Background: Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is a common form of developmental disability but may be poorly understood by professionals working with people with FASD. The aim of the research is to understand the FASD knowledge, attitudes, awareness, and practices among people employed by the education sector in Aotearoa New Zealand and…

This literature review investigates the perception of secondary teachers about their role of supporting and promoting students' mental health and whether teachers feel equipped to fulfil the requirements of this role. Analysis of 13 research articles published between 2008-2022 indicated that most secondary teachers, across five countries,…

In recent years, play-based learning (PBL) has attracted attention, debate and controversy across different national contexts. There is no definitional consensus which may have undesirable consequences for enacting its potential in professional practice. The aim of our study was to synthesize international research on ECE practitioners' views on…

This article draws on qualitative data collected in New Zealand over a 6-month period to examine how participants in and involved with TeachFirst New Zealand (TFNZ) rely on notions of grit and resilience to explain the underachievement of their Maori and Pasifika students. I aim to illustrate that participants face pressure not only to instill…

In response to the diverse number of child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention programs currently implemented in school contexts, this paper examines key considerations for selecting such initiatives and the multiplicity of understandings required to inform facilitation of contextually relevant prevention curriculum. First, the paper examines concerns…

To meet the intentions of the New Zealand Curriculum 2007 teachers must critically reflect on their role and their idea of what defines "best practice" for teaching and learning in the twenty-first century. The teacher's role has changed considerably over time. There is now, more than ever, a need for much greater transparency,…

The release in 2006 by the New Zealand Ministry of Education of a Draft national Curriculum set for release in November 2007 challenges schools and teachers to evolve their role to align with the priority to "embed" enterprise values and methodologies. These values and methodologies will be expressed in curricula that school communities…

Constructivism posits that the teacher's role is to help their students to actively construct new understanding for themselves. Diagnosis of students' prior understanding followed by carefully planned teaching sequences enables learners to grasp hitherto unknown concepts. Assessing whether they can then apply their new knowledge in new contexts…

This article uses activity theory to consider how teacher learning and development occurs. It aims to show that imitation and orienting activity, both of which make use of the analysis of actions into means and goals, can help explain how a group of Malaysian mathematics and science teachers learned to use the language-teaching practice of tasks…

The International Handbook of Teacher and School Development brings together a collection of research and evidence-based authoritative writings which focus on international teacher and school development. Drawing on research from 18 countries across 7 continents, the 40 chapters are grouped into 10 themes which represent key aspects of teacher and…

Ferndale School is a special school catering for students in the Ongoing and Reviewable Resourcing Schemes (ORRS). We sought to explore how a sense of well-being and belonging for students could be fostered during the lunch break at the base school. Students' need for close supervision during lunch hour meant that staff found it hard to…

Since 1990, education in New Zealand has undergone dramatic changes. A new K-12 framework has been put in place with the curriculum divided into Essential Learning Areas and Essential Skills Areas. For the first time, all students are required to develop information skills. However, New Zealand has never had a tradition of full-time…

Based on two studies, this report describes aspects of kindergarten teachers' contact with parents. The first study, which took place in Auckland (New Zealand) in 1983, looked at the way parents are introduced to kindergarten, particularly through home visiting and group pre-entry sessions. The second study was a national study designed to look at…

We position teaching as a complex, creative profession and have an expectation that practicum should support the reflexive, possibility-thinking and risk-taking creative endeavours of the beginning teacher. This paper reports on a series of studies that explored shared understandings and effectiveness of relationships and roles of practicum…

The purpose of this study was to describe and evaluate the operational theories of six early childhood teachers in a child care center and kindergarten in New Zealand. It is suggested that teacher educators have a responsibility to address the significant gaps in some teachers' theoretical accounts of their own practice, and that practice is most…