Indigenous knowledge and cultural responsiveness

Examine how indigenous knowledge and cultural responsiveness are informing the way you are taking action

Inquiry topic: Using technology (Seesaw)

What is happening: Using technology to ensure that all learners have a place to build upon with their

digital savvy and also become a 21st learner and not stuck in the old ways.

The general meaning of innovation is characterized only as "presenting something new; there are no

qualifiers of how noteworthy or world-shattering that something should be just that it should be

superior to anything that was there some time recently” (Vaitheeswaran, 2007. P. 4). Innovation in

my understanding differs to many people. Within the classroom setting innovation is “empowering

teachers to develop intelligent, creative and effective teaching methods that will challenge and

engage learners” (Hewitt D and Tarrant S, 2015. P. n.d).

As New Zealand is a multicultural nation, it is important as a student teacher to understand how

indigenous innovation can be successfully implemented in teaching. Point England School is a great

example of how this can be done. Point England School is situated in Glen Innes, Auckland and is a

decile one school. The majority of the school’s demographic is made up of polynesian and Maori

students. The Principal Russell Burt grew up in the area during a time when employment was not an

issue as jobs were in abundance, in contrast to today where most jobs are being taken over by

technology. Just like Māui in the Māori legends, Burt saw this as an opportunity and planned to

overcome this obstacle. He wanted to make sure that the students of his school were able to leave

with skills they could take into the workplace of the future. This was done by integrating technology

into the student’s everyday school life. The New Zealand Curriculum states that “Adaption and

innovation are at the heart of technological practice. Quality outcomes result from thinking and

practices that are informed, critical, and creative.” (Ministry of Education, 2007, p.37). Point England

School successfully uses digital technology to enhance their learning as well as equip students with

a skill base they can use across all sectors of employment. Every student has a digital device. From

years 0-3 students use an Ipad and students from years 4-8 use chromebooks. 

The implementation of digital technology in this school also provided a solution to an ongoing ‘lull

period” during the summer break when students learning significantly slowed down. To combat this

problem the Manaiakalani trust which runs the digital learning hub, introduced a blogging contest

over the summer period. This competition required all students to read a book then post a book

review on their own blog. Students were also required to give constructive feedback of other

student’s book reviews. The top three students from each school were given prizes for the most

feedback submitted. This innovative solution saw a significant shift in student’s learning over the

long summer break. 

Integrating digital learning into the school has not in any way impacted on any cultural elements of

the school but instead has allowed students to express their cultural identity more confidently.

Students show great confidence in waiata Māori, karakia, mihimihi, and pepeha through the use of a

school wide network news programme.

Using digital technology to develop skill base for students, the implementation of a summer blogging

contest to overcome the summer ‘lull period’, and the use of a school network news programme to

encourage confident culturally aware students, are great examples of innovation in education and

shape the way for innovative education of the future.

References:

        Hewitt. D. & Tarrant. S (2015). Innovation Teaching and Learning in Primary School

Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media Limited

Wikipediaorg. (2017). Wikipediaorg. Retrieved 10 August, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples

Law, regulations and/or policy impact on teacher inquiry

Discuss how aspects of law, regulations and/or policy impact on teacher inquiry

Inquiry topic: Writing 

What is happening: Using Seesaw for inquiry to ensure that all learners have a place to become a

21st while doing writing.

How is it working: It is so far working well.  I would like to focus on lifting them in writing.  But more

importantly become more self reliant.  

How am I feeling: I am excited to see where I can go with this.

The Community: The Year 1 students staff that participated in Mindlab.

Building upon getting parents involved in the program (SeeSaw for writing). Plus, the stakeholders in

the school grounds to see a progression to implement in the whole school.

Understanding: What can I do to make this easier for my colleagues in the year  1 class?

One of the main statutes that will be discussed first is the Education Act 1989.  This Act signified the

introduction of Tomorrow Schools which shifted substantial financial and administrative

responsibilities for managing schools, to elected boards of trustees.  Roberts (2008) points out that

the politics of education can be seen in the layout of the classroom, in the relationships between

teachers and students, in the teaching methods employed, in decisions about what is and is not

taught, in the policies and laws to which teachers and students are subject, in the forms of

assessment and evaluation applied and in the funding and resources for educational initiatives. This

supports the idea that laws apply to teachers everyday classroom practice, especially the Education

Act 1989.  

As school x teacher, I participated in the weekly Professional Development workshops.  The theme

for the workshops was based around Writing using SeeSaw. Teachers had selected work from their

target students to evaluate and to discuss ideas on how to give effective feedback.  This workshop

was run by Vision Education and was intended to lift achievement of target students. How was this

need for professional development for writing identified? Under Section 61 of the Education Act

1989, it stipulates that a school charter must include the board’s aims, objectives, directions,

priorities, and target student achievement, including the assessment of students against any

national standard published under section 60A(1)(ba).  In the Charter of school x they have clearly

outlined their annual targets for 2016 in Mathematics, Reading and writing.  This charter is very

specific as it includes the baseline data, the expected outcomes, and the actions needed to achieve

these outcomes.  In the annual target for writing, one of the expected outcomes was to shift 6

students in each of the 17 classes identified BELOW the national standard to AT National Standard. 

The school actioned this by having professional development sessions for teachers as well as

having those 6 target students work with a specialist from Vision literacy team. The team will track

and lift these students academically to AT the National standard. 

As a beginning teacher, it has become clear that the importance of the strategic plan/school charter

is like a compass that guides teachers to reach the school’s overall objectives. The school charter of

school x included the National Education Goals (NEGS) and the National Administration Guidelines

(NAGS). These NAGS and NEGS follow the Education Act 1989 under section 60A.

The Education Act 1989 continues to govern the way we teach in New Zealand.

References:

Hall, A. (2008). Professional responsibility and teacher ethics. In C. McGee & D. Fraser (Eds.),

         The professional practice of teaching (3rd ed.). Melbourne, Vic., Australia: Cengage  

         Learning. 

New zealand school trustees association, N.Z.S.T.A. (2016). Nzstaorgnz. Retrieved 10

November, 2016, from http://www.nzsta.org.nz/employer-role/employment-conditions/code-of-conduct

Roberts, P. (2008). Teaching as an ethical and political process: A Freirean perspective. In V. 

        Carpenter, J. Jesson, P. Roberts & M. Stepthenson (Eds.), Ngā kaupapa here: Connections 

        and contradictions in education (pp. 99-108). Melbourne, Vic., Australia: Cengage Learning.