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Friday 15 February 2019 10:42am

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College of Education staff perform a waiata at a mihi whakatau welcoming Māori Studies Senior Lecturer Dr Rachel Martin and Professional Practice Fellow Andrea Robertson.

Two new appointments at the College of Education mean vital areas of learning for Otago’s education tauira will be well-covered in future.

In late January the College welcomed new Māori Studies Senior Lecturer Dr Rachel Martin and music lecturer Andrea Robertson to the faculty.

Dr Martin is excited to be returning to her alma mater, having worked at the University of Canterbury College Of Education since 1999.

“I trained at the Dunedin College of Education, and I’m very pleased to have the opportunity to come back and work here . . . I really look forward to working with my new colleagues, students, Otago schools and centres, Ngāi Tahu and community members, and the College of Education as we work together on improving Māori education.”

Dr Martin, who affiliates to the Waitaha, Kāti Mamoe and Ngāi Tahu tribe in the South Island from Kaikōura to Rākiura, says it was a privilege having University of Canterbury College of Education Acting Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Letitia Fickel, Associate Professor Jo Fletcher and Te Hurinui Clarke attend her mihi whakatau and handover.

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Dr Martin thanks Te Hurinui Clarke (seated) for speaking on behalf of her former University of Canterbury colleagues at her mihi whakatau.

“These colleagues represented my other valued STED (School of Teacher Education) colleagues. It was fantastic to have their support and blessing as they handed me over to my new whānau at the College of Education,” she says.

An early priority in her new role is to review current te reo Māori, ngā āhuatanga Māori programmes, and to better align these with the University’s Māori Strategic Framework.

“The intention is also to ensure we meet guidelines from the new document Our Code, Our Standards from the Education Council in particular demonstrating a commitment to tangata whenuatanga and Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership in the learning environment,” she says.

Her research interests focus on the importance of culturally and linguistically sustaining te tiriti- based frameworks for research.

“I focus on how all participants fit in these schema, and base research on making a difference for Māori communities,” she says.

She also researches bilingual education, Māori Education, intergenerational transmission of te reo Māori, intergenerational trauma and historical trauma, Kaupapa Māori research, primary teacher education and te reo Māori on line learning and indigenous education.

In 2017, Dr Martin completed a PhD on how parents who are second language learners and speakers of te reo Māori nurture their children as Māori in the Christchurch region.

“Regional research is vital for language growth, and significant in language revitalisation efforts. One of the aims of Ngāi Tahu and other government agencies is to improve the intergenerational transmission of te reo Māori and speaking Māori in the home to ensure the survival of the language. This research adds to the further research required in this field. Speaking te reo Māori in the home and in the educational environment is vital to its survival. As a trained primary teacher my focus is on Māori education and the importance of te reo Māori in all primary schools.”

Dr Martin is currently working on a Teaching and Learning Research Initiative project with researchers from University of Canterbury, which uses a collaborative approach to socio-emotional wellbeing. The work is guided by Kaupapa Māori research principles, involving teachers, whānau, hapū, and iwi and is aimed at supporting teachers to enhance and sustain student wellbeing in the classroom, through socio-emotional learning (SEL) education.

“It will enable teachers to develop and integrate these SEL strategies within their programmes to enhance support for the identities, languages and cultures of their students and supports partnerships between researchers and educators by funding projects expected to improve outcomes for learners, has provided funding of $300,000 over two years for the project. The government-funded TLRI project is administered by the New Zealand Council for Educational Research, Rangahau Mātauranga o Aotearoa.

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Professional Practice Fellow Andrea Robertson.

Professional Practice Fellow Andrea Robertson

Professional Practice Fellow Andrea Robertson returns to the College from Silverstream School, Mosgiel, where she has been teaching and Assistant Principal since 2012.

“I’ve loved working with student-teachers in classrooms while teaching, and feel I now have a lot more to offer as a lecturer having done the job – being back at the College is really exciting,” she says.

The Dunedin local undertook teacher-training at the Dunedin College of Education in the mid-1990s, went teaching, and then returned to the College in 2005 to lecture in technology and digital tools. She is looking forward to helping primary-teaching students get to grips with the music component of curriculum studies.

“My main instrument is guitar, but I’m not a specialist, although I’ve always played and taught music. Teaching music to children can be pretty daunting for young people, and I really want to help enthuse them, and show them they don’t need to be virtuosos who play twenty instruments to help children enjoy music.”

College Dean Professor Ross Notman says Rachel and Andrea will bring a great depth of knowledge and professionalism to two significant areas of teacher education and research.

“I am delighted to welcome Rachel and Andrea as new staff to the College of Education. They will enhance our students’ learning as they bring with them a wealth of educational expertise in their respective areas of Maori Studies and the Performing Arts.”

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College of Education Dean Professor Ross Notman (seated) and Southland Campus Senior Lecturer Parker Ormond watch on as University of Canterbury education faculty members walk beside Dr Rachel Martin and Andrea Robertson to mark their transition into the College whānau.

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