title: Establishing the "new" into "the way we do things": Reviewing paper aims and content in response to national and local developments.

authors: Earl Rinehart, (Suzanne) Kerry

subjects: initial teacher education

abstract: This paper reports on a review of "Professional practice and inquiry I" in response to local and national developments. The introduction of The New Zealand Curriculum (Ministry of Education, 2007) raised questions for initial teacher educators about how they might prepare their pre-service student teachers to teach using this updated curriculum. "Professional practice and inquiry I" is a first semester compulsory professional paper University of Waikato Bachelor of Teaching students (primary). The introduction of the 2007 national curriculum document was not the only reason for a review of this professional paper. This paper outlines how the teaching team had recognized the mixture of influences that impact on the development of paper content, explains in some detail what we did for the teaching and learning of the new 2007 key competencies, and the outcomes we found through collecting student voice. This was part of a collaborative research project investigating the teaching and learning of the "front end" of The New Zealand Curriculum (ibid) and incorporating those findings into the primary Bachelor of Teaching programme.

text: Establishing the "new" into "the way we do things": Reviewing paper aims and content in response to national and local developments. This paper reports on a review of "Professional practice and inquiry I" in response to local and national developments. The introduction of The New Zealand Curriculum (Ministry of Education, 2007) raised questions for initial teacher educators about how they might prepare their pre-service student teachers to teach using this updated curriculum. "Professional practice and inquiry I" is a first semester compulsory professional paper University of Waikato Bachelor of Teaching students (primary). The introduction of the 2007 national curriculum document was not the only reason for a review of this professional paper. This paper outlines how the teaching team had recognized the mixture of influences that impact on the development of paper content, explains in some detail what we did for the teaching and learning of the new 2007 key competencies, and the outcomes we found through collecting student voice. This was part of a collaborative research project investigating the teaching and learning of the "front end" of The New Zealand Curriculum (ibid) and incorporating those findings into the primary Bachelor of Teaching programme.

year: 2010

title: Using digital technologies to build connections between families and schools as children transition to school

authors: Woodhouse, Hazel Maxine

subjects: early years engagement

abstract: This paper reports research that investigated how digital technologies were used to develop and maintain home–school connections and develop positive relationships when children transition to nursery schools and schools. School case studies, comprising four purposively selected schools with nursery provision in Northern Ireland and four primary schools in New Zealand, provided the context and evidence to enable a small-scale comparative study of how digital technologies enabled the development of relationships between homes and schools over time. In this paper, the findings were analysed using a conceptual model and framework derived from earlier studies in this field. However, given the contemporary social and technological context, it was found that the framework could be reviewed and elaborated, enabling the creation of a new conceptual framework that is offered here. Our findings reveal methods of employing digital technologies to positively support parental engagement when children transition to nurseries and schools. From the analysis of our findings using the framework developed, points to consider for future practice, policy, and research are highlighted, with an emphasis on understanding and integrating parents’ aspirations into the transition process. Opportunities that use existing and emerging methods for home–school–community connections need to be made known to teachers and schools. While the digital technologies used must be capable of maintaining appropriate regular communication, additionally, supporting ways for involving parental voice in reviews of existing practices and exploring new opportunities should be shared with teachers and schools. Future research should explore how the use of digital technologies in developing wider and deeper engagement and participation of parents and carers with nurseries and schools might lead to a longer-term and positive engagement in later years beyond nursery schools and initial transition to school.

text: Using digital technologies to build connections between families and schools as children transition to school This paper reports research that investigated how digital technologies were used to develop and maintain home–school connections and develop positive relationships when children transition to nursery schools and schools. School case studies, comprising four purposively selected schools with nursery provision in Northern Ireland and four primary schools in New Zealand, provided the context and evidence to enable a small-scale comparative study of how digital technologies enabled the development of relationships between homes and schools over time. In this paper, the findings were analysed using a conceptual model and framework derived from earlier studies in this field. However, given the contemporary social and technological context, it was found that the framework could be reviewed and elaborated, enabling the creation of a new conceptual framework that is offered here. Our findings reveal methods of employing digital technologies to positively support parental engagement when children transition to nurseries and schools. From the analysis of our findings using the framework developed, points to consider for future practice, policy, and research are highlighted, with an emphasis on understanding and integrating parents’ aspirations into the transition process. Opportunities that use existing and emerging methods for home–school–community connections need to be made known to teachers and schools. While the digital technologies used must be capable of maintaining appropriate regular communication, additionally, supporting ways for involving parental voice in reviews of existing practices and exploring new opportunities should be shared with teachers and schools. Future research should explore how the use of digital technologies in developing wider and deeper engagement and participation of parents and carers with nurseries and schools might lead to a longer-term and positive engagement in later years beyond nursery schools and initial transition to school.

year: 2024-05-11

title: Role of tephra in dating Polynesian settlement and impact, New Zealand

authors: Lowe, David J.

subjects: tephrochronology

abstract: Tephrochronology in its original sense is the use of tephra layers as time-stratigraphic marker beds to establish numerical or relative ages (Lowe and Hunt, 2001). Tephra layers have been described and studied in New Zealand for more than 160 years (the German naturalist and surgeon Ernst Dieffenbach described ‘recognizable’ tephra sections in his 1843 book Travels in New Zealand), and the first isopach map, showing fallout from the deadly plinian basaltic eruption of Mt Tarawera on 10 June 1886, was published in 1888 (Lowe, 1990; Lowe et al., 2002). More recently, a wide range of tephra-related paleoenvironmental research has been undertaken (e.g., Lowe and Newnham, 1999; Newnham and Lowe, 1999; Newnham et al., 1999, 2004; Shane, 2000), including new advances in the role of tephra in linking and dating sites containing evidence for abrupt climatic change (e.g., Newnham and Lowe, 2000; Newnham et al., 2003). Here we focus on the use of tephrochronology in dating the arrival and impacts of the first humans in New Zealand, a difficult problem for which this technique has proven to be of critical importance.

text: Role of tephra in dating Polynesian settlement and impact, New Zealand Tephrochronology in its original sense is the use of tephra layers as time-stratigraphic marker beds to establish numerical or relative ages (Lowe and Hunt, 2001). Tephra layers have been described and studied in New Zealand for more than 160 years (the German naturalist and surgeon Ernst Dieffenbach described ‘recognizable’ tephra sections in his 1843 book Travels in New Zealand), and the first isopach map, showing fallout from the deadly plinian basaltic eruption of Mt Tarawera on 10 June 1886, was published in 1888 (Lowe, 1990; Lowe et al., 2002). More recently, a wide range of tephra-related paleoenvironmental research has been undertaken (e.g., Lowe and Newnham, 1999; Newnham and Lowe, 1999; Newnham et al., 1999, 2004; Shane, 2000), including new advances in the role of tephra in linking and dating sites containing evidence for abrupt climatic change (e.g., Newnham and Lowe, 2000; Newnham et al., 2003). Here we focus on the use of tephrochronology in dating the arrival and impacts of the first humans in New Zealand, a difficult problem for which this technique has proven to be of critical importance.

year: 2004