Development Studies

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/10564

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    Apiianga no te oraanga akapuapinga e te taporoporo i te ipukarea : education as sustainable development : Mangaia, Cook Islands : a dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Development Studies, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2016) Beumelburg, Paul David
    Sustainable development (SD) and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) became prominent in the 1990s. Problematically, these western centric constructs have sometimes been used to justify greater economic growth despite concern about the environment. Simultaneously, greater awareness of the pivotal role culture plays in development has demanded the rethinking of SD in terms of culturally responsive and contextually relevant ‘alternatives to’ development. Using the case of Mangaia in the Cook Islands the aim of this research was to draw out Mangaians own visions for SD and their consequent expectations for the type of ESD delivered to students in the classroom. Situating the research within a hopeful post development framework a culturally responsive, open ended, critical research methodology was used to gain an understanding of what constitutes a Mangaian SD worldview. Using participatory semi structured interviews underpinned by Mangaian uriuri manako (reflective problem solving) preliminary frameworks for Mangaian SD and ESD were co- constructed. This thesis highlights that to Mangaian people SD is complex and multi modal consisting of an indigenous development centred on oraanga Mangaia and alternative modernities, embedded in culture, operating at the margins of the global economy. This Mangaian view of SD, interacting with externally driven development, is continually reinvented by the Mangaian people using both indigenous and western knowledge, in response to issues of sustainability. The study argues that current western centric ‘Education about’ and ‘Education for’ SD programmes do not reflect the cultural and contextual reality of SD in the Global South. Instead, Education as Sustainable Development (EasSD) is presented as a novel concept, which embraces learning taking place within culture and is able to respond to the context and dynamism of hopeful post-development settings: it is argued that this approach would provide students with the knowledge to be able to fashion community-based sustainable futures. An EasSD approach would expose students to a broader range of livelihoods options and have the ability to strengthen a student’s language, culture and identity while potentially improving their academic outcomes. A strength based implementation that draws on the support of all development and education stakeholders offers the best chance of actualising EasSD and so empowering students with the ability to participate in, and lead, their own communities’ SD.
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    The participation of women in the Solomon Islands education system : a study with particular reference to Solomon Island women who held New Zealand government tertiary scholarships between 1973 and 1990 : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Development Studies at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1994) Quinn, Marion
    This is a study on the participation of women in the Solomon Islands education system, focussing in particular on the experiences of Solomon Islands women who held New Zealand Government tertiary scholarships between 1973 and 1990. Despite increasing international recognition of the importance of education for girls and women in addressing critical national economic and social goals, gender remains the single most significant determinant of access to schooling in most developing countries. While there is a growing body of literature on factors affecting the participation of girls and women in education in developing countries, little has been written on the subject in relation to the South Pacific and nothing of substance in relation to Solomon Islands. More generally, Altbach (1985) noted the lack of research on the experience of women as overseas students and the outcomes of tertiary education for women in developing countries. The findings of this study confirm research carried out elsewhere that the socio-economic status of parents has greater influence on the schooling of girls than of boys. For the earliest women tertiary students, the encouragement of educated fathers was of particular significance in breaking down traditional barriers to girls' participation in education. Girls and women from matrilineal societies were, in general, given greater encouragement to enter and to remain longer in school. In undertaking tertiary study overseas and returning to positions of responsibility in both the public and private sectors, the women in this study were in many ways 'trailblazers' for the women who followed behind them. Their position was not an easy one, subject often to personal misunderstanding and criticism as they sought a new role and a new status for women in Solomon Islands society. Yet this was not an elite, Westernised group, divorced from their own society. Those interviewed were characterised by a strong commitment to assisting other Solomon Islands women and to contributing effectively to the development of their society. The study concludes that the interests of development have been well served by the investment in their education.
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    Wind in the sails or captain of the Va'a? : the influence of the global education agenda in the Samoan education system : a research project presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of International Development at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (The Author, 2015) Tu'i, Nina Lucia
    The aim of this research was to explore the influence of an international education agenda, particularly through the Education for All goals and Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 2, on the education system of Samoa. The findings of the research indicate that the priorities of the Samoan education policy are closely related to this second Millennium Development Goal, in particular with regards to access to education. Samoan education policies also relate to the emerging Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) when addressing educational quality. The emphasis on international goals is problematic as these goals do not take into consideration the context or culture-specific needs of the country, but rather reflect a combination of various underlying theories such as rights-based approaches and economic theories. The involvement of donors in the education system of Samoa was found to be strongly influenced by MDG 2. It also became evident that donors give priority to their own interests and their funding can easily change as priorities in development shift. This research has also found that there is an indigenous education agenda being constructed by rich academic discussions about the goals and purpose of education in the Pacific. These discussions are reinforced by selected regional initiatives, such as the Re-thinking Education Initiative and the Pacific Regional Initiative for the Delivery of basic Education (PRIDE). Pacific education experts point out the importance of education being culturally relevant, as the current system is perceived as an alien force, and describe how, by its nature, the education system imposes incompatible values on the children of the Pacific. The Samoan education system was found to set its own course, while also incorporating international goals, donor priorities, the national level priorities and ideas presented by Pacific authors on education.