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'O mātou 'o le fatu 'o le fa'amoemoe - fesili mai! : we are the heart of the matter - ask us! : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
This
study
explored
the
perspectives
of
junior
secondary
school
students
of
Pacific
heritage
and
asked
them
what
enhanced
their
learning.
A
qualitative,
interpretive
framework
was
used
for
this
multi-‐site
case
study
and
grounded
theory
was
used
to
analyse
data.
Three
groups
of
Year
9
and
10
students
from
three
North
Island
city
schools,
representing
a
range
of
Pacific
nations,
socio-‐economic
areas
and
genders,
participated
in
focus
group
interviews
and
questionnaires.
Pacific
concepts,
values
and
research
methodologies
were
explored
and
integrated
into
both
the
research
process
and
discussion
of
the
findings.
An
innovative
approach
was
trialled
which
involved
“insider”
research
assistants
facilitating
the
focus
group
interviews:
four
Samoan
teenagers
worked
with
the
researcher
to
draw
out
the
opinions
and
ideas
of
the
participants
about
what
helped
them
to
learn.
Data
analysis
led
to
the
identification
of
ten
pedagogical
attributes
and
strategies.
The
voices
of
the
participants
in
this
study
echo
the
findings
of
earlier
New
Zealand
research,
which
demonstrate
that
the
key
factor
for
successful
Pacific
learning
is
the
strength
of
the
relationship
between
teachers
and
learners.
