title: The challenges of teacher education-exploiting synergies to meet multiple demands

authors: Cooper, Beverley

abstract: Internationally questions about the nature of effective teacher education have come to the fore as a consequence of the demands to produce equitable outcomes from a more diverse range of learners working with ever more challenging curriculum. This expansion has arisen in part from a realisation that mastery of formal conceptual or propositional knowledge alone is no longer a sufficient basis for active participation in today’s knowledge society. In conjunction with these expectations and understandings, policy makers have introduced a range of mechanisms to hold teachers, schools, and teacher educators to account for student learning and achievement. These mechanisms include the specification of standards for either or both of student learning and teacher performance, along with a requirement to provide evidence of impact. University-based teacher educators are in unique positions of being accountable to students, teachers and teacher accreditation agencies or teacher learning and development that impacts positively for students in the classroom, and being accountable to their university in terms of research productivity. They also need to ensure student teacher graduates develop the attributes specified in their university graduate profile.
In this paper, we use New Zealand as a case study to explore some of the convergences that teacher educators might usefully consider across school curriculum goals, university graduate attributes, and teacher performance standards for preservice and practicing teachers, where these have the potential to shape and inform their practice and learning. We begin by elaborating on the landscape of change and then provide two examples of convergence from our own work and that of our colleagues. We describe how projects we have conducted assist in meeting multiple goals. Firstly we illustrate how the need to develop numerate citizens can be imbedded in a teacher education program and secondly illustrate how the need to develop the capacity for learning lifelong can be developed through researched program innovations based on a combination of a design research approach and a design-based intervention research approach. Drawing on our analysis, we scope some of the possibilities for exploiting synergies these shifts can have for initial teacher education and teacher educators.

text: The challenges of teacher education-exploiting synergies to meet multiple demands Internationally questions about the nature of effective teacher education have come to the fore as a consequence of the demands to produce equitable outcomes from a more diverse range of learners working with ever more challenging curriculum. This expansion has arisen in part from a realisation that mastery of formal conceptual or propositional knowledge alone is no longer a sufficient basis for active participation in today’s knowledge society. In conjunction with these expectations and understandings, policy makers have introduced a range of mechanisms to hold teachers, schools, and teacher educators to account for student learning and achievement. These mechanisms include the specification of standards for either or both of student learning and teacher performance, along with a requirement to provide evidence of impact. University-based teacher educators are in unique positions of being accountable to students, teachers and teacher accreditation agencies or teacher learning and development that impacts positively for students in the classroom, and being accountable to their university in terms of research productivity. They also need to ensure student teacher graduates develop the attributes specified in their university graduate profile.
In this paper, we use New Zealand as a case study to explore some of the convergences that teacher educators might usefully consider across school curriculum goals, university graduate attributes, and teacher performance standards for preservice and practicing teachers, where these have the potential to shape and inform their practice and learning. We begin by elaborating on the landscape of change and then provide two examples of convergence from our own work and that of our colleagues. We describe how projects we have conducted assist in meeting multiple goals. Firstly we illustrate how the need to develop numerate citizens can be imbedded in a teacher education program and secondly illustrate how the need to develop the capacity for learning lifelong can be developed through researched program innovations based on a combination of a design research approach and a design-based intervention research approach. Drawing on our analysis, we scope some of the possibilities for exploiting synergies these shifts can have for initial teacher education and teacher educators.

year: 2019

title: Community composition, assembly and priority effects in a volcanically disturbed alpine herbfield, Mount Taranaki, New Zealand

authors: Moore, Theresa Grace

subjects: alpine flora

abstract: The New Zealand alpine flora is highly diverse, having evolved extensively over only c. 2 Ma. Examining how communities assemble and the effects of historical contingency may provide evidence for the mechanisms of rapid diversification of the New Zealand alpine flora. Evolutionary priority effects, in which the sequence of colonisation during community assembly can drive radiation of early arriving clades, has been tested in one South Island alpine community. The results showed genera belonging to older evolutionary lineages were more dominant and diverse in those communities, supporting the presence of priority effects.
Mount Taranaki in the North Island is geologically the youngest alpine zone in New Zealand, and supports a depauperate assemblage of alpine species compared to other New Zealand mountains. Mount Taranaki has had approximately 10 moderately sized eruptions in the last 500 years and is separated from other New Zealand alpine regions by 130 km. The present study sought to determine how the vegetation in the alpine herbfield of Mount Taranaki has been affected by various eruptions, and to test if priority effects have influenced those communities.
To quantify community composition in the Taranaki alpine herbfield, estimates of percent cover from 55 (2 x 2 m) plots were used to calculate relative species abundance at three sites within an altitudinal range of 1450–1650 m above sea level. Study sites were located at North Egmont, East Egmont and Fantham’s Peak. Multivariate analysis using non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination of relative abundances was used to compare variations in composition between sites and elevations. To test for priority effects, time-calibrated molecular phylogenies of clade divergence (as age estimates) were compared to the relative abundances of genera within the plots using linear regression. 
The results showed significant variation of species composition between sites, which correlates with the spatial pattern of the AD 1655 Burrell eruption. The eruption was directed toward East Egmont, and the plots there showed considerably lower species diversity compared to the other two sites. In addition, the inconsistency of species distribution between the sites indicated a lack of community convergence, suggesting herbfield vegetation is still in the early ages of assembly following eruptions. The test of priority effects showed no age-related abundance or richness relationships, therefore priority effects are unlikely to be contributing to community assembly in the Taranaki alpine herbfield. Instead, assembly appears to be influenced by the geological age and frequency of eruptions of Mount Taranaki, and its isolation from other alpine systems. 
This is the first study to determine the effects of volcanic eruptions on the herbfield vegetation of Mount Taranaki, and it is recommended that plots be re-measured in the future to determine how those communities develop. Because no priority effects were evident on Mount Taranaki, further research on a range of older volcanic and non-volcanic alpine systems in the North Island would be valuable. This would further contribute to our understanding of how communities assemble and if and when priority effects become significant.

text: Community composition, assembly and priority effects in a volcanically disturbed alpine herbfield, Mount Taranaki, New Zealand The New Zealand alpine flora is highly diverse, having evolved extensively over only c. 2 Ma. Examining how communities assemble and the effects of historical contingency may provide evidence for the mechanisms of rapid diversification of the New Zealand alpine flora. Evolutionary priority effects, in which the sequence of colonisation during community assembly can drive radiation of early arriving clades, has been tested in one South Island alpine community. The results showed genera belonging to older evolutionary lineages were more dominant and diverse in those communities, supporting the presence of priority effects.
Mount Taranaki in the North Island is geologically the youngest alpine zone in New Zealand, and supports a depauperate assemblage of alpine species compared to other New Zealand mountains. Mount Taranaki has had approximately 10 moderately sized eruptions in the last 500 years and is separated from other New Zealand alpine regions by 130 km. The present study sought to determine how the vegetation in the alpine herbfield of Mount Taranaki has been affected by various eruptions, and to test if priority effects have influenced those communities.
To quantify community composition in the Taranaki alpine herbfield, estimates of percent cover from 55 (2 x 2 m) plots were used to calculate relative species abundance at three sites within an altitudinal range of 1450–1650 m above sea level. Study sites were located at North Egmont, East Egmont and Fantham’s Peak. Multivariate analysis using non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination of relative abundances was used to compare variations in composition between sites and elevations. To test for priority effects, time-calibrated molecular phylogenies of clade divergence (as age estimates) were compared to the relative abundances of genera within the plots using linear regression. 
The results showed significant variation of species composition between sites, which correlates with the spatial pattern of the AD 1655 Burrell eruption. The eruption was directed toward East Egmont, and the plots there showed considerably lower species diversity compared to the other two sites. In addition, the inconsistency of species distribution between the sites indicated a lack of community convergence, suggesting herbfield vegetation is still in the early ages of assembly following eruptions. The test of priority effects showed no age-related abundance or richness relationships, therefore priority effects are unlikely to be contributing to community assembly in the Taranaki alpine herbfield. Instead, assembly appears to be influenced by the geological age and frequency of eruptions of Mount Taranaki, and its isolation from other alpine systems. 
This is the first study to determine the effects of volcanic eruptions on the herbfield vegetation of Mount Taranaki, and it is recommended that plots be re-measured in the future to determine how those communities develop. Because no priority effects were evident on Mount Taranaki, further research on a range of older volcanic and non-volcanic alpine systems in the North Island would be valuable. This would further contribute to our understanding of how communities assemble and if and when priority effects become significant.

year: 2017

title: Decolonising legal research: Developing legal theory to articulate Māori and non-Māori legal research paradigms equitably

authors: Hasan-Stein, Linda

abstract: Māori and non-Māori legal research paradigms in Aotearoa New Zealand are separated by a considerable theoretical knowledge gap. Māori knowledge systems are generally not well known in a non-Māori context. In order to bridge this theoretical knowledge gap jurisprudential studies need to address this gap from Māori and non-Māori perspectives. Doing so enables the development of decolonised legal research paradigms which allow for the sharing of knowledge from positions of respect. In this work, a new theoretical interpretation of legal research paradigms in our jurisprudence is presented, relying on an interdisciplinary approach to support these interpretive strategies. 

Beginning with the understanding that knowledge is empowering for both Māori and non-Māori, I foreground the epistemological character of decolonising legal research that supports Linda Tuhiwai Smith’s call for research to be conceived differently and highlight the need for an integrated recognition of kaupapa Māori in the development of legal theory in Aotearoa New Zealand. Reimagining our laws as something more than ‘sovereignty’ is the first step in narrowing the current theoretical knowledge gap. I translate the broader language of colonialism into the more specific vocabulary of the criminal justice system, in order to make more visible the manner in which Eurocentrism permeates decolonising legal research and stifles the potential future social development of Māori. 

Since Linda Tuhiwai Smith’s call to decolonise research, significant progress has been made with regard to the inclusion of principles of tikanga Māori to guide legal research that includes Māori. However, transforming principles of tikanga Māori into our jurisprudential landscape is a complex task. It is increasingly recognised that understanding the key principles of tikanga Māori is not always sufficient and that a greater theoretical understanding of decolonising legal principles is needed. I will analyse theoretical features of research epistemologies with the goal of grasping the complex array of historically-specific practices through which particular dimensions of our socio-legal experience are produced. 

Finally, I will explore how an interdisciplinary approach enables us to link forms of subjectivity to forms of objectivity in a distinctively “cultural” way, by working through difference rather than against it, and by acknowledging as meaningful each law’s characteristic discursive formation. 

This work is written as an intervention in Eurocentrism, aimed at providing a fresh interpretation of decolonising legal research. On this level, the most important argumentative thread is the one that demonstrates how Eurocentrism can be read as a colonising tool, which deploys positions that marginalise Indigenous knowledge. By unpacking Eurocentrism’s complex meaning it is possible to refashion Eurocentrism to include the notions of “partnerships”, that value subjective experience over objective, and that, in reality, include “Indigenous cultural” qualities. 

This style of decolonising jurisprudence pushes strenuously for a legal paradigm shift towards a culturally safe space for all legal scholars, not just Māori; a shift that could encourage our legal theory to converge in a more holistic way. The most important argumentative threads are those centred on the inclusion of Indigenous arguments, and the emergent character of decolonising legal research categories such as whanaungatanga or relational accountability. This type of innovative legal interpretation offers the possibility for a new theoretical era for decolonising legal research.

text: Decolonising legal research: Developing legal theory to articulate Māori and non-Māori legal research paradigms equitably Māori and non-Māori legal research paradigms in Aotearoa New Zealand are separated by a considerable theoretical knowledge gap. Māori knowledge systems are generally not well known in a non-Māori context. In order to bridge this theoretical knowledge gap jurisprudential studies need to address this gap from Māori and non-Māori perspectives. Doing so enables the development of decolonised legal research paradigms which allow for the sharing of knowledge from positions of respect. In this work, a new theoretical interpretation of legal research paradigms in our jurisprudence is presented, relying on an interdisciplinary approach to support these interpretive strategies. 

Beginning with the understanding that knowledge is empowering for both Māori and non-Māori, I foreground the epistemological character of decolonising legal research that supports Linda Tuhiwai Smith’s call for research to be conceived differently and highlight the need for an integrated recognition of kaupapa Māori in the development of legal theory in Aotearoa New Zealand. Reimagining our laws as something more than ‘sovereignty’ is the first step in narrowing the current theoretical knowledge gap. I translate the broader language of colonialism into the more specific vocabulary of the criminal justice system, in order to make more visible the manner in which Eurocentrism permeates decolonising legal research and stifles the potential future social development of Māori. 

Since Linda Tuhiwai Smith’s call to decolonise research, significant progress has been made with regard to the inclusion of principles of tikanga Māori to guide legal research that includes Māori. However, transforming principles of tikanga Māori into our jurisprudential landscape is a complex task. It is increasingly recognised that understanding the key principles of tikanga Māori is not always sufficient and that a greater theoretical understanding of decolonising legal principles is needed. I will analyse theoretical features of research epistemologies with the goal of grasping the complex array of historically-specific practices through which particular dimensions of our socio-legal experience are produced. 

Finally, I will explore how an interdisciplinary approach enables us to link forms of subjectivity to forms of objectivity in a distinctively “cultural” way, by working through difference rather than against it, and by acknowledging as meaningful each law’s characteristic discursive formation. 

This work is written as an intervention in Eurocentrism, aimed at providing a fresh interpretation of decolonising legal research. On this level, the most important argumentative thread is the one that demonstrates how Eurocentrism can be read as a colonising tool, which deploys positions that marginalise Indigenous knowledge. By unpacking Eurocentrism’s complex meaning it is possible to refashion Eurocentrism to include the notions of “partnerships”, that value subjective experience over objective, and that, in reality, include “Indigenous cultural” qualities. 

This style of decolonising jurisprudence pushes strenuously for a legal paradigm shift towards a culturally safe space for all legal scholars, not just Māori; a shift that could encourage our legal theory to converge in a more holistic way. The most important argumentative threads are those centred on the inclusion of Indigenous arguments, and the emergent character of decolonising legal research categories such as whanaungatanga or relational accountability. This type of innovative legal interpretation offers the possibility for a new theoretical era for decolonising legal research.

year: 2026