Through Pacific/Pasifika Lens to Understand Student’s Experiences to Promote Success Within New Zealand Tertiary Environment (original) (raw)
Related papers
2014
Pasifika students (students of Pacific nation descent) are participating more in tertiary education in New Zealand, but this is not being matched by necessary increases in retention, academic achievement or course and qualification completion. Moreover, while there is an emerging base of research literature on Pasifika student success in higher education, the relationship between this research and everyday university practice is less clear. This paper documents the ‘research in action’ undertaken at Victoria University of Wellington in order to listen to, understand, and actively respond to the real experiences of its Pasifika learners and their families, and to cultivate a whole of university response to widening Pasifika participation, retention and degree completion. The paper documents some of the most significant findings of the research, the collaborative process of developing and implementing the pan-university strategy it informed, and some of the modest but heartening outco...
Educational practices that benefit Pacific learners in tertiary education
2013
This project was commissioned by Ako Aotearoa (National Centre for Tertiary Teaching Excellence) and carried out with the Association of Pasifika Staff in Tertiary Education (APSTE). The purpose of this study was to identify exemplars of success for Pacific students in New Zealand tertiary education. The overarching research question was: What educational practices work best in achieving, sustaining, and reproducing Pacific student success in tertiary education? The sub-questions were: What are the perceptions that tertiary students hold about success in education? What enabling factors contribute significantly to one’s success or achievement? How do institutions engage in students’ success in education?
MAI Journal: A New Zealand Journal of Indigenous Scholarship, 2020
This article introduces He Vaka Moana, which has been tested and evaluated at international and local levels. He Vaka Moana is a strength-based model of academic fellowship that is framed by Oceanic principles and methodologies. The authors base this model on what connects and sustains us as Mäori and Pasifika people-that is, Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa. We draw from our shared ancestral history of navigating the vast Pacific Ocean on purposefully built vessels using Indigenous methods and ways of being to successfully reach our destinations. Our fellowship draws on the rich knowledge and imagery of a Tongan saying "pikipiki hama kae vave manava", which refers to lashing canoes together to exchange people and resources when a fleet is out on the ocean battling the swells and weather. This evocative Oceanic metaphor guides how, in He Vaka Moana, champions of teaching and learning across faculties purposefully come together to work collaboratively to examine existing practice and develop innovative ways for addressing issues of strategic priority to the institution: Mäori and Pasifika students' success. In He Vaka Moana, we look specifically and politically at ways to advance the success of Mäori and Pasifika students in higher education, exploring what works; how success is defined and by whom; how, as a university, we listen (or fail to listen) to Indigenous stories; and the difference Oceanic-based research makes for our teaching and learning. Our agenda is revitalising Indigenous methodologies and knowledges to transform higher educational institutions' ways of responding to our Indigenous learners. Employing our own Indigenous methodologies has emphasised our cultural ways of being, thinking, speaking and behaving. We wish to demonstrate how our ways of being and knowledge allow us to reclaim who we are and, more importantly, to chart our collective and desired future as citizens of Oceania.
"You've gotta set a precedent": Maori and Pacific Voices on Student Success in Higher Education
A substantial body of literature has examined the challenges that indigenous students face in higher education. Across Aotearoa New Zealand, the indigenous Mäori population is under-represented at the university level, as are ethnically diverse Pacifi c students who trace their ancestries to neighbouring Pacifi c nations. This study relies on focus group interviews with high-achieving Mäori and Pacifi c students (N = 90) from a large New Zealand university. Using kaupapa Mäori (theory and methodology grounded in a Mäori world view) and Pacifi c research principles, the study identifi es the social factors contributing to indigenous students' educational success. Three broad themes emerged from discussions: family and university role modelling and support; indigenous teaching and learning practices; and resilient abilities to cope with everyday colonialism and racism. A positive indigenous ethnic identity ties these themes together, ultimately serving as the steady factor driving Mäori and Pacifi c students' achievement motivation.
Set: Research Information for Teachers, 2019
• Pacific students' success is imperative to building a stronger New Zealand and scholars have identified factors that positively influence Pacific students' learning experiences. • An action-research pilot project was conducted to utilise attributes that are culturally embedded in Pacific students in order to improve their learning experiences. • Talanoa was used as a method to elicit valuable information and guide the conversations. • The skills focused on in the mentoring of three Pacific students were asking effective questions and providing support through language integration to better understand complex learning concepts, to drive the conversation and extract valuable information. • Both the students and their teacher noticed positive change and were encouraged to change the dynamics of the classroom so students can learn from and with one another.
Pasifika education policy, research and voices: students on the road to tertiary success
The New Zealand Annual Review of Education
The literature indicates educational systems need to be responsive to the multiple worlds of minority students. Increasingly policies and strategies in New Zealand have been adopted to promote the development of Pasifika learners and in the tertiary setting, improvements have occurred, although more is needed. In the reported qualitative interview study, the voices of 36 Samoan high school students from 6 schools were analysed to identify factors considered important for academic success. Thematic analysis identified the passion to achieve, capacity to deal with inconsistencies, and the importance of a holistic orientation each resting upon a strong family orientation as being important. Recommendations arising from the study are outlined.
Overcoming Challenges: Pacific students’ experiences of being resilient through tertiary education
The issue of raising Pasifika achievement levels in New Zealand has been at the forefront of Pasifika research as early as 1996 in the AIMHI report from the Ministry of Education. Nearly, 20 years on and the goal remains the same as Pasifika still underperform in education. In the last 19 years, there has been countless research in understanding the issue, with numerous identified areas of concern. However, so many areas need addressing that is can serve the purpose of perpetuating the problem by making it too large to solve. The structural, systemic issues still remain, the lack of Pasifika teachers and teachers that understand Pasifika still remain, the gap between home and school life still exist, as well as the lack of real leaders and governance in schools that want to make a difference to the education realties of Pasifika (Chu et al., 2013). This frustration has led to the rise of “strength based” approached to Pasifika education research in pursuit of solutions. With a focu...
Set: Research Information for Teachers, 2014
Education policy requires that schools and teachers enable Māori students to enjoy and achieve educational success as Māori. Teachers are expected to ensure Māori learners can see and be themselves in their education and can participate in and contribute to te ao Māori (the Māori world). This article discusses how this policy can be implemented by drawing from a research evaluation project on the effectiveness of the He Kākano professional development, a project carried out in 80 English-medium secondary schools. Interviews with students, teachers, and whānau in nine case study schools indicated that understandings of the policy and its implementation varied from teacher to teacher and school to school. Findings show that Māori students’ school experiences depend strongly on the school they attend and the teachers who teach them. Implications include that, consistent with the themes of Tātaiako, meaningful communication and strong academic relationships between teachers, students an...