Overview

The project involved the construction of an Effective Teacher Profile synthesising learning from research about what a culturally responsive teacher does to include Māori and Pasifika students. Teachers were supported to learn about, think about, and adopt these practices. It also involved learning about the Nature of Science curriculum strand and the value of a capabilities approach to science pedagogy.

We decided that we wanted to change the focus of science as a bank of specific knowledge towards a capability approach. We hoped this shift would enable all students to understand that they are already behaving as scientists in their own lives, and we can help them develop these skills. We hoped this would be a more inclusive approach, which would move science from being something that people in white coats do, to something we all do in our everyday lives, and we can improve how well we do it by learning how to build upon our natural capabilities.

Final project report

The teachers learned that this combination of culturally responsive pedagogy and a focus on the science capabilities can work to foster student engagement and achievement in science. It can make them feel they belong in the classroom and help them understand that science is for everyone, a natural part of what we do that their science teacher can help them discover and extend.

The inquiry story

This inquiry involved all teachers of Year 9 science, their Māori and Pasifika students, and the students’ whānau.

What was the focus?

This project grew out of concerns about the engagement and achievement of Māori and Pasifika students and the inequity associated with this. These were apparent in the courses students were taking, with Māori students over-represented in science courses that did not have an academic pathway. It was starkly apparent in achievement data over several years. In the classroom, it could be seen through observation. It was a situation that was out of step with the teachers’ vision to provide a learning environment that encourages students to continue their engagement with science through their school years and beyond.

While there has been research demonstrating the positive impact of culturally responsive pedagogy on Māori and Pasifika engagement and achievement, the issue has not been thoroughly explored in a science concept. However, Glynn et al. (2010) describe a successful approach within which teachers taking a postgraduate course connected science instruction with the principles of ako and whakawhanaungatanga.

The team developed the following innovation statement:

We would like to know whether connecting with the community and understanding what culturally responsive pedagogy looks like in science will have an impact on the achievement and engagement of year 9 and 10 Māori and Pasifika students and will lead to equity by representation and achievement in senior science classes.

What did the teachers try?

The team sought to investigate, develop, and share approaches to teaching and learning that would strengthen the voluntary and ongoing participation, engagement, and achievement of Māori and Pasifika students in science. The teachers’ first step was to ask students about their experiences of science and how they felt about it and ask both students and their parents what they would like to tell teachers about science teaching at the school. There were some concerning results. Most students did not much like science, saying it was boring and there was too much writing or that they didn’t like the teacher. Parents said that their children didn’t feel that they belonged in science and didn’t know where it might take them. Eleven of the 27 parent responses sent the message that teachers did not treat students equitably and picked on those who are Māori or Pasifika.

The teachers’ second step was to review the literature and construct an Effective Teacher Profile describing the characteristics of the ideal science teacher for Māori and Pasifika students. They then engaged in professional learning around how to make the pedagogical approaches described in the profile part of their own practice.

Teachers committed to spending time getting to know their students, including their ethnicity and personal stories. Along with this, they committed to recognising the impact on students when teachers use their own cultural expectations as the classroom norm. The teachers also focussed on high expectations and power sharing, as described by Bishop (2019), and tried to adapt the learning to meet individual needs. They used the Effective Teacher Profile to centre departmental discussions about what good teaching looks like.

The team then reconsidered the science department’s curriculum. The teachers recognised that they had been treating the curriculum as if science is about acquiring a bank of knowledge. Supported by their critical friend, they explored the science capabilities and the Nature of Science strand of the curriculum. Their intention was that this would enable all students to understand that they are already behaving as scientists in their own lives and their teachers were available to help them further develop their innate capabilities. They hoped this would be a more inclusive approach, which would move science from being something that people in white coats do, to something that is a natural part of each person’s everyday life.

The teachers provided opportunities for students to demonstrate their learning through varying ways involving group work and presentations rather than traditional tests. The approach to topics shifted to a focus on key skills (such as how scientists use models) rather than recalling information about current models.

What happened as a result of this innovation?

The Effective Teacher Profile became a core document for the whole department. Teachers said that the work around developing the profile and using the strategies it described had changed their approach in many ways. For some, it was the first time they had engaged with culturally responsive pedagogy. They now know what it looks like and what it means for their practice and are increasingly focused on transferring the theory captured in the profile to what they do in the classroom. Teachers also have a deeper understanding of the Nature of Science strand of the science curriculum and the importance of fostering the capabilities that enable students to think and behave like scientists.

When the students were surveyed again, their responses were overwhelmingly positive. Their achievement was considerably improved in some, but not all aspects of science, and this will be an ongoing focus. The department is working to embed the changes they have made, beginning by taking the concepts about culturally responsive pedagogy and a capability approach to science learning into Year 10.

The lead team shared their learning with the Heads of Faculty across the college and at Warkworth Primary school. In March 2020, an article was published in the NZASE magazine describing the work.

What did they learn?

The team learned that by capturing learning from research about culturally responsive learning within a single document, they could support teachers to increase their awareness of the impact of their actions on Māori and Pasifika students and to use that awareness to make change. A capability approach to science learning that is connected to the Nature of Science strand of the curriculum helps students understand that science is part of everyday life. It is something they already do and could consider as a long-term option for learning and their careers.

Inquiry team

This inquiry was initially led by Ian McHale and later by Natalie Caldwell, both teachers at Mahurangi College). The project team included several other teachers from Mahurangi College: Gerald Walker, Ben Howson, Sophie Moran, Claire McMillan, Carmel Bank and the current head of department Michael Sweeney.

Initially, the team accessed external expertise from Mary Wootton (Infinity Learning) and Jean Annan (Positively Psychology). Later, the team accessed support from Ally Bull (NZCER) and Ian McHale (Learning Solutions).

For further information

If you would like to learn more about this project, please contact the current Head of Faculty Michael Sweeney m.sweeney@mahurangi.school.nz or project leader, Ian McHale, at ianmchalenz@gmail.com

Reference list

Bishop, R. (2019). Teaching to the North-East: Relationship-based learning in practice. Wellington: New Zealand Council for Educational Research.

Bishop, R., Ladwig, J., & Berryman, M. (2014). The centrality of relationships for pedagogy: The whanaungatanga thesis. American Educational Research Journal, 51(1), 184–214.

Education Council New Zealand / Matatū Aotearoa. (2011). Tātaiako: Cultural competencies for teachers of Māori learners. Wellington: Author.

Education Council New Zealand / Matatū Aotearoa. (2017). Tapasā: Cultural Competencies Framework for teachers of Pacific learners. Wellington: Author.

Glynn, T., Cowie, B., Otrel-Cass, K., & Macfarlane, A. (2010). Culturally responsive pedagogy: Connecting New Zealand teachers of science with their Māori students. The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education, 39, 118–127.

Milne, A. (2013). Colouring in the white spaces: reclaiming cultural identity in whitestream schools (unpublished PhD thesis: University of Waikato).

Ministry of Education (2009). Ka Hikitia – Managing for Success: The Māori Education Strategy 2008–2012. Wellington: Ministry of Education.

Ministry of Education (2019). Science in the New Zealand Curriculum. Understanding Progress from levels 2 to 4. Wellington: Ministry of Education │ NMSSA.

Stewart, G. (2017). A Māori crisis in science education? New Zealand Journal of Teachers’ Work, 14(1) 21–39.