New Zealand – Teaching & Learning Research Initiative

Using home languages as a resource to enhance statistical thinking in a multicultural classroom

Introduction Aotearoa New Zealand is a super diverse nation in terms of the ethnicities of its people and languages spoken. With an increased rate of immigration (New Zealand Immigration, 2018) from various parts of the world, the presence of multiple languages in many domains of social life is a reality. Individuals may identify with several nationalities or racial groups and may speak combinations or mixtures of several languages (Dockrell et al., 2022; Education Review Office, 2018). Consequently, classrooms are now places where learners have different linguistic and cultural backgrounds, where they may speak one language at home and another at school, where teachers and students may not share a common language

Critical moments from the education journeys of students in Alternative Education settings: Teacher inquiries for transformation

They don’t really see what School was like for me They only see what the Teachers see. What the teachers want Them to see. You’re only telling your own story What school was like for you That’s easy coming from me. They need to know from The experience of what We see. Not what they see. What we see. The voices of rangatahi in Alternative Education from Phase 1 focus group Introduction Every year, at least 2,000 rangatahi, aged 13 to 16, continue their learning in Alternative Education (AE) settings, disenfranchised from mainstream schooling through exclusions, multiple suspensions, or truancy. Of this population, 68% are Māori and 17% are Pasifika (Education

Learning From Each Other: A final report

Introduction Pacific parents and community members have much to contribute to teacher learning and thus to the education of Pacific students. Although the concept of Pacific success, through the education of Pacific students, has become ubiquitous as an aspiration, there has so far been limited research that has conceptualised Pacific education success in community terms. This is especially true in relation to teacher learning, teacher theorising, and changed practice. Understanding how to socialise teachers to generate and sustain new practice possibilities, informed by appreciation of the values, aspirations, and critiques of the Pacific parents and students they seek to serve, is therefore a priority. Learning From Each Other is a Teaching

Enhancing capacity to analyse students’ writing

1. Introduction 1.1 Aims The research, practice, and partnership goals of the Teaching & Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) provided the framework for this project. The aims were aligned to all the principles of TLRI[1] and in particular to Principle One: a strategic principle that aims to reduce inequalities and address diversity, understand the processes of teaching and learning, and, to some extent, explore future possibilities. It also has strong links with the practice goals of Principles Five and Six. These demand that projects should contribute to practice and lead to significant improvements and outcomes for learners. As stated below, this was the guiding principle for this project. Principle Six also states

On2Science – Multiple affordances for learning through participation in online citizen science

Abstract This research investigated the integration of learning in science and digital technologies, with online citizen science (OCS) projects acting as the fulcrum for curriculum design. Across 3 years, teacher-researchers designed and implemented 16 innovative cross-curricular programmes. Our research focused on three areas: (1) mapping progressions in students’ science capabilities; (2) identifying affordances of OCS engagement for developing students’ digital technologies progress outcomes; and (3) investigating the impacts of teacher practices in relation to human–computer interactions. The project outcomes have potential to contribute significantly to both science and technology education research and teaching. 1. Introduction This research project brought together a team of education and information science researchers, teacher professional learning

Understand Me: Storied-Conversations as Afa for Strengthening Relationships, Curriculum and Pedagogies

Mā ngā korero tuku iho tātou me ō tātou ao e kitea ai, e rongongia ai, e whaiora ai.[1] E tatou te fauina i tatou ma a tatou si’osi’omaga, e ala iā tatou tala.[2] We craft ourselves and our worlds in stories. Understand Me was born out of an aspirational exploration of ways for teachers to deepen relationships with young children and families to open space for their knowledges to be valued in the everyday educational curriculum. The origin was a desire to facilitate a shift from awareness of cultural competencies to action that values family pedagogies in the learning life of the classroom. Family pedagogies are everyday ways of knowing,

Using a wellbeing framework to recognise, value and enhance the broad range of outcomes for learners in adult literacy and numeracy programmes

Aotearoa New Zealand’s attention to adult literacy and numeracy (L+N) education arose from the results of the OECD / Statistics Canada International Literacy surveys begun in the mid-1990s, when, as a nation, we achieved unexpectedly low results for L+N proficiency. The Government responded with an adult L+N strategy (Ministry of Education, 2001) that spellt out initiatives in building professional capability for delivery, improving the quality of the system, and ensuring that larger numbers of learners could access L+N learning. Over the next 10 years, further measures were included, such as credentialising tutors, expanded funding for educational provision, a national literacy centre housed in the University of Waikato, a national set of

Te Kura Mai i Tawhiti: He Tau Kawekaweā: Building the foundation for whanau educational success and wellbeing; a Kaupapa Māori ECE approach

Introduction Te Kōpae Piripono (TKP), Māori immersion early childhood education (ECE) centre, was recognised by the Ministry of Education in 2005 as a Centre of Innovation (COI), funding a 3-year practitioner research project which looked at whether Whānau Development at Te Kōpae Piripono fosters leadership across all levels of the whānau enhancing children’s learning and development (Tamati, Hond-Flavell & Korewha, 2008). The COI research identified obstacles to individual and collective whānau development and participation in TKP that can have negative consequences for the educational and life outcomes of children and their whānau (families). This study, He Tau Kawekaweā, has built upon understandings derived from that earlier research. The aim of this

Capturing learning in undergraduate mathematics: a Learning in Undergraduate Mathematics: The Outcome Spectrum (LUMOS) report

Dedication Judy Paterson sadly passed away during this research project. However, her contribution was a major one, co-leading the design and grant application team, taking responsibility for the Team-Based Learning innovation, conducting interviews, and contributing strongly in several of the learning output observation groups. We dedicate this report to her memory. – Bill Overview of the project The LUMOS Project had two parts: the development of three innovative methods of undergraduate mathematics course delivery, and the identification and observation of a wide range of desired learning outcomes. This project sought to link these aspects. The research questions were: What practical, pedagogical, administrative and curricular barriers need to be overcome to establish

Reengineering an engineering course: How flipped classrooms afford transformative teaching, learning, and workplace competency

Introduction Successful engineering graduates need to understand engineering principles and practices and be able to work in teams, to communicate well, and to work in contexts that can be risky and uncertain (Adamson & DarlingHammond, 2012; Meier, Williams, & Humphreys, 2000). Current trends in engineering education call for the development of students’ technical and non-technical skills (Male, 2010). Thus, it is crucial that tertiary educators develop curricula that enable students to develop these capacities and to enhance their employability and contribution to a country’s economic competitiveness and societal wellbeing (Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, 2014). This project extends our previous research on the effectiveness of

Riariakina ō rongo hirikapo – From kōhanga reo to kura

Introduction Ko te kaupapa tonu, ko te whakatupu i te mahara o te hirikapo kia tiu ai ki te muri, arā, kia puta he whakaaro i pokepokengia nō roto tonu i ngā whakahekenga kāwai o ngā tūpuna o te tamaiti, kua maranga te wā e kaumātua haere ana te tamaiti, ngōna kanohi kua huaki, ngōna taringa kua pīkari, ngā whakaaro kua korikori, tōna wairua hīkaka kua ngawhā, ngērā kaupapa katoa o te tamaiti i taua wā o te tupu. Mā tēnei kōrero hoki hei kawe te taonga o te rongo hirikapo, arā, ngā whakaaro, ngā mahara, nāna ko te waha, nā te waha ko te kupu kōrero e makere iho ai

Work of teacher educators: Teaching and learning in New Zealand university-based initial teacher education

Introduction We have been studying the cultural constructions and material realities of university-based initial teacher education (ITE) and teacher educators’ work in Aotearoa New Zealand. By examining the work of teacher educators, we have been able to consider how ITE and the academic category of teacher educator is constructed, maintained, and practised within the institution of the university. Exploring teacher educators’ work, including teaching and learning activities from perspectives of both student teachers and teacher educators, has provided us with new insights into teaching and learning within university-based ITE. Our research questions have been: How is “teacher educator” constructed and maintained as a category of academic work? What do university-based teacher

Porous learning: what do families and schools need to know and do about learning@home in a digital environment to enhance children’s literacy?

Introduction School students increasingly use digital technologies at home to enhance learning and bridge the school– home divide. The porous learning project was designed to explore the factors that both enabled learning and created barriers to learning at home for students in a low socioeconomic community using the digital learning environment, which we refer to as learning@home. The study investigated ways to inform families and schools, and also equip them with strategies to enhance children’s literacy within a digital learning environment at home. The term digital learning environment (DLE) describes technology used to enhance learning; for example, netbooks, the internet, blogs. A key motivation for the project has been a growing

Children who learn in more than one language: Early childhood teachers afloat in plurilingual seas

Introduction Background, research literature overview, research questions and why they are important to learning and teaching in New Zealand Aotearoa is an increasingly diverse society. The many languages and cultures of children and families raise questions and considerations for early childhood teachers. We designed research to address gaps in our knowledge, by exploring the languages used and the experiences and learning outcomes that parents, teachers, young children and communities value. Our focus was on children who learn in more than one language in the early years. The research was credit-based, through our application of the theoretical constructs of funds of knowledge and an additive approach to learning through more than one

Extending innovative e-learning leadership

Introduction / research aims / rationale This project grew out of the desire to understand and share the strategies that successful school leaders use to identify, implement and integrate digital technologies in school settings. What may come naturally to some leaders presents significant challenges for others; the catalyst for this project was the opportunity to systematically investigate the leadership of one experienced principal who was highly competent digitally and who recognised the opportunity to support colleagues nationwide. While digital technologies are a key element of future focused education and can be deployed to support pedagogical innovation, they frequently present complex problems for school leaders (Fullan 2011; Fullan & Langworthy, 2014). The

Smoothing the path to transition

1. Introduction Successful transition of secondary school students into tertiary study is a priority for secondary schools, tertiary institutions and government alike (see, for example, Bazerman, 2007; Batholomae, 2005). The National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) has, as one of its goals, the effective preparation of senior secondary students for higher education; the Tertiary Education Commission’s (TEC) Tertiary Education Strategy 2014–2019 highlights student success (particularly of at-risk students, including Māori and Pasifica) in higher education as one of its goals; and universities are responding to this strategy by implementing enhanced transition and retention strategies. This research was a response to anecdotal evidence that, despite best intentions by secondary schools and tertiary

Learning the work of ambitious mathematics teaching

Introduction Seen by policy makers as both the cause of and a solution for education problems, teacher education is frequently criticised for not producing teachers of sufficient quality, while simultaneously being viewed as “an ideal site for increasing teacher quality, providing it is subject to reform” (Ell & Grudnoff, 2012, p. 79). Calls for reform (Education Workforce Report, 2010; NZTC, 2010) relate to newly qualified teachers’ capacity to respond to the needs of an increasingly diverse student body, alongside changing educational outcomes in terms of knowledge and competencies (Andretti & Major, 2010). Such calls are particularly pertinent to mathematics education. In New Zealand, too many students are disaffected with their mathematics

Inquiring minds, meaningful responses: Children’s interests, inquiries, and working theories

Introduction: Research rationale and aims In keeping with the spirit, aims, and principles of the Teaching and Learning research Initiative (TLRI) programme, the following whakataukī has guided our research project: Ma te mahi ka mohio, ma te mahi ka marama, ma te mahi ka matatau. Through practice comes knowledge, through knowledge comes understanding, through understanding comes expertise. Our project has been grounded in the realities and complexities of teaching practice, and the fundamental partnership between teachers and their families and communities. Many early childhood settings in Aotearoa New Zealand follow the advice of Te Whāriki (Ministry of Education, 1996) and use children’s interests as a source of curriculum decision making. Earlier

Move, Act, Play, Sing (MAPS): Exploring early childhood arts teaching and learning strategies and concepts through community arts interventions

Introduction Move, Act, Play, Sing (MAPS) explored early childhood teaching and learning in the performing arts through community artist interventions and relational practices and pedagogies. The research developed three early childhood centre case studies where teachers, children, and parents worked together with community artists, the research team, and other colleagues to explore emergent pathways of performing arts teaching and learning. In MAPS, community artists in music, dance, and drama worked alongside teachers and children in semi-planned, open, and improvisatory pedagogical settings set up to explore the potentialities of performing arts learning and teacher responses in the centre environments and communities. The ethnographic inquiry focused on how the early childhood teachers engaged

Designing knowledge building communities in secondary schools

Introduction With the emergence of globalisation and the knowledge economy, it has become a priority for economically advanced countries to increase and democratise the innovative capacity of their citizens. In New Zealand, there is an urgent need to develop young people’s capacity to work creatively and innovatively with knowledge (Ministry of Education, 2007). This presents a huge challenge for teachers, who will be required to shift their pedagogical beliefs and practices from supporting students to reproduce knowledge, to “actively interact with it: to understand, critique, manipulate, create, and transform it” (Bolstad & Gilbert, 2008, p. 39, emphasis in original). A knowledge building communities (KBC) model developed by Scardamalia and Bereiter (2003)

Children as teachers: families as learners

Introduction In this project, the research team—a collaboration between teacher researchers and university researchers— was interested in finding out about how children as teachers might engage their families as learners at a museum. This project had two parts. First, it was about young children as museum guides, explaining their understandings about a museum exhibit or object to others. Second, the research explored the ways in which shared experiences with families and friends visiting a museum invited conversations that include families’ social and cultural knowledge, and engaged families in their children’s learning. The research also explored what objects or exhibits and accompanying stories captured the children’s interests and how competently and efficiently

Key competencies: How school guidance counsellors contribute to student learning

Introduction The project summarised in this report demonstrates how counsellors effectively facilitate learning in the course of attending to student wellbeing. students seek counselling to deal with problems, concerns, and struggles. In responding to student distress, school counsellors call on a repertoire of specialist therapeutic practices. many of these practices facilitate learning. This study shows how this learning, in counselling, can be understood in terms of the curriculum’s key competencies. The project demonstrates how the problems, concerns and struggles that young people experience directly shape the particular key competencies that are used and developed as learning occurs in counselling. It highlights the relevance of counselling skills and knowledge to the implementation

Threshold concepts: Impacts on teaching and learning at tertiary level

Introduction According to threshold concept theory, in each academic discipline there exists concepts that, once grasped, allow new and previously inaccessible ways of perceiving and thinking about the subject to emerge (Meyer & Land, 2003). According to Meyer and Land (2005, 2006) there are points in learning threshold concepts at which students experience difficulty because mastering threshold concepts requires letting go of usual ways of seeing and thinking about subject matter. These learning thresholds create a state of ‘liminality’—a space and/or time of transformation from an earlier understanding to a new, required state which “entails a shift in the learner’s ontology or subjectivity”. Acquiring a threshold concept often resembles a phase

“Better to do than receive”: Learning to think historically through internally assessed course work

Introduction This research project examined the contribution internally assessed course work makes to motivating young people to think historically; that is to develop reasoned, evidence-based understandings of the past that equip them to participate in society as critical citizens who can think independently and adjudicate between competing claims of historical authenticity. Our findings indicate that conducting internally assessed course work makes a major contribution to how students (as novices) learn to think critically about the past. developing the ability to think historically is counter-intuituive and has been described as an “unnatural act” (Wineburg, 2001). It can seldom be acquired from everyday experiences. Rather, it requires systematic instruction in how the discipline

Reconceptualising literacy: Critical multiliteracies for “new times”

Introduction We can think of changes in the international literacy landscape as a powerful wave. It has reached our shores here in New Zealand; there is no escaping it. In this report, we argue that given the changes affecting our classrooms through information and communications technology, and increasing student diversity not only do we want to prepare ourselves for the wave, but we wish to harness its power. This “wave” involves a reconceptualisation of literacy, known as “multiliteracies”, that takes account of an increasing cultural and linguistic diversity and rapid changes in communication technologies. our research project sought to address the paucity of research on multiliteracies in New Zealand, building on

CoRe: A way to build pedagogical content knowledge for beginning teachers

Research has shown that one of the factors which enables teachers to be effective is their rich pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Beginning teachers need support to develop this PCK and recent research in the field has proposed a conceptual tool known as “content representations”, or CoRes, as a model for doing this. The study reported here brought together science and technology experts in content and pedagogy, early career secondary teachers, and researchers to design a CoRe to assist development of teacher PCK. The study then researched the early career teachers’ use of the CoRe in their planning and delivery of a unit in their classrooms to examine the effect of the

Everybody Counts? Reimagining Health and Physical Education in Primary Schools

Introduction Health and Physical Education (HPE) in New Zealand primary schools has been dominated by games, sports, fitness, and illness prevention. This narrow and teacher-centred version of HPE has been “nice for some and nasty for others” (Evans & Davies, 2002, p. 17). This project draws on the shared expertise of teachers and researchers to reimagine HPE in ways that support teachers and children to have meaningful experiences, relevant to their diverse backgrounds, needs and interests. In doing so, this project offers a rare glimpse of curricular ideals enacted in practice. What we learnt together Reimagining and enacting innovative approaches to HPE curriculum and pedagogy supports children to: Be accepting of

Networked inquiry learning in secondary science classrooms

Introduction This research project aimed to understand and explore the ways electronically networked (e-networked) tools can support authentic science inquiry in junior secondary classrooms in order to address concerns about student engagement in science. Internationally claims are made about the potential for inquiry-based learning to address the challenges of relevance for the 21st century school science learner (Aikenhead, 2005; Bolstad & Hipkins, 2008). Deliberate inclusion of activities such as collaboration, co-construction and confirmation of ideas is appropriate and valued in science inquiry but they tend to contrast with many of the practices found in conventional classrooms. These activities require more student freedom and the capacity to pose and meaningfully pursue questions

“Bootstrapping” students’ understanding of statistical inference

Introduction This report summarises the research activities and findings from the TLRI-funded project conducted in Year 13, introductory university and workplace classes, entitled “‘Bootstrapping’ Statistical Inferential Reasoning”. The project was a 2-year collaboration among three statisticians, two researchers, 16 Year 13 teachers, seven university lecturers, one workplace practitioner, three teacher professional development facilitators, and one quality assurance advisor. The project team designed innovative computer-based approaches to develop students’ inferential reasoning and sought evidence that these innovations were effective in developing students’ understanding of statistical inference. Key findings The bootstrapping and randomisation methods using dynamic visualisations especially designed to enhance conceptual understanding have the potential to transform the learning of statistical inference.

Pedagogical intersubjectivity: Teaching and learning conversations between children and teachers

Introduction This project builds on prior national TLRI research investigating teaching and learning episodes between teachers and child during their everyday interactions (Carr, et al., 2008; Davis & Peters, 2008). These prior studies indicated that teachers sometimes found it difficult to: choose which of the children’s interactions they should involve themselves in to develop opportunities for children’s learning (Carr, 2007; Davis & Peters, 2008) interact with children in ways that avoid “hijacking” their developing working theories (Davis & Peters, 2008). International studies exploring early childhood education practices were also considered in the planning of this project. Specifically, the “effective Provision of Pre-school education” (EPPE) study (Sylva, Melhuish, Sammons, Siraj-Blatchford, & Taggart,

Are they ready to teach? Assessing student teachers’ final practicum

Introduction Although the practicum is generally accepted as a core element in teacher preparation programmes, the assessment of student teachers’ competence during practicums appears to be particularly problematic as making judgments about complex performances, such as teaching, is a sophisticated process. As with any form of assessment, judgments are made against some criterion or normative standard, and this judgment must ultimately involve some implicit or explicit understanding of what constitutes good teaching (Porter, Youngs, & Odden, 2001), which in itself is a contested construct. In this 2-year research project, Social Judgment Theory (Hammond, Rohrbaugh, Mumpower, & Adelman, 1977) was used to better understand judgments of “readiness to teach”. Social Judgment Theory

Preparing initial primary and early childhood teacher education students to use assessment

Introduction In our rapidly changing world, in which the future is uncertain, teachers need to prepare children with knowledge, skills, values, and competencies that will support them to become life-long learners and active contributors to New Zealand’s social, cultural, economic, and environmental well-being. Such an aim implies that children should be educated in ways that support them to assume control of their own learning. to that end, they will need to develop the capability to assess their own learning and progress. Vital aspects of every teacher’s pedagogy, then, will be the ability to use assessment that builds, extends, and challenges children to see themselves as competent learners, and equip them with

Our place: Being curious at Te Papa

Introduction This Teaching and learning research initiative (TLRI) project was sited in a kindergarten, Tai Tamariki, at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa in Wellington. This kindergarten is a full day-centre for children aged 0–5 years. On average, 70 percent of the families include staff at Te Papa. The research focused on the relationship between the teachers, children and families at the kindergarten and selected exhibitions at Te Papa. It was extended to include these relationships with exhibitions at nearby art galleries. Key findings The project’s goals and intentions were to construct an understanding of how the children at this kindergarten made meaning of what they encountered and experienced at

Marae-ā-kura: Teaching, learning and living as Māori

Introduction Marae-ā-kura (school-based marae) have been part of the secondary school landscape since 1978. Today there are approximately 99 marae in state secondary schools in New Zealand (Ministry of Education, 2008).[1] although marae-ā-kura are officially endorsed by the Ministry of Education (2000) to better engage with Māori parents, whānau and communities, there is little research on the way marae-ā-kura operate, their pedagogical practices and their effect on Māori student outcomes. This two-year research project investigated the role of marae-ā-kura as culturally determined spaces in mainstream secondary schools. It involved the participation of students, teachers, principals, whānau and community representatives of three urban marae-ā-kura within the Auckland region. The study examined the

Teaching Algebra Conceptually in Years 9 and 10

Introduction Many students struggle with introductory algebra and teachers have little to guide them to assist their students learn this important component of mathematics. The project on teaching algebra conceptually (TAC) was designed to explore and create teaching approaches to assist students in Years 9 and 10 to develop a conceptual understanding of algebra. The effect of these teaching approaches was documented by use of a diagnostic tool that assessed and made students’ knowledge and strategic thinking in algebra explicit. Key findings Achievement in algebra can be enhanced by taking a structural perspective that provides high quality diagnostic assessment information to teachers. Effective teaching approaches that have an effect on student

Teaching undergraduate mathematics: Perspectives and interactions

The high demand for mathematics in undergraduate education means that large numbers of students enrol in the subject. Lecturing remains the prime delivery mode for teaching such courses. We addressed undergraduate mathematics’ lecturing through three components: lecturers and their development; student perspectives on mathematics; and interactions in the lecturing environment. We used theoretical frameworks from secondary contexts, developing them for tertiary application. This research aimed to improve the didactics of lecturing, and builds on studies on school/university transitions. Key findings Lecturer professional development based on Schoenfeld’s framework positively influenced lecturing practice in a way acceptable to lecturers. Students believe that learning mathematics involves natural ability; and that it is a subject

Developing a place-based approach to outdoor education in Aotearoa New Zealand: Outdoor ed in our place: “Keepin’ it real”

Introductory statement Outdoor education is often thought of as occurring in remote locations requiring specialist staff and equipment. Such an approach is resource intensive and potentially expensive. This project sought to develop ‘localised’ outdoor experiences that empowered teachers and students to better understand places of significance in their community. By being responsive to the geographical and cultural features in the local area both students and teachers were able to incorporate prior knowledge and experiences and connect these to life ‘outside school’. Key findings A place-responsive approach to outdoor education programmes is viable and sustainable and fits well with the intent of the NZ curriculum. Self-propelled journeys provide students with a sense

Integrating values in the New Zealand Curriculum: Caught or taught?

Introduction Currently, there are gaps in our knowledge about values development in New Zealand schools. we do not know what teachers, curriculum leaders and principals believe and know about values implementation in the new curriculum, nor do we know about the effect on student learning of current implementation strategies for teaching values. This study aims to explore (a) the ability of schools to integrate values into their teaching and learning programmes, and (b) the effect of approaches taken to implement values throughout the school. Key findings The most favoured strategies for teaching values included teacher role modelling, using the “teachable moment” and explicit teaching of values. The most preferred strategies for

Literacy and e-learning: Mining the action research data

Introduction In this project, researchers and teachers (ECE, primary, and secondary) worked together to analyse unpublished data from a range of action research inquiries on e-learning to articulate, investigate, and build theory about the literacy learning that takes place in e-learning contexts. This summary report provides an overview of our cross-project analysis. The teachers’ case studies can be found at: http://elearning.tki.org.nz/teaching/Literacyin-e-learning Key findings There was evidence of students in all sectors (ECE, primary, and secondary) encoding and decoding, making meaning with, using, and thinking critically about texts in visual, audio, gestural, spatial, print, and multimodal modes. There was less evidence of students developing critical literacy, and this was so across all

Active adult participation in early childhood education: Enhancing child learning and community wellness

Introduction In our qualitative research project (2010–2012), the team investigated how “ordinary” early childhood centres enacted “extraordinary” pedagogy by including families, wider whānau and communities in the “everyday” of early childhood programmes; that is, within this project, we explored both theoretical constructs and teaching and organisational strategies to increase parent participation and positive learning outcomes for children and community wellness. Our primary research question was: How does active adult participation in early childhood education enhance positive outcomes for children and their whānau? Our research included all four teaching teams, parent facilitators, and the management of the four early childhood centres, the 303 Parenting Resource Centre (hereafter referred to as 303), and

Arts e-learning and the online specialist teacher: Increasing opportunities for quality student outcomes

Please view the poster for this project. The poster layout is integral to the presentation of the research Project description The project researched the potential of an arts (dance and drama) e-learning environment to provide quality arts teaching and produce successful learning outcomes for students. It involved the implementation of an innovative, web-based programme that makes possible the expertise of dance and drama specialists online in years 6, 7, and 8 classrooms where such expertise would not normally otherwise be available. A project team comprised researcher/specialist practitioners and classroom teachers in documenting the changing process of multiple implementations of the programme and producing insights into the potential ongoing viability of such

Shifting conceptualisations of knowledge and learning in the integration of the New Zealand Curriculum in teacher education: A meta-ethnography

Introduction The Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) project Shifting Conceptualisations of Knowledge and Learning in the Integration of the New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) in Teacher Education comprises a collection of case studies and a meta-analysis across the contributing case studies. The case studies describe individual teacher educators’ personal journeys as they engaged with ideas relating to epistemological understandings and the NZC and their reports on pedagogical initiatives and associated practitioner research that they undertook in the context of their work in initial teacher education (ITE) and teacher professional learning (TPL). These case studies are reported separately as part of the project research portfolio. The meta-analysis across these case studies is

What’s special about teaching and learning in the first years? Investigating the “what, hows and whys” of relational pedagogy with infants and toddlers

Introductory statement What is special about teaching infants and toddlers? How can the “what, hows and whys” of infant toddler pedagogy[1] be articulated and enhanced to support learning? These questions were at the heart of a two-year study in which researchers teamed up with teachers in five infant and toddler centres in Auckland and Wellington to gather practice-based evidence about pedagogy as the art and science of teaching and learning in this under-researched area of early childhood education and care. Key findings The study found that theorising about children’s learning through discussions of video data enabled the teachers to “really look” at their teaching and open up taken-for-granted meanings about the

LEMMA: Learning Environments with Mathematical Modelling Activities

Introduction The LEMMA project—Learning Environments with Mathematics Modelling Activities—grew out of a concern that many of our mathematics students struggle to use mathematical concepts flexibly to solve problems in the real world. The LEMMA project designed learning environments that encourage students to develop sophisticated conceptual understandings and communication competencies through mathematical modelling activities. Like a lemma in mathematics, LEMMA is not a grand theorem or solution, but merely “a stepping stone to a larger result” (Wikipedia, 2009)—the desired result being improved mathematical competencies among New Zealand secondary school students. Key findings Rich mathematical modelling activities such as model eliciting activities (MEAs) (Lesh, Hoover, Hole, Kelly, & Post, 2000) can elicit a

Culturally responsive pedagogy and assessment in primary science classrooms: Whakamana tamariki

Introduction In this project four teachers addressed their diverse students’ need for a range of different opportunities to develop more sophisticated expertise in science. They achieved this by drawing on the principles and practices of culturally responsive pedagogy and assessment for learning. Interviews and classroom observations indicated that students, and their families, took greater ownership and responsibility for science learning when teachers incorporated and built on the funds of knowledge and lived experience that all students bring from their homes and communities. Key findings Teachers can create culturally responsive pathways for science learning by incorporating children’s and communities’ funds of knowledge into the curriculum. Culturally responsive science teachers at times position

Building students’ inferential reasoning: Statistics curriculum Levels 5 and 6

This report summarises the research activities and findings from the TLRI-funded project conducted in various schools entitled Building Students’ Inferential Reasoning: Statistics Curriculum Levels 5 and 6. The project was a 2-year collaboration among two statisticians, two researchers and nine teachers. The project team designed innovative approaches to develop students’ informal inferential reasoning and sought evidence that these innovations had a significant effect on improving students’ statistical reasoning in this domain. Key findings Students initially used descriptive approaches to boxplot comparisons and expressed everyday conceptions of sample and population, but later moved towards thinking inferentially. Designed learning trajectories can lead students to “discover” a rational basis for making claims when comparing

Learning to “friendly argue” in a community of mathematical inquiry

Introduction This project explored the sorts of culturally responsive pedagogy teachers can engage in to optimise equitable access for students to proficient forms of mathematical talk and activity. The project sought to further our knowledge of the effects on student achievement and mathematical disposition when a specific focus is placed on building a classroom culture of mathematical inquiry and argumentation. Key findings The teachers were able to create more opportunities for collaborative group activities focused on mathematical inquiry. The students’ role in inquiry mathematics learning activities required a dramatic change from passive receiver to active learner. Students developed new ways of thinking about mathematics and their relationship with mathematics, and came

Statistics is boring … because it makes you think!

Introduction In this collaborative research study, teaching experiments were carried out in Year 9 classes of predominantly Pasifika students. There were three phases. During the planning phase the research team planned activities and envisioned how dialogue and statistical activity would unfold as a result of the classroom activities. Data were collected during the teaching phase, and then the data were analysed using a grounded theory approach. The findings have implications for the teaching of statistical literacy. Key findings All students can develop critical thinking skills when teachers show them how to question statistical reports and conclusions. Students can be taught how to question and challenge data in respectful ways. Context and

Augmenting primary teaching and learning science through ICT

Introduction This study explored how information communication technologies (ICTs) in primary classrooms can enhance the teaching and learning of science. By building on teachers’ and students’ prior knowledge and experience with ICTs, we investigated how ICT use can structure activities to offer enhanced opportunities for active participation in science. The project generated examples of how ICTs can support subject-relevant ways of exploring and communicating science, and evaluating what has been learnt. Key findings ICTs augment teaching and learning in science when their use intersects with and supports specific scientific ideas and skills. Visual recording technologies promote independent learning by allowing students to collect, review and revise data. Science investigations that include

Exploring eLearning practices across the disciplines in a university environment

This two-year project used case studies to explore information and Communications technology (ICT) and eLearning practices across different tertiary disciplines and with students from diverse backgrounds, instructional levels, and learning experiences. ongoing, team-based critical discussion and sharing of ideas about the role that ICT and eLearning plays within tertiary teaching enhanced professional knowledge building for lecturers. Creative use of ICT also led to increased opportunities for students to bridge from the conceptual world of the tertiary classroom to real-life experiences in their particular subject areas. Key findings ICT and eLearning provide effective means for supporting diverse and changing tertiary cohorts, but these practices need careful curriculum design and monitoring. The use

School is out: Students’ experiences of non-traditional learning

Introduction The experience of New Zealand school students is increasingly changing. In addition to their traditional schools students are participating in virtual classrooms and other forms of learning, such as classes through the correspondence School and vocational programmes. This study aims to extend previous research by looking at the experience of students in one regional cluster of schools who are taking classes in multiple formats, from multiple providers, described here as “blended learning”. Key findings Blended learning was very common in this cluster, with most students involved in at least one blended learning class. Students appeared to benefit from blended learning, reporting benefits such as choice, independent learning and preparation for

Learning wisdom: Young children and teachers recognising the learning

Introduction This project aimed to explore the ways in which young children could become more wise about their learning journeys, and perhaps the learning journeys of others. In particular, we wanted to explore how—and whether—four-year-olds could develop some understandings about what they were learning and why it might have been valuable. We wondered whether they could articulate these ideas, and we explored the revisiting of episodes of learning as a location for the research. We called this ‘learning wisdom’, building on a growing literature on this topic. Sternberg, Reznitskaya, & Jarvin (2007) had suggested that wisdom in education includes a balancing of short- and long-term goals, and a balancing of intrapersonal,

Designing effective extended learning episodes: The Alfriston College Experience

1. Introduction This report documents the research activities and findings of the TLRI-funded project entitled A School for the 21st Century: Researching the impact of changing teaching practice on student learning. The project was a two-year long collaboration between key members of the teaching staff at Alfriston College and an experienced researcher from NZCER (collectively called the Professional Learning Group or PLG throughout this report). Together the PLG investigated ways teachers understood and responded to innovative approaches to scheduling time for teaching and learning, and sought evidence that the innovations had a significant effect on student learning. At the outset the PLG team hoped to be able to identify the best

The transition from secondary to tertiary mathematics education

Introduction In recent years there has been a growing interest in the transition from school to university. Reports identify problems in transition as a significant factor in learning mathematics, with international concerns about decreasing numbers of students opting to study mathematics at university and their decreasing levels of competence (Smith, 2004). In addition, serious concern has been expressed around a lack of essential technical facility, a marked decline in analytical powers, and a changed perception of what mathematics is, especially with regard to the place of precision and proof. Although there have been some studies on possible causes of transition problems, the amount of research in mathematics education at the tertiary

Student Engagement: What Is It and What Influences It?

Introduction This paper seeks to answer two questions: “What is student engagement?” and “How do teachers, external factors and student motivation influence it?” It is an overview paper reporting findings from a project funded by the Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) entitled “Learning Environments and Student Engagement with Learning in Tertiary Settings”. This two-year project involved nine tertiary institutions: two universities, four institutes of technology or polytechnics, one wānanga, one community organisation and one private training establishment. The project attempted to answer the research question: “How do institutional and non-institutional learning environments influence student engagement with learning in diverse tertiary settings?” There were two approaches to the research. Engagement in

Sustainability of effective teaching and school practices: Developing a model for sustaining and extending literacy achievement. A summary

The focus of this TLRI project was on sustaining gains in reading comprehension made through TLRIfunded interventions in two clusters of schools in South Auckland. The aim was to develop a model for sustaining effective teaching and school practices so that student achievement continued to improve once the interventions ended. This involved identifying and explaining the conditions that enabled schools to continue improving achievement; explaining how the conditions interrelated; and how these relationships resulted in differing patterns of achievement after the intervention. Research questions Can two clusters decile 1 schools with mainly Māori and Pasifika students sustain student achievement gains one year after their participation in TLRI reading comprehension interventions? Sustainability

An exploration of field-based early childhood teacher education in Aotearoa New Zealand

1. Description of study, its context and its strategic value Purpose This study seeks to capture the reality and process of field-based early childhood teacher education using the classroom and the learning encounter as a unit of analysis. It includes a beginning focus on, but is not limited to, interactions between “Student And student”, “lecturer and student”, “lecturer and the group”, and “Student And the group”. The exploratory focus begins to document, describe and characterise the nature and form of field-based early childhood teacher education. By taking this approach, the study’s aim is to contribute to the limited research-base which investigates the “inner workings” of teacher education programmes internationally and to

Success for all: Improving Māori and Pasifika student success in degree-level studies

1. Introduction The Success for All project sought to examine the ways in which nonlecture teaching helps or hinders Māori student and Pasifika student success in preparing for or completing degree-level studies. Good practice was to be identified. This report is the final in a series of detailed technical reports from UniServices prepared by the Success for All research team. Purpose The purpose of the Success for All research was four-fold: identify international best practice in nonlecture teaching and learning in university settings deliver high-quality research on the nature of nonlecture teaching and learning practices that help or hinder Māori and Pasifika student success in preparing for or completing degree-level study

Titiro Whakamuri, Hoki Whakamua. We are the future, the present and the past: Caring for self, others and the environment in early years’ teaching and learning

1. Aims, objectives and research questions Drawing from both kaupapa Māori and Western perspectives, this study has focused on global issues of ecological sustainability in a variety of local/national early childhood education contexts. It has aimed to contribute to an emerging body of research which illuminates, documents and integrates possibilities for early childhood education pedagogies that reflect and enact an ethic of care, both from kaupapa Māori (Ka’ai, Moorfield, Reilly, & Mosley, 2004; Mead, 2003; Ritchie, 1992) and Western theoretical perspectives (Braidotti, 2002; Dahlberg & Moss, 2005; Foucault, 1997; Gilligan, 1982; Goldstein, 1998; Noddings, 1994, 1995). We considered this emphasis on ecological sustainability as a teaching and learning issue (Gruenewald, 2003),

An exploration of the pedagogies employed to integrate knowledge in work-integrated learning in New Zealand tertiary educational institutions

Introduction Work-integrated learning or co-operative education is an educational strategy in which students undertake conventional academic learning at a higher educational institution combined with some time spent in a workplace relevant to their programme of study and career aims (Groenewald, 2004). A key aspect of work-integrated learning is the notion that it entails the integration of knowledge and skills gained in the higher education institution and in the workplace. This has two features—the student takes what he or she has learnt on campus into the workplace when going on a work placement, and likewise what they learn in the workplace becomes related to, or incorporated into, the next phase of academic

Unlocking student learning: the impact of Teaching and Learning Enhancement Initiatives on first-year university students

Introduction This is the summary report of a project funded by the Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) between 2006 and 2008. The project researched evidential links between academic development and student outcomes. It focused on the support provided by academic developers in seven New Zealand universities for teachers of first-year papers and the impact this support had on student learning. Academic developers worked collaboratively with teachers to develop Teaching and Learning Enhancement Initiatives (TLEIs) intended to improve student pass rates. The report uses an orthodox format. It begins by summarising the literature that establishes the research problem and its importance, then summarises the conceptual underpinnings of the project and provides

Teaching and learning in the supervision of Maori doctoral students

He Rautaki mo te Akoranga Kairangi is a series of resources for Māori doctoral students and their supervisors. These resources are derived from the Teaching and Learning in the Supervision of Māori Doctoral Students project, funded by the TLRI (No. 9250) in 2007-2008. The research team comprised Elizabeth McKinley and Barbara Grant (The University of Auckland), Sue Middleton (Waikato University), Kathie Irwin (Te Puni Kokiri) and Les Williams (Nga Pae o te Maramatanga). He Rautaki mo te Akoranga Kairangi 1. The nature of doctoral supervision One bit of advice an experienced colleague gave me which is very valuable: ‘Be friendly but not familiar.’ Even though the Māori version of friendly is

Developing assessment policy: A guide for tertiary institutions

Please also refer to the PDF version of this guide, which includes additional visual elements. The text and key diagrams from the guide are reproduced here Introduction The purpose of this guide is to assist developers in tertiary institutions to build effective assessment policy. The guide is based on a review of the international literature and research of best practice in tertiary assessment, a review of tertiary education institution assessment policy documents in New Zealand and Australia, surveys of academic staff and students at four New Zealand tertiary institutions, and interviews with senior academic managers at seven New Zealand tertiary institutions. The findings[1] from these reviews support a set of considerations

Measuring classroom practice in literacy: Final report

Part A: Development of an instrument to capture critical elements of teachers’ literacy practice, Years 1-8 Eleanor Hawe and Judy Parr The University of Auckland with Claire Sinnema (The University of Auckland), Maria Heron, Wendy Koefed, Wendy Foster, and staff from their respective schools Introduction To date, much of the information we have about classroom practice has come from teacher selfreporting with data gathered through surveys, logs, diaries, and/or interviews (Burstein, McDonnell, Van Winkle, Ormseth, Mirocha & Guitton, 1995). To a lesser extent, information has been gathered about teachers’ classroom practice through structured observation schedules, video and/or audio recordings of lessons, student interviews, and the collection of artefacts including teachers’ documentation and

Teaching literature in the multicultural classroom

1. Introduction This Teaching and Learning Initiative (TLRI) research project explored ways of teaching literature effectively in multicultural and multilingual classrooms. It involved primary and secondary school teacher-researchers working in partnership with university-based researchers over two years on a series of case studies, within an action research framework. The case studies involved classroom-based interventions carried out by individual teachers and developed collaboratively with the larger project group. 1.1 The project context The project took as its starting point two contextual factors: The New Zealand classroom, at primary and secondary levels, is becoming more multicultural and multilingual. In a number of ways schools and teachers are under increased pressure to find constructive

Strengthening Responsive and Reciprocal Relationships in a Whānau Tangata Centre: an Action Research Project

1. Research questions and aims Background to the project This project came about after discussions with the general manager of the Wellington Region Free Kindergarten Association and Jeanette Clarkin-Phillips (University of Waikato) about setting up a research partnership to support the teachers at Taitoko Kindergarten in Levin. The teachers were establishing an integrated community centre (the whānau tangata centre) as part of a parent support and development initiative funded by the Ministry of Education in conjunction with the Ministry of Social Development. This initiative in Levin includes a drop-in centre for parents, parent workshops on topics of the parents’ choice, a well-resourced whānau room, facilities for infants and toddlers, school liaison

Homebased early childhood education (family day care) – The Visiting Teacher’s role in improving Educators’ practices

Abstract This project investigated the role of Visiting Teachers (formerly called coordinators) in improving the quality of Educators’ practices, and children’s learning outcomes, in the homebased settings supervised by the Dunedin Community Childcare Association (DCCA). The Visiting Teachers in the project engaged in two action research cycles, one per year, examining how the different activities, tasks, professional development workshops and Visiting Teacher-Educator interactions enhanced educational and care practices in the homebased settings. We focused on support services within the homebased early childhood education and care setting (the Visiting Teacher as well as professional development provided by the DCCA) as international research has shown this role of Visiting Teacher is both a

Teachers Learning Mathematics: Professional development research

Introduction The issue of mathematical knowledge of teachers has been documented in New Zealand for 80 years, but no effective long-term solution has been found; indeed, the situation has worsened. For example, the 2004 New Zealand Ministry of Education Teacher Census (Ministry of Education, 2005) showed that 25 percent of secondary school mathematics teachers had no university mathematics qualification—a rise from 21 percent in 1977. This one-year research study, undertaken in 2007, aimed to investigate the development of teachers’ own mathematical knowledge for teaching. Seven secondary teachers used action research methodology to investigate, develop and evaluate some aspect of their mathematical knowledge, completing two cycles over the year. In addition, the

Mathematics: She’ll be write!

1. Introduction – Mathematics: She’ll be write! How students learn to speak, read, and write science and mathematics, and what is taking place in the classroom, laboratory, or informal learning context are critical areas for research. (Lerman, 2007, p. 756) The focus of this Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) project was to discover effective ways to develop students’ mathematical writing in te reo Māori. It was assumed that this would lead to better understanding of mathematics. The investigation was undertaken at Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o te Koutu which caters for students from Years 0–13, many of whom are second language users of te reo Māori. It involved all the

The Classroom InSiTE Project: Understanding classroom interactions to enhance teaching and learning in science and technology in Years 1–8

1. Aims, objectives, and research questions What really counts in education is what happens when teachers and students meet. The wisdom of any decision about education is best judged on the basis of whether or not it raises the quality of these interactions. (Atkin and Black, 2003, p. ix) Background A significant goal of the Classroom InSiTE (Classroom Interactions in Science and Technology Education) research project was to develop a more robust understanding of and to enhance classroom interaction and those factors that support assessment for learning. International research suggests that assessment for learning (AfL) practices are effective in enhancing student achievement, and may be particularly effective with students who are

Making a difference: The role of initial teacher education and induction in the preparation of secondary teachers

1. Aims, objectives, and research questions New Zealand, a country of four million people, shares many of the features of other larger countries with respect to the preparation of teachers and the nature of education and schooling. In accord with other countries, the recruitment, preparation (becoming a teacher), and retention of teachers is the focus of increasing interest in New Zealand as agencies responsible for education struggle to address the apparent declining interest in teaching as a lifelong career. Moreover, the fact that the teaching population across all school levels within New Zealand is an ageing one, with a large group of teachers reaching retirement age over the next 10 to

Whakawhanaungatanga: Partnerships in bicultural development in early childhood care and education

1. Aims, objectives, and research questions Introduction This project aimed to build on the theoretical and methodological foundations established in a doctoral research project recently completed by Jenny Ritchie (2002). The intention was to utilise collaborative partnerships between teacher educators, professional development providers, and early childhood educators, in order to identify effective strategies for building and strengthening relationships between early childhood educators and whänau/hapū/iwi Māori within early childhood care and education settings. The research was premised on findings of Ritchie (2002): that strengthening provision of the bicultural aspirations of the early childhood curriculum, Te Whāriki (Ministry of Education, 1996b), within mainstream early childhood education and care settings is a central professional

Te Puawaitanga: Partnerships with tamariki and whānau in bicultural early childhood care and education

Dedication This report is dedicated to the memory of Fred Kana, our dear friend and colleague. Moe mai rā, e hoa. 1. Contexts for the research Whakawhanaungatanga, Tiriti-based partnership, and narrative methodologies This project has extended upon knowledges gained from a previous Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) research project, Whakawhanaungatanga—Partnerships in Bicultural Development in Early Childhood Care and Education (the Whakawhanaungatanga project) (Ritchie & Rau, 2006), which focused on identifying strategies used by early childhood educators, professional development providers, teacher educators, and an iwi education initiative. This kaupapa is consistent with the bicultural mandate contained within key regulatory and curriculum statements. These include the Ministry of Education’s Desirable Objectives and

Key Learning Competencies Across Place and Time: Kimihia te ara tōtika, hei oranga mō to ao

1. Aims, objectives, and research questions Background to the project: Two curriculum documents in Aotearoa New Zealand The overarching aim of this research in the proposal was the following: In a number of early childhood centres and early years school classrooms that have already begun to explore in this area, to investigate effective pedagogy designed to develop five learning competencies over time. This project was developed in response to curriculum reform in Aotearoa New Zealand. When the project began, the Ministry of Education was undergoing a review of the school curriculum. This review began in 2001 with a Curriculum Stocktake Report (Ministry of Education, 2002) and continued throughout 2005 and 2006.

Training on the job: How do home-based co-ordinators support educators to notice, recognise, and respond?

1. Aims, objectives, and research questions The aim of this research was: To investigate how home-based co-ordinators support educators[1] to notice, recognise, and respond to children’s learning. The research objectives were to: investigate co-ordinators’ practice document educators’ understanding of children’s learning discover how (a) impacts upon (b). There were three research questions: What are co-ordinators doing to support educators to notice, recognise, and respond to children’s learning? What changes are evident in educators’ practice as a result of what co-ordinators do? What factors seem to be important in this process? Background New Zealand home-based childcare services, as with all services within the early childhood sector, must meet certain requirements set out

Developing teacher–researcher partnerships to investigate best practices: Literacy learning and teaching in content areas of the secondary school

1. Literature review This literature review is intended to provide a background to the project undertaken and described in this report. In essence the project seeks to apply a research-based model of literacy instruction developed in New Zealand to investigate the efficacy of the model in raising student achievement. It is our intention to do so using collaborative teacher and researcher partnerships in order to investigate and interrogate the ways in which the model can respond to the needs of specific students, teachers, and schools. This being the case, the literature on adolescent literacy is reviewed, effective instructional approaches are evaluated, and the outcomes of “successful” interventions are described. Secondly, we

Addressing obstacles to success: Improving student completion, retention, and achievement in science modules in applied health programmes

1. The project and its context Addressing Obstacles to Success[1] was a two-year project that sought to address science achievement rates in applied-health undergraduate degree programmes at Waikato Institute of Technology (Wintec), with particular attention to Māori. Throughout their teaching careers, staff members at Wintec have heard many anecdotal stories about science being a “problem” for midwifery and nursing students. Research to inform retention strategies for Māori students studying midwifery at Wintec indicated that science was a potential barrier to their overall success (Gibson-van Marrewijk, 2005). Notwithstanding this anecdotal concern, the nature and extent of science as a “problem” for any student had not been systematically researched up to that point.

A collaborative self-study into the development and integration of critical literacy practices

1. Introduction This report discusses findings from a two-year Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI)funded project entitled A collaborative self-study into the development and integration of critical literacy practices. During this time, 2006–7, four Dunedin primary schools and one secondary school, involving a total of 16 teachers, took part in the project. The participating teachers became familiar with the literature on the theory and practice of critical literacy and developed, implemented, and evaluated critical literacy strategies in their regular classroom programmes. Critical literacy has a long history and a number of different theoretical influences (Larson & Marsh, 2005). We use the term “critical literacy” to describe ways in which teachers and

Building bilingual pedagogical content knowledge through critical action research: a pilot study 2006

1. Introduction This Level C TLRI pilot project was conducted in 2006 at Richmond Road School (RRS), a small multicultural, multilingual school in Ponsonby/Grey Lynn, Auckland. In 2006, the school had a total roll of 350. There were 13 classes, with 15 full-time and five part-time teachers. A key feature of RRS is its long-established bilingual/multicultural education program, which is the principal point of focus of the TLRI project. RRS currently comprises three bilingual units— Māori-, Samoan-, and French-medium—as well as an English-medium area. In addition, the school has on site two Early Childhood Education (ECE) centres, one Māori-and one Samoanmedium. The school is designated as Decile 7, based on the

Together is better? Primary students’ and teachers’ experiences of collaborative learning online

This project undertook to research the use of the Learning Activity Management System (LAMS) online learning environment to teach a collaborative unit involving three classes in two primary schools. There has been much research on collaborative learning at various levels of the school sector (e.g., Brown & Thomson, 2000; Holloway, 2003; Holmes, 2003; Holzer, 2004; Lourdusamy, Myint, & Sipusic, 2003; Peel & Shortland, 2004; Whatley & Bell, 2003). However, the use of online environments for collaborative work is a new and largely under-researched area for primary school teachers, as most studies in this area have involved the secondary or tertiary sector (Chih-Hsiung & Correy, 2003; Hakkinen, 2003; Hron & Friedrich, 2003;

The Art of the Matter: The development and extension of ways of knowing in the arts

1. Aims, objectives, and research questions There is very little documented research information about New Zealand teachers’ and children’s attitudes, knowledge, and values regarding the Arts. There has been a major change to the school curriculum (with the Arts becoming one essential learning area) and there are reported difficulties in the teaching and learning of the Arts within primary classrooms (Education Review Office, 1995, 1999). However, there is also evidence that a curriculum leadership model allowing teachers to selectively develop discipline knowledge according to needs works well in instances where schools have committed themselves to a climate that supports a learning culture (Beals, Hipkins, Cameron, & Watson, 2003). In the international

Technology use and the teaching of mathematics in the secondary classroom

Mathematics teaching and learning is crucial to the future of New Zealand’s knowledge economy and deserves a special focus in education. One of the key synergisms of mathematics is with technology, and as technology advances it inevitably influences what happens in the mathematics classroom. However, with rapid advancements, teachers may be unprepared to take full advantage of new technology, with the types of technology use falling behind the learning possibilities demonstrated by international research studies (Thomas, Monaghan, & Pierce, 2004). In this study, we considered whether the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) Levels 2 and 3 assessment standards had presented any challenges for teachers in terms of their use of

Te reo tataitai: Developing rich mathematical language in Māori immersion classrooms

1. Aims, objectives, and research questions Kō ta te rangatira kai he kōrero As described in the whakatauaki (proverb) above, language is the food of chiefs because fluency in it provides access to and control of learning. Khisty and Chval (2002) summarised the effect of this by stating, “[i]n essence, those with power are literate or in control of a discourse” (p. 167). Although Māori students who attend Māori immersion programmes do better than those attending mainstream schooling, generally they do not perform as well as other students in mathematics (Anthony & Walshaw, 2006 forthcoming). One of the reasons for this may be the difficulties Māori students have with the mathematics

TLRI Mathematics Enhancement Project: Professional Development Research

1. Introduction The research project on professional development reported here was conducted within the context of the Mathematics Enhancement Project. The Mathematics Enhancement Project involves the Mathematics Education Unit of the Department of Mathematics, University of Auckland, working with senior mathematics teachers in low decile secondary schools in the Manukau region. It was the result of a needs analysis conducted in 1999–2000 and is an ongoing development and research endeavour that aims to enhance mathematics achievement at a time when students are making the transition from secondary school to tertiary education. The project works at the student level, at the teacher level, and at the school and parent community level. The

Effective teaching in different cultural contexts: A comparative analysis of language, culture, and pedagogy

1. Introduction Whaia te iti kahuranhi Strive for the things in life that are important to you This research project was developed as a part of the Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) tender process that is managed by the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER). The project began with a collaborative team of Māori, Pasifika and Pākehā researchers, brought together with the intention of working across four different school contexts that included kura kaupapa Māori, schools in which Pasifika and Māori were culturally in the foreground and mainstream[1] sites. Unanticipated changes to the composition of the research team occurred during project implementation and had a significant impact—these are detailed

Enhanced teaching and learning of comprehension in Years 5–8: Otara Schools

1. Introduction This study represents a systematic replication of a previous intervention which took place in schools in Mangere from 2003 to 2005. (McNaughton, MacDonald, Maituanai-Toloa, Lai, & Farry, 2006). The contexts and theoretical rationale are the same for the present study as those for the original Mangere study. We have repeated that historical and social context and theoretical framework here. In this first section, however, we briefly summarise the original study and also outline the form and the role of replication in the science represented here. Replication Our previous study In previous quasiexperimental research with a cluster of similar schools in Mangere in South Auckland we have shown that it

Understanding and enhancing learning communities in tertiary education in science and engineering

1. Introduction The impetus for this project grew out of our involvement in tertiary teaching in science and engineering courses. Our own experiences in undergraduate and graduate science papers, and preservice science and technology education papers, had led us to debate the learning experiences of our students. We intuitively felt that there was something lacking in those experiences and wondered about the sense of identity that these students developed through their involvement in these papers. Research by one of the project’s team members (Eames & Bell, 2005) indicated that the learning environment in science and engineering in a university setting was quite different to that experienced in a science and engineering

Enhancing mathematics teaching and learning in early childhood settings

1. Aims, objectives, and research questions Aim The overall aim of the project was to engage early childhood teachers in investigating and improving their expertise in the teaching and learning of mathematics. The intention of the project was to develop a research environment through which researchers and kindergarten teachers worked collaboratively, using action research methodology, to explore means by which mathematical outcomes for children could be maximised. The research arose from the premise that within the field of mathematics education, while much has been written about mathematical experiences of both learners and teachers in the compulsory (school) sectors of education, very little is documented on mathematical learning and teaching in the

Teachers developing as researchers: teachers investigate their use of questions in mathematics

1. Introduction In this research project, a group of teachers developed their research capability through their investigation of the use of questioning to facilitate students’ learning in mathematics. Eight teacher researchers worked in partnership with two research team leaders to analyse their own practice in order to identify aspects of questioning behaviour. During this one-year project, the teacher researchers had significant input into the shape and direction of the research. It was intended that this research project would build understanding by adding the teachers’ perspectives of the strengths and weaknesses of current pedagogical practice to the existing body of research. The project was closely aligned with the following principles of the

Early algebraic thinking: links to numeracy

1. Introduction Many students struggle with introductory algebra and teachers have little to guide them in assisting students to learn this important component of high school mathematics. Little is known about the effect of students’ numeracy on the learning of early algebra, or about the strategies that students use to solve equations. There is widespread agreement that algebra is not easily understood by many students. The Cockcroft Report in the United Kingdom highlighted the fact that algebra is a source of considerable confusion and negative attitudes among pupils (Cockcroft, 1982), while the title of Brekke’s (2001) paper, “School Algebra: Primarily Manipulations of Empty Symbols on a Piece of Paper?”, sums up

‘Write-on!’: Investigations into relationships between teacher learning and student achievement through writing

1. Aims and objectives The context of the project The original proposal for a research project to address student writing literacy was developed by a group of heads of departments at Kakariki College, (a decile 2 co-educational ethnically diverse suburban secondary school in a main urban centre) who were concerned at the level of students’ achievement in writing within their school. The teachers recognised that NCEA assessment has increased the significance of written language within the senior secondary curriculum, making attaining national qualifications, regardless of subject specialisation, dependent upon competency in writing. This shift is reflected in the national initiatives for building the literacy capability of teachers and learners, such as

Addressing the needs of transient students: A collaborative approach to enhance teaching and learning in an area school

Note for readers This report uses the terms “transience” or “transient” to describe families and students who have changed schools frequently. Gilbert (2005) noted that the term transient is the most commonly used term in New Zealand, but there is no “official” nationally agreed definition of what this term means in educational contexts. She also noted that the term has negative connotations. In this report, we have used this term for ease of communication, but are aware that the continual use of the term may contribute to the exclusion of students through a process of negative labelling and categorisation. We ask the reader to be aware of this issue. 1. Background,

Effective teacher-education practice: The impact of written assessment “feedback” for distance learners

Ko te pae tawhiti whäia kia tata: Ko te pae tata whakamaua kia tina Continue seeking to bring distant horizons closer: Consolidate what you have achieved 1. Introduction This study focuses on the “assessing” aspect of tertiary teaching in a distance teacher education programme. It explores the perceptions of the role of written assessment feedback held by a cohort of students enrolled in The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand Diploma of Teaching (Early Childhood Education (a Level 7, distance teacher education programme using mixed delivery methods).[1] Effective teacher education improves educational outcomes for learners in tertiary institutions (student teachers) and for end-user learners (children) in schools and early childhood services. This

Investigating teachers’ pedagogical approaches in environmental education that promote students’ action competence

1. Aims, objectives and research questions Introduction There is currently no mandatory requirement for New Zealand schools to teach Environmental Education (EE). However, in 1999 the Ministry of Education published the Guidelines for Environmental Education in New Zealand Schools (Ministry of Education, 1999). The Guidelines are intended to assist teachers and schools to plan and provide education “in, about, and for the environment” in a way that integrates with learning objectives from the seven mandatory learning areas of the New Zealand Curriculum Framework (Ministry of Education, 1993). As such, schools are encouraged to develop EE programmes through a process of school-based curriculum development. More recently, a concept of education for sustainability

Zeroing in on quality teaching: Reducing disparities by building teachers’ capacities and capabilities with respect to integrative approaches to curriculum delivery, using appropriate pedagogies

He aha te mea nui? He tangata, he tangata What is the most important thing? It is people, it is people Introduction This research project—a collaborative venture between two primary schools and Massey University—had its origins in the experience of the principal of one school She had developed and used integrated forms of curriculum delivery and associated pedagogies in other schools she had led. She believed that integrative curriculum designs positively influenced a number of key learning and teaching conditions, especially those connected with student engagement and community involvement, and that the use of integrative designs impacted positively on the achievement of students. James Beane (1997) describes the theory and practice

Investigating responses to diversity in a secondary environment

Aims, objectives and research questions Introduction Linwood College is an urban, co-educational, decile 2 school with a roll of 880 students from Years 9–13. Its student population is diverse in many ways: culture, race, academic ability, attitude to schooling, home socioeconomic status, personality and personal interests, and ability to cope with instructional English. In terms of ethnicity, the students are predominantly European New Zealanders, Mäori, and Pasifika. The school also has international students from Asia, South and North America, Africa, and Europe. The college delivers a broad curriculum, inline with national requirements, and caters for students across the academic and social spectra. In its strategic vision and its policy statements the

Pasifika teachers in secondary education: Issues, possibilities and strategies

1. Overview Introduction This modestly scaled research initiative aimed to make visible and ask questions about the experiences of Pasifika secondary teachers as they moved into the profession, or alternatively, failed to find jobs. The study comprised interviews with approximately eight young Pasifika secondary teachers and other relevant professionals as well as collective reflective enquiry carried out by the research team of: Tony Brown, professor of education, Waikato University/ Manchester Metropolitan University Dr Nesta Devine, lecturer in education, University of Waikato, Hamilton Elsie Leslie, teacher of history, Hamilton Boys School Margaret Paiti, Pasifika Liaison Officer, Ministry of Education, Hamilton Emilie Sila’ila’i, tutor in education, University of Waikato, Hamilton Sandra Umaki, head

Great expectations: enhancing learning and strengthening teaching in primary schools with diverse student populations through action research

1. Aims, objectives and research questions Introduction This was a Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) project, investigating school improvement through school-based action research carried out in 2004 and 2005. Researchers from the University of Waikato (and later, The University of Auckland) worked with teacherresearchers from six primary schools to explore ways of changing the classroom practices of teachers. It is now widely recognised that more detailed school and classroom research is needed to uncover the complexities of teaching and learning (Ministry of Education, 2002). Nuthall (1999) stated that one of the greatest challenges is to describe what happens when teachers, students and communities work together, in order to understand the

Making sense of learning at secondary school: an exploration by teachers with students

1. Introduction Focus of the project Within New Zealand in recent years there has been a growing sense of dissatisfaction with current secondary school structures and processes. While teachers, students, parents, and politicians seem variously (although, it must be said, quite differently) disenchanted with many current secondary school practices, most of what is reported in the media is built on idiosyncratic experience and anecdote, not on evidence-based research. Now, more than ever, there is a critical need for New Zealand-based evidence of how teachers’ pedagogical practices are related to student engagement in learning and thus student achievement within New Zealand secondary schools. There is a growing body of international research and

Enhanced teaching and learning of comprehension in Years 4-9 in Seven Mangere Schools

Executive Summary The schools of South Auckland which have high proportions of Māori and Pasifika students have long been described by researchers as sites for low achievement, particularly in literacy (e.g., Ramsay, Sneddon, Grenfell & Ford, 1981). However, recent evidence suggests that the disparities between Māori and Pasifika students and other students in reading accuracy have been reduced, and that there has been a substantial reduction in the proportions of students in the lowest bands of achievement. Despite this, the evidence also suggests that at Year 4 and Year 9, the disparities in reading comprehension have continued, if not increased (Crooks & Flockton, 2005). A research and development programme, conducted as

Improving tertiary student outcomes in the first year of study

1. Introduction Background Retention, persistence and completion in post-school education have been the focus of much attention in recent years – particularly in the USA, UK, Australia, and now in New Zealand. Governments throughout the Western world increasingly expect improved learner outcomes for money spent on post-school education. Data on early student departure highlight their concerns. For example, in the UK, Yorke (1999) estimated that such departure cost 100 million a year. In New Zealand, a Ministry of Education report (2005, cited in Gerritsen, 2005) showed that, from 1998 to 2003, 33 percent of the equivalent full-time student (EFTS) allocation was taken up by students who dropped out in their first

Under 3 year-olds in kindergarten: children’s experiences and teachers’ practices

1. Introduction Background Historically, kindergartens have provided early childhood environments for over three year-olds. Recent demographic changes have seen a fall in enrolments and in the numbers of children on waiting lists. The pressure to keep kindergartens on full rolls so that they can benefit from higher funding has meant that many kindergartens have enrolled a significant number of under-three year-olds in their centres. This has proven to be a challenge for teachers in terms of their teaching practices, programming and curriculum goals. Factors in the teaching environment, such as a physical environment structured primarily for the older-age child, and the large group setting of 30 to 45 children per session