Supporting successful learning outcomes for secondary Pacific students through home-school relationships

<p>A need to improve learning outcomes for Pacific students has been highlighted by the Ministry of Education in Aotearoa/New Zealand, with the reflection that the education system has not adequately catered for these learners. The development of home-school relationships is recognised by the Ministry as one way of promoting the achievement of Pacific students; closer links with Pacific families are encouraged so that students’ needs may be better met. The aim of this research was to explore how secondary schools could develop relationships with Pacific families and communities in order to support students’ successful learning outcomes. A qualitative case study, using a grounded theory approach, was employed. An Appreciative Inquiry framework helped guide the research design to facilitate the exploration of how home-school relationships worked well within the context of a New Zealand town, and how they can be enhanced to benefit secondary Pacific learners. A Communities of Practice lens supported analysis; and an appreciation of Pacific relationality was supported by the theoretical frameworks, Teu le va and Talanoa Research Methodology (TRM). Key findings demonstrate the willingness and expertise from members of the Pacific community to support schools’ endeavours to cater for Pacific learners, helping address any barriers to family engagement. Despite the strong commitment from teachers and school leaders to work more closely and creatively with Pacific families, this study concludes that knowledge and ideas do not always flow freely between home and school. An inherent risk is that schools hold onto decision-making processes although there is a capacity within the Pacific community to offer effective solutions. To alleviate this risk, school structures need to open up to permit a freer exchange of information, prioritising relationships that accord with Pacific values. The bricolage of frameworks employed in this study have the potential to be applied to school settings for the review and development of home-school practices for Pacific families.</p>

Supporting successful learning outcomes for secondary Pacific students through home-school relationships

<p>A need to improve learning outcomes for Pacific students has been highlighted by the Ministry of Education in Aotearoa/New Zealand, with the reflection that the education system has not adequately catered for these learners. The development of home-school relationships is recognised by the Ministry as one way of promoting the achievement of Pacific students; closer links with Pacific families are encouraged so that students’ needs may be better met. The aim of this research was to explore how secondary schools could develop relationships with Pacific families and communities in order to support students’ successful learning outcomes. A qualitative case study, using a grounded theory approach, was employed. An Appreciative Inquiry framework helped guide the research design to facilitate the exploration of how home-school relationships worked well within the context of a New Zealand town, and how they can be enhanced to benefit secondary Pacific learners. A Communities of Practice lens supported analysis; and an appreciation of Pacific relationality was supported by the theoretical frameworks, Teu le va and Talanoa Research Methodology (TRM). Key findings demonstrate the willingness and expertise from members of the Pacific community to support schools’ endeavours to cater for Pacific learners, helping address any barriers to family engagement. Despite the strong commitment from teachers and school leaders to work more closely and creatively with Pacific families, this study concludes that knowledge and ideas do not always flow freely between home and school. An inherent risk is that schools hold onto decision-making processes although there is a capacity within the Pacific community to offer effective solutions. To alleviate this risk, school structures need to open up to permit a freer exchange of information, prioritising relationships that accord with Pacific values. The bricolage of frameworks employed in this study have the potential to be applied to school settings for the review and development of home-school practices for Pacific families.</p>

Development of an instrument to measure opportunities for imagination, creativity, and innovation (ICI) in schools

This article describes the development of an instrument for examining schools as institutions where teaching practices and school structures provide opportunities and support for student imagination, creativity, and innovation, as well as initial comparisons using the instrument, using a sample of n = 5020 students and n = 268 teachers ( n = 161 classes of students nested within teachers). The three five-item subscales show acceptable reliability across groups (.73–.90). Paired sample t tests indicate that, on average, students reported significantly more opportunities for creativity as compared to imagination or innovation. There were also significant differences between actual student reports and teachers’ predictions only for creativity and innovation. Students reported more opportunities for creativity and innovation than their teachers predicted. However, students reported significantly less opportunity for imagination, creativity, and innovation than their teachers’ ideals. Implications for subsequent research and practice are also discussed.

THE ROLE OF SOCIAL SYSTEMS IN THE CONCEPTION AND PERPETUATION OF BULLYING CULTURE IN INDIA

The pervasiveness of bullying in schools is a major concern that needs to be addressed. Bullying culture involves a manifestation of the power dynamics seen in a particular society. Despite the significant amount of research conducted in this area, there is still a lack of literature pertaining to bullying culture in India, especially involving the victimization of children. Indian society feeds off on social inequalities perpetuated by differences in class, caste, or religion. This sets the stage for notable variations in power, and on this stage masquerades the bullies. India finds itself with a bullying culture at different organizational levels; from schools to big companies. Indian schools, which represents a microcosm of society, is a direct reflection of the power dynamics seen in society at large. A lack of research about bullying in Indian schools opens the door to a wider range of concerns that includes a lack of initiative taken by schools or parents to curb the onslaught of bullying. This paper seeks to throw light on how this is the case due to the misperceptions regarding bullying that society propagates. For example, children and adults are often confused as to what constitutes bullying because to them certain acts of bullying mirrors traditionally accepted forms of disciplinary actions taken against children. This paper reviews literature showing how children are often misguided about what bullying is and the role that societal, familial, or school structures play in perpetuating said misconceptions. Furthermore, the paper also provides examples of certain non-traditional forms of bullying that reflect the misguided perceptions that children have about bullying.

The predictive powers of organizational trust and justice on enabling school structure: A structural equation modelling approach

Organizational structures are an important organizational variable affecting organizational behaviours and individuals' relationships with each other. The structural dimension of schools in terms of educational management is evaluated under two groups in the literature, namely, enabling and hindering school structures. Enabling school structures provide a healthy school climate and help schools be more effective. Individuals' perceptions of organizational trust and justice are also effective in ensuring a healthy school climate and school effectiveness. The aim of this study is to examine the predictive power of teachers' perceptions of organizational trust and justice on their perceptions of the enabling school structure. The structural equation model was used in the study, which is designed in the descriptive survey method. The study group is composed of 1187 teachers working at primary, secondary and high schools. Data were collected through Enabling School Structure Scale (Form-ESS), Organizational Justice Scale, Organizational Trust Scale and a Personal Information Form. The findings revealed that teachers' perceptions of organizational justice and organizational trust predict their perceptions about enabling school structure.

Teachers’ perceptions of a lesson study intervention as professional development in physical education

Although continuous professional development (CPD) is a key strategy for physical education (PE) teachers to update skills and knowledge in order to provide the best possible education to students, various concerns have been voiced regarding the effectiveness and feasibility of CPD in the context of PE. One approach to CPD that seems promising in this respect is lesson study, which is a form of collaborative, teacher-led and inquiry-based professional learning. This study reports on teachers’ experiences with lesson study and was specifically aimed at teachers’ perceptions of what was learned through lesson study and how this was done. Ten PE departments (35 teachers) followed a workshop on the topic of the need-supportive teaching of games which was followed by multiple lesson study cycles. Questionnaires and focus group interviews provided insight into teachers’ experiences. Overall, participating PE teachers appreciated lesson study as CPD, especially valuing the collaborative and practice-oriented approach. As lesson study allows for professional experimentation this enabled teachers to transfer new knowledge and ideas into their own specific educational contexts. Nevertheless, results also indicated that in its current form and especially within existing school structures, lesson study might be too demanding in terms of time and resources. Only if schools are willing to make the required investments could lesson study be expected to reach its full potential.

Negotiating Power within School Structures

Schools are unique institutions where structural and cultural dynamics shape the actions of humans. Teachers work within structures of power to establish themselves as legitimate authority figures worthy of respect. This is complicated by the multi-faceted relationships of power existing everywhere in schools. In this study, I use a grounded theory approach to analyze the reflections and practice of public school teachers as they seek to establish positive classroom cultures and make an impact in their school communities. They navigated, accepted, and resisted shifting structures of power to find small spaces to carry out their own agendas.

Beyond Bathroom Bills and the Gender Identity Debate: Complicating the Policy Conversation About Supporting Trans Students in Schools

Schools and districts across the country have been thrust into the political limelight as they grapple with sometimes competing policy messages about the education of transgender and gender expansive students. Drawing on 2 years of survey data from families of transgender and gender expansive youth in one mountain state, this article uses critical trans politics to examine the ways the current policy climate aligns with the supports schools provide. Results suggest that parents desire policies and practices that transform cis-heteronormative school structures, and they recognize that policy is often limited in its ability to affect the material experiences of youth in schools. We therefore argue that a focus on bathroom bills and policies regarding trans accessibility have distracted from a conversation that needs to be elevated to address broader structural issues and should ultimately be driven by families and trans youth.

Cultures of Curriculum

The concept of cultures of curriculum is an iteration of the classification system known as curricular orientations. Intended as a framework for curriculum development and a heuristic for curriculum inquiry, a culture of curriculum is a philosophy-based curricular orientation supported by coherent practices. A curricular culture is characterized by a shared and unifying vision that guides articulation of goals, inspires consensus, and stimulates the desire for change. Diverse cultures of curriculum have existed historically and are enacted in contemporary schools and universities; they are not static. Societal change, scholarly discoveries, and political or ethical discourse influence educators’ knowledge and public beliefs about education. Essentially, this conceptual model involves perceiving curriculum through a cultural perspective, as a series of interwoven dynamics and not merely as explicit content. Curriculum theorized as culture attends to continuing dialogue, values, metaphors, the environment in which education takes place, power relationships, and the norms that affect educators’ and stakeholders’ convictions about right or appropriate education. Subsequently, the cultures of curriculum framework for curriculum inquiry comprises both analysis of beliefs and ethnographic study of lived curriculum. This conceptual model also casts light on curriculum transformation, viewed through the cultural lens as reculturing curriculum. The process begins with inquiry through the cultures of curriculum framework to investigate the extant curriculum in classrooms and schools. Such examination may result in awareness of ad hoc curriculum featuring a multitude of contradictory purposes and activities or the realization that authorized curriculum work conflicts with educators’ philosophies and moral purposes. Concurrently, the study of curricular cultures may stimulate curriculum leadership as educators imagine ways to change their own curriculum work, initiate conversations with colleagues and stakeholders, and eventually commit energies and resources to reculturing curriculum. Rather than making partial modifications to school structures or trying out the latest instructional methods, curriculum transformation informed by the concept of curricular cultures embodies profound change to values, norms, and practices, as well as to classroom and school cultures.

Qualitative experiences of Australian mental health staff with students exposed to domestic violence

The prevalence of domestic violence is concerning due to its debilitating impact on the psychological, social and academic functioning of children. This study explored the experiences, strengths and challenges of school mental health staff in relation to students exposed to domestic violence. Interviews with 10 school wellbeing staff working in Victoria, Australia, showed that these staff felt confronted and distressed, and were unsure of their role in managing the complexities associated with students’ exposure to domestic violence. Staff reported the need for educators, students and parents to be educated on domestic violence, and for improved school structures and policies that encourage staff consultation and self-care following students’ disclosures of domestic violence. The results of this study are discussed within the context of trauma-informed practice and multi-tiered mental health promotion in schools.