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Item Senior secondary school students' engagement within a blended learning course : an exploratory case study : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in e-learning at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Massey University, 2016) Bloomfield, GayeThis research presents an exploration of student engagement within a blended learning course at a New Zealand secondary school. Growing numbers of secondary school students are participating in blended learning courses with both face-to-face and online teaching and learning experiences. However, the uptake and use of blended learning is not matched by an understanding of the nature of senior secondary students’ behavioural, emotional and cognitive engagement. There are also gaps in understanding about approaches to learning that aid student engagement in a blended learning context. To address this gap in the research, case study methodology was used over four weeks with seven Year 12 students and the teacher of their blended learning course. A qualitative analysis of observations, online usage, document analysis and interviews was undertaken to determine the nature of engagement within the blended learning activities available in one unit of learning. The findings suggest that engaging senior secondary students in a blended learning environment involves a carefully considered and complex mix of cognitively and emotionally engaging activities. Three mechanisms that aided engagement with learning in this blended learning context were the fostering of a learning purpose, the use of scaffolds and providing the opportunity for the learner to personalise their activities. This study contributes to the field of secondary school blended learning by supporting and deepening the literature base about how senior secondary students engage with blended learning activities.Item Having their say : six Pacific girls talk about their experiences in a New Zealand secondary school : a thesis completed in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Second Language Teaching at Massey University, Palmerston North(Massey University, 2000) Bell, ZanaThe problems faced by Pacific students in the New Zealand education system have been examined over the years, but very often the analysis of learning problems has been complicated by factors associated with wider issues such as socio-economic background (for instance, Hawk & Hill, 1996). The participants in this present study generally come from professional backgrounds, have succeeded well in their home schools and are studying in New Zealand on scholarships. They live in the secure environment of a hostel where after-school study is actively provided for. Thus, by removing socio-economic and home factors from the situation, it is possible to focus more on the learning situation itself. The factors that contribute both positively and negatively to the learning situation are explored by following the progress of six, secondary school girls through an academic year; four were new arrivals to New Zealand and two were in their second year here. Through a series of interviews, the year is seen through their eyes, as closely as possibly describing the girls' experiences as they saw them. Teachers are also interviewed, their interpretation of the classroom situation presenting interesting points of comparison and contrast to the girls' perceptions. The results of this study indicate that both teachers and students can underestimate the problems faced by Pacific students. The teachers, misled by the students' very fluent communicative ability, are not sufficiently aware of the problems that the students face when working with academic English. Further, the girls' quiet demeanour in class can be interpreted as passivity or lack of ability. The students on the other hand, applying their own cultural experiences to a New Zealand classroom, misunderstand the rules in play. They see nothing to emulate in the New Zealanders' behaviour, yet are frustrated and bewildered when these students do better than them. Academic expectations in New Zealand are different and the extent of these differences are not fully appreciated by either teachers or students and require greater changes both in teacher delivery and in student study habits. There are also affective factors such as leaving home, culture shock and stress which can further impede learning. The study maps the factors that appear to contribute most as constraints on learning and proposes a two-way model which recognises and addresses these factors. Additionally, it makes some recommendations for schools, recognising not only the constraints but also the factors that appear to facilitate learning. The study suggests that in proposing this model, it may be possible to better understand the learning situations of other Pacific students which are currently often overshadowed by socio-economic concernsItem Maximizing potential : the effectiveness of Project K on self-efficacy, resilience, and connectedness : a dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand(Massey University, 2013) Furness, KirstyThis longitudinal study aimed to investigate changes in self-efficacy, resilience, and connectedness to school in students participating in Project K, a positive youth development programme. Eighty secondary school students were recruited from five schools across New Zealand. These formed two groups: a Project K group made up of 49 students, and a comparison group made up of 31 students. Over fourteen months, six waves of measurement were completed by Project K participants and four waves of measurement were completed by a comparison group. Self-efficacy was measured using the Project K Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, while resilience was measured using the Resilience Scale, and connectedness to school was measured using the Hemingway Adolescent Connectedness Scale. Preliminary analysis confirmed variance in individual and group data indicating more complex multilevel analysis would be beneficial in investigating changes in self-efficacy, resilience, and connectedness to school. As expected, the Project K group began with lower self-efficacy than the comparison group. However, after controlling for differences in initial status, Project K participants improved at a faster rate over the course of the programme than the control group. Gender difference in initial self-efficacy scores were noted, with females having higher self-efficacy than males, however these initial differences were unrelated to rates of change over time. Project K participants had lower resilience at the start of the study but after controlling for the initial group differences, the Project K group was found to improve at a faster rate when compared to the comparison group. There was no difference between groups at the start of the programme, or in rate of change over time in the connectedness to school variable, and no relationship between gender and changes in resilience or connectedness to school scores over time. To conclude, implications for future research and practice are discussed.Item Driving force? : motivations of senior mathematics students enrolled in National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) Level III Statistics & Modelling(Massey University, 2013) Fraser Webb, JackieThe objective of this study was to explore how senior mathematical students made sense of their mathematical experience through the New Zealand National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) qualifications system, and from that exploration to understand what factors motivated these students and to which factors these students attributed their mathematical success. The research is based on Constructivist Theory, with ethnomethodology as the methodological approach. The methodological tool utilised in the study was an online questionnaire. The students who completed the questionnaire attended an urban, co-educational, decile 8 secondary school in New Zealand. The participants were students aged 16 years old and over, enrolled in a full year NCEA Level 3 Statistics and Modelling Achievement Standards programme in 2013. The students in the sample were aware that there were set criteria within each grade for NCEA Level 3 Statistics and Modelling assessment tasks. The students were mindful that achievement was measured in discrete units. Evidence from the research suggests that to maximise student learning within the NCEA qualifications system, Level 3 Statistics and Modelling needs to be taught as a collective, cohesive statistics curriculum. The students in the sample attributed their highest mathematical outcomes to ability, effort and the teacher and their lowest mathematical outcomes to lack of ability, lack of effort and the level of difficulty of the assessment. The findings highlighted the importance of prioritising the teacher and student relationship. In the study, only 12% of students were convinced that their teacher was interested in them at an individual level. NCEA Level 3 Statistics and Modelling teachers need to be aware of the influence of the teacher and student relationship on student achievement. The findings from the research have implications for teaching and learning. The research evidence indicates a need for NCEA Level 3 Statistics and Modelling students to be aware of the nonnumerical content and grade criteria expectations of the Statistics and Modelling Achievement Standards prior to committing to the course.Item Reducing school stand-downs : a case study of one New Zealand secondary school : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Education (Educational Psychology) at Massey University, New Zealand(Massey University, 2013) White, CarolynIn 2012 schools in New Zealand stood-down over 13,000 students as a result of behavioural difficulties. Within this data are a disproportionate number of low decile, male and Maori students. This present study examines the stand-down processes at one secondary school to compare the study school’s stand-down data with national norms, and conduct a case study within the school to gather different perspectives on a stand-down event from two students, their families, and school staff. Possible ways to reduce stand-downs and intervene early before behaviour peaks to a level that may justify a stand-down are examined from a global view and then in relation to the specific contexts at the study school. Successful measures that can lead to a reduction in school stand-downs include the implementation of a positive behaviour framework such as School-Wide Positive Behaviour for Learning which is being promoted and implemented in New Zealand, which take a targeted, tiered approach to behavioural interventions. Restorative Practices and seeking interventions that assess the function of student behaviour are also highlighted as successful measures to reduce the time students spend out of school as a result of behavioural incidents.Item What do I want to do and how do I get there? : A possible selves approach to motivation in education : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand(Massey University, 2013) Muñoz Larroa, Lucia JazminAlthough access to education is young person’s right, the rates of school disengagement in industrialised nations such as New Zealand continues to be a matter of concern. Research that provides new information on how the schools and government departments can reach out to those students at risk is needed. In order to modify a student’s school disengagement pathway it is crucial to identify students at risk (Study 1) and intervene (Study 2). The possible selves theory has been found useful to approach students’ motivation. The theory suggests that the students’ visions of themselves in the future act as a cognitive schema through which they interpret the relevance of present events, such as their performance at school. In turn, student’s ability to see an alignment between their visions of their future and the outcomes offer by school qualifications or skills learnt has the potential to enhance their school engagement. In the first study an alternative measure of school engagement was developed to aid in the identification of at-risk students. Unlike other measures of school engagement, the Goals and Perception of School Scale (GPSS) focuses on the students’ view of their future, the role that they perceive school has on it, and their perception of school. The exploratory factor analysis conducted revealed the presence of the predicted three component structure, corroborating a strong relationship between having goals and school engagement. In this study, participants who reported having education-related goals (e.g., “I intend to get NCEA level 3”) were found to have higher school engagement scores. Thus, these findings support the idea that school engagement is enhanced by the alignment between students’ personal goals (the students’ vision of themselves in the future) and the outcomes offered by school (skills and qualifications). In addition, those who reported short-term academic goals were less likely to report in-school misbehaviour. Therefore, without having to ask about school performance and inschool behaviour the Goals and Perception of School Scale is a measure of school engagement which can aid the early identification of those students who are disengaging from school. In a subsequent study a possible selves intervention was adapted and delivered as a school workshop. The Possible Selves Workshop was found to be a feasible brief group intervention, that iv targets 14 to 15 year-olds consisting of four 60-minute weekly sessions. The content of the intervention includes the adolescents’ identification and enhancement of their possible selves. In addition, it also included psycho-education, goal-setting and problem solving skills training to facilitate the students’ pursuit of their long-term goals. The intervention provides a suitable environment to discuss the relevance of the outcomes offered by school with regards to the students’ vision of their future. The results of this study revealed an improvement on participants’ academic possible selves and plausibility of the strategies being enlisted to pursue the academic possible selves after the intervention. This change was particularly noticeable in participants who had lower baseline scores on school engagement and self-efficacy. Furthermore, there was also an improvement in the time that participants reported doing homework or studying, and on their perceived efficacy and endurance on these activities. Although the workshop showed promise as an intervention there was not quantitative evidence to demonstrate that the improvement in participants’ possible selves translates into greater school engagement (as measured by the scales utilised) and performance (i.e., better grades and harder work). The limitations of this study and suggestions for further research on the efficacy of this intervention are discussed. The studies that comprise this research contribute towards more effective identification and prevention of school disengagement and propose the Possible Selves workshop as a potentially effective intervention that needs to be investigated further.Item Structure and relationships of standard environmental, personality and ability factors in secondary school adolescents : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education at Massey University(Massey University, 1972) Webster, Alan CharlesOver 2,000 pupils of two state coeducational secondary schools and five single-sex private secondary schools in the same New Zealand town completed aptitude tests, and questionnaires on family background, attitudes, interests, affective states, adjustment, personality, beliefs and occupational preferences. Responses were subjected to descriptive analysis and were factor analyzed and regression analyses were carried out on dominant intellective and non-intellective variables. Higher socio-economic status was associated with more pre-school education, more private school education, less mother employment, less father absence, greater continuance at school, less delinquency, more parental pressure to succeed in school, more regular going out with parents, more positive family climate, more positive attitudes to teachers and higher primary school reading and arithmetic levels. Lower class was characterized by greater father absence, large families, less parental concern about school success, less family outings, deficient family climate, lower primary school reading and arithmetic levels, more negative views of how teachers regarded them, lower expectation of opportunity, and lower self-rating of happiness. Factor analyses produced six factors of the structural variables of home environment, five factors of parental child-rearing practices, eight factors of family relations, three intellective factors, ten non-intellective factors. Coefficients of multiple determination showed that home environment predictors of language aptitude and average attainment were father's education, smaller family, parental attitudes against smoking, parental expectation of household duties by adolescent, low parental anger-rejection, high father-permissiveness. Personality predictors of aptitude and attainment were general ability, adjustment to reality, scientific preference, sociability, less practical preference, more perceived favourability with teachers, and greater sensitivity. Joint effects of intellective, home environment and personality predictors were almost as great as the independent effects of intellective predictors. Joint effects of intellective, home environment, and personality predictors were half of the total multiple prediction of conformity problems and about equal to those of personality predictors. High ability pupils were found to be more influenced than others in aptitude by home environment factors. Males were more influenced than females by mother support and by extrinsic motives. Lower ability and lower socioeconomic level pupils were more influenced by intellective factors than by home environment. It was concluded that the home environment factors could be examined as a possible focus of experimental programmes aimed at enhancing adolescent adjustment and attainment.Item The information seeking behaviours of Māori secondary school students : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Massey University, Manawatū campus, New Zealand(Massey University, 2010) Lilley, Spencer CCurrent knowledge of the information seeking behaviour of Māori secondary school students is extremely limited. The objective of this study was to determine how Māori students access and use information to make sense of the two worlds they live in. The research results demonstrated that they have a distinct preference for seeking information from other people, rather than print and electronic sources. A key part of the information behaviour involved exchanging and sharing information within and between social networks. Fisher’s information grounds theory was used to investigate and interpret the information networking behaviour. The study was conducted using a mixed methodology and determined that the students participated in social networks in three different zones, at school, in social and virtual settings, and cultural situations. Each of these zones has sub-areas where information sharing and exchange transactions take place. At school the sub-areas are in formal and casual situations, and in the hostel zone. The social zones include shopping malls, foodcourts, ‘downtown’ destinations, cafes, parties, church and virtual environments. The cultural zones were identified as marae and whānau dwellings. The research results revealed that Māori students encounter a wide range of barriers in the process of seeking information, including not always being able to access the information they want due to its ‘unavailability’, or their perception that the information is incorrect. Access to information technology and the internet remain significant barriers for students to overcome. The study revealed that the types of barriers encountered by students varied according to the cultural context they were seeking the information in. It was found that individuals that have strong sense of their Māori cultural identity have an inner confidence that leads to them experiencing fewer information barriers when seeking information in the two cultural worlds they are part of. The study concludes by presenting a model that is created from the research data and is based on three tikanga Māori principles: the principle of kaupapa whakakaha (strength), the principle of kaupapa tuakiri (identity) and the principle of kaupapa atawhai (humanity). The principle of kaupapa whakakaha includes the values of rangatiratanga (self-determination), whakamana (status), pono (trust), wairuatanga (spirituality) and whakamowai (humility). The principle of kaupapa tuakiri includes the values of whakapapa (legitimacy), iwitanga (tribal pride), te reo (language), whanaungātanga (relationships) and kotahitanga (unity). The principle of kaupapa atawhai includes tau-utuutu (reciprocity), awhina (assistance), rehia (enjoyment) and tautoko (support). This model demonstrates that indigenous (in this case Māori) values are important factors in the successful sharing and exchange of information between Māori secondary school students. The result of this research is the discovery that Māori students who form social networks use these values as a basis for identifying the desired behaviours within their group and when interacting with other groups. Although there are fifteen values, it is not necessary for all of them to be present every time, as the gathering point and those who are there will determine which are relevant to that particular situation. The presence of the selected values within a group will determine whether it is a ‘safe’ environment for those present to exchange and share information,Item Mind the gap! : policy change in practice : school qualifications reform in New Zealand, 1980-2002 : 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, 2007) Alison, Judie'Policy gaps' in education mean that the visions of policy-makers frequently fail to materialise fully, or at all, in teacher practice. This thesis argues that a significant 'policy gap' developed in New Zealand around school qualifications policy during the 1990's, and puts forward some explanations for that. A significant shift in government discourses over that period, from largely social democratic to predominantly neo-liberal discourses, was not matched by a similar shift in the discourses of teachers or the union that represents them. During the same period, teachers and their representative bodies were excluded from policy development, reflecting this shift in government discourses. Government and teachers were 'talking past each other'. As a result, qualifications reforms that might have been expected to be generally welcomed by the profession, as a government response to calls from the profession over many decades, were instead rejected by the majority of teachers. Furthermore, the absence of the teacher voice from policy development meant that the shape of the reforms moved significantly away from the profession's original vision, a further reason for its unacceptability to teachers. Reform was only able to be achieved when teachers and their union were brought back into the policy-making and policy-communicating processes and a version of standards-based assessment closer to the union's original vision was adopted by government. Nevertheless, the National Certificate of Educational Achievement that resulted appears to still be perceived by teachers as externally imposed and its origins in the profession's advocacy for reform over many years have been lost. This indicates that 'policy gaps', while easily opened, are not as easily closed.