scholarly journals Caught In-Between: The Impact of Different Forms of Mandated National Assessment for Qualifications on Teacher Decision-Making in Year 12 History in New Zealand, 1986-2005

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Gregor James Fountain
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Curriculum Reform ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Teacher Autonomy ◽  
National Assessment ◽  
History Teachers ◽  
Written Curriculum ◽  
The Impact

<p>This case study takes an historical perspective to explore the curriculum decision-making of History teachers in New Zealand. It is argued that between 1986 and 2005, Year 12 History teachers were caught in-between curriculum reform on one hand, which encouraged teacher autonomy, and on the other hand, assessment reform which reduced teacher autonomy. While teachers in this study utilised the autonomy provided by internal assessment to develop engaging class and assessment activities, they largely avoided topics in Māori, Pasifika and Women’s history which were promoted through the syllabus. Factors which contributed to teachers' decisions concerning curriculum topics included teachers' perceptions of the nature of disciplinary History, personal interest and resource availability. The primary focus on this thesis is an assessment of the impact of changes to national assessment for qualifications on Year 12 History programmes. It argues that mandated assessment for qualifications is the single-most determining factor on classroom practice. It is also argued that the assessment style which emerged for Year 12 History through the National Certificate of Educational Achievement disconnected History assessment from the intentions of its written curriculum which emphasised disciplinary History's underlying and interconnected process of gathering, analysing and presenting historical information. In some cases, the NCEA hindered rather than enhanced the development of a school-based curriculum at this level.</p>

scholarly journals Caught In-Between: The Impact of Different Forms of Mandated National Assessment for Qualifications on Teacher Decision-Making in Year 12 History in New Zealand, 1986-2005

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Gregor James Fountain
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Curriculum Reform ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Teacher Autonomy ◽  
National Assessment ◽  
History Teachers ◽  
Written Curriculum ◽  
The Impact

<p>This case study takes an historical perspective to explore the curriculum decision-making of History teachers in New Zealand. It is argued that between 1986 and 2005, Year 12 History teachers were caught in-between curriculum reform on one hand, which encouraged teacher autonomy, and on the other hand, assessment reform which reduced teacher autonomy. While teachers in this study utilised the autonomy provided by internal assessment to develop engaging class and assessment activities, they largely avoided topics in Māori, Pasifika and Women’s history which were promoted through the syllabus. Factors which contributed to teachers' decisions concerning curriculum topics included teachers' perceptions of the nature of disciplinary History, personal interest and resource availability. The primary focus on this thesis is an assessment of the impact of changes to national assessment for qualifications on Year 12 History programmes. It argues that mandated assessment for qualifications is the single-most determining factor on classroom practice. It is also argued that the assessment style which emerged for Year 12 History through the National Certificate of Educational Achievement disconnected History assessment from the intentions of its written curriculum which emphasised disciplinary History's underlying and interconnected process of gathering, analysing and presenting historical information. In some cases, the NCEA hindered rather than enhanced the development of a school-based curriculum at this level.</p>

scholarly journals An analysis of National Certificate of Educational Achievement chemistry courses in terms of curriculum, pedagogy and assessment: With comparison to the International Baccalaureate Diploma

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Michelle Tewkesbury
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Secondary Schools ◽  
Curriculum Reform ◽  
International Baccalaureate ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Subject Specific ◽  
The Impact ◽  
International Baccalaureate Diploma

<p>New Zealand has seen significant change in curriculum and qualification frameworks in recent years. The implementation of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) from 2002 and a revised national curriculum in 2007 have underpinned the forces of change. However, preceding its implementation, the NCEA qualification sparked controversy both in the education literature and general media. This controversy around the NCEA continues. Classroom-based evidence on the impact of the NCEA on teaching and learning has a significant role in informing policy, and this work aimed to make such a contribution. As a number of secondary schools in this country offer alternative senior school qualifications, this invited the opportunity to compare the phenomenon of teaching chemistry to Years 12 and 13 students under two structurally different qualification frameworks. The overarching research question investigated in this study was: In the context of NCEA and International Baccalaureate Diploma (IBD) chemistry courses in New Zealand secondary schools, how do teachers manage the tension between learning, teaching, and assessment? Teachers’ views and practices were explored through inquiry questions relating to the following: Teaching the content and procedural knowledge of chemistry (referring to curriculum and pedagogy); and their approaches to assessment.  Qualitative research was undertaken from a comparative case study within an interpretive paradigm. Two case schools offered both NCEA and IB Diploma qualifications, and one case school NCEA only. A total of ten participants from the three case schools were interviewed, and short sequences of lessons taught by the participant teachers were also observed. Following the coding of the interview data, emergent themes provided direction for the simple statistical analysis of national NCEA results data.  Manageability of courses and their assessment, feeling accountable for high grade outcomes, and the wish for subject specific professional development were areas that teachers of both NCEA and IBDP noted as factors that concerned them. The influence of high-stakes assessment was seen in the teaching methods used in the case schools towards preparing students to attain these qualifications.  It was evident from the interviews that participants had much more to say about their teaching of NCEA than they did for the IB Diploma qualification. The imbalance in the collected data, with more being related to the NCEA, was interpreted as arising from issues related to the achievement standard structure of this qualification. The impact of the NCEA on teaching and assessment of chemistry in Years 12 and 13 was found to be significant. NCEA achievement standards were seen to be the default curriculum (rather than the New Zealand Curriculum), and drove course designs in the three case schools. Extrinsic motivation from NCEA credits and grades were considered by the teachers to be key factors in students’ approaches to learning. Courses were designed to maximise grades, and teachers identified the time spent on rehearsal leading up to internal assessment as a concern. When mapped to the New Zealand Curriculum, it was evident that curricular holes in NCEA courses existed; in particular with regard to nature of science and investigation learning objectives. In the case schools, coherence of chemistry as a discipline was compromised in NCEA courses, with implications for students understanding. The performance of schools is evidently being judged, by both government and the media through the publication of league tables of NCEA grade data. This seems to be driving chemistry learning in directions that are counter to international directions in curriculum reform.  Based on the findings of this study, several recommendations are made. Attention should be paid to supporting (and resourcing) full implementation of the New Zealand Curriculum, with a focus on subject specific professional development for teachers. The relationship between the New Zealand Curriculum and the NCEA needs addressing; the achievement structure of the NCEA as it currently exists, is coming at a high cost in terms of compromising pedagogy and subject connectedness. Issues of the reliability and validity of NCEA assessment also exist, suggesting that review of current implementation and assessment policy, including that relating to the conduct of national examinations, need review.</p>

scholarly journals An analysis of National Certificate of Educational Achievement chemistry courses in terms of curriculum, pedagogy and assessment: With comparison to the International Baccalaureate Diploma

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Michelle Tewkesbury
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Secondary Schools ◽  
Curriculum Reform ◽  
International Baccalaureate ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Subject Specific ◽  
The Impact ◽  
International Baccalaureate Diploma

<p>New Zealand has seen significant change in curriculum and qualification frameworks in recent years. The implementation of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) from 2002 and a revised national curriculum in 2007 have underpinned the forces of change. However, preceding its implementation, the NCEA qualification sparked controversy both in the education literature and general media. This controversy around the NCEA continues. Classroom-based evidence on the impact of the NCEA on teaching and learning has a significant role in informing policy, and this work aimed to make such a contribution. As a number of secondary schools in this country offer alternative senior school qualifications, this invited the opportunity to compare the phenomenon of teaching chemistry to Years 12 and 13 students under two structurally different qualification frameworks. The overarching research question investigated in this study was: In the context of NCEA and International Baccalaureate Diploma (IBD) chemistry courses in New Zealand secondary schools, how do teachers manage the tension between learning, teaching, and assessment? Teachers’ views and practices were explored through inquiry questions relating to the following: Teaching the content and procedural knowledge of chemistry (referring to curriculum and pedagogy); and their approaches to assessment.  Qualitative research was undertaken from a comparative case study within an interpretive paradigm. Two case schools offered both NCEA and IB Diploma qualifications, and one case school NCEA only. A total of ten participants from the three case schools were interviewed, and short sequences of lessons taught by the participant teachers were also observed. Following the coding of the interview data, emergent themes provided direction for the simple statistical analysis of national NCEA results data.  Manageability of courses and their assessment, feeling accountable for high grade outcomes, and the wish for subject specific professional development were areas that teachers of both NCEA and IBDP noted as factors that concerned them. The influence of high-stakes assessment was seen in the teaching methods used in the case schools towards preparing students to attain these qualifications.  It was evident from the interviews that participants had much more to say about their teaching of NCEA than they did for the IB Diploma qualification. The imbalance in the collected data, with more being related to the NCEA, was interpreted as arising from issues related to the achievement standard structure of this qualification. The impact of the NCEA on teaching and assessment of chemistry in Years 12 and 13 was found to be significant. NCEA achievement standards were seen to be the default curriculum (rather than the New Zealand Curriculum), and drove course designs in the three case schools. Extrinsic motivation from NCEA credits and grades were considered by the teachers to be key factors in students’ approaches to learning. Courses were designed to maximise grades, and teachers identified the time spent on rehearsal leading up to internal assessment as a concern. When mapped to the New Zealand Curriculum, it was evident that curricular holes in NCEA courses existed; in particular with regard to nature of science and investigation learning objectives. In the case schools, coherence of chemistry as a discipline was compromised in NCEA courses, with implications for students understanding. The performance of schools is evidently being judged, by both government and the media through the publication of league tables of NCEA grade data. This seems to be driving chemistry learning in directions that are counter to international directions in curriculum reform.  Based on the findings of this study, several recommendations are made. Attention should be paid to supporting (and resourcing) full implementation of the New Zealand Curriculum, with a focus on subject specific professional development for teachers. The relationship between the New Zealand Curriculum and the NCEA needs addressing; the achievement structure of the NCEA as it currently exists, is coming at a high cost in terms of compromising pedagogy and subject connectedness. Issues of the reliability and validity of NCEA assessment also exist, suggesting that review of current implementation and assessment policy, including that relating to the conduct of national examinations, need review.</p>

scholarly journals School Finance Reform and the Distribution of Student Achievement

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julien Lafortune ◽  
Jesse Rothstein ◽  
Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach
Keyword(s):  
School Districts ◽  
Low Income ◽  
School Finance ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
School Resources ◽  
Finance Reform ◽  
National Assessment ◽  
School Finance Reform ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Representative Samples

We study the impact of post-1990 school finance reforms, during the so-called “adequacy” era, on absolute and relative spending and achievement in low-income school districts. Using an event study research design that exploits the apparent randomness of reform timing, we show that reforms lead to sharp, immediate, and sustained increases in spending in low-income school districts. Using representative samples from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, we find that reforms cause increases in the achievement of students in these districts, phasing in gradually over the years following the reform. The implied effect of school resources on educational achievement is large. (JEL H75, I21, I22, I24, I28)

scholarly journals The Impact of Economics on Competition Law in New Zealand Some Reflections on the First Decade

1996 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
Mark N Berry
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Law And Economics ◽  
Competition Law ◽  
Institutional Framework ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Future Trends ◽  
Brief Assessment ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Theoretical Foundations

The economic focus of the Commerce Act 1986 is unique in New Zealand, both in terms of its theoretical foundations and its institutional framework. The author reflects on these features of the Act and the impact that economics has had on the decision-making process. This article reviews the New Zealand landscape in terms of the goals of the Commerce Act, its institutional framework, and the manner in which the strict rules of evidence may be relaxed. It then considers, by using Justice Breyer's framework (in S J Breyer "Economics and Judging: An Afterword on Cooter and Wald" (1987) 50 Law and Contemp Probs 245), how economics has impacted upon the content of rules of law and the proof of specific economic facts. The author concludes with a brief assessment of likely and desirable future trends in New Zealand law, arguing that it was likely that economics would continue to have a major impact on the Commerce Act; aside from in the interpretation of dominance principles, the author argues that the foundations are strongly in place for the continued growth of law and economics in this field.

Conclusion

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Weller
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Prime Ministers ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Impact

The conclusion first assesses the prime ministers against the criteria set out in the introduction: their longevity, their control over their parties, and their ability to shape the agenda. The first two can provide evidence of those who were successful. Noticeably those who brought their party from opposition to government were those who were likely to flourish. Second, the conclusion explores the difference between the four political systems and the impact they have on the working of the prime ministers. It identifies the variations in cabinet practices and the degree to which cabinet remains a consistent decision-making forum in Australia and New Zealand but less so in Britain and Canada. It concludes by stressing that much of the difference can be explained by the levels of accountability prime ministers have to their parliamentary colleagues, rather than a broader party electorate: a choice between competing principles of party democracy and accountability.

scholarly journals Teachers’ autonomy deconstructed: Irish and Finnish teachers’ perceptions of decision-making and control

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 329-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maija Salokangas ◽  
Wieland Wermke ◽  
Gerry Harvey
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Professional Autonomy ◽  
Teacher Autonomy ◽  
School Level ◽  
External Control ◽  
Educational Decisions ◽  
Teacher Interviews ◽  
Developmental Issues ◽  
Teachers Perceptions

Teacher autonomy has been a popular topic of investigation over the past decades. This article contributes to the debate by casting light on Irish and Finnish teachers’ perceptions of their professional autonomy, drawing from teacher interviews conducted in both countries. The intersection of newly introduced curriculum reforms, differing education governance models and differing control regimes make Ireland and Finland fertile points of comparison. Teacher autonomy is understood in this article as a multidimensional and context-dependent phenomenon, and the conceptualisation is presented in an analytical matrix applicable to comparative research. Findings indicate that teachers in both countries consider themselves very autonomous in their classroom practice and in their educational decisions overall. However, where much of the school-level decision-making in Finnish schools concerning educational, social and developmental issues tends to be in the hands of teachers (either collegially or as individuals), in Irish schools the senior management, and especially the principal, is reportedly more involved. Possibly the greatest difference is the ways in which teachers’ work is controlled, and in how teachers perceive it; Finnish teachers report intensified external control from the civil society, whereas on top of parental pressures Irish teachers report also increasing pressures from the state agencies.

scholarly journals The Association Between Mode of Delivery and Later Educational Outcomes

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eileen Li ◽  
Rebecca Slykerman ◽  
Barry Milne
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Secondary School ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Vaginal Delivery ◽  
Educational Outcomes ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Mode Of Delivery ◽  
Delivery Mode ◽  
Developmental Problems ◽  
The Impact

IntroductionCaesarean section (C-section) is becoming increasingly prevalent worldwide. It can be a life-saving intervention when medical complications arise, but may cause adverse consequences for the mothers when it is not medically necessary. The upwards trend of C-section is becoming a general concern as it might be associated with a wide range of child outcomes such as immune diseases, respiratory diseases and developmental problems. One underlying mechanism of such association is through gut microbiota. Mode of delivery is a signification factor which determines the gut bacterial environment in early days of life. Gut microbiota can impact cognitive development via microbiota gut brain axis. Objectives and ApproachThis study investigated the association between mode of delivery and later educational outcomes of the children, using linked data from New Zealand Integrated Data Infrastructure. The participants consisted of children born in New Zealand between 1Jan1996 and 31Dec1998. All birth information were retrieved from Department of Internal Affairs and were linked to Ministry of Health data to obtain delivery methods from mothers’ diagnosis records. Once delivery modes were identified, the data was then linked to records from Ministry of Education to obtain children’s educational outcomes at secondary school. Three outcome variables were chosen: University Entrance, Highest Endorsement Level and National Certificate of Educational Achievement Level 2 Percentile Score. ResultsThe results have shown that C-section and assisted vaginal delivery were associated with better secondary school educational achievement, comparing to unassisted vaginal delivery. The results persisted after adjusting for sociodemographic factors such as household income, maternal education and deprivation index; infant factors such as birth weight, gestational age and ethnicity. However, when within family variation was further controlled for in the sibling fixed effects analysis, C-section was no longer associated with improved educational achievement. Conclusion / ImplicationsThis indicated that the impact of delivery mode might be negligible on later educational achievement.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document