title: Lifting the Veil: Muslim women's adjustment to a New Zealand university

authors: Bahiss, Zainab

subjects: Muslim

abstract: Abstract
Due to a decline in the number of domestic students in many New Zealand and
other foreign Western countries' universities, there is more recruitment of
international students. In New Zealand universities, beside the increase in the
number of other foreign international students, the number of Muslim
international students and especially Muslim women students has increased in the
past few years. This is due to internationalisation of New Zealand education and
the economic benefits which international students provide to New Zealand
economy.
The reason for undertaking this study is because as a Muslim women and a
student myself, I wanted to investigate the adjustment problems of the increased
number of Muslim women international students at the University of Waikato.
This is because, it would provide information to researchers, theoreticians and
policy developers regarding adjustment issues that might be specific to Muslim
women. Unfortunately, this area is under researched; hence this study could assist
in filling the vacuum in this area.
The literature so far has discussed the adjustment issues of international students
in general and from the literature there seems to be two main dominant areas
where international students suffer adjustment problems. These two areas are the
academic environment of the university and the socio-cultural environment of the
university. The academic environment has many elements to which many
international students are believed to face adjustment problems such as adjusting
to the 'study shock'. On the other hand, in the socio-cultural environment,
students are believed to face adjustment problem to the culture shock. However,
there are many flaws in the existing literature which results in its weakness and
hence the need for this study.
In order to discuss the adjustment issues of Muslim women international students'
one has to examine the educational background of these students. It is important
to also examine the religious and cultural backgrounds of these students because
religious beliefs and practices combined with their cultural background have an
impact on their adjustment into the foreign academic and socio-cultural
iii
environment. Islam strongly encourages the acquisition of education for women.
Looking at the history of Muslim women, one can find great scholars who
achieved enormously from their right to education. However today there is great
tension in the Islamic world regarding women's education which makes this issue
very complex. This is due to the different interpretations of the Islamic scholars of
the verses of the Quran, and Muslim people cultural and tribal codes. Therefore,
many Islamic countries have taken different approaches to the education of their
female population that is from very conservative to liberal ones.
The qualitative approach used in this chapter helped in understanding the
perspectives and world views of the respondents which would have not been
possible otherwise.
The confidentiality and anonymity of the respondents was catered for before
conducting the interviews and pseudo names are used in this study to refer to the
respondents of this study. This study is however limited in that the time constrain
did not allow me to do a longitudinal study in order to discover the many un
answered questions or ambiguous sentences.
This study has revealed four major themes which were identified through this
research as being specifically important to the adjustment of Muslim women
international students. These women did not view their adjustment as a huge shift
instead for them it required more of gentle shift in their adjustment. The
similarities in the academic environment of the international students and that of
New Zealand universities made the adjustment to the academic environment even
smoother. There are also other positive adjustments these international students
make while in New Zealand universities. They are more independent and are able
to communicate in English language which for most international students seems
to be main reason for coming to Western universities.
There is need for the staff and students to understand the religious and cultural
beliefs of these international students so that they can help them in the adjustment
process. There is also increased need for the universities and policy developers to
provide help and support for the international students.
iv
There are many issues that seemed to need further exploration which this study
has not managed to find out. The research needs to be done to discuss the huge
emotional or psychological impact on the international students' due to teachers'
and local students' lack of knowledge of their religious and cultural beliefs.
The researchers also need to investigate how this change in the personality and
thinking of women impacts on them when they go back to their home countries.
In theorisation, there is need to theorise the adjustments of students who belong to
other religious and cultural groups and how it might impact their adjustment
process.
For the practitioners, there is need to investigate the role of the staff and institutes
to clearly identify to the role of staff in how they could make international
students transaction to the university smoother.

text: Lifting the Veil: Muslim women's adjustment to a New Zealand university Abstract
Due to a decline in the number of domestic students in many New Zealand and
other foreign Western countries' universities, there is more recruitment of
international students. In New Zealand universities, beside the increase in the
number of other foreign international students, the number of Muslim
international students and especially Muslim women students has increased in the
past few years. This is due to internationalisation of New Zealand education and
the economic benefits which international students provide to New Zealand
economy.
The reason for undertaking this study is because as a Muslim women and a
student myself, I wanted to investigate the adjustment problems of the increased
number of Muslim women international students at the University of Waikato.
This is because, it would provide information to researchers, theoreticians and
policy developers regarding adjustment issues that might be specific to Muslim
women. Unfortunately, this area is under researched; hence this study could assist
in filling the vacuum in this area.
The literature so far has discussed the adjustment issues of international students
in general and from the literature there seems to be two main dominant areas
where international students suffer adjustment problems. These two areas are the
academic environment of the university and the socio-cultural environment of the
university. The academic environment has many elements to which many
international students are believed to face adjustment problems such as adjusting
to the 'study shock'. On the other hand, in the socio-cultural environment,
students are believed to face adjustment problem to the culture shock. However,
there are many flaws in the existing literature which results in its weakness and
hence the need for this study.
In order to discuss the adjustment issues of Muslim women international students'
one has to examine the educational background of these students. It is important
to also examine the religious and cultural backgrounds of these students because
religious beliefs and practices combined with their cultural background have an
impact on their adjustment into the foreign academic and socio-cultural
iii
environment. Islam strongly encourages the acquisition of education for women.
Looking at the history of Muslim women, one can find great scholars who
achieved enormously from their right to education. However today there is great
tension in the Islamic world regarding women's education which makes this issue
very complex. This is due to the different interpretations of the Islamic scholars of
the verses of the Quran, and Muslim people cultural and tribal codes. Therefore,
many Islamic countries have taken different approaches to the education of their
female population that is from very conservative to liberal ones.
The qualitative approach used in this chapter helped in understanding the
perspectives and world views of the respondents which would have not been
possible otherwise.
The confidentiality and anonymity of the respondents was catered for before
conducting the interviews and pseudo names are used in this study to refer to the
respondents of this study. This study is however limited in that the time constrain
did not allow me to do a longitudinal study in order to discover the many un
answered questions or ambiguous sentences.
This study has revealed four major themes which were identified through this
research as being specifically important to the adjustment of Muslim women
international students. These women did not view their adjustment as a huge shift
instead for them it required more of gentle shift in their adjustment. The
similarities in the academic environment of the international students and that of
New Zealand universities made the adjustment to the academic environment even
smoother. There are also other positive adjustments these international students
make while in New Zealand universities. They are more independent and are able
to communicate in English language which for most international students seems
to be main reason for coming to Western universities.
There is need for the staff and students to understand the religious and cultural
beliefs of these international students so that they can help them in the adjustment
process. There is also increased need for the universities and policy developers to
provide help and support for the international students.
iv
There are many issues that seemed to need further exploration which this study
has not managed to find out. The research needs to be done to discuss the huge
emotional or psychological impact on the international students' due to teachers'
and local students' lack of knowledge of their religious and cultural beliefs.
The researchers also need to investigate how this change in the personality and
thinking of women impacts on them when they go back to their home countries.
In theorisation, there is need to theorise the adjustments of students who belong to
other religious and cultural groups and how it might impact their adjustment
process.
For the practitioners, there is need to investigate the role of the staff and institutes
to clearly identify to the role of staff in how they could make international
students transaction to the university smoother.

year: 2008

title: The effects of inhaled bergamot and geranium essential oils on rat behaviour

authors: Salvesen, Gregory John

subjects: Essential Oils

abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the behavioural effects of inhaled bergamot, geranium and a combination of these oils in three novelty evoked tests of anxiety. Sixty adult Hooded Rats (Rattus norvegicus), with 10 rats randomly assigned to one of the 6 test groups; three essential oil treated groups, and three control groups. The essential oil groups consisted of bergamot, geranium and a combined group, i.e. the combination of bergamot and geranium oil. The control groups consisted of the odour and vehicle control, with the anxiolytic drug diazepam as a positive control. The behaviour of rats was assessed on the elevate-plus maze, open-field and social interaction test. Diazepam increased open arm entries and the time spent in the open arms, decreased time spent in closed arms and increased the number of head-dips and unprotected stretch-attends in the EPM. In the open-field diazepam increased immobility time, decreased ambulation, increased grooming activity and reduced the amount of time spent exploring the arena. Similarly, diazepam decreased the frequency of separations, sniffs, follows, crawls, passive and active interactions with test partners in the social interaction test. Bergamot, geranium and the combination of the two oils increased total arm entries in the elevated-plus maze. Bergamot increased locomotion and exploratory behaviour in open-field and decreased contact latency and increased passive and active interaction between the rat pairs in the social interaction test. Geranium decrease immobility and increase the time spent rearing in the open-field and also increased active interaction, i.e. partner sniffing and decreased the amount of time the rat pairs spent apart in the social interaction test. The combination of bergamot and geranium oil increased locomotion and the time spent in Zone2, and also increased exploratory behaviour, i.e. the frequency and duration of rears in the open-field. In the social interaction test, contact latency was shortened and active and passive interactions between rat pairs were increased by the combination of essential oils. The present study established that bergamot, geranium, and the combination of the two oils had a stimulating effect in the elevated-plus maze and an anxiolytic effect in the open-field and social interaction tests when inhaled. Furthermore the study also demonstrated that the combining of the oils had a potentiating effect on the anxiolytic properties of the single oils.

text: The effects of inhaled bergamot and geranium essential oils on rat behaviour The aim of this study was to evaluate the behavioural effects of inhaled bergamot, geranium and a combination of these oils in three novelty evoked tests of anxiety. Sixty adult Hooded Rats (Rattus norvegicus), with 10 rats randomly assigned to one of the 6 test groups; three essential oil treated groups, and three control groups. The essential oil groups consisted of bergamot, geranium and a combined group, i.e. the combination of bergamot and geranium oil. The control groups consisted of the odour and vehicle control, with the anxiolytic drug diazepam as a positive control. The behaviour of rats was assessed on the elevate-plus maze, open-field and social interaction test. Diazepam increased open arm entries and the time spent in the open arms, decreased time spent in closed arms and increased the number of head-dips and unprotected stretch-attends in the EPM. In the open-field diazepam increased immobility time, decreased ambulation, increased grooming activity and reduced the amount of time spent exploring the arena. Similarly, diazepam decreased the frequency of separations, sniffs, follows, crawls, passive and active interactions with test partners in the social interaction test. Bergamot, geranium and the combination of the two oils increased total arm entries in the elevated-plus maze. Bergamot increased locomotion and exploratory behaviour in open-field and decreased contact latency and increased passive and active interaction between the rat pairs in the social interaction test. Geranium decrease immobility and increase the time spent rearing in the open-field and also increased active interaction, i.e. partner sniffing and decreased the amount of time the rat pairs spent apart in the social interaction test. The combination of bergamot and geranium oil increased locomotion and the time spent in Zone2, and also increased exploratory behaviour, i.e. the frequency and duration of rears in the open-field. In the social interaction test, contact latency was shortened and active and passive interactions between rat pairs were increased by the combination of essential oils. The present study established that bergamot, geranium, and the combination of the two oils had a stimulating effect in the elevated-plus maze and an anxiolytic effect in the open-field and social interaction tests when inhaled. Furthermore the study also demonstrated that the combining of the oils had a potentiating effect on the anxiolytic properties of the single oils.

year: 2009

title: Rolling Our Eyes Towards God: An Intervention Arising from Mormon Missionary YouTube Activity and The Cultural (Mis)Appropriation of Haka

authors: Simon, Hemopereki

abstract: This Kaupapa Māori Research writing inquiry explores the (mis)appropriation of haka and the social media video-sharing platform YouTube in that (mis)appropriation. The article examines the specific case of a group of Latter-day Saint missionaries in Wangarratta, Australia, who wrote and performed an English- language haka that the author finds violent and offensive. The article outlines Aileen Moreton-Robertson’s White Possessive doctrine in relation to the Church and white patriarchal salvation. Haka’s cultural background and appropriation are explained. Theoretical explanations of collective and cultural memory and YouTube as a social media platform and cultural archive follow. The author highlights YouTube grey literature sources on haka cultural (mis)appropriation. The 2006 case study “missionary haka” video is critiqued and analysed. Case study issues are discussed. The Church’s history of racial discrimination and violence and its religious aetiology of skin colour make this video ”misappropriated,” according to research. This performance uses haka to promote white and religious supremacy and the idea that you must be white and/or religious to be fully human. This message helps the LDS Church mission of possessing Indigenous souls and remaining the “true religion”.

text: Rolling Our Eyes Towards God: An Intervention Arising from Mormon Missionary YouTube Activity and The Cultural (Mis)Appropriation of Haka This Kaupapa Māori Research writing inquiry explores the (mis)appropriation of haka and the social media video-sharing platform YouTube in that (mis)appropriation. The article examines the specific case of a group of Latter-day Saint missionaries in Wangarratta, Australia, who wrote and performed an English- language haka that the author finds violent and offensive. The article outlines Aileen Moreton-Robertson’s White Possessive doctrine in relation to the Church and white patriarchal salvation. Haka’s cultural background and appropriation are explained. Theoretical explanations of collective and cultural memory and YouTube as a social media platform and cultural archive follow. The author highlights YouTube grey literature sources on haka cultural (mis)appropriation. The 2006 case study “missionary haka” video is critiqued and analysed. Case study issues are discussed. The Church’s history of racial discrimination and violence and its religious aetiology of skin colour make this video ”misappropriated,” according to research. This performance uses haka to promote white and religious supremacy and the idea that you must be white and/or religious to be fully human. This message helps the LDS Church mission of possessing Indigenous souls and remaining the “true religion”.

year: 2023-02-05