title: To share or not to share:Teachers’ use of student data for making pedagogical decisions

authors: Peter, Mira

abstract: Teachers are expected to use evidence about students’ progress to inform their teaching and account for this progress to others. These requirements emphasise the need for educators’ competence in the collection, collation, analysis, interpretation and use of a range of data. In this paper we report on the results of a one-year University of Waikato Strategic Investment Fund (SIF) research project aimed at understanding how New Zealand teachers collect student data, what data they collect, how they share the outcomes of data analysis, and how they use the data to inform their teaching.
To address these questions we collected data through an online survey, which had 311 teacher and principal respondents, and through focus group interviews with 45 participants. The survey questions explored educators’ perceptions about needed data literacy skills for pedagogical action and ways of scaffolding and developing them. The interviews focused on school’s context, content, practice and relationships when analysing student data. Quantitative and qualitative analyses explored how individual teachers and the collective generate, interpret, share and plan pedagogical actions using students’ recorded data.
The results indicate that teachers collect and collate a range of different types of data and use them for various purposes such as to identify student learning needs, help students’ transitions and work with their set targets for student learning. However, the participants raised concerns regarding their data literacy skills and the accuracy of their own interpretation and understandings of how to use the collected data to make informed decision for their teaching. The findings also suggest that teachers consider there are a number of challenges in sharing and discussing data with their colleagues within their own school and across Kāhui Ako schools. The participants raised issues around moderation, lack of validity and reliability of data, feeling uncomfortable for being judged when sharing data and/or the potential for data use for appraisal.
These findings have implications for supporting teachers’ collaborative data analysis and use, data literacy professional development of teachers/leaders, and informing the data-driven pedagogical decisions across schools.

text: To share or not to share:Teachers’ use of student data for making pedagogical decisions Teachers are expected to use evidence about students’ progress to inform their teaching and account for this progress to others. These requirements emphasise the need for educators’ competence in the collection, collation, analysis, interpretation and use of a range of data. In this paper we report on the results of a one-year University of Waikato Strategic Investment Fund (SIF) research project aimed at understanding how New Zealand teachers collect student data, what data they collect, how they share the outcomes of data analysis, and how they use the data to inform their teaching.
To address these questions we collected data through an online survey, which had 311 teacher and principal respondents, and through focus group interviews with 45 participants. The survey questions explored educators’ perceptions about needed data literacy skills for pedagogical action and ways of scaffolding and developing them. The interviews focused on school’s context, content, practice and relationships when analysing student data. Quantitative and qualitative analyses explored how individual teachers and the collective generate, interpret, share and plan pedagogical actions using students’ recorded data.
The results indicate that teachers collect and collate a range of different types of data and use them for various purposes such as to identify student learning needs, help students’ transitions and work with their set targets for student learning. However, the participants raised concerns regarding their data literacy skills and the accuracy of their own interpretation and understandings of how to use the collected data to make informed decision for their teaching. The findings also suggest that teachers consider there are a number of challenges in sharing and discussing data with their colleagues within their own school and across Kāhui Ako schools. The participants raised issues around moderation, lack of validity and reliability of data, feeling uncomfortable for being judged when sharing data and/or the potential for data use for appraisal.
These findings have implications for supporting teachers’ collaborative data analysis and use, data literacy professional development of teachers/leaders, and informing the data-driven pedagogical decisions across schools.

year: 2017

title: Student voices: Experiences of Solomon Islands students in transition from primary school to boarding secondary school

authors: Vasethe, Godfrey

subjects: Solomon Islands

abstract: This study is about students' experiences when in transition from primary schools they attended daily to boarding secondary schools located far from their homes and villages in the Solomon Islands. In particular it explores the positive and negative feelings of students who have left their parents to live in boarding schools. For their first five months these students had no opportunity to contact their parents. The study also explores the strategies they used to overcome their difficulties and problems. It also explores the strategies that boarding schools used to help their students. While much research to date has been carried out in developed and developing countries, no such study as this has been carried out in the Solomon Islands or in the Melanesian region. Therefore, little is known about the students' experiences living in boarding schools for five months before seeing their parents again and the strategies they used to overcome their difficulties and problems. 

Research data were gathered using the qualitative method. Interviews were conducted with 16 students (9 first year students and 7 second year students), 3 principals and 1 deputy principal from four boarding secondary schools. Data gathered were analysed using the thematic approach. The collecting of data was conducted in the Solomon Islands in April and May 2009.

The key findings revealed both positive and negative experiences of the students when they had just arrived at school and the strategies they used to overcome their negative experiences. The positive feelings were feeling happy and all right. The negative feelings were feeling homesick, lonely, shy and afraid. The strategies that students used to overcome these problems were creating friendship with other students and attending social activities. 

The students also came across difficulties and problems like change of status from being senior students at primary schools to being the most junior students at secondary schools, tight school programmes, unfamiliar cultures and languages, and shortage of pocket money to help them to buy some of their needs that schools cannot provide. They also came across positive experiences like happiness, feeling relief and immediate help when they just arrived. Furthermore, they also faced both positive and negative aspects on their academic work, extra-curricular activities, food and accommodation.

The other key findings are the strategies that boarding schools used to help their new students.  These include: good dormitories and classrooms, orientations, class assemblies to talk about academic matters, dorm masters and mistresses helping out the new students in the dormitories, old students helping the new students, and cultural and religious groups.
The strategies provided by boarding secondary schools were not adequate enough from looking at the many difficulties and problems the students encountered, and some of the strategies were their own personal strategies and not the boarding school ones. Therefore, this study is in a position to inform the transition programmes for boarding secondary schools in the Solomon Islands.

text: Student voices: Experiences of Solomon Islands students in transition from primary school to boarding secondary school This study is about students' experiences when in transition from primary schools they attended daily to boarding secondary schools located far from their homes and villages in the Solomon Islands. In particular it explores the positive and negative feelings of students who have left their parents to live in boarding schools. For their first five months these students had no opportunity to contact their parents. The study also explores the strategies they used to overcome their difficulties and problems. It also explores the strategies that boarding schools used to help their students. While much research to date has been carried out in developed and developing countries, no such study as this has been carried out in the Solomon Islands or in the Melanesian region. Therefore, little is known about the students' experiences living in boarding schools for five months before seeing their parents again and the strategies they used to overcome their difficulties and problems. 

Research data were gathered using the qualitative method. Interviews were conducted with 16 students (9 first year students and 7 second year students), 3 principals and 1 deputy principal from four boarding secondary schools. Data gathered were analysed using the thematic approach. The collecting of data was conducted in the Solomon Islands in April and May 2009.

The key findings revealed both positive and negative experiences of the students when they had just arrived at school and the strategies they used to overcome their negative experiences. The positive feelings were feeling happy and all right. The negative feelings were feeling homesick, lonely, shy and afraid. The strategies that students used to overcome these problems were creating friendship with other students and attending social activities. 

The students also came across difficulties and problems like change of status from being senior students at primary schools to being the most junior students at secondary schools, tight school programmes, unfamiliar cultures and languages, and shortage of pocket money to help them to buy some of their needs that schools cannot provide. They also came across positive experiences like happiness, feeling relief and immediate help when they just arrived. Furthermore, they also faced both positive and negative aspects on their academic work, extra-curricular activities, food and accommodation.

The other key findings are the strategies that boarding schools used to help their new students.  These include: good dormitories and classrooms, orientations, class assemblies to talk about academic matters, dorm masters and mistresses helping out the new students in the dormitories, old students helping the new students, and cultural and religious groups.
The strategies provided by boarding secondary schools were not adequate enough from looking at the many difficulties and problems the students encountered, and some of the strategies were their own personal strategies and not the boarding school ones. Therefore, this study is in a position to inform the transition programmes for boarding secondary schools in the Solomon Islands.

year: 2010

title: Waitomo District: Demographic profile 1986-2031

authors: Jackson, Natalie

abstract: This report outlines the demographic changes that have occurred in Waitomo Region, as well as what trends are expected in the future.

text: Waitomo District: Demographic profile 1986-2031 This report outlines the demographic changes that have occurred in Waitomo Region, as well as what trends are expected in the future.

year: 2014