), 663-695.
2
Aitken, G., Sinnema, C. & Meyer, F. (2012).
Initial Teacher Education Outcomes: Graduating
Teacher Standards. Paper prepared for Ministry of
Education, 14 September.
3
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
19
Nauru
Pre parin g for tomorrow
Senior lecturers Tanya Wendt Samu and Alexis Siteine have been working on a
special project in the Republic of Nauru to develop and implement a social sciences
curriculum aimed at preparing students for a more prosperous future.
The Republic of Nauru has an extraordinary history. Originally named Pleasant Island by its first European visitors, the small island is
geographically isolated from its Pacific island neighbours. Yet, despite its size and isolation, Nauru’s story is one of monumental dimensions.
Colonised by Germany in 1888, taken over by Australia in the First World War and brutally occupied by the Japanese during the Second
World War, the citizens of Nauru became self-governing in 1966 before the country was eventually declared an independent republic in
1968.
Undoubtedly the biggest impact on the socio-cultural lives of Nauruans has been phosphate mining on the island. Over eighty years
of mining saw the island nation go from being the world’s wealthiest per capita in the 1970s to near financial ruin when the phosphate
was almost depleted in the 1990s, leaving the island’s central plateau barren and uninhabitable. By 2004, Nauru was in severe financial
distress, declared bankrupt by the World Bank and heavily reliant on foreign aid.
Educators in Nauru are concerned that the nation is at risk of losing its language, culture and identity, particularly with low literacy
levels of young Nauruans in the indigenous language. As yet there is no ‘official’ orthography or written language, and oral traditions are
still a primary source of historical knowledge and information. Because of their rarity, high value is placed on records and documentation of
early anthropologists, missionaries, and administrators. Nauruan educators still refer to an article written by an anthropologist in an issue
of National Geographic Magazine in 1926 to remember ‘how life was’ on the small island. Images of their homes, their people and their
community back then bare little resemblance to life on Nauru today.
But things are changing for the small island nation. With a renewed sense of vigour and determination, Nauruans are claiming back
their future and education is top priority. Over the past four years education policy and developments have been aggressive. With the help
of funding support from Australia and New Zealand, the government has introduced new education legislation, a new curriculum, improved
teacher training and upgraded the secondary school in what was the largest infrastructure project in Nauru in nearly 20 years.
Curriculum developments have paved the way for social sciences specialists Tanya Wendt Samu and Alexis Siteine, both senior lecturers
in the School of Critical Studies in Education, to become involved in the transformation of the sector.
Tanya first became involved in the social sciences curriculum development project in 2011 when she responded to a group email sent to
her from one of her social science networks in New Zealand. After having worked in Samoa and the Kyrgyz Republic on similar curriculum
projects, she was very keen to become involved in Nauru. Tanya travelled to Nauru four times last year to meet with teachers and the
Education Department of Nauru and work with them to develop the social sciences curriculum statement from primary through to senior
secondary school.
On her initial scoping visit she discovered there was no coherent curriculum in place. “Primary schools were doing one thing which had
no connection or logical follow-through with the next level of schooling,” says Tanya. “A lot of teachers didn’t know what social studies or
social sciences was, resources were minimal and the range of topics they were teaching were limited.”
During her visits Tanya worked with lead teachers and the Education Department to develop the aspirations they have for their students
into a set of principles and values for a curriculum statement. She believes that working collaboratively with teachers is vital to build capacity
to ensure sustainability of any aid-funded project. “I didn’t want to come in and write their curriculum statement for them,” she reflects. “I
20
FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
worked with teachers and policy makers to collaboratively develop
a draft statement. For them, social sciences was about Nauru
citizenship and their vision of what that means, what it constitutes
and the ideal values and principles that young people need to
contribute to the growth and development of Nauruan society. This is where culture, language and identity feature quite strongly.
It wasn’t just about Nauru for them. It was about interacting and
understanding the role of Nauru as an island in the Pacific region
as well as globally.”
The new draft curriculum statement covers all year levels
from junior primary through to senior secondary. It sets out the
philosophy and structure that links each year level and includes
topics that they might do at each level. Tanya enlisted the expertise
of colleague Alexis Siteine in 2012 to get her input into the primary
level and overall framework of the statement. “Secondary education
is my practical setting and I wanted to ensure teachers in Nauru
had a specialist in each sector,” recalls Tanya. “Alexis and I have
worked together previously and I knew her expertise would be
invaluable.”
The draft curriculum was internationally peer-reviewed by
academics from Australia, the Pacific and New Zealand. Both Tanya
and Alexis are confident that Nauru now has a social sciences
curriculum that can hold its head high and be internationally
recognised as culturally viable and responsive.
The Education Department in Nauru were fully aware that the
curriculum statement was only the first step in the process and
that effective implementation relied on having an infrastructure of
well-trained teachers with good pedagogical content knowledge
to deliver it. So when the department expressed their intention
to provide professional development for primary and secondary
teachers to implement the new curriculum in 2013, Tanya and
Alexis welcomed the opportunity to extend their work further.
They put together a proposal with terms of reference, an outline
of goals and extensive professional development plans to work
with teachers across all year levels and develop social sciences
curriculum teaching units. But like anything, it wasn’t until Alexis
arrived in Nauru late last year that they realised the reality was
going to be very different. “It wasn’t just about helping teachers
to implement this curriculum. It was also about building teachers’
content knowledge. It was important that we were flexible and
responsive as our understanding and appreciation of teachers’
needs became apparent,” says Alexis, who was also struck by
teachers’ determination, commitment and hard working ethos. “The
sacrifice of personal time and commitment to professional learning
is high. There are many teachers who are also studying as well.
They are intensely committed.”
During her visit Alexis delivered a number of workshops for
teachers, working with whole schools to develop their own social
studies policy statement and then with junior, middle and senior
year levels to look at what the specific learning would be at each
level.
She then worked with groups of year level teachers from
the three schools on the island that teach primary-school-aged
students. Together they collaboratively planned a unit of work
based on the draft curriculum statement to teach during the final
term last year.
“My job was to take what we worked on in the workshops
and help them put together a draft unit for them to implement
and evaluate as well as develop resources they could use in the
classroom,” says Alexis. “In a social studies unit there are three
important components: that children develop knowledge, they
explore values, and that they be given opportunities to act socially
with this new knowledge.”
The new curriculum will play an important role in cultural
affirmation and Alexis and Tanya have worked with teachers to
ensure that over the year, half the topics are Nauru based. One
example of a Nauru based topic is Angam Day, an important
national holiday and one of celebration and reflection for the
people of Nauru. It celebrates when the 1,500th baby was born on
the island, a population figure that was considered necessary for
the viability of a nation in the early 20th Century. The population
had dropped considerably after the First World War and rebuilding
the population became top priority. It took 13 years to achieve,
but the first Angam baby was born on 26 October 1932 – a date
that is intrinsically linked to Nauru’s identity as a nation. “It was
important to weave this into the curriculum at all levels,” notes
Alexis, “but also ensure that this learning can be transferred
regionally and globally.”
She worked with teachers to think conceptually about how
the units are taught so that the students’ learning was broader
than Angam Day alone. “Objectively, teachers can teach what it is
and why it happens but this knowledge needs to be transferred to
other situations so that students understand that events in history
often contribute to an individual’s and nation’s sense of identity,”
says Alexis. “This is true for Angam Day, but also true for the likes
of ANZAC day, Australia Day and Independence Day. It is about
the conceptual understanding about the significance of Angam
Day as a historical event, not just culturally but in terms of nation
building and developing a sense of self. It sits in the context but
also transcends the context.”
As Alexis departed Nauru, the teachers were charged with
taking the units they had developed together and trialling them
in the classroom. They evaluated the unit based on what they felt
worked, how they found implementation, how well they understood
it, whether the resources were adequate and what improvements
could be made.
Tanya travelled back early this year to work with teachers and
get initial feedback from the primary teachers about the units they
had implemented. Anecdotal feedback from teachers was optimistic
and very encouraging. “One primary school principal commented
on the Human Rights unit they had collaboratively planned with
Alexis and trialled at the end of last year,” recalls Tanya. “The
children organised a concert where they shared their poetry and
songs they had written in class as part of the unit. The principal
was delighted with the outcome and explained how the children
were excited to be teaching their parents about children’s rights.”
“Our hope is that the new curriculum will ultimately lead to
better grounding in their own history, a strong sense of identity in
their own culture and a healthier, wealthier nation,” says Tanya.
“In the future they shouldn’t need people like us. The Education
Department will be able to revise and rewrite their own curriculum
that meets their own socio-cultural needs.”
Opposite page: Tanya Wendt Samu (left) and Alexis Siteine.
The Faculty of Education was involved in the Social Sciences
Curriculum Development in Nauru through a contract administered
by Cognition Education Ltd with funding from AusAid.
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
21
RESOURCES
New Zealand Journal of
Educational Studies: He aha te
kaupapa? Critical conversations in
Kaupapa Māori
Edited by Te Kawehau Hoskins & Alison Jones.
Wellington: NZARE, 2013.
In this special issue of this journal, guest edited
by Te Kawehau Hoskins and Alison Jones, each contributor was
asked to bring a critical approach to the concept ‘kaupapa Māori’.
The controversial and lively collection includes articles from many
top Māori scholars, including Russell Bishop, Georgina Stewart,
Peter Keegan, Garrick Cooper and Te Ahukaramū Charles Royal
and insightful interviews with Graham Hingangaroa Smith and
Mason Durie as well as articles from both editors. “This special
edition asks some challenging questions and presents a collection
of perceptive and political thought, which we hope will challenge
thinking in a positive and productive way,” says Te Kawehau.
“Kaupapa Māori is a very dominant idea and phrase which comes
into meaning through its use, so this special issue attempts to
explore some of this territory.”
Complexity Thinking in Physical
Education: Reframing Curriculum,
Pedagogy and Research
Ovens, A., Hooper, T., & Butler, J. (Eds.). New
York: Routledge, 2013.
Written by a team of leading international
physical education scholars, the book highlights
how the considerable theoretical promise of complexity can be
reflected in the actual policies, pedagogies and practices of
physical education (PE). It encourages teachers, educators and
researchers to embrace notions of learning that are more organic
and emergent, to allow the inherent complexity of pedagogical
work in PE to be examined more broadly and inclusively. This is
the first book to focus on complexity thinking in the context of
physical education, enabling fresh ways of thinking about research,
teaching, curriculum and learning.
Promoting Health and Well-being
in Social Work Education
Crisp, B. R., & Beddoe, L. (Eds.). London:
Routledge, 2012.
Social work educators can play an important
part in ensuring that the promotion of health
and wellbeing is firmly on the social work
agenda for service users, as well as for students and educators.
However, this has not been a priority within social work education
and raises important questions about the role and relevance of
social work in health. This book contains contributions from social
work educators from Australia, America, Canada, New Zealand
and the UK. They reflect on how best to prepare students to put
health and wellbeing to the forefront of practice, drawing on
research on quality of life, subjective wellbeing, student wellbeing,
community participation and social connectedness, religion and
spirituality, mindful practices, trauma and health inequalities.
This book is an extended version of a special issue of Social Work
Education.
Critical Pedagogy, Physical
Education and Urban Schooling
Fitzpatrick, K. New York: Peter Lang, 2012.
Critical Pedagogy, Physical Education and Urban
Schooling is a critical ethnography of health,
physical education and the schooling experiences
of urban youth. The subjects of health and
physical education are compulsory in most schools internationally,
but many contemporary practices in these subjects reinforce rather
than challenge the stereotypes that urban youth are only physically
talented and, subsequently, uninterested in schooling achievement.
This book questions those practices and instead suggests that, if
taught in critical ways, these subjects offer a particularly cogent
space of hope and achievement for urban youth.
Pacific Identities and Well-Being:
Cross-Cultural Perspectives
Agee, M. N., McIntosh, T., Culbertson, P., &
Makasiale, C. ‘O. (Eds.). New York: Routledge,
2012.
Filling a significant gap in the cross-cultural
and cross-disciplinary literature within the field
of Pacific (Polynesian) and Māori identities and mental health,
this volume focuses on bridging mental health related research
and practice within the indigenous communities of the South
Pacific. Much of the content reflects both differences from and
relationships with the dominant Western theories and practices so
often unsuccessfully applied with these groups. The contributors
represent both experienced researchers and practitioners and
chapters include practice scenarios, research reports, analyses
of topical issues, and discussions about the appropriateness of
applying Western theory in other cultural contexts. The works
of several leading Mäori and Pacific poets that give voice to the
changing identities and contemporary challenges within Pacific
communities are also included.
Kohia Education Centre
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Visit at: www.store.educationcentre.auckland.ac.nz
22
FA CU L T Y O F E D U CAT I ON THE U NIVERS ITY O F AU C KLAND
The inaugural cohort of sixteen eager postgraduate students in the Teach First NZ programme, have
completed their six-week summer initial intensive, delivered in partnership with the Faculty of Education, and
are now well into the first term of their two-year placement in partner secondary schools. At the launch of
the programme back in December, students shared experiences of the first few weeks from entries in their
‘participant diaries’. We follow this with an update from student Nadeen Papali’i on how it is going since she
started her teaching placement at Tangaroa College in South Auckland.
Dear Diary,
How do you explain being in the right place at the right time with the right people? Do you
call it serendipity or a divine detour? I am more inclined to sway to the latter to describe my
experience thus far as a Teach First NZ participant. Six months before the experience began
my blueprint of the next few years was set; finish my masters of engineering and begin a PhD
focused on improving water quality in developing countries. Teaching was a profession I had
considered for my latter years. Now, close to one month since finishing the summer intensive
and three weeks into teaching at Tangaroa College, I’m beginning to see the detour as less of
an alternative route and more of the best route for me.
I want to go on and talk about the excitement of seeing the ‘light bulb’ moments in
students when learning is taking place, and I will – but I cannot help but share how moulding
the teaching profession is on a person’s character. Integrity and resilience best describe
the attributes being chiselled into me at the moment – being consistent with my learners,
working with them as they too transition into school whilst ensuring that learning is taking
place. During the summer intensive we were introduced to the idea of teachers as adaptive
experts; constantly adapting their practice to the needs of students. The outworking of being
an adaptive expert is tough – but when my students begin to have those ‘light bulb’ moments
it rewards the challenge. Teaching powers and square roots in my Year 9 maths class, the joy of
hearing “Is that all? I can do this”, affirms that students have not only learned something new
but conquered something they initially thought was hard. However little the moment may seem
– it has the ability to illuminate unknown potential in all of us.
In the midst of feeling somewhat overwhelmed with this new beginning, the ‘light bulb’ moments keep me wanting to learn; asking
myself and my students ‘how did we get to that moment?’ and ‘would this work with other students?’ One of the joys of reflecting back to
the initial intensive is that much of the content covered has been applied in my teaching practice thus far. Although this is the expectation
from the programme, as a student you sometimes wonder about content application, and whether it would work just as good as it sounds.
But when you hear the teaching staff at your school wanting to enforce teaching and learning as inquiry projects, the relevance of my theory
knowledge comes into effect. For me, learning is best when connections are made and knowledge is applied. I think that explains why I feel
so invigorated despite the challenge, because learning is live and in action. I explain the same analogy to family and friends who ask me
how I am finding things; it is like I am doggy-paddling in water, I have yet to touch the bottom of the pool but I can manage to stay afloat.
However long it takes me to ground myself at least until then I will be really good at doggy-paddling.
One of the fears I had when I finished the intensive was whether I would have enough support as a teacher and as a learner when
school started. And I can say one of the reasons why I have been able to stay afloat has been because of the support from Teach First NZ
and especially within my school. Having been in the same waters as me I glean off their experience. What makes them even more admirable
is their willingness to keep learning and adjusting for the benefit of their learners, despite their many years of experience. Having people
model this form of humility and respect for teaching as a profession sets a standard for me not only as a teacher but as a professional.
I still desire to do my PhD, I haven’t given up on that plan. But I think that the path I am taking now is the best route for me to achieve
this and more. Until that day comes, my place at the front lines of fighting inequality in education and low academic achievement amongst
Māori and Pacific students is set, along with so many other teachers. I am in the right place, at the right time, with and for the right people –
this is my divine detour.
The Faculty of Education works in partnership with Teach First NZ in all aspects of the programme and selection, with particular
responsibility for teacher preparation and support led by Dr Ngaire Hoben, Director of Secondary Education.
For more about the Postgraduate Diploma in Teaching (Secondary Field-based) qualification see www.education.auckland.ac.nz/uoa/
pgdiptchg-sec-field-based
For more about TeachFirst NZ and the programme visit teachfirstnz.org
TE KUAKA ISSUE 1 2013
23
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Explore your options at
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