Kia ora koutou katoa. Welcome to the 2023 volume of Assessment Matters. At any level of education, from early childhood provision through to higher education, assessment is seen as critically important. Its importance is viewed as critical given that results from assessment serve many different purposes that are relevant ...

COVID-19 relevance: Decreasing inequities

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 ...

In this article we share how developing and following tikanga was integral to our enactment of mana ōrite in the local curriculum as we (tangata whenua and tangata Tiriti) collaborated on a Year 7 science unit: Plants, Place, and People. Our initial thinking as we approached this unit had been ...

This article addresses the pressing issue of food waste by focusing on the development of young adolescents’ food waste literacy. The concept of food waste literacy (FWL), defined as the literacy for the judicious use of food, encompasses knowledge, attitudes, values, and behaviours related to food waste. The article presents ...

This article unpacks the computational thinking for digital technologies (CTDT) technological area of the New Zealand primary curriculum that became mandatory in 2020. It explores computational thinking (CT), its place in the New Zealand primary curriculum, and elements kaiako can utilise to help implement the teaching of CT. The article ...

This article describes the development of an innovative Year 9 cross-curricula “Festival of Learning” known as Hui Taurima, which resulted in the awarding of a Teacher Led Innovation Fund (TLIF) project grant. The focus is on the elements of a place-responsive approach and the teachers’ perspectives of their journey to ...

This article outlines the development of a leadership programme for senior students involved in co-leading a Year 9 cross-curricula “Festival of Learning” known as Hui Taurima. The focus is on the Māori student leaders’ perspectives of a place-responsive approach to developing leadership that drew on the expertise of school staff ...

In this edition of Assessment News, Charles Darr uses a case study from the National Monitoring Study of Student Achievement (NMSSA) to highlight how students can benefit from activating deliberate thinking in assessments. The key message underscores the value of using assessment information to generate insights that inform better teaching ...

As part of their kaupapa of catering for the whole child, Pacific Advance Secondary School in Ōtāhuhu has implemented an innovative programme called Tū Tangata to get their talavou physically active. This has led to improvements in mental wellbeing and academic achievements. Tū Tangata is an expression well known to ...