set 2009: no. 2

Male teachers, school fires, science education, raising possibilities for Māori students, John Hattie on teacher effectiveness—these are all part of the rich smorgasbord of articles in this issue of set: Research Information for Teachers. There are plenty of research “calories” here.

The feature section on Māori Achievement, while not offering quick-fix recipes, brings together initiatives that are showing more than promise in raising the achievement of Māori students. All the… Read more

A conversation with John Hattie quickly dives into the big questions—what is effective teaching? What are the limitations of the Tomorrow’s Schools model, the potential pitfalls of national standards, the shortcomings of the teaching career structure, the best way to communicate with parents?

Sweden has a strong culture of gender equity and challenging gender stereotypes. The Swedish male teachers interviewed for this study were hard pushed to see gender differences in learning or teaching styles. Instead, they saw individuals as being different. They also had no concerns about physical contact—it’s normal there for both male and female teachers to hug their students.

Fractions are known to be difficult. Jonathan Fisher explores why this is so, looking in particular at the crucial foundation concepts of part-whole relationships and partitioning. He outlines common student errors uncovered in piloting ARB assessment items about fractions, and suggests some ways to help students gain a fuller understanding.

Practical Research for Education, 39, May 2008, pp. 57–62 (reprinted with permission)

Fires in schools can be emotionally devastating for students and staff and highly disruptive to school functioning and student learning. This small-scale British study looks at the impacts of school fires and the lessons to be learnt.

Science and technology are so central to our 21st century lives that few would dispute their importance in the school curriculum. They underpin many jobs, inform challenging issues facing us as a society and are a source of fascination and entertainment.

So what is the implication of this for science education in our schools? How do we evolve the teaching of science to best meet the needs of students?

Te Kotahitanga is a project that seeks to improve the educational achievement of Māori students in mainstream schools. Through interviews with Māori students, their teachers and whānau, the authors learnt about the characteristics of teachers that made a difference. They have drawn these together into the Effective Teaching Profile.

This is one teacher’s story of how connecting her science teaching to the cultural background of her Māori students increased their motivation and enthusiasm. By linking a topic on forest ecology with the students’ existing interest in the school’s new tuata (carved ceremonial post), she was able to develop a collaborative inquiry-based project with her students that had them asking “Is it science today?”

This article presents Te Pikinga ki Runga: Raising Possibilities, a framework for teachers and special-education practitioners working with Māori students who are presenting with challenges. It draws on the work of leading Māori educationalists to offer a kaupapa Māori approach that can be applied in practice.

There is little research about the experiences of students in Māori-medium education learning mathematics. This article reveals what these students see as their teacher’s role, and the advice that they’d give to other students making the transition to secondary school.