title: De-mythologizing and re-branding the traditional drink kava

authors: Aporosa, S. 'Apo'

abstract: Kava, a plant lacking seeds or a means to self-propagate, is believed to have first originated in Northern Vanuatu thousands of years ago. Those origins add to kava’s spiritual significance and recognition as a ‘plant of the gods’. For instance, ‘who else other than the Pacific ancestral gods would have planted and tended kava until the arrival of the first indigenous explorers into the Pacific around 2500 years ago?’; a people who then spread kava throughout the region along migration trade routes. Used in traditional medicine, its roots are also ground and steeped in water to make a drink which continues to be used by Pacific peoples today to infuse spiritual power into ceremony and significant life events, and to facilitate discussion and socialisation.

text: De-mythologizing and re-branding the traditional drink kava Kava, a plant lacking seeds or a means to self-propagate, is believed to have first originated in Northern Vanuatu thousands of years ago. Those origins add to kava’s spiritual significance and recognition as a ‘plant of the gods’. For instance, ‘who else other than the Pacific ancestral gods would have planted and tended kava until the arrival of the first indigenous explorers into the Pacific around 2500 years ago?’; a people who then spread kava throughout the region along migration trade routes. Used in traditional medicine, its roots are also ground and steeped in water to make a drink which continues to be used by Pacific peoples today to infuse spiritual power into ceremony and significant life events, and to facilitate discussion and socialisation.

year: 2020

title: Places we call home: Representing place and identity in contemporary dance performance

authors: Barbour, Karen

abstract: In this article, I discuss ongoing research investigating methods of representing place and identity in contemporary dance performance. A feminist and phenomenological perspective provides the basis for this creative practice as research, in which I bring environmental concerns, moving images, choreographic and place-based pedagogical practices into dialogue with autoethnographic approaches. Initially I developed a range of creative methods in creating a solo dance, and then applied these methods to the development of a trio dance work titled Places we call home. Guiding the research was a general question regarding experiences of “place” and “home,” with sub-questions relating to the use of embodied and narrative methods and moving images to express sensory experiences. Both the solo and trio dances were presented in a theatre to conference and public audiences. I will discuss the practical application of these creative practice research methods, the lived experiences of the dancers and myself as choreographer, and the outcomes of the research in response to the research questions. This discussion provides a context to contribute to interdisciplinary methodological innovations in creative practice as research, and also to current socio-cultural discussion relating to identity and sense of place.

text: Places we call home: Representing place and identity in contemporary dance performance In this article, I discuss ongoing research investigating methods of representing place and identity in contemporary dance performance. A feminist and phenomenological perspective provides the basis for this creative practice as research, in which I bring environmental concerns, moving images, choreographic and place-based pedagogical practices into dialogue with autoethnographic approaches. Initially I developed a range of creative methods in creating a solo dance, and then applied these methods to the development of a trio dance work titled Places we call home. Guiding the research was a general question regarding experiences of “place” and “home,” with sub-questions relating to the use of embodied and narrative methods and moving images to express sensory experiences. Both the solo and trio dances were presented in a theatre to conference and public audiences. I will discuss the practical application of these creative practice research methods, the lived experiences of the dancers and myself as choreographer, and the outcomes of the research in response to the research questions. This discussion provides a context to contribute to interdisciplinary methodological innovations in creative practice as research, and also to current socio-cultural discussion relating to identity and sense of place.

year: 2016

title: Tīhei Mauri Ora: Negotiating primary school teachers' personal and professional identities as Māori

authors: Gilgen, Renée

subjects: Professional Learning and Development for teachers

abstract: Colonial attitudes that positioned Māori language, knowledge and pedagogy as inferior and deficient continue to impact on 21st century primary school contexts in Aotearoa/New Zealand. They continue to impact particularly on the personal and professional identities and experiences of Māori teachers in contemporary English-medium schools. Just as, historically, Māori students were expected to leave their language and culture at the 19th century colonial school gates, so too are many contemporary Māori teachers in mainstream schools expected to set aside their language and culture and engage with the curriculum and pedagogy of the school where they work. Ironically, at the same time, these teachers are often expected to guide and assist their school to meet its requirements under Te Tiriti o Waitangi/Treaty of Waitangi to ensure that its Māori students will succeed as Māori.

This thesis sought to understand how a small cohort of experienced Māori teachers, positioned within 21st century English-medium primary schools, perceived and negotiated the challenges to their personal and professional identities as Māori, and as Māori teachers. The thesis employed a qualitative participant narrative methodology, framed with kaupapa Māori theory. The teachers participated in individual interviews and in a series of hui kōrero (focused conversations) that assisted them to reflect critically on sociohistorical and educational factors that influenced the formation and maintenance of their identities as Māori.

The teachers’ narratives that emerged from individual and collaborative hui kōrero revealed that (1) being raised within urban environments and being themselves educated in monocultural schools during the 1960s and 1970s strongly impacted on how their Māori identities were shaped and, (2) their teaching experiences within English-medium primary schools and classrooms were culturally isolating and destructive, and largely unsupportive of the diverse realities that exists for some Māori teachers.

I offer two key strategic responses to these findings. Firstly, I offer a self-identity continuum that seeks to respect and affirm Māori identity by taking into account the different levels and contexts of experience some Māori teachers may have with Māori cultural concepts and practices. Secondly, I assert the need for a culturally located and relational space within English-medium school contexts for Māori teachers to engage with, and draw on the support of other Māori teachers in order to affirm their varying personal and professional identities as Māori. Meeting this need is understood as a Tiriti o Waitangi/Treaty-honouring response, required of all schools.

text: Tīhei Mauri Ora: Negotiating primary school teachers' personal and professional identities as Māori Colonial attitudes that positioned Māori language, knowledge and pedagogy as inferior and deficient continue to impact on 21st century primary school contexts in Aotearoa/New Zealand. They continue to impact particularly on the personal and professional identities and experiences of Māori teachers in contemporary English-medium schools. Just as, historically, Māori students were expected to leave their language and culture at the 19th century colonial school gates, so too are many contemporary Māori teachers in mainstream schools expected to set aside their language and culture and engage with the curriculum and pedagogy of the school where they work. Ironically, at the same time, these teachers are often expected to guide and assist their school to meet its requirements under Te Tiriti o Waitangi/Treaty of Waitangi to ensure that its Māori students will succeed as Māori.

This thesis sought to understand how a small cohort of experienced Māori teachers, positioned within 21st century English-medium primary schools, perceived and negotiated the challenges to their personal and professional identities as Māori, and as Māori teachers. The thesis employed a qualitative participant narrative methodology, framed with kaupapa Māori theory. The teachers participated in individual interviews and in a series of hui kōrero (focused conversations) that assisted them to reflect critically on sociohistorical and educational factors that influenced the formation and maintenance of their identities as Māori.

The teachers’ narratives that emerged from individual and collaborative hui kōrero revealed that (1) being raised within urban environments and being themselves educated in monocultural schools during the 1960s and 1970s strongly impacted on how their Māori identities were shaped and, (2) their teaching experiences within English-medium primary schools and classrooms were culturally isolating and destructive, and largely unsupportive of the diverse realities that exists for some Māori teachers.

I offer two key strategic responses to these findings. Firstly, I offer a self-identity continuum that seeks to respect and affirm Māori identity by taking into account the different levels and contexts of experience some Māori teachers may have with Māori cultural concepts and practices. Secondly, I assert the need for a culturally located and relational space within English-medium school contexts for Māori teachers to engage with, and draw on the support of other Māori teachers in order to affirm their varying personal and professional identities as Māori. Meeting this need is understood as a Tiriti o Waitangi/Treaty-honouring response, required of all schools.

year: 2016