Can the goldfish see the water? A critical analysis of ‘good intentions’ in cross-cultural practice

We claim to hold values that our students are responsible and autonomous adults whose success in our courses is best facilitated by our understanding of and respect for their specific backgrounds. We wish to be judged on these values by feedback provided by our students and those with whom we work. However, how well, if ever, are we able to ‘see the water,’ the cultural conditioning that leads us to act in ways that seem supportive of our students to us, but may be perceived differently by them? In this paper, we present conflicting evidence around perceptions of our practice. We discuss where things have gone well, and where interventions have possibly been traumatic for the recipients. We question whether, and how, our practice cross-culturally can be safe. We challenge ourselves and others to think carefully about our responsibilities to our students, whether our privileged positioning obliges us to share and if so, how that sharing can occur in ways that validate and equally respect the values of those with whom we work

Viruses without vaccines, or valuing indigenous research? The tensions of introducing Western research assessment practices into an indigenous university

Over my past twenty-five years of educational practice, I have striven to develop a better understanding of indigenous ways of being and doing (in New Zealand’s case, this involves the values and knowledge of Māori). I have done this by visiting and occasionally staying on marae (Māori gathering-places); by reading relevant literature; by engaging in conversations with knowledgeable scholars and by researching the impact of Western practices on indigenous peoples. In 2003 I managed a research team for Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, a Māori tertiary institution with branches across the country. Our Tertiary Education Commission had just introduced a variation of the English RAE, called the Performance-Based Research Fund, through which government research funds would henceforth be distributed. In collaboration with Māori colleagues, we chose to enter this process, believing that Māori research would be recognised and funded by our participation. While this proved to be the case, there were significant examples of values clashes, such as the requirement for people to ‘boast’ of their research achievements in a context where such boasting is anathema; to claim ownership of knowledge where tradition often indicates that knowledge is not the property of individuals; and worst, at one point I found myself accused by my Māori manager of introducing ‘viruses without vaccines’. By this he meant Westernised ideas and practices which appeared to be benevolent but in fact were toxic (the idea derives from white settlers who apparently gave native Americans blankets permeated with a virus, causing thousands to die). In this paper I will explore tensions of operating cross-culturally, and whether/how we can protect people from unintended toxic consequences of intended benevolent actions

To act or not to act? That is the question!

The year was 2003. I was a new Research Manager working in a Māori tertiary institution that had a history of inequitable treatment by government, through not receiving establishment funding that had gone unproblematically to non-Māori institutions. Repeating a common pattern in New Zealand, our government had decided to implement a research funding scheme, to be measured at the level of the individual academic. My institution’s decision to participate in the PBRF was not without its difficulties, and it is here that the ethics of participation become problematic. This chapter is about our ability to articulate our values, to show how we work these out in our practice, and how we are accountable to ourselves and others for that practice. Would I, with the benefit of hindsight, have encouraged my institution to enter the PBRF again

Breaking down barriers in building teacher competence

Teachers may well be made, not born, and appointments to academic positions are often made without regard to the appointee’s prior experience or competence in teaching. In most New Zealand universities, compulsory teaching development is not required. Furthermore, enrolment in opportunities to help teachers to develop further, frequently do not attract high numbers. How can those of us who work in staff development work effectively with resistant staff? How can we ensure that what we offer has optimal value in diverse areas? This paper reflects on an action research process currently under way in a New Zealand university, which seeks to investigate the usefulness of current and new staff development initiatives and to maximise benefits to staff. The work was presented at the recent ALARA conference and reflections from this presentation are interspersed with accounts of the work. I have used italics to highlight the ‘process’ parts of the work as it was presented at ALARA

Managing international students attendance with consideration of completion and satisfaction

Internationalization is one of the many expectations of TEC, as per the TEC Strategy (2007). This includes having a noticeable level of students from overseas, is covered in our institute’s business plan and is reported our annual report (2008). Servicing these students is guided by the Code of Practice for the Pastoral care of International Students (2003), amongst other things. This paper reports our experiences when the institution tightened up attendance habits of international students for their visa requirements. At the end of the year we revisited our actions, looked at attendance statistics and also considered data about related matters of completion and student satisfaction. We noticed several students attending less than 80% required for their visas, relationship between attendance and module pass rates and nothing specific re student satisfaction. There were some idiosyncrasies with student satisfaction measurement worthwhile noting. We also experienced several problems with our information systems, such as functionality shortcomings for our growing population sub-groups and mismatch between these systems. Further study might include experiences with relevant information systems elsewhere in the institution and rest of the sector. More formal research can and should now be planned, including the use of our pilot use of an online attendance system from 2008. We believe our insights and process would be useful to others even though it does not sit in the framework of ICT teaching contents proposed by Simon (2007) and used by Simon et at (2008) when profiling NACCQ conference papers 2000-2007

Researching our own practice

In this chapter, we argue that using research to inform our teaching is a vital element in the reflection process and empowers us to keep developing our teaching in ways that can be transformative for ourselves and our learners

Enhancing postgraduate supervision through a process of conversational inquiry

This paper outlines and begins to evaluate a process to build a critical and reflective community of postgraduate supervisors who can develop their supervision practice through reflective conversations, with the sharing of best practice and reference to research-based evidence. In 2009, the initiative of the Postgraduate Supervisors’ Conversations was set up through the collaboration of the Pro-Vice Chancellor (Postgraduate) and the Teaching Development Unit at the University of Waikato, New Zealand. We designed this initiative to complement the compulsory workshops for postgraduate supervisors that are intended to provide foundation skills. We aimed to create a professional development opportunity that could enhance supervisors’ capacity to manage the ongoing interpersonal and academic complexity of the supervision process as well as its dynamic character. This paper outlines the rationale for the Postgraduate Supervisors’ Conversations, describes its implementation and discusses the implications of an initial evaluative focus group discussion with attendees

Action for improvement in our own contexts

Discusses: The pedagogy of Paulo Freire – importance of emancipatory, not ‘banking’, education. Who needs emancipatory education in NZ, and why? Consideration of issues affecting Māori success in the New Zealand education system