Resilience refers to the capacity of individuals to prosper despite encountering adverse circumstances. This paper defines academic resilience as the ability of 15-year-old students from disadvantaged backgrounds to perform at a certain level in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in reading, mathematics and science that…

This paper centres on research that investigated the contemporary policy, curriculum and pedagogical landscape of Health and Physical Education (HPE) in Aotearoa New Zealand, in the light of increasing impressions that provision was moving to an "open market" situation. Publicly available information sourced via the Internet was used to…

This study explores difficulties in the conceptual positioning of the higher education performance indicator of qualification completion within a standard logic model taken from the public sector performance literature, involving inputs, processes, impacts and outcomes. Organisations are held to be more accountable for the delivery of outputs than…

Straddling conventional education system boundaries between adult learners and children, and between employment-related and social benefits, family literacy programmes are not well recognised or supported in New Zealand's policy and funding environment. In this article, I reflect on my personal experience of redesigning the Whanau Ara Mua…

Whilst globally there has been a great deal of discussion and rhetoric regarding the state of physical education at the primary level, there is a paucity of evidence regarding teachers' perceptions of quality physical education in practice. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to explore and interpret primary school teachers' perceptions of…

In democracies such as Australia and New Zealand, education policy increasingly seeks to foster active citizens who are committed to social justice and change. Whilst many aspects of these initiatives are to be applauded for their commitment to empowering young people, in this paper we describe some of the ambiguities that attend young people's…

Classrooms have become increasingly diverse places where students from various backgrounds share their learning experiences. To promote inclusive school settings for all, building teacher capacity for inclusive teaching represents a key policy area. Education systems need to ensure that teachers are adequately prepared for inclusive teaching and…

The article analyses initial teacher education (ITE) policy and practice in Aotearoa New Zealand over forty years. Central to the local ITE context was the incorporation of the "monotechnic" colleges of teacher education into the university sector in the 1990s and 2000s, following New Zealand's structural adjustments to the state…

International social unrest in recent years has resulted in many people choosing or being forced to leave their home countries to seek better lives elsewhere, causing drastic demographic shifts. Yet, it has been pointed out that institutional policies and practices in many countries have not caught up with such changing demographics, which have…

In 2019, the authors had the opportunity to ask a few questions about climate and sustainability in the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) national survey of primary and intermediate schools. NZCER began regular surveys of primary schools in 1989 and has run a national survey of English-medium schools every 3 years since then,…

Writing instruction in New Zealand occurs in a context with potential for variability in curriculum and delivery. The national curriculum is broad; self governing schools are to interpret and apply as appropriate to their local context. There are no mandated tests, nor external examinations until the last three years of school. Schools report to…

Basic education is essential if societies and economies are to thrive and become sustainable in challenging times. However, many people have never had an opportunity to benefit from education and many others leave the initial phase of education without attaining the level of proficiency in literacy and numeracy needed to participate fully in…

This study investigated the role of ITE in preparing beginner, secondary school teachers for including diverse groups of learners by capturing their experiences of ITE and their early career. An online questionnaire was completed by early career secondary school teachers. Follow-up interviews with four teachers explored salient findings from the…

This research, which is the first part of a two-part study, was commissioned by the New Zealand Productivity Commission to inform their study of the future of work in New Zealand. The main research question asks, in essence: In what ways are secondary school subject-choice systems, and students' subject choices, positioned to respond to future of…

There is growing evidence that children are vulnerable to poor psychological outcomes following exposure to a range of potentially traumatic events. Teachers are in a unique and well-placed position to provide vital support to children following potentially traumatic events and to also provide a vital role in helping to identify children who may…