Pacific and Pasifika Theses

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The theses listed in this collection were all completed at Massey University in a range of different departments and institutes. They have been included in this collection if the topic is strongly related to Pasifika/the Pacific.

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Start date: 1981End date: 1989

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Now showing 1 - 9 of 9
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    Selection for teaching in Tonga and Palmerston North, New Zealand : a paper presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1986) Tongatio, Lesieli Pelesikoti
    Teacher education in the Kingdom of Tonga has undergone many changes within the last two years. New directions in teacher development have included the introduction of a three-year diploma course for training primary and secondary teachers. This paper examines teacher selection processes used in Tonga in comparison with those used in Palmerston North. Section One introduces the paper by stating the concerns and the need for the study. A brief profile of Tonga Teachers' College and Palmerston North Teachers' College is presented. The research questions and the limitations of the study are stated. Section Two discusses the researcher's preparations for the research and describes her use of selected relevant literature on teacher selection and the techniques of questionnaire and interview. A brief note on the use of qualitative research methods is followed by a discussion of data gathering activities. In Section Three, the writer examines teacher selection processes used in Tonga by presenting responses to questionnaire and personal interviews as answers to the research questions. The same is done for Palmerston North Teachers' College in Section Four. Section Five presents the writer's discussion of each area investigated by means of the research questions. Following is a brief summary of the writer's conclusions to the study. The writer concluded that teacher selection processes in Tonga were not highly organised or structured, not extensive and not systematically conducted in comparison to selection processes used by Palmerston North Teachers' College. Tongan selection panelists were not well prepared and their functions not clearly identified or defined. Secondary students lacked adequate preparations before the selection interview and all sectors involved with teacher selection lacked co-ordination and clearly examined and stated criteria. Selection of teacher trainees in Tonga could benefit by co-operation between the various church education services and government to conduct a national selection programme whereby use of recruitment officers, vocational guidance counsellors and careers advisors would ensure that the best possible potential trainees are selected for teacher education; and, that this process should be highly organised, structured, extensive and systematically conducted. The section ends with a summary of the researcher's recommendations and final comments.
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    New Zealand aid and the development of class in Tonga : an analysis of the banana rehabilitation scheme : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree of Master of Arts, Department of Sociology, Massey University
    (Massey University, 1988) Needs, Andrew P
    This thesis examines the bilateral aid relationship between New Zealand and Tonga. Its central purpose is to examine the impact aid is having in transforming Tongan society. This involves a critique of both development theory and of New Zealand government aid principles. The understanding of development and the application of aid by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs remains greatly influenced by the modernisation school of thought, which essentially blames certain supposed attributes of Third World peoples for their lack of development. Dependency theorists challenged this view, claiming that Third World poverty was a direct result of First World exploitation through the unequal exchange of commodities. This has had some influence on the use of aid as a developmental tool, but has failed to supercede modernisation theory as the dominant ideology. The theory of articulation of modes of production transcends the problems of both modernisation and dependency schools. Its main thrust is that the capitalist (First World) mode of production does not immediately dominate the non-capitalist (Third World) mode but rather interacts with it. Such a conception takes cognisance of the influence of indigenous modes in creating new social formations. This is demonstrated through an analysis of the New Zealand financed Banana Rehabilitation Scheme of Tonga. In order to understand the effect of New Zealand funded aid projects in Tonga, the Banana Rehabilitation Scheme, the largest project funded at present, was used as a case study. The research method demanded a fieldwork component which entailed three months in Tonga in order to collect both historical and archival data only available there. The main fieldwork component was a series of interviews with a cross section of scheme members and other significant actors related to the scheme. This study of the Banana Rehabilitation Scheme shows that the redistributive aims Of New Zealand aid have been undermined by a greater concern with productivity. Emphasis upon the latter has meant that the project has been reoriented in favour of giving greater assistance to those who can produce bananas most easily, those who already had access to land, capital and labour. This category of growers is as much a product of the indigenous social structure of Tonga as of forces impinging from outside. Although through the banana scheme large amounts of money are being pumped into the Tongan economy, its redistributive effects are minimal. The structure of the scheme is such that many of the major benefits accrue to the already advantaged.
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    Beginning teaching : the recruitment, selection and expectations of trainee teachers in Tonga : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1984) Tongati'o, Lesieli Pelesikoti
    It has been over a hundred years since schools were established in Tonga, yet the Tonga Teachers' College is only forty years old. Thus teacher training is still in its early stages of development. Although there has been little change within the college over this period, it is moving towards growth and development in both its academic and professional capacities. The following thesis discusses the implications of teacher recruitment, selection and training within an education system aimed at raising the quality of its standard of education. Before attempting to discuss teacher education in Tonga, the social, political and physical contexts within which education operates, must be considered. These conditions have moulded the present form of teacher education. After considering these factors in Chapter Two, Chapter Three reviews the history of the Tonga Teachers' College, in relationship to Tongan social history, its aims and objectives, curriculum content, professional development, student intake and staff appointment. This chapter includes a comparative study of teacher education in some South Pacific countries in which similarities and differences in teacher education programmes and developments are discussed. General trends and methods are highlighted when comparisons and contrasts are made with teacher education in Tonga. In Chapter Four, the researcher considers teacher recruitment in Tonga. The writer proposes that teacher recruitment should be treated as an innovative means of improving the qualities of teacher trainees. Viewed from this perspective, new developments may be quickly and effectively implemented. Vocational preferences of senior secondary school students are examined to determine whether these students place teaching highly in their career priorities. Case studies of secondary school students and untrained teachers are compiled to discover the criteria used for the recruitment and selection of teachers and to provide in-depth information about these groups, from which teacher trainees are recruited. Chapter Five contains a discussion or the expectations which teacher trainees place on their training programme, followed by consideration of the methods of training and then finally discusses evaluations made of the training programme. Case studies of second year students at the Teachers' College and. of probationary assistant teachers are used to elaborate on the extent to which some of these expectations may or may not have been realised. Chapter Six contains the writer's reflections on some problems encountered with procedures and method carried out during the research project. This is followed by a concluding commentary on the results of the study and recommendations, aimed at improving teacher education in Tonga, are made.
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    Rotuma, a changing mobility, 1978-1983 : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Geography at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1985) Craddock, Christopher Noel
    This work describes the changes in movement of people to and from Rotuma immediately before, and following, the establishment of an airport on the Island in May 1981. A sample survey was carried out during the middle of 1983 to gain field data. The dynamics of movement are investigated and the research examines whether any subsets within the Rotuman community had a higher or lower level of movement, by sex, age, religion, education or occupation during the period 1978-1983.
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    A case study of the socio-economic development of Tovulailai : a village in Fiji : a thesis presented to the Department of Sociology, Massey University in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts
    (Massey University, 1981) Ratumaitavuki, Maciu
    The 'Rural Development' programme in Fiji began about 1969, the eve of our independence, with the principal aim to raise the standard of living in the rural areas, in particular those who live in the villages. Consideration was given to involve the rural people closely and meaningfully with the planning, decision making and implementation of the programme. To date, because the need for development in rural areas is so great and due to the severe lack of skilled manpower, Fiji cannot do everything she requires especially in the areas of feasibility studies and research. This is why most of the works done in this areas were done mainly by expatriates who were in many instances, total strangers to the local scene and who may not have fully understood or appreciated the complex nature and the interwoven intricacies of the Fijian way of life. Compounding this problem is the lack of Fijian scholars who are interested in the areas of social research. The basic aim of this present study is to examine the development of the village people and also to stimulate Fijian scholars to become interested in studying the development of their own people, especially of those who are in the disadvantaged rural sector. This paper presents a case study of the socio-economic development of Tovulailai: a village in rural Fiji. The present study is an attempt to observe and explain the influences of the multiple outside forces, in particular those exerted by change agents and how these village people have responded and adapted to these social forces which are impinging upon them. The needs which the people of Tovulailai felt and expressed were fully identified together with the various problems why these needs were not being fulfilled. People in this village needed to raise their general standard of living; improve their level of education; their health and general sanitation; to facilitate their access to urban markets; need to increase their sources of income; the need for adequate housing; the need for transportation and communication and other infrastructural facilities. But, they cannot easily satisfy these needs because of the problems inherent in the present system. These problems are: the lack of good leadership; lack of education lack of good cultivable land; lack of access to urban markets; lack of good housing; lack of technical skills; lack of goods and services; lack of scientific agricultural techniques and low level of technology in the rural villages. The non-structured intensive interview and observation research methods were used by this study in its attempt to examine and explain how the people of Tovulailai village are responding to the impact of social change agents in their attempt to meeting their pressing needs as expressed above. Furthermore, an attempt is made to determine how change agents themselves achieved results and how the mechanism of change within the client system functioned in diffusing and communicating the process of social change and how clients attain their goals in passing from one social state to another. All these processes are fully discussed in the text. The implications of the study which can be used in other situations in Fiji are discussed in the concluding section of this paper. It is apparent that the central issue which emerged in the study is the very effective interaction between the change agents, the client system and the mechanism of diffusion of social change within the system to achieve the desired objectives in socio-economic development at the village level.
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    The changing roles of graduate women in Tonga : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (Social Science) in social anthropology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1989) Kupu, Lesieli Ikatonga
    This thesis examines the roles of graduate women in modern Tonga and how they differ from the women's traditional roles. A survey of a group of graduate women and how they perform at work, at home and in the community was undertaken. This was to investigate their own perceptions of the place graduate women have in their own society. Evidence from the study indicates that graduate women have changed in the ways they fulfil their roles. At work they are no longer confined to "women's work", but they are beginning to take up prominent positions in the office. This has had an impact on their relationships with their male superiors and both their male and female colleagues. At home, graduate women have become "providers" for their family, and that has given them a say in the family as a decision-making body. In church and community functions, there is a marked decrease in active participation but an increase with financial contributions. In conclusion, the graduate women know that their roles are changing. This change is determined by a combination of factors. While these factors liberate the graduate women from the pressure of social obligations, the same means of liberation have also isolated them from other social groups in Tongan society.
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    The breeding biology of two populations of the white-rumped swiftlet (Aerodramus spodiopygius assimilis) in Fiji and (Aerodramus spodiopygius chillagoensis) in Queensland, with special reference to factors that regulate clutch size in birds : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Zoology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1987) Tarburton, Michael Kenneth
    White-rumped Swiftlets Aerodramus spodiopygius (Apodidae) build nests of vegetable material and cement (from their saliva) in the dark sections of caves at Chillagoe in Queensland, Australia, and in Fiji. Fijian colonies average 1,762 nests while the colonies at Chillagoe contained an average of 77 nests. Breeding takes place between September and March in Fiji, and from October to March at Chillagoe. There is no sexual dimorphism and both sexes share in incubation and the feeding of nestlings. At Chillagoe the clutch is one egg whereas in Fiji it is two eggs laid three to five days apart. At Chillagoe incubation took 27. 8 days in the poor year and 26.6 days in the good year. In Fiji incubation averaged 23 days and 58% of eggs hatched compared to 64% of eggs at Chillagoe. The Fijian birds successfully fledged an average of 92%, a breeding success of 53% or 1.1 young fledged per breeding pair. From the two single-chick broods the birds at Chillagoe fledged 69%. a breeding success of 44% or 0.9 young fledged per pair in the good breeding season. In the poor year at Chillagoe hatching success was 60%. fledging success was 50%, reducing breeding success to 30%. At Chillagoe the fledging period was increased from 46.9 days in the good year to 49.8 days in the poor year. At both locations most chick mortality resulted from chicks falling from their nests. Lost eggs or chicks were normally replaced by eight to fourteen days. Chicks in Fiji were fed an average of 2.2 times a day, whereas those at Chillagoe were fed an average of 5.2 times a day in the good season and 3.0 times a day in the poor season. Placing the data for this species with those for other species of apodids shows a positive correlation between egg size and adult size and a negative correlation between feeding frequency and the nestling period. Producing a third egg would not benefit the Fijian Swiftlet, which could not hatch significantly more eggs when given a third egg and could not fledge significantly more chicks when given three chicks instead of their normal brood of two. Fijian birds fed the artificially enlarged broods more frequently than normal sized broods, but neither the number of feeds per chick nor the number of chicks fledged in the larger broods was increased. Parents are apparently maximising the number of fledglings that they can raise. It is suggested that when there is a food shortage in the breeding season some passerines will lose more newly fledged chicks than normal whereas White-rumped Swiftlets in Fiji will lose more nestlings than normal. Nest size is not restricting clutch size as swiflets at Chillagoe did not raise more young when their nests were enlarged, and predators cannot be restricting clutch size because their nests are in total darkness. The swiftlets at Chillagoe are on the "mainland" yet produce a smaller clutch than those on the Fiji Islands. This is the reverse of predictions from the theory of "competitive release" on islands, therefore this theory cannot be used to explain the smaller clutch size of the birds at Chillagoe. The remaining factor is the food supply which is controlled by the occurrence of rain.The abundance of aerial insects was greater during days when rain fell. Adult swiftlets gathered less food in the dry season and in the dry periods between rain, and chicks put on more weight during rain periods, indicating that food was the critical factor restricting chick growth. Additionally, artifici.ally enlarged broods grew more slowly and never fledged more chicks than single-chick broods. This demonstrates that the abundance of food during the breeding season is the factor that not only regulates chick growth but also restricts clutch size. The food supply at Chillagoe does not last long enough for swiftlets to raise two single-chick broods, but it does last long enough for a unique strategy to have been developed which allows them to raise two chicks without producing a two-chick brood. This strategy involves the female laying the second egg after the first chick is fully feathered so that the first chick completes most of the incubation of the egg. The second egg hatches after the first chick fledges. The timing of laying the second egg leaves both parents free to forage for one chick only and allows them to raise two chicks in the shortened breeding (rainy) season that is characteristic of the savannah.
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    An evaluation of the role and effects of tourism policies on the development and growth of the tourist industry in New Zealand and in Fiji : a comparative study : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Business Studies at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1982) Taal, Alieu Badara Saja
    [Please note: this is a shortened version of the abstract which is very long.] This thesis is an examination of the proposition that tourism development is to a great extent dependent upon the effectiveness of government tourism policies and government tourism organisations. Put another way, the greater the degree of effectiveness of tourism policies and organisations. the greater the degree of tourist industry development. Tourism policies and organisations are seen here as playing functional roles towards the development of the tourist industry. There are two basic hypotheses to be tested in the thesis, namely: (a) There are causal relations between tourism organisations and policies, and tourist industry development. (b) There are evaluable functions that tourism policies and organisations play in the development of the tourist industry. To test the validity of the above propositions, government tourism policies and organisations in New Zealand and Fiji are researched. analysed and evaluated.
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    Lime-aluminium-phosphate interactions in selected acid soils from Fiji : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Soil Science at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1985) Naidu, Ravendra
    Poor crop production in Fiji has long been associated with Al-toxicity and/or P deficiency problems. Although attempts have been made to alleviate these problems, the lack of suitable soil-testing procedures and a limited understanding of lime-Al-P interactions are restricting the better utilization of these soils. Following a preliminary investigation, 4 contrasting Fijian soils (Batiri, Koronivia, Nadroloulou, and Seqaqa) were chosen for a lime-Al-P interaction study. The soils, which had pH and M KCl-extractable Al values ranging from 3.9 to 4.9 and 35.6 to 0.3 mmol kg-1,.respectively, were used to investigate the effect of liming on surface charge, P-sorption characteristics, the amounts of P extracted by a number of soil-testing procedures, and plant uptake of P. A study was conducted to compare M KCl-extraction procedures for exchangeable Al and analytical techniques used in the determination of Al. For each soil, different extraction procedures and analytical techniques measured significantly (P < 0.01) different amounts of extractable Al. It was recommended that extractable Al in Fijian soils could be best determined by the oxine reagent following a 2 x 1-h shaking with M KCl. The ion retention method, which is commonly used to measure charge, was examined critically with a view to standardising it for the range of soils used in the present study. The method involves an initial washing of soils with an electrolyte of high concentration to remove exchangeable ions, equilibration of the washed soils with an electrolyte of the desired concentration and subsequent extraction of the equilibrated soils. The concentrations of prewash electrolyte (0.5M CaCl2, 0.1M CaCl2, and 0.01M CaCl2) used to remove exchangeable ions prior to equilibration with 0.01M CaCl2 and the soil:solution ratio were found to have a marked effect on the magnitude of the surface negative charge of unlimed soils. However, these differences were largely related to the amount of Al removed during the prewash and the equilibration procedures. Thus when the Al released in the extracting solution (0.5M KNO3) was included in the calculation of charge, the differences in the measured negative charge obtained either because of varying concentrations of prewash electrolyte or for the effect of soil:solution ratio were reduced. Surface charge, determined in 0.01M CaCl2, was always found to be higher than that determined in 0.03M NaCl and this difference was more pronounced in limed soils at high pH values. Subsequent studies revealed that this anomaly was largely due to the inability of Na to exchange with Ca at high pH values. The results of these studies, together with those involving the prewash electrolytes and the soil:solution ratio, suggested that a suitable method of measuring surface charge of limed soils would use 0.01M CaCl2 as the equilibration electrolyte and include in the calculation of charge the amount of Al released in the extracting solution. Incubation of soils with added lime caused a large increase in surface negative charge. However, the magnitude of increase in the negative charge varied considerably between soils. For example, the negative charge in the Seqaqa soil increased from 8 to over 38 cmol(p)kg-1, compared to only a small increase of 2 to 10 cmol(p)kg-1 in the Batiri soil over the same pH range. In contrast to liming, P additions resulted in only a small increase in negative charge. Interestingly, all soils possessed positive charge up to 1 cmol(p)kg-1, even at pH values as high as 7. Subsequent Studies showed that this may have been due to substitution of Ti4+ and/or Mn4+ in the iron oxide lattice. Extraction of lime- and P-treated soils with Olsen and Mehlich reagents showed that liming had a marked effect on the amount of P removed. Whereas Olsen P increased on either side of pH values 5.5 - 6.0, Mehlich P consistently decreased with increasing soil pH. For example, in the high P-sorbing Seqaqa soil, Mehlich P decreased from 0.2 mmol kg-1 at pH 4.5 to < 0.01 mmol kg-1 in soils with pH higher than 7.0. The decrease in Mehlich P was shown to be due to the neutralizing effect of lime on the extractant. An isotopic-exchange study revealed an increase in exchangeable P up to a pH approximating 7, above which there was a sharp decrease, possibly indicating the formation of insoluble Ca-P compounds. Although liming had only a small effect on the sorption of added P, this was sufficient to have a significant effect on equilibrium solution P concentration. Generally, liming caused an increase in equilibrium solution P concentration up to pH values of 5.0 - 6.0, above which there was a marked decrease. The initial increase in equilibrium solution P concentration appeared to result from an interaction between added P, surface negative charge and electrostatic potential in the plane of sorption. Subsequent sorption studies using Nadroloulou soil incubated with either KOH or Ca(OH)2 showed that the decrease in solution P at high pH values was probably due to the formation of insoluble Ca-P compounds. The effects of lime and P addition on the growth of the tropical legume Leucaena leucocephala were studied in a controlled-climate laboratory. With all 4 soils, there was an initial increase in the dry matter yield of the plant tops with liming which was followed by a marked decrease. This trend was most pronounced in the Seqaqa soil where dry matter yield of tops increased by ~2000% at the pH at which maximum growth occurred. Similar but smaller increases were noted in the other soils. The concentration of Al in plant tops increased on either side of the pH of maximum growth, but Al uptake by the whole plant (tops + roots) declined steadily with increasing pH. Poor growth at low pH values waS attributed to Al-induced P deficiency within the plant and at high pH values largely to a soil P deficiency and to a smaller extent to the increased concentration of Al in the plant tops. P deficiency at high pH value was attributed to the formation of insoluble Ca-P compounds and this was supported by the data obtained from isotopic-exchange and P-sorption studies. A further plant growth study was conducted on the limed soils, previously used for the growth of Leucaena leucocephala, Ryegrass (Lolium perenne L) plants were initially grown in sand and then transferred onto the soils. Plant growth was again retarded at low and high pH values but comparison with control plants grown in a similar manner but not transferred onto the soils demonstrated that the poor growth at both high and low pH was due in part to a toxicity effect rather than simple P deficiency. It is likely that Al was responsible. Comparision of the data obtained by resin extraction and plant P uptake gave a close 1:1 relationship. In contrast, Olsen-, Colwell-, Bray (I)-, Bray (II)-, and Mehlich-exractable P were only weakly correlated with P uptake. The difficulty in relating plant P uptake data to extractable P levels was attributed to the problems associated with extracting P from limed soils.