title: Technology education in New Zealand

authors: Forret, Michael

abstract: Technology is one of the seven essential learning areas included to achieve the knowledge and understanding that all New Zealanders need to acquire (Ministry of Education, 1993). Responsibility for the implementation of these curricula rests with schools which have flexibility in making implementation decisions. Within the national curriculum framework, all curriculum statements must reflect the principles of the national curriculum framework, specify clear learning outcomes against which students’ achievements can be assessed, have learning outcomes or objectives defined over eight progressive levels, and be grouped in a number of strands. The national curriculum framework’s principles relate to learning and achievement, development of school programs, and aspects of social justice and equity.

text: Technology education in New Zealand Technology is one of the seven essential learning areas included to achieve the knowledge and understanding that all New Zealanders need to acquire (Ministry of Education, 1993). Responsibility for the implementation of these curricula rests with schools which have flexibility in making implementation decisions. Within the national curriculum framework, all curriculum statements must reflect the principles of the national curriculum framework, specify clear learning outcomes against which students’ achievements can be assessed, have learning outcomes or objectives defined over eight progressive levels, and be grouped in a number of strands. The national curriculum framework’s principles relate to learning and achievement, development of school programs, and aspects of social justice and equity.

year: 2002

title: Achieving reliable and repeatable electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of rechargeable batteries at extra-low frequencies

authors: Dunn, Christopher

abstract: There is a need for techniques for efficient and accurate measurement of the impedance of rechargeable batteries at extra-low frequencies (ELFs, of the order of microhertz), as these reflect real usage and cycling patterns, and their importance in fractional battery circuit modeling is becoming increasingly apparent. Major impediments include the time required to perform such measurements and “drift” in impedance values when measurements are taken from the same battery at different times. Moreover, commercial impedance analyzers are generally unable to measure at these frequencies. We describe here our use of programmable two-quadrant power supplies to deliver multiple small-signal measurement tones in the presence of large-signal “working” currents, and our use of these data to generate impedance measurements with good precision and in reasonable time. The improvement in the quality of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) data is verified through root-mean-square error (RMSE) when fitting equivalent-circuit models (ECMs).

text: Achieving reliable and repeatable electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of rechargeable batteries at extra-low frequencies There is a need for techniques for efficient and accurate measurement of the impedance of rechargeable batteries at extra-low frequencies (ELFs, of the order of microhertz), as these reflect real usage and cycling patterns, and their importance in fractional battery circuit modeling is becoming increasingly apparent. Major impediments include the time required to perform such measurements and “drift” in impedance values when measurements are taken from the same battery at different times. Moreover, commercial impedance analyzers are generally unable to measure at these frequencies. We describe here our use of programmable two-quadrant power supplies to deliver multiple small-signal measurement tones in the presence of large-signal “working” currents, and our use of these data to generate impedance measurements with good precision and in reasonable time. The improvement in the quality of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) data is verified through root-mean-square error (RMSE) when fitting equivalent-circuit models (ECMs).

year: 2022

title: Investigating the Social Supports of Successful Māori Undergraduate Appellants at the University of Waikato

authors: Diamond, Danielle Jade

subjects: Social Supports

abstract: Educational disparities between Māori and non-Māori tertiary students are evident in regards to participation, retention, and completion rates at secondary and tertiary levels. Instead of focusing on negative statistics, it was of interest to investigate Māori students who had failed sufficient papers to initially be denied re-entry to university study, yet continued to attain their degrees, as a result of a successful appeal. Māori undergraduate students, who had successfully appealed from 2003-2012, were recruited for my research. The availability and utilisation of social supports were investigated, along with the decision to make an appeal, the role of cultural expectations, and barriers experienced by participants. A mixed method approach was utilised in this research through use of an adapted overarching Kaupapa Māori framework, statistical analysis, and 13 interviews. My research found that social supports were beneficial for participants throughout their appeal, as they provided: emotional, instrumental, appraisal, and informational support. Although the social supports utilised by participants were satisfactory, barriers to accessing formal supports were also found, which included: perceived stigma having failed their papers, pride, as well as being whakamā. The appeal process was a beneficial intervention from the University of Waikato, which provided participants another opportunity to overcome the factors that contributed to their initial failure. Post appeal, participants implemented strategies to address and reduce their factors in order to become academically engaged. Participants were deemed to be resilient from their continued pursuit of degree attainment, implementation of their strategies, and their use of perceived social supports.

text: Investigating the Social Supports of Successful Māori Undergraduate Appellants at the University of Waikato Educational disparities between Māori and non-Māori tertiary students are evident in regards to participation, retention, and completion rates at secondary and tertiary levels. Instead of focusing on negative statistics, it was of interest to investigate Māori students who had failed sufficient papers to initially be denied re-entry to university study, yet continued to attain their degrees, as a result of a successful appeal. Māori undergraduate students, who had successfully appealed from 2003-2012, were recruited for my research. The availability and utilisation of social supports were investigated, along with the decision to make an appeal, the role of cultural expectations, and barriers experienced by participants. A mixed method approach was utilised in this research through use of an adapted overarching Kaupapa Māori framework, statistical analysis, and 13 interviews. My research found that social supports were beneficial for participants throughout their appeal, as they provided: emotional, instrumental, appraisal, and informational support. Although the social supports utilised by participants were satisfactory, barriers to accessing formal supports were also found, which included: perceived stigma having failed their papers, pride, as well as being whakamā. The appeal process was a beneficial intervention from the University of Waikato, which provided participants another opportunity to overcome the factors that contributed to their initial failure. Post appeal, participants implemented strategies to address and reduce their factors in order to become academically engaged. Participants were deemed to be resilient from their continued pursuit of degree attainment, implementation of their strategies, and their use of perceived social supports.

year: 2013