By Josh Hough, Professional Learning Services Programme Manager CORE Education Imagine yourself as a young person taking your first steps into a new environment on the first day of school. Perhaps the school is steeped in history. Perhaps this all feels very grown up. Perhaps you're anxious about where to go, what to do, and how you’ll navigate this next step on your learning journey. You walk across the school field, eyes fixed on the enormous building ahead that vaguely reminds you of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As you get closer, you see the fine details in the old red brick ..read more

Complexity and challenging times We’ve encountered many new kupu/words/terms recently that describe different approaches to the delivery of learning. Hybrid learning, online, off-site, blended learning, synchronous, asynchronous, remote learning, are just a few. These disruptions come at a significant stage in our national curriculum refresh, as we near our vision for learning in 2025. I have been fortunate to experience and observe many students, educators and schools during unexpected serious ‘events’: COVID, floods, earthquakes, community losses, and family trauma. In these times the existi ..read more

Ahhhh Matariki, here you are again. This year, I think, your presence will be different. This time more people know your name. This time they will look for you. This time, the ancient being you are, will be honoured. Mānawatia a Matariki.  I paused just the other night and looked at the sky cloaked in all its glory. Each star, millions of miles away, ever constant, ever seeing, ever present. My momentary reflection made me think about just how old the stars are. They have led generations, they have guided waka around the world, they have given signs and have provided comfort and wise coun ..read more

Existing in relationships triggers everything. Manulani Aluli Meyer (2008) What does it mean to exist in relationships in the context of a classroom? One of the first things I was taught during my teacher training is that relationships are key. Up until recently I believed I was doing my best to foster relationships between myself, the students and their whānau. This belief in my abilities to build and develop meaningful relationships was tested when I was accepted as a recipient of the Dr Vince Ham eFellowship with Core Education. Through my research I was forced to re-evaluate what it meant ..read more

Growing up in England, I often felt culturally different – not only to my peers, but also to my parents and extended family. School and home were two different worlds for me and neither overlapped and this left me feeling a sense of isolation, disconnectedness and voicelessness.  I have sensed those same feelings being re-lived in many of my students today. They don’t talk about their culture and what the student experience is like for them.  I suspect it was the same for me.  As educators, we’re probably all be familiar with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. You cannot make progress ..read more

I am Māori. I whakapapa Māori, therefore, I am Māori. Although I am visibly white, my own upbringing follows the same as many Māori. My Nana was Māori but she hated it. She distanced herself as far as she could from te ao Māori, her iwi, her hapū, her whānau. She faced battles that she would never talk about and became disconnected. I was, therefore, disconnected from birth.  When I began my own journey at high school to attempt to reconnect, I was judged harshly for it. I faced a barrage of comments like, “You’re too intelligent to take te reo.” and “You don’t look Māori, why would you c ..read more

This year’s uLearn allowed me to introduce one of our Pasifika academic activators Leali’ie’e Tufulasi Taleni, but more importantly it was a chance to immerse myself in the wealth of Pasifika knowledge shared throughout CORE’s two-day online conference. uLearn21 also gave me the opportunity to reflect on the journey of the Pasifika diaspora to Aotearoa and consider what thriving individuals actually means. For Pasifika, thriving might simply look like being able to connect with their identity, language and culture. It could be about being proud of their cultural connections and roots here in A ..read more

“I hope to give you a deeper insight into how you as educators can interact with these bright but damaged youth and how the education system is the place to build life-saving bridges.” Taken from Māia Goldsmith’s activator session at uLearn21, this is the second of a two-part blog that shares Māia’s story. This blog contains sensitive content, which may be disturbing or traumatising to some audiences. Discretion is advised. If you or someone you know may need support please contact Sexual Abuse Education NZ https://sexualabuse.org.nz/ Thoughts for your practice To me, my experiences are just ..read more

Wahine Māori, Māia Goldsmith, faced multiple challenges from an early age. She was suspended, stood down and expelled – three times. Today, Māia has recently gained her second Bachelor’s degree. Her story shares what it was like to be “excluded from the education system” and the impact of being labelled an “at-risk” rangatahi. Touching many hearts, Māia talked about her journey at uLearn21. “I hope to give you a deeper insight into how you as educators can interact with these bright but damaged youth and how the education system is the place to build life-saving bridges.” Taken from her activ ..read more

Janelle Riki-Waaka and Josh Hough share the second part of their blog on Aotearoa e tōnui nei | Thriving Aotearoa, the theme of uLearn21. Part 2 discusses Ngā ahurea e tōnui nei | Thriving cultures and Te tōnuitanga o te āpōpō | Thriving futures. See Part 1 here. Ngā ahurea e tōnui nei | Thriving cultures Janelle: I spoke earlier about the Māori culture on a journey from survival to thriving and what this might look like. Just this week we have had a debate play out in mainstream media about mātauranga Maori where many varied opinions about its relationship to science have been aired. To be ho ..read more