Set: Open access articles for COVID-19 times

COVID-19 relevance: Engaging learning activities that could translate to home

Play is very “on trend” in the primary sector, but is it a suitable pedagogy for secondary students? Based on research into play-based learning in a Year 11 English class, this article provides an overview of play theory, describes a typical play-based lesson in Year 11 English, considers three different approaches to assessment, discusses three broad themes that have emerged through… Read more

COVID-19 relevance: Engaging learning at home / cultural setting

Harko Brown is an expert on traditional Māori games and play. He has written several books including Ngā Taonga Tākaro II: The Matrix (2016), and Te Mara Hupara (2017), co-authored by his teenage daughter Yves Tennessee Brown. In 2015 Harko was co-opted by the New Zealand Government to organise and lead the first Aotearoa New Zealand Māori delegation to the World Indigenous Games in… Read more

COVID-19 relevance: Parents supporting learning at home / Language learning / Te Reo Māori

Common approaches to language teaching in many New Zealand schools typically show a lack of attention to students’ own language-learning strategies. This article argues that the success or otherwise of language immersion programmes, in particular within Māori-medium educational settings, depend as much on the skills and strategies of the student as on those of the teacher.… Read more

COVID-19 relevance: Supporting students' metacognition

In Q&A Pam Hook reflects on what drew her to SOLO taxonomy and why she is so motivated to develop its classroom-based use to enhance student learning. She explains what SOLO is and how it can help students to articulate their learning outcomes, understand the learning process, and set new learning goals over time. I also asked her to highlight some of the pitfalls that teachers may want to avoid, and to… Read more

COVID-19 relevance: Helping students deal with witnessing family violence

Jade Speaks Up is an Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC)-funded programme. It supports teachers to use process drama and other activities to introduce the topic of domestic violence while at the same time developing emotional literacy, trust, and self-calming skills. This article draws on qualitative and quantitative evaluation data to show how process drama can deepen authentic exploration… Read more