title: Dynamic landscape, dynamic practice: Aboriginal dwelling beside the Carran Carran–Durt’yowan floodplains (Thomson River–Latrobe River, Central Gippsland)

authors: Anderson, William

abstract: Recurring occupation beside waterways is an essential part of Aboriginal dwelling and movement in the landscape. Riverbanks and their wider floodplains were repeatedly inhabited as hunting and fishing grounds and to gather plants and other materials; moreover, Aboriginal people used rivers and creeks as routeways and landmarks to navigate Country, for meetings and ceremonies, to affirm boundaries and territorial claims; and they were sacred features whose origins were captured in stories and songs. Archaeological investigations often encounter material that hints at persistent occupation of riverine landforms, but it is rare to conclusively prove the overall duration that a place was inhabited and the length of occupation episodes. Excavations near Sale in central Gippsland, in GunaiKurnai Country, identified one such place. Cultural deposits buried in the sands of an alluvial rise at Fulham include hearths and concentrations of stone artefacts up to a metre deep. Radiocarbon dating shows two distinct occupation phases—in the Late Pleistocene and Holocene eras—that were separated by a gap of up to eight thousand years. The results underline the enduring significance of the alluvial plains around the confluence of Carran Carran (Thomson River) and Durt’yowan (Latrobe River) and show habitation by GunaiKurnai Ancestors over vast timespans as the climate, water level, landforms and ecology of the wider estuarine district changed. They highlight spatial and temporal connections between the upper and lower reaches of these river systems over several millennia, giving a unique, long–term perspective on human responses to shifts in climate and water flows.

text: Dynamic landscape, dynamic practice: Aboriginal dwelling beside the Carran Carran–Durt’yowan floodplains (Thomson River–Latrobe River, Central Gippsland) Recurring occupation beside waterways is an essential part of Aboriginal dwelling and movement in the landscape. Riverbanks and their wider floodplains were repeatedly inhabited as hunting and fishing grounds and to gather plants and other materials; moreover, Aboriginal people used rivers and creeks as routeways and landmarks to navigate Country, for meetings and ceremonies, to affirm boundaries and territorial claims; and they were sacred features whose origins were captured in stories and songs. Archaeological investigations often encounter material that hints at persistent occupation of riverine landforms, but it is rare to conclusively prove the overall duration that a place was inhabited and the length of occupation episodes. Excavations near Sale in central Gippsland, in GunaiKurnai Country, identified one such place. Cultural deposits buried in the sands of an alluvial rise at Fulham include hearths and concentrations of stone artefacts up to a metre deep. Radiocarbon dating shows two distinct occupation phases—in the Late Pleistocene and Holocene eras—that were separated by a gap of up to eight thousand years. The results underline the enduring significance of the alluvial plains around the confluence of Carran Carran (Thomson River) and Durt’yowan (Latrobe River) and show habitation by GunaiKurnai Ancestors over vast timespans as the climate, water level, landforms and ecology of the wider estuarine district changed. They highlight spatial and temporal connections between the upper and lower reaches of these river systems over several millennia, giving a unique, long–term perspective on human responses to shifts in climate and water flows.

year: 2021

title: Academic activism in the wake of a pandemic: A collective self-reflection from Aotearoa/New Zealand

authors: Roy, Rituparna

abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic intensified anxieties among temporary workers in New Zealand tertiary education, particularly those affiliated with universities reliant on the lucrative market for international fee-paying students. As national borders closed and states started looking inward, these same learning institutions began to more visibly express the language of market logics for which they had been remodeled in recent decades, adapting to declining revenue through austerity-like budget cuts. The communication of these cuts to the academic precariat has been mixed, with some institutions resorting to cold, forceful determinations delivered as matter-of-fact restructurings, while others have preferred an oblique recasting of the pandemic's disruption as an opportunity for social responsibility. This paper is a collective self-reflection on the activism undertaken by the newly formed Tertiary Education Action Group Aotearoa during the COVID-19 pandemic. It begins by contextualizing the reforms rolled out in response to the pandemic in relation to the “neoliberal turn” of higher education and examines how career pathways for early career academics have transformed into a continuous cycle of precarious employment. We argue that the idealized “early career” identity has been lost and that through a process of mourning we can regather ourselves and embrace our lived realities as members of the academic precariat. We detail how the pandemic acted as a catalyst for this “productive mourning” and enabled us to begin mobilizing discontent among the academic precariat. Finally, we reflect on the extent to which we were able to challenge existing structures that are responsible for the exploitative nature of precarious academic work.

text: Academic activism in the wake of a pandemic: A collective self-reflection from Aotearoa/New Zealand The COVID-19 pandemic intensified anxieties among temporary workers in New Zealand tertiary education, particularly those affiliated with universities reliant on the lucrative market for international fee-paying students. As national borders closed and states started looking inward, these same learning institutions began to more visibly express the language of market logics for which they had been remodeled in recent decades, adapting to declining revenue through austerity-like budget cuts. The communication of these cuts to the academic precariat has been mixed, with some institutions resorting to cold, forceful determinations delivered as matter-of-fact restructurings, while others have preferred an oblique recasting of the pandemic's disruption as an opportunity for social responsibility. This paper is a collective self-reflection on the activism undertaken by the newly formed Tertiary Education Action Group Aotearoa during the COVID-19 pandemic. It begins by contextualizing the reforms rolled out in response to the pandemic in relation to the “neoliberal turn” of higher education and examines how career pathways for early career academics have transformed into a continuous cycle of precarious employment. We argue that the idealized “early career” identity has been lost and that through a process of mourning we can regather ourselves and embrace our lived realities as members of the academic precariat. We detail how the pandemic acted as a catalyst for this “productive mourning” and enabled us to begin mobilizing discontent among the academic precariat. Finally, we reflect on the extent to which we were able to challenge existing structures that are responsible for the exploitative nature of precarious academic work.

year: 2021

title: Harakeke: Enhancing Māori Student Engagement and Achievement in a Mainstream Primary School

authors: Anderson, Diana

subjects: Harakeke

abstract: Ministry of Education research indicates that the inclusion of culture and te reo
Māori in teaching can help improve Māori student education. If students can find
the links between what is being taught and the relevance to their own lives then
information will be easier to retain. Research has also shown that environmental
education provides relevant learning that can connect students to their world.
Māori indigenous knowledge (IK) and environmental education (EE) share many
commonalities. One such similarity is the relationship between tangata (people)
and nature. While the sometimes destructive nature of this relationship has lead to
global environmental issues, this study explores the combination of IK and EE to
enhance Māori student engagement and achievement in a mainstream primary
school.
An intervention unit based on harakeke was designed delivered in a Year 5/6
boys' only class in a suburban mainstream primary school, over a 10 week period.
The environmental and socio-cultural significance of harakeke enabled a range of
kaupapa (themes) to be included in the unit. This included; eeling and how to
make and use a hinaki (eel/fish trap), karakia (prayer) and the relevance when
harvesting kai (food) and resources. Each kaupapa also provided the opportunity
for students to increase their te reo Māori vocabulary, with the introduction of
kaupapa specific words. The Māori kaupapa also enabled the students to view EE
from a Māori perspective, including the introduction of rahui - a form of
conservation.
The findings indicated that the incorporation of a Māori kaupapa strengthened
student engagement, improved student use of te reo Māori, improved the selfesteem
and confidence for some students, increased students' awareness of
harakeke and the value and versatility of the plant, and increased their awareness
from a Māori perspective on sustainable harvesting.
Bringing Māori kaupapa into the classroom allowed the classroom teacher, who
was Māori, the opportunity to share her own lived experiences of IK, as these are
passed down from generation to generation, and people are born into them. The
Page | iii
familiarity of whanau offered the teacher the opportunity to bring this concept into
the classroom and teach values that could flow into all curriculum areas while
strengthening relationships between the teacher and student, student and student
and teacher and student whanau.
This study has shown that both IK and EE, while each complex in their own right,
have the ability to provide a holistic curriculum approach that can lead to
engagement and achievement by Māori students in a mainstream school.

text: Harakeke: Enhancing Māori Student Engagement and Achievement in a Mainstream Primary School Ministry of Education research indicates that the inclusion of culture and te reo
Māori in teaching can help improve Māori student education. If students can find
the links between what is being taught and the relevance to their own lives then
information will be easier to retain. Research has also shown that environmental
education provides relevant learning that can connect students to their world.
Māori indigenous knowledge (IK) and environmental education (EE) share many
commonalities. One such similarity is the relationship between tangata (people)
and nature. While the sometimes destructive nature of this relationship has lead to
global environmental issues, this study explores the combination of IK and EE to
enhance Māori student engagement and achievement in a mainstream primary
school.
An intervention unit based on harakeke was designed delivered in a Year 5/6
boys' only class in a suburban mainstream primary school, over a 10 week period.
The environmental and socio-cultural significance of harakeke enabled a range of
kaupapa (themes) to be included in the unit. This included; eeling and how to
make and use a hinaki (eel/fish trap), karakia (prayer) and the relevance when
harvesting kai (food) and resources. Each kaupapa also provided the opportunity
for students to increase their te reo Māori vocabulary, with the introduction of
kaupapa specific words. The Māori kaupapa also enabled the students to view EE
from a Māori perspective, including the introduction of rahui - a form of
conservation.
The findings indicated that the incorporation of a Māori kaupapa strengthened
student engagement, improved student use of te reo Māori, improved the selfesteem
and confidence for some students, increased students' awareness of
harakeke and the value and versatility of the plant, and increased their awareness
from a Māori perspective on sustainable harvesting.
Bringing Māori kaupapa into the classroom allowed the classroom teacher, who
was Māori, the opportunity to share her own lived experiences of IK, as these are
passed down from generation to generation, and people are born into them. The
Page | iii
familiarity of whanau offered the teacher the opportunity to bring this concept into
the classroom and teach values that could flow into all curriculum areas while
strengthening relationships between the teacher and student, student and student
and teacher and student whanau.
This study has shown that both IK and EE, while each complex in their own right,
have the ability to provide a holistic curriculum approach that can lead to
engagement and achievement by Māori students in a mainstream school.

year: 2009