The theme for this final issue of set for 2010 is “Teachers as learners”. Rhys Hill and Alison Sewell addresses the question: How can teachers change their engagement from traditional one-sided pedagogies to include a sociocultural approach? Their article describes one teacher’s journey as he engaged in collaborative action research ...

When one student was personally touched by the 2009 Samoan tsunami, Omanu School in the Bay of Plenty launched an aid project that galvanised students into learning that was integrated across many curriculum areas. The students researched, negotiated and problem solved as they sought to make a difference to an ...

If literacy learning needs to change for the 21st century, when students need to deal with new formats, such as blogs, sound clips and YouTube, what does this mean in practice in the classroom? This article gives a possible framework for thinking about multimodal literacy skills and shows how it ...

Some teachers lack confidence in teaching art. With teacher advisory service support for visual art teaching reduced this year, schools need to find new ways to help teachers gain confidence. This article explores the benefits of a collaborative inquiry approach within schools.

What could we be looking for in student work when it comes to summative assessment? This article explores some of the challenges related to assessment in social studies. It then traces some of the recent resource developments in the New Zealand social sciences learning area, with a view to working ...

Pasifika students do not generally achieve as well as other students in school assessments of literacy and there are concerns about their comprehension of text. This article examines the out-of-school literacy experiences of 14 Pasifika students, with a view to enabling teachers to link to and build on them. Church ...

As National Standards come into force around the country, schools are starting to deal with implementing them in practice. This article explores some ideas about the implementation of National Standards in general, using the teaching of technology as an example.

NCEA course choices matter, especially where students or their parents have aspirations to follow an educational pathway beyond school or even just to leave their academic options open. This study, conducted in four mid–low-decile schools in Auckland and Northland, found that reaching academic aspirations requires careful and planned navigation of ...

The aim of any subject-choice process should be to provide better educational outcomes for all students. This study, however, found that many students do not understand the full implications of their NCEA course choices or course allocations. Māori, Pacific and lower decile secondary school students are particularly at risk of ...

Reprinted from Practical Research for Education, 41, 2009
The British Gaining Ground project aimed to develop a fresh approach to engaging young people excluded from mainstream education. Media practitioners introduced media skills to young people in Pupil Referral Units over two school years. Cathy Poole evaluates the project ...