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Secondary school English language teacher agency in the aftermath of COVID-19 crises : a study from a West Sumatran Region, Indonesia : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Linguistics at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2025-11-26) Yuliandri, Yuliandri
The COVID-19 pandemic saw the prompt shift to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT), which was challenging for both learners and educators worldwide. This study explores the experiences of secondary school English language teachers working within a resource-limited setting of Lima Puluh Kota Region, West Sumatra, Indonesia. It focuses not only on the ERT period but also on the re-transition to face-to-face teaching post-pandemic. It seeks to answer two research questions: 1) What adjustments did English language teachers make to their practice during and after the pandemic lockdown period, and how did they perceive and articulate these experiences? 2) How did the teachers exercise their agency, negotiate their professional identities, and manage their emotions in response to these experiences? This study adopts a qualitative dominant mixed-methods design. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis are employed to analyse data which was collected from teachers from July to November 2022 through a survey (n=63), two rounds of interviews (n=10), and classroom observations (n=10). The findings indicated that while the teachers were emotionally affected by the abrupt shift to ERT, which was intensified by Digital Divide issues, they tried to negotiate the availability of resources and use their agency to find ways to continue teaching. Some were able to discover benefits beyond the difficulties as ERT exposed them to digital technologies, a wide range of learning modes, and opportunities to pursue professional development (PD). Throughout and after the pandemic, teachers actively negotiated their professional identities, which contributed to their professional growth and increased reflexivity on their current and future practices. This shifted their perspectives about teaching and learning and the role of technology, which proved useful when they encountered challenges re-transitioning to face-to-face classrooms. This study contributes to the literature by 1) adding evidence of how English language teachers exercised their agency during and after the pandemic and illustrating the temporal and contextual aspects involved in the process, 2) revealing different pathways of professional identity negotiation, and 3) breaking down the interplay between agency, identity, and emotions, and outlining the significant role of emotions in both enactment of agency and professional identity negotiation. In addition to these theoretical contributions, practical implications, which focus on the need for school technology infrastructure in the region, and tailored teacher professional development at both school and MoE levels to foster student teachers’ and experienced teachers’ awareness of the intersection of agency, identity and emotion in the teacher education curriculum and training programmes, are discussed.
The policy implications of 'thinking problematically': problematising the parent-school partnership in Aotearoa New Zealand's Tomorrow's Schools education reform policy : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2024) Hailwood, Kim
Prior to the 1987 general election, New Zealand’s fourth Labour Government announced its intention to review the administration of the state schooling system. The government explained that the proposed education reforms would result in more parental and community involvement, highlighting that school boards of trustees, with elected parent representatives, would facilitate the development of a deeper partnership between parents and schools. The 1989 Tomorrow’s Schools reforms consequently instituted changes to the way the New Zealand schooling system was organised and governed. Over the last 30 years, Tomorrow’s Schools has generated substantial commentary and analysis. The purpose of this thesis is not to ass ess whether the Tomorrow’s Schools policy was an appropriate or effective solution. Rather, the study adopts Bacchi’s (2009) Foucauldian-influenced post-structuralist ‘What is the Problem Represented to be?’ (WPR) method to examine how ‘problems’ are thought about and represented in policy documents. In particular, the WPR approach questions the established understanding that policy is reactive; that is, a ‘problem’ exists, and policy is implemented to ‘fix’ the ‘problem’. The study has two overarching objectives. First, to provide a worked example of Bacchi’s (2009) WPR model in the field of education, focusing primarily on the solutions advanced in the government-appointed Picot Taskforce’s 1988 ancillary report (Administering for excellence) and the government’s 1988 policy response document (Tomorrow’s Schools). The second objective is to comprehensively assess the WPR framework and its ability to recognise, challenge, and disrupt normative discourses, particularly in relation to the parent-school connection. Bacchi’s (2009) methodological framework specifically steps back from what appears common sense and asks how it has come to be. Accordingly, the goal is to subject the government texts to multiple forms of problem-questioning in order to identify the assumptions, origins, silences, and effects of the policy; thereby enabling other ways of conceptualising the ‘problem’. As a result, attention is directed to a framework that explicates the purpose, power, and politics involved in policy. As the first study to use Bacchi’s (2009) WPR model to examine New Zealand’s Tomorrow’s Schools education reform policy, this thesis makes an original contribution to knowledge by opening up governing practices to scrutiny through the interrogation of problematisations. In this way, the study pays attention to the normalised and taken-for-granted truth claims that shaped and were shaped by the Tomorrow’s Schools policy. At the same time, the thesis adds to a growing body of international literature highlighting the analysis of problematisations in education policy research.
A critical investigation into the challenges and benefits in developing a culturally responsive framework in a mainstream Kāhui Ako/Community of Learning : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for a Master of Education, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2019) Aim, Daryl
In late 2014 the government announced the ‘Investing in Educational Success’ initiative with a $359 million budget. The initiative invited schools to form into local school clusters called Communities of Learning | Kāhui Ako (CoL). Ninety-three per cent of these clusters and CoLs, identified culturally responsive practice as a core objective. The Ministry of Education has through a number of initiatives attempted to address the achievement disparity between Māori and non-Māori that has resulted in a clear directive for teaching and learning to shift towards a pedagogical practice of ‘culturally responsive teaching.’ The intention of this research was to examine one CoL that ostensibly focussed on raising Māori student achievement. A qualitative case study approach was utilised that involved participants directly included in one Community of Learning that focussed on Māori achievement in State education, disparity, educational initiatives, and implementing the aspirations of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The critical issue was whether there was evidence of tangible and measurable success for Māori students, and what, if any, barriers the CoL confronted in achieving its intended goals. The research shows that there were benefits to the schools and staff operating as members in the Community of Learning, such as the opportunity to network and work alongside colleagues from other schools. A strong view to emerge was that Across School Teacher (AST) positions benefitted substantially (and perhaps excessively) in the form of professional development, leadership opportunity, classroom release and increased pay. There was an absence of evidence to indicate any significant benefit to regular classroom teachers. The most damning finding of this research is that after four years of operation and over $2 million dollars there is no tangible evidence of any improved educational outcomes for Māori students. The CoL initiative, although meritorious in design, has in this specific CoL case study has failed to deliver any measurable benefit to priority learners. The Investing in Educational Success, with regard to the CoL can be considered, like a number of other initiatives, another lost opportunity for Māori. Further research into the impact of the Investing in Educational Success and Communities of Learning | Kāhui Ako (CoL) initiative is therefore warranted and highly recommended.
Developing teacher-led professional learning in a Tanzanian secondary school : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2018) Mwakabenga, Rehema Japhet
The competence of Tanzanian teachers, as in other countries, depends on high quality and widely available ongoing professional learning opportunities. Currently, in Tanzania, provision of professional development for secondary teachers is inadequate and sporadic. This study explores the complexities of teacher-led professional learning in the context of a Tanzanian secondary school and as such, provides a nuanced model of how teachers can develop a sense of agency of their own professional learning. Firstly, this study investigated how Tanzanian secondary school teachers perceived and engaged in school based professional learning. Practice changes made by teachers and their understandings of school-based professional learning are then examined as they engaged in an inquiry and knowledge-building cycle. The factors that constrained and enabled teachers to engage in this school-based professional learning are also analysed. An embedded mixed action research was conducted in two phases. Phase One survey data revealed that teachers were not satisfied with the quality of their existing professional learning and that they wanted to engage in more learning. When four teachers in one secondary school were assisted to engage in a series of inquiry cycles, as a means to engage in effective professional learning, they demonstrated varying degrees of change in their practices. These transformations were primarily related to implementing new pedagogies based on their students’ learning needs and reflecting on their professional learning. This shift in practice was associated with the teachers’ changes in their understanding and valuing of teacher-led professional learning and distinguishing this from previous external training that lacked relevance to their teaching situations. Lack of learning materials and funds were found to be critical barriers that constrained their engagement in professional learning. Established support systems enabled the teachers to strengthen their collaborative learning practice and their understanding of ways to engage in their own professional learning. The findings revealed the teachers’ developing capacities to carry out professional learning and to own and manage it themselves. The changes shown by teachers in this study suggest that teachers can initiate and collaborate in effective professional learning if they are supported to do so. This study contributes to understanding of Tanzanian teacher engagement in professional learning, especially in poorly resourced schools. Based on these findings, implications and recommendations are made to develop teacher-led professional learning in Tanzania and similar jurisdictions.
The amalgamation of secondary schools : a case study of amalgamation culture shock in a rural New Zealand Catholic community : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Administration at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 1999) Hills, Madeleine Claire
This case study examines the process which led to the formation of Chanel College by the amalgamation of St Bride's and St Joseph's colleges in 1978. From 1970 - 1999 a radical restructuring of Catholic secondary education in New Zealand resulted in the closure of twelve single sex secondary schools for girls and the amalgamation of twenty-six secondary schools. Chanel College was the first New Zealand Catholic secondary school to bypass the co-institutional transitional phase of amalgamation and to be a co-educational college from its beginning. As time passes there is the possibility that important understandings that were part of the history of the merger might be lost and stakeholders in each of the merging organisations might feel that their own roots and mission have not been given enough recognition and respect in the new organisation. The community which provides the focus of this case study had experienced a long period of stability followed by years of rapid cultural, educational, and leadership change. The tortuous progress of amalgamation for the Catholic community in the Wairarapa provides an ideal opportunity to examine the importance of leadership and process in the management of significant educational change. The importance of managing the culture shock of amalgamations is often underestimated or overlooked. This form of culture shock involves the confusion, disorientation and severe emotional stress associated with moving from a familiar culture to one most unlike the old environment. If this management issue is not addressed effectively there can be a significant area of 'unfinished business' which leaves a bitter legacy for a new school struggling to create an accepted culture of its own. The stakeholders also find themselves involved in a situation which is often not of their choosing where they face the often unwelcome task and ongoing process of creating a new culture where the unconscious taken for granted beliefs, thoughts and values which had provided the foundation for the merging schools must be revisited until a new culture develops which is accepted by the new community as appropriate to its needs. In the Conclusions and Recommendations section the stakeholder and community management issues often encountered in the amalgamation process are summarised and management recommendations are made and solutions proposed.
Identifying trades tutors' and institutions' perceptions of tutors' roles within the ITP sector : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in Adult Education at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2008) Pritchard, Christine
Since 1984 tertiary education institutions have been subject to progressive and far-reaching change. Much of this change has been shaped by neo-liberalist agendas which espouse accountability, efficiency, responsiveness, professionalism and managerialism. This thesis looks at how these themes have shaped or influenced managerial and tutorial perceptions of tutors' operational roles, responsibilities and performance within a selection of contemporary Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics (ITP) teaching environments. Analysis of the research identifies that scant or poorly prepared institutional documentation around tutorial roles and responsibilities has contributed to uncertainty or confusion, and consequently to individuals adapting their teaching roles to suit themselves. It has also been identified that managers appointed to the pivotal role of Head of School are stretched in their ability to cope with the demands that are placed on them. This thesis suggests that the increasing responsibilities they carry for managing tutorial staff have contributed to a breakdown in workload planning and performance management processes. Managers acknowledge that further work needs to be done in defining tutors' roles, responsibilities and performance. But such work presupposes the question: how do managers and tutors perceive tutorial roles in today's ITP teaching environment? Research on this key question and associated issues provides the basis for this thesis.
The politics of teachers' work in the context of curriculum resources marketisation policy reforms in three secondary schools in Tanzania : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at Massey University, Manawatu Campus, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2015) Mislay, Moshi Amsi
Before Tanzania enjoyed the fruits of postcolonial education policy reforms, the country was hit by the world economic crises in the 1970s. Consequently, Tanzania and other developing countries turned to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) that imposed, financed, and controlled her education and economic policy through the Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAP) of the 1980s. Thus, Tanzania adopted education privatisation and marketisation policies during the 1990s. More specifically, in 1991, the Policy on Production and Distribution of School and College Books, which I will call Marketisation Policy, redefined school and college curriculum resources according to market principles. The purpose of this study was to critically analyse how marketisation policy reforms, reconstructed at societal, institutional, and local classroom levels, reshaped teachers’ subjectivities and practices between 1992 and 2012. Using an ethnographic case study of three secondary schools from northern Tanzania, the study examines teachers’ work histories, politics, and cultures using a combination of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) (Fairclough, 1989, 1992, 1995, 2015) and the theory of pedagogic discourse (Bernstein, 1971, 1975, 1990, 1996, 1999, 2000). The study aimed to answer three research questions, namely: (1) What policy texts and discourses were constructed in the process of marketisation policy interpretation in secondary schools? (2) How do marketisation policy texts and discourses reshape secondary school teachers’ subject positions and pedagogical codes? and (3) How do the subject positions and pedagogical codes constructed by marketisation policy texts and discourses reshape teachers’ pedagogic practices and official knowledge construction? Marketisation policy implementation and professional documents, interview and focus group transcripts, and classroom observation notes were collected from the three schools. These were analysed to discern themes that characterised the nature, history, and politics of teachers’ work practices. Findings indicate that marketisation policy texts and discourses positioned secondary school teachers as passive and dependent consumers of marketised curriculum resources (MCR) produced by private publishers and the state. They were also positioned as lacking knowledge to plan, decide, and implement curricula, pedagogic, and evaluation practices. These subject positions constrained teacher creativity and critical thinking, and reproduced capitalist publishers and state power and ideologies through the policy texts and discourses. Curricular, pedagogical, and evaluatative cultural practices were dominated and influenced by capitalist publishers and the state through marketisation policy texts and the discourses of finance, MCR, educational materials’ approval, and advertising. The study documents how marketisation policy aims, objectives, outcomes, and pedagogic strategies reflected the aims and effects of both colonial and postcolonial education policy. Teachers and students constructed multiple power/knowledge and resistance to dominant discourses based on accessible MCR, private tuition, past educational training, collaboration with colleagues, and attending some training. However, although these discourses empowered them to construct and exercise power/knowledge to respond to marketisation policy discursive constraints, they also reconstructed curriculum domination because of students’ limited access to MCR and classroom curriculum discourses.
Effectiveness in changing a primary school's culture : a case study : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Administration at Massey University
(Massey University, 2000) Joyce, Andrea
Change has been a constant feature of contemporary educational organisations since 1989 and the instituting of Tomorrow's Schools. However, knowing that change is required is one thing, achieving 'real change' is quite another. Contemporary educational writers and researchers strongly suggest that an organisation's culture, effectiveness, improvements and leadership are the major, interconnected, concepts that enable an organisation - whether it be educational or a corporate business - to initiate, manage, maintain and monitor real change. This research study, using ethnographic approaches of participant observation, interviews and document collection, attempted to view an educational organisation in the throes of re-establishing itself from an 'historical culture', to a more 'contemporary culture'. The research indicated, by comparing historical and present ways of doing things, that organisational concepts - culture, effectiveness, improvement and leadership - were interpreted in different ways to produce quite contrasting sets of beliefs and assumptions, norms and expectations. The research also highlighted the fact that leadership was at the 'heart' in influencing the way/s in which - both historically and in the present - culture, effectiveness and improvements were to be implemented and shaped. This research concluded that the concept of organisational culture (as an umbrella for defining how things are done, effectiveness, improvements and leadership) was useful in developing an understanding of what creates real change in an organisation. This research study, in adding to current debate and research, implies that, in identifying beliefs and assumptions, norms and expectations, an environment could be prudently positioned to design and change systems, rather than merely to identify systems that are possibly inadequate to meet contemporary educational (or other) challenges.
An ethnographic study of two schools : some aspects of school culture and the significance for change : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Administration at Massey University
(Massey University, 1989) Poskitt, Jennifer Mary
Two New Zealand schools. one primary, one intermediate are studied in depth using ethnographic research techniques. with an emphasis on observations in the field. Observations were supplemented by a survey of subils. by formal and informal interviews of people in the school community and by document analysis. The aim of the study was to understand the culture of each school, its way of life, the responses each made to change and the means each used to begin the process of school improvement. Descriptions and interpretations of the cultures revealed 'sacred values' which provide a possible key to why changes occurred. At the primary school the 'sacred value' of bilingualism is revealed. This value is supported by rituals, ceremonies, symbols, language, a priestess and patterns of behaviour within the school. Other related values are: concern for peoble, teamwork, concern for learning and teaching, openness, consultation and involvement of the kowhai School community; all incorporated within the values of positive reinforcement, flexibility and informality. Manuka Intermediate is different from Kowahi School having an overall, inspiring slogan, making manuka matter to which three main 'sacred values' are connected. The value of putting people first is shown by sub-themes of teamwork, family feeling, shared decision-making and positive reinforcement. This analysis revealed some sub-cultural groups with competing views. suggesting a site of change. The principai is shown have a key role in culture shaping and as an agent of change. Two further 'sacred values' of aiming for excellence and image building are explicatad. Incorporation of children's views is shown in the children's values of variety, choice are schoolwork. From the study of the school cultures a theory of change is derived, from which the author proposes that the changes endorse, and are compatible with the cultural themes and 'sacred values'. These cultural values are postulated to determine the pace, the process and the acceptability of types of changes. Many participants acknowledged that there had been multiple changes but found it difficult to specify them; suggesting that they had been incorporated into the 'way of life.' Changes were deemed to be largely positive, especially by informed people. Participants believed that it was mainiy children who were affected by changes. although staff and community also were affected to a lesser degree. Finally, If one goal of school improvement is an abillty to handle change (Hopkins, 1984). then, Judging from their ability to handle change and from parent perceptions, it appears that the two schools have commenced the process of school improvement. The thesis, therefore, contributes towards the understanding of the processes of school change.
An investigation into ITP tutors' understanding of policy and performance, to identify changes that have the potential to enhance teaching practice : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2012) Pritchard, Christine
This thesis examines the reported views and experiences of tutors who work in the institutes of technology and polytechnics (ITP) sector in New Zealand. This phenomenographic based study focuses on elucidating these views and experiences in order to identify changes that have the potential to enhance tutors’ teaching practice. The choice of phenomenography as a methodology for recording and analysing individual viewpoints – and the variation in these viewpoints – is complemented by case study analysis, designed to present a more individualised interpretive perspective. Although studies have been undertaken on the way in which academics perceive working in the university sector, little research has been undertaken on the way in which ITP tutors understand and evaluate their teaching practice. This research revealed variations in the way that tutors: experience teaching in the ITP sector; measure their own performance; and interpret and use policy to support their teaching practice. Thirty-two volunteer tutors participated in semi-structured interviews conducted within four ITPs and across four subject areas, namely: trades, business, art and design, and foundation studies. Interview data was transcribed and analysed in order to present the findings of this research, which are presented in two parts. First, the aggregated views and experiences of tutors are marshalled into five qualitatively different categories: understanding and modelling effective teaching; developing and growing; building relationships; enacting government and institutional policy; and adapting to contextual influences. Second, the thesis presents case studies of tutors drawn from four different subject areas. Their data was included in the categories of description before being reanalysed and reported in the context of the five categories identified in the aggregated analysis. The researcher has formulated eight recommendations from the findings. These recommendations are of a long-term nature, and have the potential to enhance teaching practice within the ITP sector. This research provides new perspectives on tutors’ understanding and experiences of working within the ITP sector. It demonstrates that there is marked variation in the way in which they perceive and evaluate their performance; identifies potential gaps in their understanding and in the institutional environment in which they are employed; and offers recommendations for change.

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