title: An auto-ethnography: Decolonising educational leadership in Aotearoa /New Zealand

authors: Murfitt, Daniel

abstract: This auto-ethnography examines how I, as the principal in an English-medium state secondary school in Aotearoa/New Zealand, hence forth referred to as Aotearoa, collaborated to transform the school culture, leading to improved outcomes for indigenous Māori students. By examining the transcripts of interviews between myself and external researchers, the key strategies and behaviours of decolonising and transformative leadership that led the transformation of a school culture and system, begin to be revealed.
Imperative in addressing the long-term underachievement of Māori students as a result of colonisation is a framework for educational leaders to both challenge and transform a system, created through colonisation, that continues to underserve Māori students and whānau .
The findings provide examples and tested guidelines for leaders to work within transformative spaces, created through a decolonising leadership framework. It provides a model of effective leadership utilising deliberate acts of decolonisation alongside partnerships of mana ōrite  to transform negative systems and behaviours perpetuated by colonisation.

text: An auto-ethnography: Decolonising educational leadership in Aotearoa /New Zealand This auto-ethnography examines how I, as the principal in an English-medium state secondary school in Aotearoa/New Zealand, hence forth referred to as Aotearoa, collaborated to transform the school culture, leading to improved outcomes for indigenous Māori students. By examining the transcripts of interviews between myself and external researchers, the key strategies and behaviours of decolonising and transformative leadership that led the transformation of a school culture and system, begin to be revealed.
Imperative in addressing the long-term underachievement of Māori students as a result of colonisation is a framework for educational leaders to both challenge and transform a system, created through colonisation, that continues to underserve Māori students and whānau .
The findings provide examples and tested guidelines for leaders to work within transformative spaces, created through a decolonising leadership framework. It provides a model of effective leadership utilising deliberate acts of decolonisation alongside partnerships of mana ōrite  to transform negative systems and behaviours perpetuated by colonisation.

year: 2019

title: Dis-lodging literature from English: Challenging linguistic hegemonies

authors: Locke, Terry

subjects: literature

abstract: This paper problematises the location of literature "teaching" within the English (L1) curriculum, as is the case in New Zealand and other settings. It defamiliarises this arrangement by drawing attention to official New Zealand policies of biculturalism and to the increasing cultural and linguistic diversity in many New Zealand classrooms. It identifies a number of social justice issues arising from the current arrangement, and also raises issues in respect of educational policy and ways in which canonical subjects become constructed in practice. It then discusses ways in which a new qualifications template developed at the University of Waikato might provide a vehicle for establishing a new arrangement, in terms of which literature study is dislodged from English and reshaped as a course of study entitled Literature in Society. It indicates ways in which Comparative Literature, as a predominantly university-constituted discipline, might contribute to the theorisation of this new arrangement.

text: Dis-lodging literature from English: Challenging linguistic hegemonies This paper problematises the location of literature "teaching" within the English (L1) curriculum, as is the case in New Zealand and other settings. It defamiliarises this arrangement by drawing attention to official New Zealand policies of biculturalism and to the increasing cultural and linguistic diversity in many New Zealand classrooms. It identifies a number of social justice issues arising from the current arrangement, and also raises issues in respect of educational policy and ways in which canonical subjects become constructed in practice. It then discusses ways in which a new qualifications template developed at the University of Waikato might provide a vehicle for establishing a new arrangement, in terms of which literature study is dislodged from English and reshaped as a course of study entitled Literature in Society. It indicates ways in which Comparative Literature, as a predominantly university-constituted discipline, might contribute to the theorisation of this new arrangement.

year: 2004-05-01

title: Larval fish of Tauranga Harbour

authors: Brooke, Nathania

subjects: estuary

abstract: Estuaries are important nursery habitats for many fish species, both in New Zealand and worldwide, characterised by high levels of primary production, shallow warmer waters, and affording relative protection from predators. Many estuaries are under constant threat from anthropogenic stressors due to the vicinity of industries that can cause contamination. It is necessary to first understand how larval fish use estuaries in order to understand the potential effects of anthropogenic impacts on their life history stages. Few studies in New Zealand have examined the use of estuaries by pre-settlement larvae. The majority of research undertaken in New Zealand on larval fish has been completed in coastal waters, examining the effects of seasonality, distribution patters, and growth of larvae. The objectives of this research were to increase understanding as to how larval fish use Tauranga Harbour. The study used a stationary channel net at Bridge Marina to intensively sample over one summer, and fortnightly over the ensuing 16 months, in an effort to discover which species of larval fish are found within the harbour; if they were more abundant on the flood or ebb tides; if they were more abundant during the day or night; if any patterns of seasonality were present; and if the abundance was affected by environmental variables such as water temperature or current speed. A choice chamber experiment was conducted to assess if larval kingfish (a species not found in the estuarine sampling programme), were able to differentiate between two different water types - estuarine and oceanic, in an effort to assess if larvae may use olfactory cues when choosing a habitat. 

The larvae of at least 19 species from 18 families were caught during the intensive summer sampling, and at least 13 species from 11 families during the fortnightly sampling, with no new species found during the fortnightly sampling. Three taxa (anchovy Engraulis australis, Tripterygiidae and Gobiidae) were the most abundant over the entire sampling period, making up the majority of all catches. Larvae were found in higher abundances at night compared to the day, and no significant difference was found between abundances on the flood and ebb tides. Seasonality had an effect on larval fish abundance, with higher abundances caught during spring and summer. The kingfish larvae in the choice chamber experiment appeared to display a preference for the oceanic water over the estuarine water.

The findings of this study indicate that larval fish of a range of species use Tauranga Harbour potentially as a nursery. Not surprisingly perhaps, estuarine species were found in the highest abundances. Larval abundance in the estuarine water column is affected primarily by the diel cycle, with larvae displaying behaviours of diel vertical migration and possibly selective tidal stream transport. Abundances of larvae peaked during spring and summer when the water temperature begins to warm after winter, coinciding with the spawning seasons of many fish species. Larval kingfish displayed an attraction towards oceanic water, or perhaps an avoidance of the estuarine water. This suggests that olfactory stimuli are important when choosing potential habitats, signifying that larval fish of estuarine species may actively seek out refuge within an estuary using olfactory cues. This study provides a good benchmark for future studies on larval fish within Tauranga Harbour and other estuarine systems.

text: Larval fish of Tauranga Harbour Estuaries are important nursery habitats for many fish species, both in New Zealand and worldwide, characterised by high levels of primary production, shallow warmer waters, and affording relative protection from predators. Many estuaries are under constant threat from anthropogenic stressors due to the vicinity of industries that can cause contamination. It is necessary to first understand how larval fish use estuaries in order to understand the potential effects of anthropogenic impacts on their life history stages. Few studies in New Zealand have examined the use of estuaries by pre-settlement larvae. The majority of research undertaken in New Zealand on larval fish has been completed in coastal waters, examining the effects of seasonality, distribution patters, and growth of larvae. The objectives of this research were to increase understanding as to how larval fish use Tauranga Harbour. The study used a stationary channel net at Bridge Marina to intensively sample over one summer, and fortnightly over the ensuing 16 months, in an effort to discover which species of larval fish are found within the harbour; if they were more abundant on the flood or ebb tides; if they were more abundant during the day or night; if any patterns of seasonality were present; and if the abundance was affected by environmental variables such as water temperature or current speed. A choice chamber experiment was conducted to assess if larval kingfish (a species not found in the estuarine sampling programme), were able to differentiate between two different water types - estuarine and oceanic, in an effort to assess if larvae may use olfactory cues when choosing a habitat. 

The larvae of at least 19 species from 18 families were caught during the intensive summer sampling, and at least 13 species from 11 families during the fortnightly sampling, with no new species found during the fortnightly sampling. Three taxa (anchovy Engraulis australis, Tripterygiidae and Gobiidae) were the most abundant over the entire sampling period, making up the majority of all catches. Larvae were found in higher abundances at night compared to the day, and no significant difference was found between abundances on the flood and ebb tides. Seasonality had an effect on larval fish abundance, with higher abundances caught during spring and summer. The kingfish larvae in the choice chamber experiment appeared to display a preference for the oceanic water over the estuarine water.

The findings of this study indicate that larval fish of a range of species use Tauranga Harbour potentially as a nursery. Not surprisingly perhaps, estuarine species were found in the highest abundances. Larval abundance in the estuarine water column is affected primarily by the diel cycle, with larvae displaying behaviours of diel vertical migration and possibly selective tidal stream transport. Abundances of larvae peaked during spring and summer when the water temperature begins to warm after winter, coinciding with the spawning seasons of many fish species. Larval kingfish displayed an attraction towards oceanic water, or perhaps an avoidance of the estuarine water. This suggests that olfactory stimuli are important when choosing potential habitats, signifying that larval fish of estuarine species may actively seek out refuge within an estuary using olfactory cues. This study provides a good benchmark for future studies on larval fish within Tauranga Harbour and other estuarine systems.

year: 2015