title: Uncovering meanings: The discourses of New Zealand secondary teachers in context

authors: Alcorn, Noeline

subjects: context

abstract: Recent official policy discourses on student achievement have stressed the importance of teachers and the impact that effective teaching can have on student life chances and on national economic performance. There is also a body of research on the way teaching and learning are affected by school context. This article discusses research designed to investigate how and to what extent the contextual features of schools impacted on the beliefs New Zealand secondary teachers and principals held about teaching and learning, the extent to which they believed their agency could influence outcomes for their students, and the aspirations and goals they pursued. We interviewed principals and teachers in six secondary schools, two each in high, mid and low socio-economic areas. The findings show considerable commonality in teachers' pedagogical discourses and that the rhetoric of formal policy discourses is pervasive and normalized in schools. All the teachers believed they could make a difference to student achievement and life chances, tried to address diversity among their student bodies, and saw success as much wider than academic achievement. Concurrently we found that the institutional habitus of each school largely determined how discourses were enacted and that relationships, confidence, student-centredness and success were interpreted differently between schools. We argue that these differences must be taken into account if school policies and interventions are to be successful.

text: Uncovering meanings: The discourses of New Zealand secondary teachers in context Recent official policy discourses on student achievement have stressed the importance of teachers and the impact that effective teaching can have on student life chances and on national economic performance. There is also a body of research on the way teaching and learning are affected by school context. This article discusses research designed to investigate how and to what extent the contextual features of schools impacted on the beliefs New Zealand secondary teachers and principals held about teaching and learning, the extent to which they believed their agency could influence outcomes for their students, and the aspirations and goals they pursued. We interviewed principals and teachers in six secondary schools, two each in high, mid and low socio-economic areas. The findings show considerable commonality in teachers' pedagogical discourses and that the rhetoric of formal policy discourses is pervasive and normalized in schools. All the teachers believed they could make a difference to student achievement and life chances, tried to address diversity among their student bodies, and saw success as much wider than academic achievement. Concurrently we found that the institutional habitus of each school largely determined how discourses were enacted and that relationships, confidence, student-centredness and success were interpreted differently between schools. We argue that these differences must be taken into account if school policies and interventions are to be successful.

year: 2012

title: Comparison of various methods to delineate blood vessels in retinal images

authors: Cree, Michael J.

subjects: engineering

abstract: The blood vessels in the human retina are easily visualisable via digital fundus photography and provide an excellent window to the health of a patient affected by diseases of blood circulation such as diabetes. Diabetic retinopathy is identifiable through lesions of the vessels such as narrowing of the arteriole walls, beading of venules into sausage like structures and new vessel growth as an attempt to reperfuse ischaemic regions. Automated quantification of these lesions would be beneficial to diabetes research and to clinical practice, particularly for eye-screening programmes for the detection of eye-disease amongst diabetic persons.

text: Comparison of various methods to delineate blood vessels in retinal images The blood vessels in the human retina are easily visualisable via digital fundus photography and provide an excellent window to the health of a patient affected by diseases of blood circulation such as diabetes. Diabetic retinopathy is identifiable through lesions of the vessels such as narrowing of the arteriole walls, beading of venules into sausage like structures and new vessel growth as an attempt to reperfuse ischaemic regions. Automated quantification of these lesions would be beneficial to diabetes research and to clinical practice, particularly for eye-screening programmes for the detection of eye-disease amongst diabetic persons.

year: 2005

title: A new beginning for indigenous wellbeing - Guest editorial

authors: Nikora, Linda Waimarie

abstract: Three members of the editorial board of the Journal of Indigenous Wellbeing – Te Mauri: Pimatisiwin and the Editor reflect on the genesis of the journal, comment on its journey over time, review its mission moving forward and introduces the first edition of the journal August 2016. The authors of this article include the current editorial board’s chairperson, two board members – one a past editor of the journal, the other, the journal’s present patron and the current editor.

text: A new beginning for indigenous wellbeing - Guest editorial Three members of the editorial board of the Journal of Indigenous Wellbeing – Te Mauri: Pimatisiwin and the Editor reflect on the genesis of the journal, comment on its journey over time, review its mission moving forward and introduces the first edition of the journal August 2016. The authors of this article include the current editorial board’s chairperson, two board members – one a past editor of the journal, the other, the journal’s present patron and the current editor.

year: 2016