title: Assessment for learning in design and technology: An ethnographic study in Mauritius state secondary schools

authors: Boodhoo, Chandan

subjects: Assessment for learning

abstract: Research advocates that it is the teacher’s role to support learners to take the next steps in their learning. ‘Assessment for learning’, considered as a bridge between teaching and learning, not only provides teachers with multiple possibilities to enhance students’ learning, but can also transform their own practice. Despite research interest in educational assessment, teachers’ ‘assessment for learning’ behaviours and perceptions are under-researched. This study investigated Design and Technology teachers’ ‘assessment for learning’ practices in state secondary schools in Mauritius since little is known about this context. A constructivist epistemology, naturalistic interpretative perspective and an ethnographic methodology was used to understand the participants’ ‘assessment for learning’ practices in their natural settings. The study was underpinned by sociocultural theory, Foucault’s and Bourdieu’s critical theories, and Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model as theoretical frameworks. A three-stage mixed methods research design was adopted, which involved multiple methods of data collection, including questionnaires, interviews and observations along with field notes and secondary documents. The participants involved were 29 Design and Technology teachers and 16 students (14-year-olds) from schools of three educational zones. The results of this study indicate that Design and Technology teachers did not enact ‘assessment for learning’ strategies to enhance their teaching and student learning. Despite the introduction of a new curriculum and the policy initiatives of the Mauritius Ministry of Education to adopt learner-centred approaches to assessment, Design and Technology teachers focused on syllabus coverage, using traditional assessment approaches and teaching students to sit for end-of-year examinations. The findings of this study have important implications for policymakers, teacher educators, principals and Design and Technology teachers. Key implications associated with ‘assessment for learning’ include the need to develop: teacher education programmes that cover concepts and theories, and evidence of best practice; and professional learning and development programmes that complement the national curriculum, and explore the relationships between beliefs and practices and influences of contextual factors.

text: Assessment for learning in design and technology: An ethnographic study in Mauritius state secondary schools Research advocates that it is the teacher’s role to support learners to take the next steps in their learning. ‘Assessment for learning’, considered as a bridge between teaching and learning, not only provides teachers with multiple possibilities to enhance students’ learning, but can also transform their own practice. Despite research interest in educational assessment, teachers’ ‘assessment for learning’ behaviours and perceptions are under-researched. This study investigated Design and Technology teachers’ ‘assessment for learning’ practices in state secondary schools in Mauritius since little is known about this context. A constructivist epistemology, naturalistic interpretative perspective and an ethnographic methodology was used to understand the participants’ ‘assessment for learning’ practices in their natural settings. The study was underpinned by sociocultural theory, Foucault’s and Bourdieu’s critical theories, and Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model as theoretical frameworks. A three-stage mixed methods research design was adopted, which involved multiple methods of data collection, including questionnaires, interviews and observations along with field notes and secondary documents. The participants involved were 29 Design and Technology teachers and 16 students (14-year-olds) from schools of three educational zones. The results of this study indicate that Design and Technology teachers did not enact ‘assessment for learning’ strategies to enhance their teaching and student learning. Despite the introduction of a new curriculum and the policy initiatives of the Mauritius Ministry of Education to adopt learner-centred approaches to assessment, Design and Technology teachers focused on syllabus coverage, using traditional assessment approaches and teaching students to sit for end-of-year examinations. The findings of this study have important implications for policymakers, teacher educators, principals and Design and Technology teachers. Key implications associated with ‘assessment for learning’ include the need to develop: teacher education programmes that cover concepts and theories, and evidence of best practice; and professional learning and development programmes that complement the national curriculum, and explore the relationships between beliefs and practices and influences of contextual factors.

year: 2018

title: Paradoxical Performances of Subjectivities, Spaces and Art Gallery Postcards

authors: Robinson, Christine

subjects: gallery postcards

abstract: This thesis examines the relationship between art gallery postcards, subjectivities and domestic spaces. Feminist post-structuralist debates on memory, subjectivity and domestic spaces provide the theoretical framework for this research into taken-for-granted objects of the everyday. Empirical data came from interviewing nine women who buy, use and keep postcards and two New Zealand Art Gallery store managers. Some of the participants were interviewed more than once, while others extended their views by e-mail. Auto-ethnographic narrative is used to explore further the symbolic significance of an individual's postcard consumption.
This research focuses attention on the production of gendered subjectivities and domestic spaces through an aesthetic artefact. There are three points to my analysis. Firstly, I argue paradoxically the under-noticed seemingly trivial gallery postcard becomes a memory holder and therefore a significant artefact of symbolic value. Memories are potent, elusive fragments that become attached to a sound, smell, touch or sight. Catching sight of a postcard can trigger a chain of memory associations, which in turn constructs a sense of self through the remembering. Secondly, I contend that subjectivity is understood as fluid and multiple, evolving out of experience and interpretation. Memories formed from experience and connections made with people, place and things become associated with gallery postcards and serve as a catalyst for personal narratives which in turn can operate as tools for constructing subjectivities. Finally I suggest that domestic spaces are a product of relations that can be understood as existing within and beyond the home. Stretched domestic space can be produced by the display of gallery postcards in office spaces. The exploration of the art gallery postcard adds to the knowledges of everyday objects and their role and significance in constructing gendered subjectivities and spaces.

text: Paradoxical Performances of Subjectivities, Spaces and Art Gallery Postcards This thesis examines the relationship between art gallery postcards, subjectivities and domestic spaces. Feminist post-structuralist debates on memory, subjectivity and domestic spaces provide the theoretical framework for this research into taken-for-granted objects of the everyday. Empirical data came from interviewing nine women who buy, use and keep postcards and two New Zealand Art Gallery store managers. Some of the participants were interviewed more than once, while others extended their views by e-mail. Auto-ethnographic narrative is used to explore further the symbolic significance of an individual's postcard consumption.
This research focuses attention on the production of gendered subjectivities and domestic spaces through an aesthetic artefact. There are three points to my analysis. Firstly, I argue paradoxically the under-noticed seemingly trivial gallery postcard becomes a memory holder and therefore a significant artefact of symbolic value. Memories are potent, elusive fragments that become attached to a sound, smell, touch or sight. Catching sight of a postcard can trigger a chain of memory associations, which in turn constructs a sense of self through the remembering. Secondly, I contend that subjectivity is understood as fluid and multiple, evolving out of experience and interpretation. Memories formed from experience and connections made with people, place and things become associated with gallery postcards and serve as a catalyst for personal narratives which in turn can operate as tools for constructing subjectivities. Finally I suggest that domestic spaces are a product of relations that can be understood as existing within and beyond the home. Stretched domestic space can be produced by the display of gallery postcards in office spaces. The exploration of the art gallery postcard adds to the knowledges of everyday objects and their role and significance in constructing gendered subjectivities and spaces.

year: 2007

title: Te mana o ngā toa: Māori experiences of Ngāti Tūmatauenga, the New Zealand Army

authors: Kohere, Cheyenne Atairehia Mere

subjects: Kaupapa Māori

abstract: Diverse realities impact Māori people and their capacity to flourish. It is well- established that Māori are significant contributors to the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF), and especially the New Zealand Army. Noteworthy participation in major conflicts, especially WWI and WWII create a whakapapa of military tradition which contributed to institutional change within the Army in the 1990s. The inclusion of Māori cultural training in the New Zealand Army can contribute to morale and the effectiveness of the organisation (Hohaia, 2016). This master’s thesis aims to deepen understandings of the experiences of Māori personnel in the Army by exploring the role of the New Zealand Army in the health and wellbeing of Māori soldiers, as well as how the Army can be a career pathway for Māori and their whānau to flourish.
This research employs the use qualitative methods such as Kaupapa Māori theory, phenomenology, and pūrākau as a form of narrative analysis. Semi-structured interviews with five participants (three retired personnel and two currently serving) explores these factors that contribute to the flourishing of Māori soldiers in the New Zealand Army. Each pūrākau developed from interview data is an acknowledgment of the personal journeys of the five participants and contains philosophical thought, epistemological constructs, cultural codes, and worldviews (Lee, 2009).
The findings of the research highlight the complexities that arise when considering the health and wellbeing of Māori soldiers. A range of interconnected factors conceptualised within five themes contributes to participants’ ability to flourish. These five themes include hauora (health), whanaungatanga (relationships), manaakitanga (support), whanonga pono (values) and whakapāwera (hardships). These results suggest that flourishing for Māori personnel is complex, and there is not a simple route to enable Māori to flourish. There are many ‘trade-offs’ for Māori and their experiences. However, Māori service provides opportunities and obstacles for an individual, as well as their whānau, hapū and iwi.

text: Te mana o ngā toa: Māori experiences of Ngāti Tūmatauenga, the New Zealand Army Diverse realities impact Māori people and their capacity to flourish. It is well- established that Māori are significant contributors to the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF), and especially the New Zealand Army. Noteworthy participation in major conflicts, especially WWI and WWII create a whakapapa of military tradition which contributed to institutional change within the Army in the 1990s. The inclusion of Māori cultural training in the New Zealand Army can contribute to morale and the effectiveness of the organisation (Hohaia, 2016). This master’s thesis aims to deepen understandings of the experiences of Māori personnel in the Army by exploring the role of the New Zealand Army in the health and wellbeing of Māori soldiers, as well as how the Army can be a career pathway for Māori and their whānau to flourish.
This research employs the use qualitative methods such as Kaupapa Māori theory, phenomenology, and pūrākau as a form of narrative analysis. Semi-structured interviews with five participants (three retired personnel and two currently serving) explores these factors that contribute to the flourishing of Māori soldiers in the New Zealand Army. Each pūrākau developed from interview data is an acknowledgment of the personal journeys of the five participants and contains philosophical thought, epistemological constructs, cultural codes, and worldviews (Lee, 2009).
The findings of the research highlight the complexities that arise when considering the health and wellbeing of Māori soldiers. A range of interconnected factors conceptualised within five themes contributes to participants’ ability to flourish. These five themes include hauora (health), whanaungatanga (relationships), manaakitanga (support), whanonga pono (values) and whakapāwera (hardships). These results suggest that flourishing for Māori personnel is complex, and there is not a simple route to enable Māori to flourish. There are many ‘trade-offs’ for Māori and their experiences. However, Māori service provides opportunities and obstacles for an individual, as well as their whānau, hapū and iwi.

year: 2022