With the upcoming review of the National Certificates of Educational Achievement (NCEA) and the removal of National Standards, it is time to reconsider how we approach assessment. In this edition of Assessment News I argue that it is time to put assessment for learning (AfL) and the assessment-capable teacher and ...

This article responds to increasing school and cross-sector interest surrounding culturally responsive pedagogy and the multiple ways that it is being discussed and understood. We try to bring clarity to how we have come to understand this term both as grounded in cultural relationships and as responsive to the prior ...

This article presents findings from a study focusing on ako in mathematics teaching in one English-medium secondary school classroom. The participants were a Year 9 class (22 ākonga with varying ethnicities and mathematics achievement levels) and their non-Māori kaiako, the researcher. Data were generated through surveys, discussions between ākonga and ...

This article reports on a teacher-led inquiry at Mt Roskill Primary School from 2016 to 2017. Teachers worked with a group of Pasifika and Māori students to develop a learning environment and use pedagogies inspired by the makerspace movement. Data on students’ engagement and achievement levels indicated positive development in ...

Guided reading is an established and important approach in the pedagogical repertoire of teachers in Aotearoa New Zealand. Despite evidence suggesting that a strong foundation of literacy learning must be built before introducing guided reading, early initiation to this most intensive form of reading instruction has become commonplace. This study ...

Inclusive education within New Zealand requires teachers to meet the needs of all students, including those with high or very high needs. The use of the individual education plan (IEP) is one tool that can support inclusive practice in classrooms through the collaboration of those supporting the individual student. This ...

COVID-19 relevance: Post-crisis / school closures

New Zealand has faced an unprecedented series of disaster events in recent years. The Canterbury earthquakes provided an opportunity to document the role that schools played in supporting their communities to respond to and recover from such events. It is important that we capture ...

COVID-19 relevance: Post-crisis / school closures

This article stems from a 2016 research project that examined the leadership experiences of 20 primary principals in greater Christchurch. The study was based on the belief that the nature of successful leadership needs to change in a post-disaster setting. The article focuses on ...