title: Credit Loss Dynamics in Australasian Banking

authors: Hess, Kurt

subjects: Credit risk

abstract: The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the drivers and dynamics of credit losses in Australasian banking over an extended period of time in order to improve the means by which financial institutions manage their credit risks and regulatory bodies safeguard the stability and integrity of the financial system.
The analysis is based on a specially constructed data base of credit loss and provisioning data retrieved from original financial reports published by Australian and New Zealand banks. The observation period covers 1980 to 2005, starting at the time when such information was published for the first time in bank financial statements. It moreover covers the time of major crises which occurred in both Australia and New Zealand in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The heterogeneity of reporting the data both amongst banks and through time requires the development of a reporting typology which allows data extraction with equivalent informational content. As a thorough study of credit risks requires long data series often not available from third party data providers, the method developed here will provide value to a range of researchers.
Based on an evaluation of many alternative proxies which track a bank's credit loss experience (CLE), the thesis proposes a preferred model for impaired assets expense (as % of loans) as dependent variable, mainly because of its timely nature and good data availability. Explanatory variables include aggregate macro variables of which changes in unemployment and the return in the share markets are found to have the most significant influence on a bank's credit losses. Bank-specific control variables include a pre-provision earnings proxy whose significance points to the use of provisions for the purpose of income smoothing by Australasian banks. The model also controls for size and nature of lending as smaller, retail-oriented housing lenders, on average, exhibit lower loan losses. Clear results are found with regard to the effect of rapid expansion which appears to be followed by a surge of bad debt provisions 2 to 3 years later. Moreover, inefficient banks tend to suffer greater credit losses.
An important part of the thesis looks at the characteristics of alternative CLE proxies such as stock of provisions, impaired assets and write-offs which have been used by earlier literature. Estimating the preferred model with such alternative CLE parameters confirms their peculiarities such as the memory character of stock of provisions and the delayed nature of write-offs. These measures correlate rather poorly amongst themselves which calls for caution in the comparative interpretation of earlier studies that use differing CLE proxies.

text: Credit Loss Dynamics in Australasian Banking The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the drivers and dynamics of credit losses in Australasian banking over an extended period of time in order to improve the means by which financial institutions manage their credit risks and regulatory bodies safeguard the stability and integrity of the financial system.
The analysis is based on a specially constructed data base of credit loss and provisioning data retrieved from original financial reports published by Australian and New Zealand banks. The observation period covers 1980 to 2005, starting at the time when such information was published for the first time in bank financial statements. It moreover covers the time of major crises which occurred in both Australia and New Zealand in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The heterogeneity of reporting the data both amongst banks and through time requires the development of a reporting typology which allows data extraction with equivalent informational content. As a thorough study of credit risks requires long data series often not available from third party data providers, the method developed here will provide value to a range of researchers.
Based on an evaluation of many alternative proxies which track a bank's credit loss experience (CLE), the thesis proposes a preferred model for impaired assets expense (as % of loans) as dependent variable, mainly because of its timely nature and good data availability. Explanatory variables include aggregate macro variables of which changes in unemployment and the return in the share markets are found to have the most significant influence on a bank's credit losses. Bank-specific control variables include a pre-provision earnings proxy whose significance points to the use of provisions for the purpose of income smoothing by Australasian banks. The model also controls for size and nature of lending as smaller, retail-oriented housing lenders, on average, exhibit lower loan losses. Clear results are found with regard to the effect of rapid expansion which appears to be followed by a surge of bad debt provisions 2 to 3 years later. Moreover, inefficient banks tend to suffer greater credit losses.
An important part of the thesis looks at the characteristics of alternative CLE proxies such as stock of provisions, impaired assets and write-offs which have been used by earlier literature. Estimating the preferred model with such alternative CLE parameters confirms their peculiarities such as the memory character of stock of provisions and the delayed nature of write-offs. These measures correlate rather poorly amongst themselves which calls for caution in the comparative interpretation of earlier studies that use differing CLE proxies.

year: 2008

title: Children’s knowledge and experience of compost/ing

authors: Tsang, Sophia WR

abstract: The Soilsafe Kids education and research programme conducted focus groups about compost/ing in eight primary school classes in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand in 2022 to understand what students learning at New Zealand Curriculum Level 2 (generally students aged 5-11 years old) know about compost/ing. Here, we present a qualitative content analysis of focus groups focusing on children’s knowledge about the process of composting and the resulting material. In general, children (n = 117) demonstrated a broad understanding of the typical process of composting and the materials that make up compost. Our findings contrast previous studies which have indicated children’s comprehension of composting was poor. Despite participating in composting activities in schools, respondents more commonly associated compost/ing activities with their home systems where they compost with their families. Although these results demonstrate a considerable baseline knowledge of compost/ing understood by children, they also had many questions about compost/ing, mainly focused on the timing necessary to biodegrade, the underlying processes, and why we compost. These encouraging findings mean educators have a strong base on which to build lessons, but educators should also be mindful of bridging gaps in retention for greatest pedagogical impact, given our findings suggest that students recall off-campus composting experiences more strongly than on-campus ones. This should be further explored to ensure children have equitable access to composting experiences and knowledge.

text: Children’s knowledge and experience of compost/ing The Soilsafe Kids education and research programme conducted focus groups about compost/ing in eight primary school classes in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand in 2022 to understand what students learning at New Zealand Curriculum Level 2 (generally students aged 5-11 years old) know about compost/ing. Here, we present a qualitative content analysis of focus groups focusing on children’s knowledge about the process of composting and the resulting material. In general, children (n = 117) demonstrated a broad understanding of the typical process of composting and the materials that make up compost. Our findings contrast previous studies which have indicated children’s comprehension of composting was poor. Despite participating in composting activities in schools, respondents more commonly associated compost/ing activities with their home systems where they compost with their families. Although these results demonstrate a considerable baseline knowledge of compost/ing understood by children, they also had many questions about compost/ing, mainly focused on the timing necessary to biodegrade, the underlying processes, and why we compost. These encouraging findings mean educators have a strong base on which to build lessons, but educators should also be mindful of bridging gaps in retention for greatest pedagogical impact, given our findings suggest that students recall off-campus composting experiences more strongly than on-campus ones. This should be further explored to ensure children have equitable access to composting experiences and knowledge.

year: 2025

title: Tā Pikitia Hei Āwhina Kōrero  Collaborative Drawing and Storying

authors: Kururangi, Aorere Helen Mary

subjects: collaborative drawing and storying

abstract: Creating a Māori medium context for beginning learners of te reo Māori to converse in genuine dialogue, was a real challenge for our mainstream bilingual unit. This study involved six Year 3-5 primary school students working in two groups of three. The bilingual unit is in a contributing school in an urban setting.

The teacher, a second language learner herself, found students seldom initiated any spontaneous Māori dialogue and tended to respond only to questions or formal teacher initiated direction. So the project sought to develop and explore the approach Tā Pikitia hei āwhina kōrero or Collaborative Drawing and Storying, to improve Children's Oral Language Acquisition in Māori, using a socially responsive approach (Glynn, Wearmouth,  Berryman, 2006)
 
This method encouraged students to initiate, respond and share their own learning in a social and interactive community of learners. The method also allowed students the freedom to generate conversations about their own interests, ideas and background experiences without teacher intervention or direction. The only requirement was me kōrero Māori i nga wā katoa (speak Māori all the time). A collaborative picture was created as each group of students quickly illustrated their ideas on a large piece of paper.

 Each student was pre tested and post tested using the Aromatawai Reo A Waha  - Kia Tere Tonu  (Berryman  Langdon, 2001).This test assessed each student's Māori vocabulary knowledge and their ability to speak spontaneously about a familiar item. The daily conversations created by each student group involved Tā Pikitia hei āwhina  kōrero was recorded on tape, then transcribed verbatim each day to assess changes over time. 

 Student ownership of the learning and their positive participation resulted in improved language outcomes. At the end of the ten week period there were encouraging gains in the post test, Aromatawai Reo A Waha - Kīanga or spontaneous phrases students were able to generate. Furthermore an improved ability to focus on an oral task, and improved engagement by the students were unexpected positive outcomes of this easy to implement activity.

text: Tā Pikitia Hei Āwhina Kōrero  Collaborative Drawing and Storying Creating a Māori medium context for beginning learners of te reo Māori to converse in genuine dialogue, was a real challenge for our mainstream bilingual unit. This study involved six Year 3-5 primary school students working in two groups of three. The bilingual unit is in a contributing school in an urban setting.

The teacher, a second language learner herself, found students seldom initiated any spontaneous Māori dialogue and tended to respond only to questions or formal teacher initiated direction. So the project sought to develop and explore the approach Tā Pikitia hei āwhina kōrero or Collaborative Drawing and Storying, to improve Children's Oral Language Acquisition in Māori, using a socially responsive approach (Glynn, Wearmouth,  Berryman, 2006)
 
This method encouraged students to initiate, respond and share their own learning in a social and interactive community of learners. The method also allowed students the freedom to generate conversations about their own interests, ideas and background experiences without teacher intervention or direction. The only requirement was me kōrero Māori i nga wā katoa (speak Māori all the time). A collaborative picture was created as each group of students quickly illustrated their ideas on a large piece of paper.

 Each student was pre tested and post tested using the Aromatawai Reo A Waha  - Kia Tere Tonu  (Berryman  Langdon, 2001).This test assessed each student's Māori vocabulary knowledge and their ability to speak spontaneously about a familiar item. The daily conversations created by each student group involved Tā Pikitia hei āwhina  kōrero was recorded on tape, then transcribed verbatim each day to assess changes over time. 

 Student ownership of the learning and their positive participation resulted in improved language outcomes. At the end of the ten week period there were encouraging gains in the post test, Aromatawai Reo A Waha - Kīanga or spontaneous phrases students were able to generate. Furthermore an improved ability to focus on an oral task, and improved engagement by the students were unexpected positive outcomes of this easy to implement activity.

year: 2008