Purpose: This article aims to explore the meanings of positionality and demonstrate how reflective memos can illustrate positionality in a constructivist grounded theory (CGT) study. Design/methodology/approach: Acknowledging the positionality of the researcher through a reflective approach is an essential element of CGT studies. The first author…

Truancy, a complex, unresolved educational issue in countries with compulsory attendance policies, has the potential to cause further educational inequity in times of a global COVID-19 pandemic. At the time of this study, there was a paucity of research regarding youth perspectives of truancy compared to adult perspectives. To address this gap in…

Truancy is a longstanding, unresolved educational issue in countries where there are compulsory attendance policies. It represents a long-term cost to society in expenditure on health, well-being and incarceration. Previous research has focused on key demographic variables related to truancy, causal factors, interventions and a variety of…

"Working theories" are described as one of the two principal outcomes of Te Whariki, the early childhood curriculum in Aotearoa New Zealand. Despite its prominence as a curricular outcome, the theoretical positioning of the concept of working theory remains relatively undebated, with researchers readily attributing the term to a…

Background: Physical education (PE) and physical education teacher education (PETE) have a substantial literature base that advocates for students to develop a critical consciousness, appreciate multiple perspectives, and engage in actions to enhance social justice [Tinning, R. 2016. "Transformative Pedagogies and Physical Education." In…

In the monolingual English-speaking world referred to as the "Anglobubble," governments are finally recognising the advantages of a citizenry able to engage in and between multiple languages and cultures. As a result, increased efforts are being made to introduce and expand educational programs to teach languages. Thus, now more than…

As a field, school leadership has maintained a colorblind stance, marginalizing practitioners' awareness of culturally sustaining practice, and erasing the experiences of Indigenous and other minoritized groups of students, teachers, and families. Looking to research and practice that attempts to embrace racial and cultural difference in order to…

With anglophone countries now experiencing unprecedented levels of ethnic and linguistic diversity, it is considered increasingly important that young people learn to communicate in ways which are effective for the multilingual and intercultural contexts they live in, will work in and will travel to. One of the key vehicles for promoting and…

Student attrition and falling tertiary education enrolments afflict languages education across the "inner circle" English speaking world. In the southern hemisphere, in New Zealand and Australia, Japanese has become one of the most successful languages of education. However, numbers of students are now declining. This paper examines why…

In 2013, we undertook research in a New Zealand University to gain insights into students' understandings of informal learning, its connection to formal learning and how they engaged in informal learning using digital and mobile technologies. A total of 765 students (postgraduate, undergraduate and first-year students) completed a questionnaire.…

Background: For many years, scholars in Physical Education Teacher Educator (PETE) have argued for the importance of educating pre-service teachers (PSTs) about equality (e.g. Evans, J. 1990. "Defining a Subject: The Rise and Rise of the New Physical Education?" "British Journal of Sociology of Education" 11: 155-169),…

Innovation is a key goal of many tertiary education and distance learning providers. This research explores how teachers and educational designers across three New Zealand tertiary institutions worked to innovatively achieve teaching goals. A longitudinal design using the Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) framework explored the influence…

The emerging adolescents of today are required to navigate challenges and risks quite different from those faced by their parents and teachers. The usual trials of adolescence have been magnified and transformed, in large part due to the development of information and communication technology, and the rapid rise of online social networking. The…

In the complex and diverse region of Oceania, researchers often work across more than one cultural understanding. Thus, a researcher's position with regard to their research requires careful ongoing negotiation because position, when understood through relationality, is fluid. Negotiating position requires acute reflexivity of the researcher but…

Considerable work over many years has explored the contribution technology can make to science learning, at all levels of education. In the school sector, historically this has focused on the use of fixed, desktop-based or semi-mobile laptop systems for purposes such as experiment data collection or analysis, or as a means of engaging or…