Papers by Lisa Maurice-Takerei
Educational Philosophy and Theory, Dec 18, 2022
The New Zealand Annual Review of Education
The Education and Training Act 2020 provides an opportunity to transform the Vocational Education... more The Education and Training Act 2020 provides an opportunity to transform the Vocational Education and Training (VET) system in Aotearoa New Zealand to ensure participants are successfully prepared for participation in the current and future workforce. The authors of this paper discuss current reforms in the VET system beyond the changing of components and the assignation of requisite tasks. While change to processes and systems can have an impact on VET outcomes, the kind of change that transforms individual lives and life chances depends on the decision-making and approaches made possible only by individuals ‘at the coalface.’ Indeed, changes to training programmes and processes alone cannot give effect to improved outcomes. The authors suggest that it is educators, the often unnamed and invisible workforce that will provide the basis for transformational VET based change. The VET workforce who daily mediate training programmes and curriculum as educators, facilitators, trainers, i...
Reshaping Vocational Education and Training in Aotearoa New Zealand
Industry demands, social and community interests, an increase in youth unemployment and economic ... more Industry demands, social and community interests, an increase in youth unemployment and economic requirements merge to become a part of a complex interplay that surrounds the field of vocational education and training. Recent calls for a vocational education system that provides value for money to the taxpayer and meets the needs of industry has launched renewed debate and increased the focus on vocational education. Teaching and learning is progressively scrutinized, issues of assessment, quality and evaluation are in the spotlight. Many challenges face vocational education in the modern era; most essentially notions of purpose and identity. As debates open, and the position and positioning of vocational education in New Zealand is considered, the voice of educators and those 'at the coal-face' remain in the background. Notions of the purpose of vocational education from the perspective of those most deeply involved are lost in the foray. This paper explores the background for a small pilot study that considers notions of vocational education as perceived by educators in VET. Of particular interest are those involved in trade and pre-trade programmes. The pilot study intends to explore responses from educators in terms of notions of vocational education; its purpose and in terms of students, curriculum and practice. The purpose of the study is to explore some of the conceptualizations of VET and VET practice. The study seeks to unravel the identity of VET and within VET taking into account the educational context of students, curriculum and practice. This paper explores the idea that fragmented notions of identity within VET have resulted in a silent space within the debate around which issues of ownership and control take place. Such a space might be filled with legitimate perspectives (Habermas, 1984) that contribute to a notion of VET for the new era. The paper considers the challenges for the construction of identity for VET and within VET while reflecting on the theme for the 2010 AVETRA conference, Leading and Responding in Turbulent Times.
This paper considers the unique features and contexts of vocational teaching and how these influe... more This paper considers the unique features and contexts of vocational teaching and how these influence and shape vocational teacher education. A study of the use of videoing as a learning and practice based strategy is presented as a prompt to rethinking the roles of the vocational educator. A conceptualisation of the work of the vocational educator which reframes the role and counters a view of vocational education as a transmission of skills within a fixed curriculum is considered. An investigation into the use of video in a teacher education course is described to demonstrate the tensions between a critical and a technicist view of vocational education and the results of the investigation are explored in terms of the roles of vocational educators.
This monograph provides a short history that discusses some of the changes, transformations and t... more This monograph provides a short history that discusses some of the changes, transformations and tensions from which TVET and in particular trade-related education in New Zealand has arisen. The monograph is part of a broader doctoral thesis, which explores the work of trade tutors in New Zealand polytechnics. The chapter from which the monograph has arisen stems from a desire to better understand the often-opaque environment in which TVET operates in New Zealand.
Reports on a small research study in which six carpentry tutors at an urban polytechnic were inte... more Reports on a small research study in which six carpentry tutors at an urban polytechnic were interviewed regarding their identity and perceptions of their work as trades educators. Argues that notions of good teaching within Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics (ITP) may be driven by normative/singular notions of pedagogy that do not recognise specific or 'signature pedagogies' active within trades education. Suggests that further work in the area of 'signature pedagogies' for the trades will legitimise trade educator practice and may challenge professional developers, teacher trainers and educational administrators within institutions to reconsider their assumptions about what constitutes 'good teaching' in a trade related environment.
The importance of developing a knowledgeable, skilled, adaptable and flexible workforce that enga... more The importance of developing a knowledgeable, skilled, adaptable and flexible workforce that engages in continuous learning is outlined in the 2015 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) document ‘Unleashing the Potential: Transforming Technical and Vocational Education and Training’. While this statement reflects an aspiration for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) graduates as skilled members of a twenty-first-century workforce, educators, trainers and organisations are implicated. Indeed, it is incumbent on them to be closely involved in the development of such a workforce. To understand, prepare for and provide such workforce development, learning organisations and educators must undertake their own learning and development. Education and training with a focus on providing for a knowledgeable, skilled, adaptable and flexible workforce is only possible when the educational workforce has the means to achieve such a goal. In ‘S...
The vocational tertiary teaching work force in New Zealand is made up of individuals from an exte... more The vocational tertiary teaching work force in New Zealand is made up of individuals from an extensive range of occupational backgrounds. When their occupational or discipline-based expertise is employed within Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics (ITPs) and Private Training Establishments (PTEs) they make up another occupational group ‐ that of vocational education or training practitioner. With diverse work-based backgrounds, vocational educators undertake their work within the teaching workforce often without a strong sense of their educational position or function and there is little guidance in the complexities and realities of the role. This paper considers the role of vocational educators and the practices of professional development or tertiary teacher education that might support building a multi-layered identity encompassing their discipline expertise and their role as an educator.
Vocational education in New Zealand has recently experienced an upsurge in interest. Trade relate... more Vocational education in New Zealand has recently experienced an upsurge in interest. Trade related education has become an area of focus in terms of government funding and educational policy in both the secondary schooling and tertiary education and training sectors. Despite this we know little about the world of tertiary trade education or the educators whose everyday work involves the skilling and upskilling of a future trade workforce. Tertiary level vocational education on the whole has received little research attention. Possibly this is a result of the complex, complicated and multi-layered environment in which it takes place. Yet tertiary trade-focused education serves multiple purposes and stakeholders and is at the centre of discussion relating to industry skill gaps, social development goals, trades academies in schools, global labour markets, national educational qualification standards and workforce development. This research presents the tensions in the world of work of trade tutors working in polytechnic environments in New Zealand and is primarily concerned with unravelling and illuminating this complex world of work. The thesis explores the identities of trade tutors as educators and contributors to a skilled 21 st century workforce and offers possibilities for an agentic educator workforce that is part of the solution for a 'skilled' New Zealand. Offers a cash bonus to employers to take on apprentices Industry Training and Apprenticeships Amendment Bill Provision to regulate ITOs and outlines functions of TEC, NZQA and promotes Education Amendment Act More structure for secondary-tertiary programmes. Approval and operation of partnership schools. 'Secondary schools' become 'relevant schools'
Institutions may invest heavily into building and equipping new learning teaching spaces with the... more Institutions may invest heavily into building and equipping new learning teaching spaces with the intention of encouraging active and collaborative learning to occur. However, there may not be a concomitant shift in teachers’ existing pedagogical practices. This qualitative study examined the perspectives of thirty-two tertiary teachers across a range of disciplines at a single institution. The findings suggest that working in new collaborative learning spaces challenged many participants to make changes to their existing practices that moved them along a possible continuum to be more facilitative and learner-centered in their approach.
International Journal of Training Research, 2016
New Zealand Journal of Teachers Work
The vocational tertiary teaching work force in New Zealand is made up of individuals from an exte... more The vocational tertiary teaching work force in New Zealand is made up of individuals from an extensive range of occupational backgrounds. When their occupational or discipline-based expertise is employed within Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics (ITPs) and Private Training Establishments (PTEs) they make up another occupational group – that of vocational education or training practitioner. With diverse work-based backgrounds, vocational educators undertake their work within the teaching workforce often without a strong sense of their educational position or function and there is little guidance in the complexities and realities of the role. This paper considers the role of vocational educators and the practices of professional development or tertiary teacher education that might support building a multi-layered identity encompassing their discipline expertise and their role as an educator ...
This paper considers the unique features and contexts of vocational teaching and how these influe... more This paper considers the unique features and contexts of vocational teaching and how these influence and shape vocational teacher education. A study of the use of videoing as a learning and practice based strategy is presented as a prompt to rethinking the roles of the vocational educator. A conceptualisation of the work of the vocational educator which reframes the role and counters a view of vocational education as a transmission of skills within a fixed curriculum is considered. An investigation into the use of video in a teacher education course is described to demonstrate the tensions between a critical and a technicist view of vocational education and the results of the investigation are explored in terms of the roles of vocational educators.
Industry demands, social and community interests, an increase in youth unemployment and economic ... more Industry demands, social and community interests, an increase in youth unemployment and economic requirements merge to become a part of a complex interplay that surrounds the field of vocational education and training. Recent calls for a vocational education system that provides value for money to the taxpayer and meets the needs of industry has launched renewed debate and increased the focus on vocational education. Teaching and learning is progressively scrutinized, issues of assessment, quality and evaluation are in the spotlight. Many challenges face vocational education in the modern era; most essentially notions of purpose and identity.
For a novice researcher engaged in an unfamiliar field there are many challenges. Firstly there i... more For a novice researcher engaged in an unfamiliar field there are many challenges. Firstly there is the need to develop an understanding of the principles and conventions of research. At the same time it is necessary to build or enlarge a working knowledge and deep understanding of the field being reserarched. For an ethnographic study the understanding of experience is central and is of particular interest for a study that considers identity in a changing environment. Constructing an understanding of lived experience in an unfamiliar, complex and changing field is itself a complex undertaking. Methods that include meaning making activities may provide an enhanced understanding of experience for both participants and researcher. This chapter provides a background to the multifaceted field of tertiary vocational education. It explores a strategy that provides a conceptual entry for a new researcher who is navigating a way-in to a new, complex and complicated field. The central idea in the chapter is the construction and description of an artefact in a focus group environment. This artefact is used to begin a discussion of educator identities. It provides a useful starting point for researcher and participants. There is discussion about the use of this artefact as a method for data collection. The strategy supports meaning-making for participants within the focus group as well as providing an orientation to the field for the researcher (Hopkins, 2003).
This paper reports on a small research study in which six carpentry tutors at an urban polytechni... more This paper reports on a small research study in which six carpentry tutors at an urban polytechnic were interviewed regarding their identity and perceptions of their work as trades educators. Some preliminary findings suggest that the 'occupational identity' of trades educators as 'teachers' is less problematic than suggested (see ). This paper argues that notions of good teaching within Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics (ITPs) may be driven by normative/singular notions of pedagogy that do not recognize specific or 'signature pedagogies' active within trades education. It is suggested that further work in the area of 'signature pedagogies' for the trades will legitimise trade educator practice. However, it may challenge professional developers, teacher trainers and educational administrators within institutions to reconsider their assumptions about what constitutes 'good teaching' in a trade related environment.
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Papers by Lisa Maurice-Takerei