title: Should I stay or should I go now? Views of international high school students on completing their tertiary education in New Zealand

authors: Henderson, Scott Ashton

subjects: international

abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate the motivating factors behind the decisions that international high school students make when deciding to come to New Zealand, and their decisions to continue onto tertiary studies in New Zealand or to return home. The rationale is that if these motivating factors are better understood, it might be possible to create an environment in New Zealand tertiary institutions that would encourage more students to come, stay and continue to study here. The investigation used a mixed method design, using both focus groups and an online survey that yielded a combination of qualitative and quantitative data. The findings from the focus groups formed the foundation of the questions for a wider survey of students in the Bay of Plenty and Waikato. The results were discussed using an established push-pull model of international student motivations (Mazzarol & Soutar, 2002).
The results suggest that international students come to New Zealand because it has a good education system and there is a wide range of subjects available. In addition, New Zealand is perceived as clean and beautiful country that can offer a safe environment for international students. Students come to the Bay of Plenty region for the lifestyle and are less likely to continue to tertiary studies in New Zealand than those students who studied in the Waikato region. Furthermore, according to how students explained their future study plans, it was not envisaged that the Bay of Plenty would retain any of the students surveyed, while the Waikato region was set to retain half of the students surveyed in the Waikato. The international students more likely to stay on are Asian—they perceive that the quality of education in New Zealand to be of a high standard and that New Zealand offers a good study environment for international students. These students’ decisions are strongly influenced by their parents, education agents back home and international managers in New Zealand. European students make their own study destination decisions with the support of their parents. They have more confidence in their English ability in comparison to Asian students, but are more likely to return home where they have access to low cost, high quality education. The results also indicate that the vast majority of students made their future study plans before they came to New Zealand. The results furthermore confirm that students who have been in New Zealand for over a year do not see studying in English as a major barrier to completing their studies, but in the case of those leaving, the main attraction is to study in a familiar culture and language context with the support of friends and family.
The study considers the complex mesh of push-pull factors and their effect on student decision-making. The results have potentially strong implications for attracting students who are undecided in relation to their future education destination. This is to say, these students may be able to be encouraged to stay if they were offered more access to career advice and if someone from the universities or polytechnics would come and explain the study options to them. The tertiary environment students would thrive in is likely to be one that offers highly regarded international qualifications, a supportive academic environment, financial support, and the opportunity to get out and enjoy New Zealand’s natural environment and interact with New Zealand students.

text: Should I stay or should I go now? Views of international high school students on completing their tertiary education in New Zealand The aim of this study was to investigate the motivating factors behind the decisions that international high school students make when deciding to come to New Zealand, and their decisions to continue onto tertiary studies in New Zealand or to return home. The rationale is that if these motivating factors are better understood, it might be possible to create an environment in New Zealand tertiary institutions that would encourage more students to come, stay and continue to study here. The investigation used a mixed method design, using both focus groups and an online survey that yielded a combination of qualitative and quantitative data. The findings from the focus groups formed the foundation of the questions for a wider survey of students in the Bay of Plenty and Waikato. The results were discussed using an established push-pull model of international student motivations (Mazzarol & Soutar, 2002).
The results suggest that international students come to New Zealand because it has a good education system and there is a wide range of subjects available. In addition, New Zealand is perceived as clean and beautiful country that can offer a safe environment for international students. Students come to the Bay of Plenty region for the lifestyle and are less likely to continue to tertiary studies in New Zealand than those students who studied in the Waikato region. Furthermore, according to how students explained their future study plans, it was not envisaged that the Bay of Plenty would retain any of the students surveyed, while the Waikato region was set to retain half of the students surveyed in the Waikato. The international students more likely to stay on are Asian—they perceive that the quality of education in New Zealand to be of a high standard and that New Zealand offers a good study environment for international students. These students’ decisions are strongly influenced by their parents, education agents back home and international managers in New Zealand. European students make their own study destination decisions with the support of their parents. They have more confidence in their English ability in comparison to Asian students, but are more likely to return home where they have access to low cost, high quality education. The results also indicate that the vast majority of students made their future study plans before they came to New Zealand. The results furthermore confirm that students who have been in New Zealand for over a year do not see studying in English as a major barrier to completing their studies, but in the case of those leaving, the main attraction is to study in a familiar culture and language context with the support of friends and family.
The study considers the complex mesh of push-pull factors and their effect on student decision-making. The results have potentially strong implications for attracting students who are undecided in relation to their future education destination. This is to say, these students may be able to be encouraged to stay if they were offered more access to career advice and if someone from the universities or polytechnics would come and explain the study options to them. The tertiary environment students would thrive in is likely to be one that offers highly regarded international qualifications, a supportive academic environment, financial support, and the opportunity to get out and enjoy New Zealand’s natural environment and interact with New Zealand students.

year: 2016

title: The potential placebo effect of advanced footwear technology on running economy and comfort in female recreational runners

authors: Pfister, Ashlynne

abstract: Since the release of advanced footwear technology (AFT) in 2017, the running landscape has changed forever. However, researchers are unable to decisively conclude what part of AFT contributes the most to running economy (RE) improvements, with some eluding to a potential placebo effect of AFT shoes. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the presence of a potential placebo effect of AFT on RE and perceptual measures in female recreational runners.

Chapter One provides a brief overview of the origins of AFT, the properties of AFT proposed to contribute to RE improvements, shoe comfort, and placebo effects in sports and footwear research. Features of AFT shoes typically are a curved geometry, a rigid plate embedded in the midsole, and a resilient and compliant energy-returning foam midsole. AFT shoes are also typically lightweight, linked with improved RE. Research generally reports an average improvement in RE of runners when wearing AFT; however, responses are variable and there are responders and non-responders to AFT.

In Chapter Two, 26 female recreational runners (age: 34.7 ± 10.1 y, VO2peak: 45.19 ± 4.65 mL/kg/min) completed one session at the University of Waikato Adams Centre for High Performance Laboratory to assess RE and perceptual measures in two pairs of women’s Nike Vaporfly NEXT% 2. Participants completed 4 x 6-minute RE trials in these two pairs of shoes. One pair was described as a performance-enhancing super shoe (SS) with AFT worn by elite athletes, and the other pair was spray-painted black and described as a “knock-off” (KO) of the performance-enhancing shoe without AFT. Data from 24 participants were analysed (age: 33.3 ± 8.9 y, VO2peak: 45.58 ± 4.17 mL/kg/min) as physiological data from two participants suggested running above their aerobic threshold. Oxygen consumption was not significantly different between SS and KO (mean difference: 0.24 ± 0.64 mL/kg/min, p = 0.077, d = 0.11 [-0.01, 0.23]). Overall comfort on a 100 mm visual analogue scale (VAS) was significantly greater in SS than KO (mean difference: 14.6 ± 15.0 mm, p < 0.001, d = 0.94 [0.46, 1.40]), with 87.5% of runners preferring the SS over the KO. Runners perceived running as more enjoyable and less difficult, and perceived an improved running performance and lower injury risk in SS when compared to KO based on visual analogue scale scores (p ≤ 0.009, d = 0.72 to 1.16). While no significant physiological difference was observed between shoes, a significant difference in perceived comfort and performance was observed favouring the performance-enhancing SS, suggesting a perceptual placebo effect based on shoe description alone.

Chapter Three summarises the findings and provides avenues for future research. Overall, this thesis provides evidence that product descriptions can influence the perception of shoe comfort, performance, and injury risk. The improvements in RE reported for AFT shoes appear underpinned by how runners interact with the shoe properties, rather than by a placebo effect – at least in female recreational runners. Investigating a potential placebo effect in AFT during maximal running performances may provide further insight into the performance enhancements associated with shoes containing AFT.

text: The potential placebo effect of advanced footwear technology on running economy and comfort in female recreational runners Since the release of advanced footwear technology (AFT) in 2017, the running landscape has changed forever. However, researchers are unable to decisively conclude what part of AFT contributes the most to running economy (RE) improvements, with some eluding to a potential placebo effect of AFT shoes. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the presence of a potential placebo effect of AFT on RE and perceptual measures in female recreational runners.

Chapter One provides a brief overview of the origins of AFT, the properties of AFT proposed to contribute to RE improvements, shoe comfort, and placebo effects in sports and footwear research. Features of AFT shoes typically are a curved geometry, a rigid plate embedded in the midsole, and a resilient and compliant energy-returning foam midsole. AFT shoes are also typically lightweight, linked with improved RE. Research generally reports an average improvement in RE of runners when wearing AFT; however, responses are variable and there are responders and non-responders to AFT.

In Chapter Two, 26 female recreational runners (age: 34.7 ± 10.1 y, VO2peak: 45.19 ± 4.65 mL/kg/min) completed one session at the University of Waikato Adams Centre for High Performance Laboratory to assess RE and perceptual measures in two pairs of women’s Nike Vaporfly NEXT% 2. Participants completed 4 x 6-minute RE trials in these two pairs of shoes. One pair was described as a performance-enhancing super shoe (SS) with AFT worn by elite athletes, and the other pair was spray-painted black and described as a “knock-off” (KO) of the performance-enhancing shoe without AFT. Data from 24 participants were analysed (age: 33.3 ± 8.9 y, VO2peak: 45.58 ± 4.17 mL/kg/min) as physiological data from two participants suggested running above their aerobic threshold. Oxygen consumption was not significantly different between SS and KO (mean difference: 0.24 ± 0.64 mL/kg/min, p = 0.077, d = 0.11 [-0.01, 0.23]). Overall comfort on a 100 mm visual analogue scale (VAS) was significantly greater in SS than KO (mean difference: 14.6 ± 15.0 mm, p < 0.001, d = 0.94 [0.46, 1.40]), with 87.5% of runners preferring the SS over the KO. Runners perceived running as more enjoyable and less difficult, and perceived an improved running performance and lower injury risk in SS when compared to KO based on visual analogue scale scores (p ≤ 0.009, d = 0.72 to 1.16). While no significant physiological difference was observed between shoes, a significant difference in perceived comfort and performance was observed favouring the performance-enhancing SS, suggesting a perceptual placebo effect based on shoe description alone.

Chapter Three summarises the findings and provides avenues for future research. Overall, this thesis provides evidence that product descriptions can influence the perception of shoe comfort, performance, and injury risk. The improvements in RE reported for AFT shoes appear underpinned by how runners interact with the shoe properties, rather than by a placebo effect – at least in female recreational runners. Investigating a potential placebo effect in AFT during maximal running performances may provide further insight into the performance enhancements associated with shoes containing AFT.

year: 2024

title: Kia whakatōmuri te haere whakamua: ‘I walk backwards into the future with my eyes fixed on my past’

authors: Rameka, Lesley Kay

subjects: Māori

abstract: This whakataukī or ‘proverb’ speaks to Māori perspectives of time, where the past, the present and the future are viewed as intertwined, and life as a continuous cosmic process. Within this continuous cosmic movement, time has no restrictions – it is both past and present. The past is central to and shapes both present and future identity. From this perspective, the individual carries their past into the future. The strength of carrying one’s past into the future is that ancestors are ever present, existing both within the spiritual realm and in the physical, alongside the living as well as within the living. This article explores Māori perspectives of the past and the models and inspiration they offer. In this way, it provides a critique of the practices in early childhood education, highlighting the importance of cultural concepts and practices, and discusses implications for both teaching and academic practice.

text: Kia whakatōmuri te haere whakamua: ‘I walk backwards into the future with my eyes fixed on my past’ This whakataukī or ‘proverb’ speaks to Māori perspectives of time, where the past, the present and the future are viewed as intertwined, and life as a continuous cosmic process. Within this continuous cosmic movement, time has no restrictions – it is both past and present. The past is central to and shapes both present and future identity. From this perspective, the individual carries their past into the future. The strength of carrying one’s past into the future is that ancestors are ever present, existing both within the spiritual realm and in the physical, alongside the living as well as within the living. This article explores Māori perspectives of the past and the models and inspiration they offer. In this way, it provides a critique of the practices in early childhood education, highlighting the importance of cultural concepts and practices, and discusses implications for both teaching and academic practice.

year: 2017