title: Exemplary teachers' approaches to supporting vocabulary development during shared reading

authors: Oliver, John-Paul

subjects: shared reading

abstract: An analysis of recent PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) data has shown that a group of New Zealand children are struggling to learn to read well. Vocabulary knowledge supports reading in a number of ways and research shows that reading to children and discussing texts with them helps support the development of vocabulary knowledge. This study sought to examine how four exemplary teachers of junior classes in two primary schools went about supporting the vocabulary development of their students during shared reading. The teachers completed a questionnaire and were then observed undertaking 30 shared reading lessons. They were then interviewed about their perceptions regarding vocabulary support during shared reading. Results showed that on average these teachers committed over 20% of their shared reading sessions to vocabulary development during shared reading, although there was some variation between teachers. These teachers supported their students learning of word meanings via a balanced range of avenues for acquiring vocabulary and used a rich and varied range of instructional methods to convey and secure vocabulary knowledge during shared reading. The teachers indicated that they believed that shared reading was an important context for providing support for vocabulary and that providing support for vocabulary in a balanced range of ways was important. Results are discussed in relation to recent literature pertaining to vocabulary acquisition and supporting the vocabulary development of children while reading to them.

text: Exemplary teachers' approaches to supporting vocabulary development during shared reading An analysis of recent PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) data has shown that a group of New Zealand children are struggling to learn to read well. Vocabulary knowledge supports reading in a number of ways and research shows that reading to children and discussing texts with them helps support the development of vocabulary knowledge. This study sought to examine how four exemplary teachers of junior classes in two primary schools went about supporting the vocabulary development of their students during shared reading. The teachers completed a questionnaire and were then observed undertaking 30 shared reading lessons. They were then interviewed about their perceptions regarding vocabulary support during shared reading. Results showed that on average these teachers committed over 20% of their shared reading sessions to vocabulary development during shared reading, although there was some variation between teachers. These teachers supported their students learning of word meanings via a balanced range of avenues for acquiring vocabulary and used a rich and varied range of instructional methods to convey and secure vocabulary knowledge during shared reading. The teachers indicated that they believed that shared reading was an important context for providing support for vocabulary and that providing support for vocabulary in a balanced range of ways was important. Results are discussed in relation to recent literature pertaining to vocabulary acquisition and supporting the vocabulary development of children while reading to them.

year: 2014

title: A new experimental model for the investigation of sequential hermaphroditism

authors: Goikoetxea, A

subjects: Science & Technology

abstract: The stunning sexual transformation commonly triggered by age, size or social context in some fishes is one of the best examples of phenotypic plasticity thus far described. To date our understanding of this process is dominated by studies on a handful of subtropical and tropical teleosts, often in wild settings. Here we have established the protogynous New Zealand spotty wrasse, Notolabruscelidotus, as a temperate model for the experimental investigation of sex change. Captive fish were induced to change sex using aromatase inhibition or manipulation of social groups. Complete female-to-male transition occurred over 60 days in both cases and time-series sampling was used to quantify changes in hormone production, gene expression and gonadal cellular anatomy. Early-stage decreases in plasma 17β-estradiol (E2) concentrations or gonadal aromatase (cyp19a1a) expression were not detected in spotty wrasse, despite these being commonly associated with the onset of sex change in subtropical and tropical protogynous (female-to-male) hermaphrodites. In contrast, expression of the masculinising factor amh (anti-Müllerian hormone) increased during early sex change, implying a potential role as a proximate trigger for masculinisation. Collectively, these data provide a foundation for the spotty wrasse as a temperate teleost model to study sex change and cell fate in vertebrates.

text: A new experimental model for the investigation of sequential hermaphroditism The stunning sexual transformation commonly triggered by age, size or social context in some fishes is one of the best examples of phenotypic plasticity thus far described. To date our understanding of this process is dominated by studies on a handful of subtropical and tropical teleosts, often in wild settings. Here we have established the protogynous New Zealand spotty wrasse, Notolabruscelidotus, as a temperate model for the experimental investigation of sex change. Captive fish were induced to change sex using aromatase inhibition or manipulation of social groups. Complete female-to-male transition occurred over 60 days in both cases and time-series sampling was used to quantify changes in hormone production, gene expression and gonadal cellular anatomy. Early-stage decreases in plasma 17β-estradiol (E2) concentrations or gonadal aromatase (cyp19a1a) expression were not detected in spotty wrasse, despite these being commonly associated with the onset of sex change in subtropical and tropical protogynous (female-to-male) hermaphrodites. In contrast, expression of the masculinising factor amh (anti-Müllerian hormone) increased during early sex change, implying a potential role as a proximate trigger for masculinisation. Collectively, these data provide a foundation for the spotty wrasse as a temperate teleost model to study sex change and cell fate in vertebrates.

year: 2021-12-01

title: Feminist geographies in Aotearoa New Zealand: cultural, social and political moments

authors: Adams-Hutcheson, Gail

subjects: Social Sciences

abstract: Aotearoa New Zealand is a nation of promise, potential and enigma: it was the first country in the world where women gained the vote in 1893 and now boasts the youngest woman world leader in 2017. It is also a postcolonial nation where structural racism, homophobia, and sexism persist, yet it has also given legal personhood to a river. Our Country Report foregrounds Aotearoa New Zealand feminist geographic scholarship that responds to, reflects, and sometimes resists such contrasts and contradictions at the national scale. We employ the lens of the 2017 national election to critically engage with current gendered and indigenous politics in the country. Analyzing these politics through three ‘feminist moments,’ our paper highlights the breadth and scope of current Aotearoa New Zealand feminist geographic scholarship and directions.

text: Feminist geographies in Aotearoa New Zealand: cultural, social and political moments Aotearoa New Zealand is a nation of promise, potential and enigma: it was the first country in the world where women gained the vote in 1893 and now boasts the youngest woman world leader in 2017. It is also a postcolonial nation where structural racism, homophobia, and sexism persist, yet it has also given legal personhood to a river. Our Country Report foregrounds Aotearoa New Zealand feminist geographic scholarship that responds to, reflects, and sometimes resists such contrasts and contradictions at the national scale. We employ the lens of the 2017 national election to critically engage with current gendered and indigenous politics in the country. Analyzing these politics through three ‘feminist moments,’ our paper highlights the breadth and scope of current Aotearoa New Zealand feminist geographic scholarship and directions.

year: 2019