te kotahitangatekotahitanga.tki.org.nz/content/download/506/3338... · making a bigger difference...

Te Kotahitanga Conference / 26 November 08

Te KotahitangaUsing Research and Development (R & D) to make a

much bigger difference for our children and our society

Adrienne Alton-Lee PhDChief Education Adviser

Iterative Best Evidence Synthesis (BES) ProgrammeMinistry of Education

Hutia te rito o te harakeke

Kei hea te komako e ko

Ki mai ki ahau

He aha te mea nui o tenei ao

Maku e ki atu

He tamariki, he tamariki, he rangatahi


The Iterative Best Evidence Synthesis (BES) Programme

is a catalyst for collaborative knowledge building and

use across policy, research and practice in education

• Why „best‟? How (dare) „best‟?

Valued outcomes for diverse students as a touchstone.

• Bodies of evidence (R & D) about what works and

why in education, what makes a bigger difference,

and what does harm?

• More positive impact for diverse students,

less stress for educators.

• http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/goto/BES


Our Challenges

• 21st Century Challenges

• The silent revolution


Our Educational History


The effect of the interaction between schooling

and Maori ethnicity in New Zealand


Harker, R. (2006). Ethnicity and school achievement in New Zealand.

Some data to supplement the Biddulph (2003) BES.

Making a bigger difference – effect sizes as a way

of judging comparative magnitude of impact


A benchmark

In our own New Zealand studies, we have estimated the yearly

effect in reading, mathematics, and writing from

Years 4 to 13 (N = 83,751)

An effect size of .35 – although this is not linear

“…In some years and for some subjects there is more or less

growth. The inference for the argument… is that teachers typically

can attain between .20 to .40 growth per year and that this is to be

considered average. They should be seeking greater than .40 for

their achievement gains to be considered above average, and

greater than .60 to be considered excellent.”

Hattie, J. (forthcoming). Visible teaching – Visible learning:

A synthesis of 800+ meta-analysis on achievement.

London: Routledge.


Figure: Trends and Patterns in NZ Certificate of Achievement, equivalent

attainment Level 2 and above


“The decrease in engagement from years 7-10 remains particularly stark

for Maori learners.” Penny Bishop (2008)

Reading Literacy – New Zealand’s

High Mean and Large Variance


Source: OECD (2001) Knowledge and Skills for Life, Appendix B1,

Table 2.3a, p.253, Table 2.4, p.257

Maori School Leavers with NCEA Level 2

Qualification or above


Wharekura and All Maori (1998-2006)

Maori Excellence in Education


• 2003 – first national assessment of the quality of research in

the tertiary sector: The Performance Based Research

Funding (PBRF) Quality Evaluation

• Maori educational research identified as national strength

• Linda Tuhiwai Smith and Graham Hingangaroa Smith –

transformational strategy at tertiary level to develop a national

cohort of Maori PhDs

• Commitment to research & development to make a bigger

difference for Maori in education – kaupapa Maori research

• Professor Russell Bishop‟s determination to use research as

a tool for change – international recognition –

Handbook of Qualitative Research (3rd ed.)

Continued…

Maori Excellence in Education


• Dr Mere Berryman – Poutama Pounamu Research &

Development Centre – assessment tools & strategies to make

several years of difference in student gains over business-as-

usual in early literacy in Maori & English medium

• Collaborative approach – Aunty Nan –


The role of classroom practice in the

persistence of inequality


Best evidence syntheses document substantial evidence over

some decades of centrality of culture to educational processes

and the inequitable teaching of Maori learners

• Fewer teacher-interactions,

• Less positive feedback – contrast with Maori medium

• More frequent negative desists – contrast with Maori medium

• Under-assessment of capability

• Mispronounced names

• Absence of Maori themes/contexts in curriculum

• Lack of access to Te Reo Maori

• The negative effects of racism on those who engage in it and

those who experience it

Average Number of Talk More Invitations

per Child-Morning (Clay, 1985)


Social Studies –

‘A Study of Cultural Differences’


Year 8 Joe is Pakeha, Ricky is Maori:

Teacher: Because White people ...

Joe (talking to Ricky): Honkies.

Ricky (talking to Joe): Shut up!

Teacher: Europeans, we were ...

Joe (talking to Ricky): Nigger!

Teacher: Watch this way please, Ricky!

– were often wanting to get things ...

Joe (talking to Ricky): Black man! Samoan! …

Teacher: …East Indies

Joe (talking to peer): Ricky, they‟re going to play cricket!…

Shut up! prove it! Get stuffed, Ricky.

Social Studies –

‘A Study of Cultural Differences’


Joe (kicks Ricky under the table): You kicked me first you nigger!

Ricky (talking to Joe): Did not you honky honk. I‟m

not a nigger …

Joe (talking to Ricky): Shut up!

Teacher: Ricky, could you try

and watch here please?

Joe (talking to Ricky): God, you‟re dumb! Now I‟ll

prove that you‟re dumb.

Ricky removed from the class to work alone after

complaint from Pakeha boys to the teacher that he disrupted

their work.

Interviews


Ricky: Sometimes people (are) racist to me

„cause I annoy them. Sometimes…

Sometimes I just get up and hit

them and they stop.

Interviewer: You say the English are more

advanced?

Ricky: Oh well, the Indians just had bows

and arrows I think and they

(the English) had guns.

Teacher and Co-author


I thought it was:

Heart-rending because I would have liked to have thought

that I was tuned in to what was happening in the class…I just didn’t know… Prior to doing this research I would’ve said :

“Yes, you know, I‟m fully aware of these things.”

It comes as a real blow to find that in actual fact you’re not necessarily doing things that are line with what you believe. I believe that (the outcomes) are extremely positive because they’ve increased my level of awareness. They’ve altered my action…It’s altered the things that I think are important when I’m devising a curriculum…It’s altered the way I treat other people too.

Alton-Lee, A. Nuthall, G., & Patrick, J. (1993). Reframing classroom research: A lesson from the private world of children.Harvard Educational Review 63(1). p.80

Published in

Unterrichtswissenschaft (2001)No.3


New Zealand Year 10 class in a social studies discussion about

Civil Rights:

Rosa Parks’ husband: Father a White American –

mother a Black American…

Unidentified student calls out: Mongrel!

What different strategies could the teacher use in response

to the call out of the unidentified student?

What would be the likely implications?

Published in



Teacher : Who is that person?

Tim: Me. It‟s true

Teacher: Who said ‘mongrel’? Why did you use

that term?

Tim: Because dogs and stuff like that…

Teacher (to whole class): Listening, thank you. Listen.

Tim: Because dogs and stuff like that…

Not as a racist

Lily: Yes, you‟re a racist.

Published in



Teacher: Hang on a minute. I’ve just heard a term to

describe Raymond Parks… ‘mongrel’ – and

I’ve reacted to that and I am asking the

person, who’s Tim who said it, to explain

why he said it. Tim?

Tim: Well, um…

Simon: I know why

Teacher: Hang on. Give him a minute.

Tim: Because he was… he had different… different

um colours in him, like animals and stuff they‟ve

got different colours in them. I wasn‟t using it as

a racist, saying that Blacks are dogs…

Published in



Teacher: …Anyone like to comment because I thought

it was important for us to talk about it.

Yes, Simon?

Simon: I don‟t…like when…It‟s not bad is it? I don‟t think

there is anything wrong with that.

Teacher : Okay, Simon thinks that it is quite

acceptable… for me to put the word…

Simon: Oh, no. I thought Tim was saying it under his

breath or something.

Published in



Teacher: OK. Yes? (Jon)

Jon: Um…well….(becomes inaudible during interruption)

2 senior staff arrive for a uniform check –

they move up and down the rows doing a visual check

Teacher: Can we just listen to this please? Despite the

fact that there is some distraction in the

classroom. Can we just listen to what Jon is

saying because it is a really important point.

Thank you, John.

Jon: Um, Tim was just looking at it from a White perspective, maybe and not from his own point of view.

Published in



Teacher: Ok. Do you think it is acceptable or not

acceptable?

Nuku who is wearing sports shoes rather than standard shoes

exits the class as he is directed by staff checking uniforms to get

his shoes from his school bag

Jon: Well, no, not really. Because it is just not…that‟s what you use for dogs.

Negation of Pasifika Funds of Knowledge in

NZ Intermediate Classroom Cultures


Discussion of sharks in peer group in intermediate class in science:

Kurt: They‟re cold blooded. And they like shallow water.

Teine: Yeah, they do.

Robin: They like warm water?

Teine: Yeah they do. In Samoa, the sun shines on the sea, and

you can see some sharks.

Kurt: (laughing and exaggerating Teine‟s accent)

In Samoa, the sun shines on the sea.

Teine: (Tries to slap Kurt)

“Other times when Teine referred to her country of origin, the other

students simply ignored her. So long as she talked about things that

were part of their common experience, she seemed an integral part of the

social group, but the moment her unique experiences came up the

conversations stopped.” Nuthall (2007, p. 146)

Culture is central to classroom processes –

across the curriculum


Evidence about Impact of Teaching on

Variance in Student Outcomes


“Recent research on the impact of schools in student learning leads to

the conclusion that 8-19% of the variation in student learning

outcomes lies between schools with a further amount of up to 55% of

the variation in individual student learning outcomes between

classrooms within schools. In total approximately 60% of the variation

in the performance of students lies either between schools or between

classrooms with the remaining 40% being due to either variation

associated with the students themselves or to random influences.”

Cuttance, P. (1998) in International Handbook of Educational Change

pp1158-1159)

See also Timperley & Alton-Lee (2008) Reframing teacher professional

learning: An alternative policy approach to strengthening valued outcomes for

diverse learners.

Review of Research in Education Vol. 32 Chapter 10 p.328

Note: The Complexity of Community & Family Influences BES (2003)


Figure 3. Variation in student performance within and between schools for

38 countries on the PISA Mathematics Literacy Scale (2003)

Education Leadership

Best Evidence Synthesis Iteration (BES)

forthcoming 2009


• Professor Viviane Robinson

– Hedley Beare Award for William Walker Oration

• Dr Margie Hohepa

• Dr Claire Lloyd

International Quality Assurers

• Professor Ben Levin

• Professor Michael Fullan

• See the first analysis for this BES –the William Walker Oration on the BES website:

http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/goto/BES

The impact of different leadership activities

on student outcomes


What makes a much bigger difference in educational leadership?

0.27

0.84

0.42

0.34

0.35

0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9

Dimension 5: Ensuring anOrderly & Supportive

Environment

Dimension 4: Promoting &Participating in TeacherLearning & Development

Dimension 3: Planning,Coordinating & EvaluatingTeaching & the Curriculum

Dimension 2: StrategicResourcing

Dimension 1: EstablishingGoals & Expectations

Effect Size

Teacher inquiry and knowledge-building cycle

to promote valued student outcomes


New Zealand Teachers Making a Difference in

Te Kotahitanga Schools


Te Kotahitanga – Longitudinal Impact NCEA Level 1

40.0

45.0

50.0

55.0

60.0

65.0

2005 2006

Year

Perc

eta

ng

e o

f Y

11 s

tud

en

ts g

ain

ing

NC

EA

L

evel 1

T.K. schools Weighted decile comp.

Success in NCEA Level 1, 2005-2006

12 Te Kotahitanga schools


0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Maori Pasifika Pakeha 1 School

2005

2006

32

.1 48

.4

22

.63

9.0 6

2.5 6

9.0

18

.86

3.9

The Evidence of Hard-Forged Change


• 3rd of 4th phase school self-monitoring

• Reports from principals

Teacher Professional Learning and Development:

Best Evidence Synthesis Iteration (BES)


• Professor Helen Timperley, Aaron

Wilson, Heather Barrar & Irene Fung,

University of Auckland.

• http://educationcounts.edcentre.govt.

nz/goto/BES from November

• Synthesis of findings of 97 studies or

groups of studies of professional

development that influenced valued

outcomes for students

• P. 259 Te Kotahitanga case

Leaders:

• Ensure new information is

understood

• Engage with dissonance

• Ensure opportunities to

learn are productive

• Provide incentives for

teachers to enact new

learning in practice

• Ensure site-based leaders

working with effective

external expertise

The Struggle for Change – An acknowledgement


• Not evangelical – not magic - enormous effort by educators

• Te Kotahitanga a case in the Teacher Professional Learning and

Development BES because the model exemplifies the findings of what

works (but depends on the conditions)

• Te Kotahitanga requires organisational support, conditions and a

professional learning community for effective professional learning

• Without sufficient pedagogical expertise, the pro-active commitment of

principal, senior, middle level and teacher leadership TK has been less

successful

• Teacher engagement in learning more important than initial volunteering

• If teachers theories are bypassed rather than addressed then change

unlikely – hence importance of the TK processes: hui, GEPRISP,

Effective Teaching Profile, opportunities to reflect and apply

The Struggle for Change – An Acknowledgement


• Te Kotahitanga a world leader also in cross-curricular focus

• Challenge for availability/capability building of knowledgeable expertise

• Maintaining momentum with loss of expertise, staff and leadership

changes in context of expertise scarcity, continuities dependent upon

political context, and ongoing public attacks

Key Messages – Educational Leadership BES


• The more leaders focus their relationships, their work and their learning

on the core business of teaching and learning, the greater their influence

on student outcomes

• Importance of relationships to every other leadership activity

• See William Walker Oration online BES website

Leadership Dimensions –

Findings of the Educational Leadership BES


Ahuatanga 1:

Whaia te iti kahurangi

Ahuatanga 2:

Ma nga huruhuru ka rere te manu

Ahuatanga 3:

Kia pai te whakatere i te waka

Ahuatanga 4:

Ko te waka matauranga, he waka eke

noa

Ahuatanga 5:

Ka tika a muri, ka pai a mua

Ahuatanga 6:

Ehara i te toa takitahi engari i te toa

takitini

Ahuatanga 7:

He kaha ki te whakahaere i nga

raruraru

Ahuatanga 8:

Nga tapu ngaio. Whiria, mahia

Seek the treasure that is valued most

dearly

It is the feathers that enable the bird

to fly

Steer well the canoe

The waka of knowledge is the waka

for everyone

If all is right at the back, all will be

good out the front

My strength is not mine alone but

that of the multitudes

Able to settle disputes, manage and

mediate

Choose and use the specialist tools

Dimension 1:

Establishing Goals and

Expectations

Dimension 2:

Resourcing Strategically

Dimension 3:

Planning, Coordinating and

Evaluating Teaching and the

Curriculum

Dimension 4:

Promoting and Participating in

Teacher Learning and Development

Dimension 5:

Ensuring an Orderly & Supportive

Environment

Dimension 6:

Creating Educationally Powerful

Connections

Dimension 7:

Engaging in Constructive

Problem Talk

Dimension 8:

Selecting, Developing and Using

Smart Tools


Emeritus Professor Christine Sleeter,

then Vice President of the American

Educational Research Association’s Division K

(Teaching and Teacher Education)

“I see more potential to make significant and sustained

improvements in schools for students from historically

underserved communities in this project (Te Kotahitanga)

than in any other project that I have had contact with.”

March 28, 2005.


The Challenges of Scale Up

• Breadth

• Te Kotahitanga is available now in 33 schools

• Political will – principal, AP, DP and teacher demand

• Success of spread will depend upon:

– Leadership

– Focus on Maori student outcomes

– Depth

– Use of evidence

– Ownership

• Need for a national learning community across policy, research &

practice to support Te Kotahitanga capability building across

New Zealand schools.

• The debate about the best use of money


Te Kotahitanga an R & D Activity:

„Educational R & D as a percentage of total expenditure on education is on average less than 0.3% in six countries for which data are available. This is a very small figure when education is compared with other knowledge sectors, for example, the health sector where between 5-10% of the total health expenditure in public and private sectors are directed to R & D.‟

New Zealand $ for R & D even lower than that for other OECD countries at between 0.17- 0.20%:

„At the same time New Zealand invests far less in research and development of any kind than other developed countries, and has far lower R & D personnel per million population than Australia or Western European countries. New Zealand is successful educationally, but is, by R & D standards, not becoming a knowledge economy.‟

OECD Country Review for New Zealand R & D (2003) (p. 89)


Public Sector Financing of Research

2007-08 MORST


“The simple answer in the discussion of economic implications of

education is that cognitive skills have a strong impact on individual

earnings. More than that cognitive skills have a strong influence on

economic growth…”

“The important thing for policy is simply that the intervention actually

improves achievement.”

Hanushek & Woessman (2008)

The role of cognitive skills in economic development.

Journal of Economic Literature 46(3) 607-668.


Hanushek & Woessman (2008)


Body of evidence about how to:

• Make connections to students‟ lives

• Align experiences to important

outcomes

• Build and sustain a learning

community

• Design experiences that interest

students

• Take an inquiry approach

Our new BES

By Associate Professor

Graeme Aitken

and Dr Claire Sinnema


Making a bigger difference:

Evidence from three BESse.g. Complex instruction - middle school evidence-base

• Structured, productive cooperative group work – open ended problem solving

• 1.06 effect size for achievement & higher order thinking over 4 months

• Strengthened social skills

• Reduction in peer racism & bullying

• Reduces teacher stress – supports teacher inquiry

• Bilingual tasks

• Defined group roles

• Managing self, relating to others, participating & contributing

• Cohen Designing Groupwork: “1994” Strategies for the heterogeneous classroom

• Awaiting NZ R & D with bilingual tasks


Video Clip from Te Mana Korero

Teacher Pedagogical Leadership

Collaborative Learning


Hutia te rito o te harakeke

Kei hea te komako e ko

Ki mai ki ahau

He aha te mea nui o tenei ao

Maku e ki atu


te kotahitangatekotahitanga.tki.org.nz/content/download/506/3338... · making a bigger difference...

Documents