Social and emotional learning (SEL) to support students' wellbeing is even more critical within schools dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. This article establishes why New Zealand primary schools need strategies to support the emotional wellbeing of students and why a prescriptive approach is not appropriate for the bicultural and multicultural…

This article unpacks the computational thinking for digital technologies (CTDT) technological area of the New Zealand primary curriculum that became mandatory in 2020. It explores computational thinking (CT), its place in the New Zealand primary curriculum, and elements kaiako can utilise to help implement the teaching of CT. The article considers…

International recognition of Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCos) as agents of change for students with special educational needs calls for a deeper understanding of SENCo agency. However, literature on teacher agency for inclusion has paid little attention to SENCos. Taking a sociocultural view of agency, this qualitative case study…

Current education policy in Aotearoa New Zealand (Aotearoa is the country's indigenous Maori name) requires schools and teachers to engage with parents and the school community to enhance student educational experience and achievement. The broad wording in these policy statements allows schools and teachers to tailor their parental engagement…

In this paper, a site ontological approach to practice seeks to understand how educational development can be accomplished through the practices of 'middle leaders'--educators who exercise their leading 'between' the principal and the teaching staff. Analysis of two vignettes of leading in extraordinary circumstances untangles the web of…

Classroom furniture has evolved over time from fixed desks facing the front to maintain order and control to a range of flexible furniture types to encourage student-centred pedagogies. This article reports research that applied a socio-material approach to explore how furniture is used in a flexible learning environment. Data were gathered from…

This paper explains the design, development and delivery of a curriculum-integrated dance programme across four primary schools in Auckland, New Zealand. Four teachers and their respective classes (101 children in total) were part of the programme. Each class participated in 18 dance sessions at their schools during school hours. The dance…

This paper reports on the preliminary findings of a study carried out in two English-medium primary (elementary) schools (years 1-6) located in the Otago-Southland regions between 2014 and 2015. The purpose of the study aimed to explore the educational aspirations whanau Maori (i.e., Maori family) want for their children, and to build better…

Literacy is one of the most important life skills. Being able to read and write effectively enhances our participation in learning, personal development and employment (Clendon & Erickson, 2009; Copeland & Keefe, 2019). Literacy instruction is the cornerstone of teaching in New Zealand primary schools. However, not all students have…

Children living in socioeconomically disadvantaged communities face distinct stressors when compared to those from more advantaged backgrounds. Research indicates higher levels of child well-being may buffer against the negative effects of stress and adversities, with supportive teacher behaviors playing a key role in promoting well-being.…

Judgements of the work of school principals may be formal through an appraisal process or informal from students, teachers, parents, and members of the community in which the school operates. This article focuses on New Zealand rural primary school principals' experiences of informal expectations--and judgements about whether they meet these…

There is a strong relationship between student achievement, ethnicity, and socioeconomic background in Aotearoa New Zealand. This book is committed to providing a framework for teaching for equity, to ensure those students who are typically underserved by the system have equitable opportunities to excel. A group of teachers, principals, and…

Emotional literacy is at the heart of effective educational leadership. It supports organisational culture and change management, as well as teaching and learning outcomes. The research reported in this article was designed to help explain emotional literacy and its influence on school culture. Interviews with four primary school principals about…

Schooling territories are bounded spaces where policies, bodies, practices, and discourses meet and collide. It is well documented in assessment literature that students who are active decision-makers understand their learning processes and have the necessary wherewithal to access support across schooling spaces. These spaces are co-produced…

This research examines teaching outdoor education in two rural primary schools in Aotearoa New Zealand. The aim was to give "voice" to how outdoor education is taught, programmed and understood. Underpinning the research was the question: what factors enable/constrain teachers' ability to implement outdoor education? The findings…