Jae Major | Victoria University of Wellington (original) (raw)

Papers by Jae Major

Research paper thumbnail of Sudanese refugee youth and educational success: The role of church and youth group in supporting cultural and academic adjustment and schooling achievement

A B S T R A C T There is a burgeoning body of research about refugee youth that adopts a deficit ... more A B S T R A C T There is a burgeoning body of research about refugee youth that adopts a deficit approach by focusing on the problems and barriers youth encounter in adjusting culturally and academically to schools. Less research takes an asset approach through an examination of the strengths refugee youth bring to formal schooling and how these assets can be built upon to support academic achievement and cultural adjustment. In this article, we challenge these deficit notions, through examining the everyday spaces inhabited by Sudanese refugee youth living in regional New South Wales, Australia. Our research poses the question: what role do institutions outside school play in supporting Sudanese refugee youth as they move from one culture to another? The question is significant because little research has examined the role played by institutions outside school, e.g., church, youth groups and sporting associations in fostering the social and cultural capital required for refugee youth to integrate within the broader community, and to engage successfully in schooling. Drawing on Bourdieuian concepts of cultural and social capital and habitus, we suggest that religious affiliation enabled the young people to access social capital through " prosocial and proeducational moral directives " (Barrett, 2010; p. 467). Moreover, religious involvement provided refugee youth with access to socially legitimised forms of cultural capital. These forms of capital shaped the students' habitus and contributed to school adjustment and achievement. We conclude that future research is needed to examine the role that church and other institutions outside school play in contributing to cultural and academic adjustment.

Research paper thumbnail of Conducting Indigenous research in Western knowledge spaces: aligning theory and methodology

The Australian Educational Researcher, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of Personal Epistemologies and Pedagogical Play: Changing Practice in Teacher Education

Play: A Theory of Learning and Change, 2015

Research paper thumbnail of Culturally Diverse Children in the Classroom

Understanding Teaching and Learning, 2012

Research paper thumbnail of Preparing Teachers through International Experience: A Collaborative Critical Analysis of Four Australian Programs

Research paper thumbnail of Introducing Global Teaching and Southern Perspectives

Research paper thumbnail of Supervising an international teaching practicum: building partnerships in postcolonial contexts

Oxford Review of Education, 2016

Research paper thumbnail of Developing intercultural competence through study trips abroad : transformation or tourism?

Research paper thumbnail of Being 'good' students and 'good' girls : performing gender and ethnicity in a New Zealand classroom

Research paper thumbnail of The acquisition of bridging capital by Sudanese young people in a regional Australian town : the role of mothers and family

Research paper thumbnail of Culturally diverse children (re)constructing identity in New Zealand classrooms

This thesis provides insights into the ways culturally diverse children experience primary classr... more This thesis provides insights into the ways culturally diverse children experience primary classrooms as sites of social and academic identity construction. Language competence, culture, gender, classroom resources, teachers' pedegogical practices and power act to enhance ...

Research paper thumbnail of International teaching practicum experiences : the role of supervising teachers

Research paper thumbnail of Teacher Education for Cultural Diversity: Online and at a Distance

INTRODUCTION It is widely acknowledged internationally that student populations in English-speaki... more INTRODUCTION It is widely acknowledged internationally that student populations in English-speaking contexts are becoming more culturally and linguistically diverse, while teacher populations remain largely white, middle-class, and monolingual (Chisholm, 1994; ...

Research paper thumbnail of Culturally Diverse Children in the Classroom: Hidden Cultural Lives

Research paper thumbnail of Changing practice in teacher education through inquiry-based learning

Research paper thumbnail of Sudanese young people of refugee background in rural and regional Australia: social capital and education success

This article discusses literature pertaining to the settlement of African refugees in regional an... more This article discusses literature pertaining to the settlement of African refugees in regional and rural Australia, particularly focusing on the specific challenges and opportunities faced by Sudanese young people of refugee background in education. Drawing on a pilot study of the out-of-school resources of regionally located young Sudanese students, we discuss the role of social and other capitals in generating conditions that may facilitate educational success for these students. We argue the case for educational research that takes into account the resources and capital upon which Sudanese young people of refugee background and their families draw in order to achieve in education.

Research paper thumbnail of Rethinking initial teacher education through the new New Zealand Curriculum: Shifting thinking and teaching in social sciences teaching

Research paper thumbnail of ‘Sensible girls’ and ‘silly boys’: what do teachers need to know about gender?

The Australian Educational Researcher, 2013

Much to the consternation of many feminist researchers, teacher education programs have become la... more Much to the consternation of many feminist researchers, teacher education programs have become largely silent about gender and the influence of gender discourses on teaching and learning. Stereotypical views of males and females can dominate teachers' views of boys and girls, and they can be seen as essentially different-as binary opposites. This has implications for identity construction of children as they take up or resist the identity positions made available to them by the teacher. In this paper, the intersection of gender with culture/ethnicity is examined in the context of identity construction. Classroom-based data are considered in relation to a 'sensible girls/silly boys' binary, and the teacher's positioning of a Chinese heritage boy and Korean heritage girl in a New Zealand primary classroom. We suggest that the teacher's discursive practices based on unexamined assumptions, limited the identity positions available to the children in relation to gender and culture. We argue that teacher education has an important role to play in preparing teachers with a critical orientation towards dominant gender discourses, and an understanding of the intersection of gender with other discourses, such as culture and ethnicity.

Research paper thumbnail of Regional and rural Australia as a site of settlement for young African background refugees: a double-edged sword?

This article discusses literature pertaining to the settlement of African refugees in regional an... more This article discusses literature pertaining to the settlement of African refugees in regional and rural Australia, particularly focusing on the specific challenges and opportunities faced by Sudanese refugee young people in education. Drawing on a pilot study of the out-of-school resources of regionally located young Sudanese background refugee students, we discuss the role of social and other capitals in generating conditions that may facilitate educational success for these students. We argue the case for educational research that takes into account the resources and capital that African refugee young people and their families draw on in order to achieve in education.

Research paper thumbnail of Shifting conceptualisations of knowledge and learning in initial teacher education in Aotearoa/New Zealand

Journal of Education for Teaching, 2010

This paper reports on the research project ‘Shifting conceptualisations of knowledge and learning... more This paper reports on the research project ‘Shifting conceptualisations of knowledge and learning in the integration of the new New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) in initial and continuing teacher education’, which was funded by the Teaching and Learning Research Initiative of the New Zealand government. The project maps the learning processes of practitioner‐researchers in their initiatives in the integration of the new NZC in their teacher education practices. The project is informed by discursive approaches that emphasise the instability of signification and the location of the subject in language. It used a range of specific conceptual and pedagogical tools designed to bridge theoretical debates relevant to the implementation of the NZC and the research itself. This research focuses on teacher educators’ narratives and strategies used to negotiate their theories/practices and subjectivities within the complexities and constraints of their own narratives, institutions and communities. The first part of this paper provides a brief overview of the theoretical and methodological frameworks of the research, and three of the conceptual tools used to bridge theoretical debates. The second part presents a snapshot of one case study, offering a situated analysis of a small part of the data collected in a graduate teacher education course focusing on social and cultural studies. This paper is written with a view to illustrate the benefits and challenges of engaging with theory through conceptual tools developed with the aim to create different possibilities for the production of meaning around pedagogical practices in teacher education.

Research paper thumbnail of Sudanese refugee youth and educational success: The role of church and youth group in supporting cultural and academic adjustment and schooling achievement

A B S T R A C T There is a burgeoning body of research about refugee youth that adopts a deficit ... more A B S T R A C T There is a burgeoning body of research about refugee youth that adopts a deficit approach by focusing on the problems and barriers youth encounter in adjusting culturally and academically to schools. Less research takes an asset approach through an examination of the strengths refugee youth bring to formal schooling and how these assets can be built upon to support academic achievement and cultural adjustment. In this article, we challenge these deficit notions, through examining the everyday spaces inhabited by Sudanese refugee youth living in regional New South Wales, Australia. Our research poses the question: what role do institutions outside school play in supporting Sudanese refugee youth as they move from one culture to another? The question is significant because little research has examined the role played by institutions outside school, e.g., church, youth groups and sporting associations in fostering the social and cultural capital required for refugee youth to integrate within the broader community, and to engage successfully in schooling. Drawing on Bourdieuian concepts of cultural and social capital and habitus, we suggest that religious affiliation enabled the young people to access social capital through " prosocial and proeducational moral directives " (Barrett, 2010; p. 467). Moreover, religious involvement provided refugee youth with access to socially legitimised forms of cultural capital. These forms of capital shaped the students' habitus and contributed to school adjustment and achievement. We conclude that future research is needed to examine the role that church and other institutions outside school play in contributing to cultural and academic adjustment.

Research paper thumbnail of Conducting Indigenous research in Western knowledge spaces: aligning theory and methodology

The Australian Educational Researcher, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of Personal Epistemologies and Pedagogical Play: Changing Practice in Teacher Education

Play: A Theory of Learning and Change, 2015

Research paper thumbnail of Culturally Diverse Children in the Classroom

Understanding Teaching and Learning, 2012

Research paper thumbnail of Preparing Teachers through International Experience: A Collaborative Critical Analysis of Four Australian Programs

Research paper thumbnail of Introducing Global Teaching and Southern Perspectives

Research paper thumbnail of Supervising an international teaching practicum: building partnerships in postcolonial contexts

Oxford Review of Education, 2016

Research paper thumbnail of Developing intercultural competence through study trips abroad : transformation or tourism?

Research paper thumbnail of Being 'good' students and 'good' girls : performing gender and ethnicity in a New Zealand classroom

Research paper thumbnail of The acquisition of bridging capital by Sudanese young people in a regional Australian town : the role of mothers and family

Research paper thumbnail of Culturally diverse children (re)constructing identity in New Zealand classrooms

This thesis provides insights into the ways culturally diverse children experience primary classr... more This thesis provides insights into the ways culturally diverse children experience primary classrooms as sites of social and academic identity construction. Language competence, culture, gender, classroom resources, teachers' pedegogical practices and power act to enhance ...

Research paper thumbnail of International teaching practicum experiences : the role of supervising teachers

Research paper thumbnail of Teacher Education for Cultural Diversity: Online and at a Distance

INTRODUCTION It is widely acknowledged internationally that student populations in English-speaki... more INTRODUCTION It is widely acknowledged internationally that student populations in English-speaking contexts are becoming more culturally and linguistically diverse, while teacher populations remain largely white, middle-class, and monolingual (Chisholm, 1994; ...

Research paper thumbnail of Culturally Diverse Children in the Classroom: Hidden Cultural Lives

Research paper thumbnail of Changing practice in teacher education through inquiry-based learning

Research paper thumbnail of Sudanese young people of refugee background in rural and regional Australia: social capital and education success

This article discusses literature pertaining to the settlement of African refugees in regional an... more This article discusses literature pertaining to the settlement of African refugees in regional and rural Australia, particularly focusing on the specific challenges and opportunities faced by Sudanese young people of refugee background in education. Drawing on a pilot study of the out-of-school resources of regionally located young Sudanese students, we discuss the role of social and other capitals in generating conditions that may facilitate educational success for these students. We argue the case for educational research that takes into account the resources and capital upon which Sudanese young people of refugee background and their families draw in order to achieve in education.

Research paper thumbnail of Rethinking initial teacher education through the new New Zealand Curriculum: Shifting thinking and teaching in social sciences teaching

Research paper thumbnail of ‘Sensible girls’ and ‘silly boys’: what do teachers need to know about gender?

The Australian Educational Researcher, 2013

Much to the consternation of many feminist researchers, teacher education programs have become la... more Much to the consternation of many feminist researchers, teacher education programs have become largely silent about gender and the influence of gender discourses on teaching and learning. Stereotypical views of males and females can dominate teachers' views of boys and girls, and they can be seen as essentially different-as binary opposites. This has implications for identity construction of children as they take up or resist the identity positions made available to them by the teacher. In this paper, the intersection of gender with culture/ethnicity is examined in the context of identity construction. Classroom-based data are considered in relation to a 'sensible girls/silly boys' binary, and the teacher's positioning of a Chinese heritage boy and Korean heritage girl in a New Zealand primary classroom. We suggest that the teacher's discursive practices based on unexamined assumptions, limited the identity positions available to the children in relation to gender and culture. We argue that teacher education has an important role to play in preparing teachers with a critical orientation towards dominant gender discourses, and an understanding of the intersection of gender with other discourses, such as culture and ethnicity.

Research paper thumbnail of Regional and rural Australia as a site of settlement for young African background refugees: a double-edged sword?

This article discusses literature pertaining to the settlement of African refugees in regional an... more This article discusses literature pertaining to the settlement of African refugees in regional and rural Australia, particularly focusing on the specific challenges and opportunities faced by Sudanese refugee young people in education. Drawing on a pilot study of the out-of-school resources of regionally located young Sudanese background refugee students, we discuss the role of social and other capitals in generating conditions that may facilitate educational success for these students. We argue the case for educational research that takes into account the resources and capital that African refugee young people and their families draw on in order to achieve in education.

Research paper thumbnail of Shifting conceptualisations of knowledge and learning in initial teacher education in Aotearoa/New Zealand

Journal of Education for Teaching, 2010

This paper reports on the research project ‘Shifting conceptualisations of knowledge and learning... more This paper reports on the research project ‘Shifting conceptualisations of knowledge and learning in the integration of the new New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) in initial and continuing teacher education’, which was funded by the Teaching and Learning Research Initiative of the New Zealand government. The project maps the learning processes of practitioner‐researchers in their initiatives in the integration of the new NZC in their teacher education practices. The project is informed by discursive approaches that emphasise the instability of signification and the location of the subject in language. It used a range of specific conceptual and pedagogical tools designed to bridge theoretical debates relevant to the implementation of the NZC and the research itself. This research focuses on teacher educators’ narratives and strategies used to negotiate their theories/practices and subjectivities within the complexities and constraints of their own narratives, institutions and communities. The first part of this paper provides a brief overview of the theoretical and methodological frameworks of the research, and three of the conceptual tools used to bridge theoretical debates. The second part presents a snapshot of one case study, offering a situated analysis of a small part of the data collected in a graduate teacher education course focusing on social and cultural studies. This paper is written with a view to illustrate the benefits and challenges of engaging with theory through conceptual tools developed with the aim to create different possibilities for the production of meaning around pedagogical practices in teacher education.