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    Using student evaluations for teacher development in nine urban secondary schools : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Administration, Massey University
    (Massey University, 1996) Irving, Stephen Earl
    Student evaluations are becoming more common in education, particularly in the tertiary sector. They have been used by students and by the authorities to make judgments about teachers and courses. Their use for helping teachers to improve their teaching is a recent phenomenon which has barely touched secondary schooling, let alone primary schools. Teacher evaluation data collected for summative purposes have had little effect on teaching performance as there is usually little or no feedback designed to help the teacher to improve. Teachers need to know not only what to change but also how to change their behaviours in a desired direction. This research set out to develop a questionnaire and methodology that could be used by secondary teachers to evaluate their teaching using the students as the source of information, and then use that information to help the teacher to improve their teaching. The methodology draws heavily on the work of Wilson (1986), and Marsh and Roche (1993, 1994) who constructed a process that supplemented feedback with a collegial consultation to help the teacher interpret the data in a meaningful way and then act on it. This methodology has been shown to be the best practice in this field, even though the results of carefully researched studies are modest. A questionnaire appropriate to the New Zealand secondary school environment was constructed and administered in nine urban secondary schools to 344 students. The subject teachers they evaluated were from a wide cross-section of curriculum areas. Most were experienced teachers. At the same time, the teachers completed a self evaluation using the same questionnaire. The teachers received the results of the evaluation with notes on how to interpret the tables and graphs. This was followed by a consultation with the researcher, using a methodology developed from appraisal interviewing techniques. An action plan was devised during this consultation. The teacher then put this into action, and the students were re-surveyed after approximately thirteen weeks. The results of the two surveys were compared to see whether this process was beneficial in improving teaching, as perceived by the students. Overall, the results showed a rather modest improvement across the board. There was a noticeable difference between two groups of teachers dependent on the difference between their own self-evaluation and the average student response. Teachers whose self-evaluation was similar to the student evaluation, or whose self-evaluation was worse than the student evaluations changed little between the two administrations of the questionnaire. On the other hand, if the self-evaluation was better than the average student evaluation, then there were significant improvements in the student evaluations on the second administration. This finding is in keeping with the theory of cognitive dissonance, first espoused by Festinger (1957). When the teacher has a positive self-evaluation but the students rate that teacher poorly, then the teacher is motivated to change their teaching behaviours so that the next student evaluation is favourable. As part of a teacher development programme, students and teachers similarly felt that this form of evaluation is valuable and has a place in appraisal schemes designed to help teachers improve their teaching. There is still considerable reluctance on the part of teachers for this type of evaluation tool to be used for the purposes of promotion, tenure and reward. In light of the requirements for schools to implement performance appraisal schemes, and the need for appraisals to be based on "objective" data, student evaluations can provide the desired information.
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    Illuminating the assessment of practicum in New Zealand early childhood initial teacher education : 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, 2014) Aspden, Karyn Michelle
    Practicum is a core feature of initial teacher education. It is the site of induction and mentoring, intended to support the student teacher in their move from neophyte to graduating teacher. Practicum is seen by many to be the most powerful influence in shaping student teachers’ practice. Practicum is also a key point of assessment within the initial teacher education programme, leading to a determination of the student’s professional development and readiness to teach. This study illuminates the way in which assessment of practicum was enacted and experienced in four representative New Zealand initial teacher education institutions, offering a critical examination of institutional policy and practice, as well as the experiences of practicum participants – student teacher, associate teacher and teacher educator. Informed by the writings of Barbara Rogoff (2003) a multi-phase, mixed methods QUAL/Quan research design (Creswell, 2003) was utilised to foreground institutional, interpersonal and intrapersonal factors that shaped the lived experiences of practicum assessment. In Phase One, key informant interviews with institutional representatives provided understanding of the policies and practices that define the assessment framework for each institution. In Phase Two, an online survey completed by seventy-four student teachers, twenty-six associate teachers and twenty teacher educators captured the experiences of key participants and their descriptions of the strengths and challenges of practicum assessment. Phase Three comprised a case study of one practicum triad from each institution. Interviews with the triad participants examined the way in which assessment of practicum was conducted in the context of relationships, highlighting the critical influence of the interactions between the triad members. Key findings support a view of practicum assessment as complex and multi-faceted, enacted with institutional parameters, but highly individualised in practice. The need for greater transparency and rigour in assessment practices is implicated in the findings of this study, as well as the importance of meaningful collaboration between participants that addresses entrenched hierarchical patterns within the triad. In highlighting the complexity of practicum assessment, a framework is proposed for conceptualising the way in which the experience of practicum assessment is determined by the influence of multiple institutional, interpersonal and intrapersonal variables.
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    The dynamics of transformation at the Auckland College of Education 1985-2000 : an analysis of the impact of socio-political and institutional change on pre-service teacher education : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education
    (Massey University, 2002) Middleton, Stuart Alan
    Colleges of Education in New Zealand had during most of the 1900's enjoyed a protected position as sole providers of teacher education, providing the nation's centres and schools with teachers. The New Zealand Department of Education exercised tight control over the colleges and a degree of autonomy was accorded to them progressively from the 1960's. Change had been incremental and evolutionary in response to shifting socio-political pressures. Socio-political change over the period 1985 - 2000, however, was dramatic in style and profound in effect, as successive governments sought to reform the economy, the state sector, the administration of education and the shape of tertiary education. Colleges of education, along with other tertiary institutions, were manoeuvred into a competitive and contestable environment which imported into education the principles of the "free market". This qualitative study analyses the impact of those changes on pre-service teacher education at the Auckland College of Education over that intense period as transformational changes moved the College from its previously protected teachers college configuration, relating closely to the school system, to one which more typically reflected that of other tertiary institutions alongside which it now stood and with whom it now competed. A theoretical framework is developed that analyses the changes on two dimensions. A vertical axis assesses the nature of the pressures to change and the realities of the skills, knowledge, aspirations and dispositions that the staff of the College brought to them. A horizontal axis tracks the progress of the changes and their impact on the College. The study, which employed interviews with both individuals and focus groups and documents as its prime sources of data, adopted an eclectic methodological approach. Clusters of changes that impacted on pre-service teacher education emerged as "change narratives" based on sets of changes that reflected the impact of various institutional mergers, administrative and professional restructuring, the development of a research culture, the review of the degree taught jointly with the University of Auckland, and the development of a provider degree. The impact of those developments on the provisions for pre-service teacher education is evaluated and from them a set of principles for the management of transformational change in colleges of education or similar institutions and organisations is developed.
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    He huarahi kua takahia = The trodden pathways : Kaupapa Maori initial teacher education pedagagy and practice : one teacher's story : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education at Massey University, Palmerston North
    (Massey University, 2012) Stephens, Cheryl Elizabeth
    This thesis examines the early career teaching experiences and reflections of a graduate teacher from Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi and draws on recent developments within Aotearoa New Zealand tertiary education to highlight the impact of Kaupapa Maori-based education, taking into account the outcomes of one of those developments, Kaupapa Maori initial teacher education. The study investigates the special attributes and professional practice of a Maori graduate teacher working in a primary school. The aim is to understand the ways in which this beginning teacher undertook initial teacher education within a Maori-centred programme that was grounded in the principles, values and practices of ako and tikanga. This examination of the graduate teacher’s classroom practice focuses on preparation for a Kaupapa Maori programme leading to an investigation of the perceptions of those responsible for mentoring and supervision support in an identified school. The recording of Maori student voices within this context, highlights the significance of culturally based and informed pedagogy and practice in classrooms, creating positive educational outcomes for Maori. Authentic accounts of the teacher’s lived experiences and professional life also provides positive feedback about the Maori-initiated and driven Kaupapa Maori initial teacher education programme. Such reflections are indicative of the revolutionary changes made by Maori since the language and culture revitalization initiatives of the 1970- 1980s. This period cites Maori initiating and taking charge of their own destiny and creating new pathways, therefore contributing directly to the well-being of New Zealand society. This thesis further contextualises issues of cultural diversity, cultural pluralism and cultural engagement with the education of indigenous minority peoples of a First World country.
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    Preservice training for science teaching and the subsequent classroom practices of teacher-graduates : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1982) Gardiner, Dorothy Atleen
    This study has investigated the effects of a massed and a spaced preservice programme of science training on the subsequent classroom practices of the graduates of these programmes after they had spent 6 months as year-one teachers. The investigation was conducted in 2 phases. Phase 1 entailed an examination of the training presented to the preservice teachers and the instructional behaviours used by the science lecturers during the presentation of training. Phase 2 involved an examination of the classroom practices of the teacher-graduates. The sample for the first phase of the study comprised 5 science lecturers and 120 preservice teachers. For Phase 2 the sample comprised 20 volunteer teachers from the earlier sample, 7 of whom had received spaced curriculum training over a period of 2 years (group 1) and 13 of whom had received massed curriculum training over a period of 6 weeks (group 2). Information gathering techniques included direct observation and audiorecording of the curriculum training sessions and the subsequent science lessons of the 2 groups of teachers, as well as structured interviews and a questionnaire. A system developed by Adams (1965) was used for the analysis of the teaching patterns of both science lecturers and teacher-graduates. The results of the study revealed that both groups of teachers: (i) indicated that they were using 47 competencies presented during preservice training with a "high" mean level of success; (ii) attributed their capability to use such competencies to preservice training, and (iii) reported that the use of these competencies had a "high" mean level of influence on their overall level of success as science teachers. The results also revealed that of the 6 teaching patterns with which they were compared, the averaged teaching patterns of both groups of teachers resembled mostly the actual teaching patterns of their respective lecturers. Moreover, on an individual basis: (i) the (averaged) functional patterns of 15 of the 20 teachers resembled the averaged functional patterns of their respective lecturers; and (ii) the (averaged) structural patterns of 18 of the 20 teachers resembled the averaged structural patterns of their respective lecturers. From this it was concluded that the teachers modelled the teaching patterns of their lecturers. In addition to such findings the following conclusions were drawn from the study: (i) Both massed and spaced enquiry-oriented, science curriculum training did appear to be effective means for ensuring teacher-use of competencies provided during preservice training. (ii) Positive transfer of training did appear to have resulted from programmes of training with the same objectives of the syllabus which the graduates of these programmes subsequently used. (iii) Preservice training in science teaching did effect positive teacher attitudes towards the teaching of science. (iv) Preservice training in science teaching did appear to influence the teachers' own perceptions of how elementary science should be taught. (v) Role modelling did appear to be an effective means of promoting specific teaching behaviours in teachers. (vi) Although teacher-perceptions of the recommendations of their lecturers did appear to influence their own concepts of how science should be taught more than the actual behaviours of their lecturers, the behaviours of their lecturers did appear to have influenced their own teaching patterns more than their own recommendations. (vii) The teachers' ability to control pupils during science classes did appear to have the hightest level of influence on their overall level of success as science teachers. (viii) The teachers' own knowledge and understanding of science did appear to be less influential on their science teaching success than was their own ability to teach whatever science they knew.
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    Exploring the potential for an alternative teacher education programme for pre-service teacher education in the Environmental Related Activities Curriculum in Sri Lanka through the Problem Based Learning approach used in one university in New Zealand : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Education at Massey University, Palmerston North
    (Massey University, 2011) Wijayawardana, Aluthge Dona Kalyani
    The researcher’s aim was to explore the potential for an alternative teacher education programme for the Environment Related Activities Primary Pre-service Teacher Education curriculum on the basis of the Problem Based Learning approach as used in the Integrated Curriculum: Science and Technology course conducted by one University in New Zealand. In this study, three methods of data collection were used in order to understand the main features of the Problem Based Learning approach used in the above course. Semistructured interviews helped to capture the ideas from teacher educators involved in this particular course. To triangulate the data, a questionnaire was used to obtain the students’ views on the Problem Based Learning approach and how it helped them in preparing to be quality teachers in the integrated primary school curriculum in New Zealand. Further, the researcher carried out a document analysis on several curriculum materials found in New Zealand and Sri Lanka. From this study, the researcher found that the Problem Based Learning approach used in this particular primary teacher education course is a curriculum model based on the principles of constructive learning theories. The Problem Based Learning approach used problems as a context for students to acquire knowledge, and the students were actively engaged in learning which is authentic to the environment as all problem scenarios are from real life contexts. The Environment Related Activities primary curriculum in Sri Lanka consists of major themes and learning activities focus on learning through the environment. All themes are related to the everyday life of the children. Similarly, in New Zealand, the primary school curriculum is based on an integrated approach. From this study, the researcher found that the Problem Based Learning approach used at one university in New Zealand, suits the integrated nature of the primary school curriculum in New Zealand. Therefore, the researcher highlights the main features of Problem Based Learning approach and explores the potential for an alternative teacher education programme for the Environmental Related Activities Primary Pre-Service teacher education curriculum in Sri Lanka.
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    Pre-service primary teacher education in a climate of change : a qualitative case study : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education in Education at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 1996) Marks, Veronica Carmina; Marks, Veronica Carmina
    This study investigated the provision of pre-service primary teacher education by Hilltop College of Education (pseudonym) in a rapidly changing environment. The researcher used a qualitative case study design and a modified grounded theory approach to data collection and analysis. Change theory provided the theoretical underpinnings and the conceptual framework guided the data collection. The in-depth semi-structured interview and document analysis were the two data collection techniques employed. A total of forty-one administrative and teaching staff [thirty-three from the College and eight from Belmont University (pseudonym)] and nine student teachers participated in the study. The fieldwork spanned a period of fourteen months - October 1993 to December 1994. The data analysis revealed that pre-service primary teacher education, provided both intra- and inter- institutionally, was a rapidly changing entity in form, nature and orientation. Change was influenced mainly by external factors and the political factor was the most influential. The latest innovations - the B.Ed. degree programme and it delivery in affiliation with Belmont University - constituted a desperate effort by the College to ensure its survival. In keeping with the grounded theory approach, the researcher developed a substantive theory of survival. The substantive theory of survival explicated the College's survival process. Survival necessitated change but it was change intended to ensure self preservation. The history of past negotiations, strong proactive leadership, the strategies employed and the ability to use the contextual factors to its advantage, ensured an affiliation agreement on more favourable terms for the College, compared with past negotiations. The College maintained its autonomy, secured a partnership agreement based on equity: 'fifty-fifty' sharing of administration and programme delivery, and equal representation and voting rights in the joint Faculty of Education. However, in operational terms, the College did not have the power to get the University to honour the agreement. The University's attitude, in part, threatened the affiliation, the B.Ed. programme and, by extension, the College's survival. In the long term, the College's survival will depend on the developments associated with the B.Ed. degree programme, the affiliation with Belmont University and its ability to respond appropriately and effectively to the demands of a rapidly changing environment.
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    Beginning teachers' preparedness to teach Māori children : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2010) Kenrick, Peti Mihiroa Mere Jessie
    The preparation of teachers is complicated by a plethora of competing elements seeking consensus as to what a teacher education curriculum might look like for those entering the teaching profession. Ideally the preparation of teachers needs to be an exact science to ensure and secure the future of the teaching profession and educational outcomes for all New Zealanders. Unfortunately, teaching is not an exact science. In New Zealand, education, and teachers as agents of the education system, has not always served all students and groups well. Failure to serve all well challenges the education system and teacher educators’ preparation of teachers to teach. This research focuses on beginning teacher preparedness and whether they enter the teaching profession prepared or not. Beginning teachers represent the future of the teaching profession (Education Review Office, 2005). More specifically, and in light of growing diversity, disparity and rights, this research examines beginning teachers’ perception of their preparedness to teach Māori children. The consequence of a prepared or unprepared teacher is reflected in the student achievement and educational outcomes. A profession that does not prepare their professionals to perform the job they are charged with do a disservice to their clients. Sadly, poorly prepared teachers are too common, particularly when it comes to teaching Māori children. Concerns raised by participants in this study point clearly at the lack of preparation during their teacher education and later during their induction programme. However, this study did also find teacher education had not completely ignored preparing students to teach Māori children but the approach was limited. Unfortunately, the consequence for Māori children is poor educational outcomes that are too often mirrored in the workforce.
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    The perceptions of teacher education in relation to the teaching practicum : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2004) Lind, Peter R.
    This thesis examines the perceptions of the student teacher, the associate teacher and the visiting lecturer regarding the adequacy of the practicum for the preparation of the first year primary school teacher. Six triads, or case studies, comprising a student teacher, a visiting lecturer and an associate teacher were selected, each within a different school setting. Using grounded theory, the collected data were analysed and sorted until a conceptual framework emerged. Three key themes were identified: the emotional nature of the teaching practicum; the practicum as situated learning; and the practicum as a professional learning community. Each member of the triad viewed the final teaching practicum as critical to teacher preparation. To a large extent understandings of the roles played by each member of the triad had been implicit rather than explicit. This study highlighted the importance and complementarities of the roles the members of the triad play. It found that student teachers often rely on the solutions provided by the associate teacher and/or the visiting lecturer, and that they lack confidence in their own ability to solve challenging classroom problems. A professional learning community requires each member of the triad to collaborate actively as a member of the teaching team and collectively reach solutions posed in the teaching of the class. Finally, the student teachers experienced difficulty in meeting the challenges of student needs, particularly in low decile schools; for some the challenges were overwhelming. The study has implications for other initial teacher education programmes regarding practices to meaningfully bridge the gap between the classroom context and the university programme. It provides insights into the requirements for the implementation of practicum that promote a professional learning community. It challenges the assumptions teacher education providers may have about the current models of teaching practicum in which it is perceived as a site where student teachers simply practise teaching and prove their readiness to assume the mantle of a first year teacher. It contributes to the debate of the role and function of the practicum in pre-service teacher education and the need for a deeper understanding and expectation in its implementation by the university and the school, who should be viewed as professional partners in this endeavour.
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    Preparing teachers as professional educators : a new conception for pre-service teacher education : a thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2006) Vossler, Kathleen Ruth
    This thesis proposes a new conception for pre-service teacher education. Current pre-service teacher education programmes are, in the main, one-dimensional, skill-based and performative: one-dimensional, in that programmes focus on preparing teachers to deliver a pre-determined curriculum; skill-based, in that professional judgement and reasoning are ignored; and, performative in the prescribed nature of knowledge and the drive to establish standards and competencies. Rather than focusing on professionalism - which is at the heart of what it means to be an educator - professionalisation, economic-driven policies and political ideologies underpin contemporary pre-service teacher education programmes. The new conception for pre-service teacher education has at its core, teachers as professional educators. This thesis argues that in order for teachers to become professional educators, their preparation ought to be enhanced and broadened to incorporate aspects of professional judgement, professional expertise, and ethical and moral commitment. To enable this to occur, pre-service teachers need to learn what it means to be moral agents through active and authentic engagement within communities of practice and learners. In sum, the professional educator's role is argued to be an agent for, and of, change who promotes and engenders an education system that underpins a socially, culturally and economically just society.