title: Isolated learners from diverse language backgrounds in the mainstream primary classroom: A sociocultural perspective

authors: Barnard, Roger

subjects: language culture

abstract: This paper focuses on the linguistic and cultural (‘languaculture’, Agar, 1994) challenges faced by learners from diverse language backgrounds (DLB) in New Zealand schools. It describes the typical learning context in primary classrooms terms of interactional, instructional, and cognitive dimensions. It then presents vignettes of four DLB learners and explains their relative competence in terms of Cummin’s (1981) distinction between BICS and CALP (Basic Interactional Communication Skills and Cognitive-Academic Language Proficiency). It goes on to discuss the extent to which such proficiency is the result of linguistic and cultural distance, and how that distance might be bridged by applying key constructs from sociocultural theory, and the implementation of Individual Languaculture Plans for DLB learners. The paper concludes with discussing the issue of where responsibility lies for coping with the challenges face by DLB learners.

text: Isolated learners from diverse language backgrounds in the mainstream primary classroom: A sociocultural perspective This paper focuses on the linguistic and cultural (‘languaculture’, Agar, 1994) challenges faced by learners from diverse language backgrounds (DLB) in New Zealand schools. It describes the typical learning context in primary classrooms terms of interactional, instructional, and cognitive dimensions. It then presents vignettes of four DLB learners and explains their relative competence in terms of Cummin’s (1981) distinction between BICS and CALP (Basic Interactional Communication Skills and Cognitive-Academic Language Proficiency). It goes on to discuss the extent to which such proficiency is the result of linguistic and cultural distance, and how that distance might be bridged by applying key constructs from sociocultural theory, and the implementation of Individual Languaculture Plans for DLB learners. The paper concludes with discussing the issue of where responsibility lies for coping with the challenges face by DLB learners.

year: 2005

title: Mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention in a sample of pregnant women in a rural area.

authors: Williams, Stephen Gordon

subjects: mindfulness

abstract: In this study, nine pregnant women in a rural area were assessed for a range of affective and mood disorders, as well as for coping self-efficacy and use of mindfulness in daily life. A mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention was implemented using “Healing Rhythms”, a commercially available computer-based mindfulness software programme, which uses biofeedback to assist in teaching self-regulation and mindfulness-based approaches for reducing stress. The programme was supplied already loaded onto laptops which were lent to participants for the study. Most participants showed improvements on measures of Trait anxiety and coping self-efficacy, with two participants whose scores at baseline met clinical criteria for depression dropping significantly to a non-clinical score at the end of the programme. Participants were interviewed and most reported satisfaction with using the programme, and a belief that it could be useful for other pregnant women especially where women felt challenged by stressors during pregnancy. The aim of the study was to identify whether a computer-based mindfulness programme for stress reduction would have utility and efficacy in a rural population. The results suggest that there were measureable gains for most participants, and that such a programme could be a supportive and helpful option for rural women who wish to learn how to better manage perinatal stress.

text: Mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention in a sample of pregnant women in a rural area. In this study, nine pregnant women in a rural area were assessed for a range of affective and mood disorders, as well as for coping self-efficacy and use of mindfulness in daily life. A mindfulness-based stress reduction intervention was implemented using “Healing Rhythms”, a commercially available computer-based mindfulness software programme, which uses biofeedback to assist in teaching self-regulation and mindfulness-based approaches for reducing stress. The programme was supplied already loaded onto laptops which were lent to participants for the study. Most participants showed improvements on measures of Trait anxiety and coping self-efficacy, with two participants whose scores at baseline met clinical criteria for depression dropping significantly to a non-clinical score at the end of the programme. Participants were interviewed and most reported satisfaction with using the programme, and a belief that it could be useful for other pregnant women especially where women felt challenged by stressors during pregnancy. The aim of the study was to identify whether a computer-based mindfulness programme for stress reduction would have utility and efficacy in a rural population. The results suggest that there were measureable gains for most participants, and that such a programme could be a supportive and helpful option for rural women who wish to learn how to better manage perinatal stress.

year: 2012

title: Racism and Employment: A Narrative Review of Aotearoa New Zealand and International Qualitative Studies

authors: Tan, Kyle K. H.

abstract: In Aotearoa New Zealand, employment inequities exist for minoritised ethnic groups (Māori, Pasifika, Asian, racialised migrants and refugees) in the forms of barriers to employment, occupation inequities, differences in promotion to leadership roles, ethnic pay gaps and discriminatory experiences at workplaces. In this review, we compiled Aotearoa qualitative studies to depict the dynamics of racism alongside other intersectional forms of prejudices that disadvantage the employment processes and career progression of minoritised ethnicities. Literature gaps in Aotearoa research were identified through reviewing international literature published between 2016 and 2021. Reviewed Aotearoa studies were categorised into three themes: unemployment and underemployment, workplace discrimination, and strategies for navigating racism. Drawing upon a framework that recognises racialised processes as spanning across micro- (individual), meso- (organisational) and macro- (institutional) levels, we found most Aotearoa studies analysing racism in the workplace focus on micro-level experiences. Compared with international literature, research in Aotearoa has yet to consider the roles of organisations and technologies as racialised structures that engender employment inequities, and the interaction of individuals in response to meso- and macro-structures that build on settler colonialism and racism. Our review echoes the call of Aotearoa scholars to name racism as the overarching oppressive mechanism embedded within organisations and to use anti-racism praxes such as te Tiriti o Waitangi as a way forward to promote employment equity.

text: Racism and Employment: A Narrative Review of Aotearoa New Zealand and International Qualitative Studies In Aotearoa New Zealand, employment inequities exist for minoritised ethnic groups (Māori, Pasifika, Asian, racialised migrants and refugees) in the forms of barriers to employment, occupation inequities, differences in promotion to leadership roles, ethnic pay gaps and discriminatory experiences at workplaces. In this review, we compiled Aotearoa qualitative studies to depict the dynamics of racism alongside other intersectional forms of prejudices that disadvantage the employment processes and career progression of minoritised ethnicities. Literature gaps in Aotearoa research were identified through reviewing international literature published between 2016 and 2021. Reviewed Aotearoa studies were categorised into three themes: unemployment and underemployment, workplace discrimination, and strategies for navigating racism. Drawing upon a framework that recognises racialised processes as spanning across micro- (individual), meso- (organisational) and macro- (institutional) levels, we found most Aotearoa studies analysing racism in the workplace focus on micro-level experiences. Compared with international literature, research in Aotearoa has yet to consider the roles of organisations and technologies as racialised structures that engender employment inequities, and the interaction of individuals in response to meso- and macro-structures that build on settler colonialism and racism. Our review echoes the call of Aotearoa scholars to name racism as the overarching oppressive mechanism embedded within organisations and to use anti-racism praxes such as te Tiriti o Waitangi as a way forward to promote employment equity.

year: 2024-01-01