This literature review seeks to offer understanding about how relationships and sexuality education (RSE) has evolved in the 21st century in Aotearoa New Zealand secondary schools. The perceived demand for schools to address significant social issues, such as how youth navigate the world of relationships and sexualities, can be a challenge for the…

Metaxis offers a powerful, yet elusive space for learning. We argue that authentic questions can provoke compelling metaxis moments where students and their teachers straddle two worlds at one time: the fictional and the real. We report findings from two New Zealand research projects in primary schools where we investigated the precursors to…

In an era where artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming various sectors, including education, understanding how educators perceive and integrate AI into their teaching practices is crucial. This study addresses the growing need to explore educators' perspectives on AI's impact on education, particularly its implications for effective…

Underpinning drama education in New Zealand is the desire to improve the lives of individuals, communities and societies by catalysing embodied learning in and through the art form of theatre. Learning in drama is intended to foster well-being, social cohesion and active citizenship. Put another way, drama education in New Zealand has always been…

This study adds to the debate that both basic and applied research enhance each other; likewise, the arts and science disciplines are equally relevant in solving complex societal and environmental problems. Thus, investment in one should not lead to a deprivation of the other. One may suppose that although both basic and applied research remains a…

Herein we examine the dominant image of East Asian schools as marked by a darker side of widespread bullying, leading to high rates of youth suicide. First outlining the substantial literature on bullying in the English language, we turn to show how -- paradoxically -- the rates of bullying and suicide are no higher, or in nearly all cases, lower…

During the COVID-19 crisis, stereotypical images of young people as selfish troublemakers or passive victims appeared in the media and scholarly publications. These persistent views disregard many young people's authentic experiences and civic contributions. In this article, we challenge these perceptions by highlighting young people's acts of…

Inspired by Martin Thrupp's deep commitment to teachers and teaching as a profession, we consider from our perspectives as teacher educators how critical engagement with educational developments and social issues is important for student teachers. Martin was concerned about a neoliberal trend to de-professionalise teaching and championed the role…

The newly coined policy of social investment is an economic argument for targeting state investment to the most needy. I use Foucault's notion of biopolitics in a discursive analysis of recent New Zealand policy documents pertaining to a discrete group of 'vulnerable children'. I further argue that the Foucauldian metaphor of state institutions as…

In this essay, drawing on our ethnographic work at the "margins of the margins" in Aotearoa New Zealand, we depict the role of communicative pedagogy for radical democracy in sustaining spaces for community participation in pandemic response. Based on accounts offered by community advisory group members and observations of emergent…

This article explores the values that bridge democracy and community dance. Policymakers show an interest in promoting democracy, including the very values shared between community dance and democracy. Observing this, we propose that policy may benefit from examining the pedagogy and practices of community dance, and incorporate relevant aspects…

In the modern era migrations are complex, multi-determined and elude vulgar mechanistic models of causality. Migrations unfold in complex ecologies involving broad features of the state -- borders, demography, economy, and society. Furthermore, historical relationships, cultural affinities, political interests, and the environment itself continue…

Socially relevant curriculum and the importance of opening up spaces for negotiation and 'meaning making' to occur are increasingly common ideas in my academic writing. In this article, I argue that cultural otherness, anti-racism, spirituality and religion are fundamental to contemporary socially relevant curricula. In it, I report how student…

Socio-scientific issues (SSIs) are real-life problems which have a scientific basis yet require the consideration of social concerns. Using SSIs has been advocated as an approach to engage secondary-school students with science and this study aimed to explore the potential of such an approach in the primary-school classroom. The experiences and…

In contemporary times, corporate philanthropy is positioned as an effective means to 'solve' a variety of social problems. Childhood obesity is one such 'problem' that has captured the interests of schools, corporations, industry groups and a number of 'not-for-profit' players. In this paper, I critically examine how the private sector uses the…