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LINWOOD LIBRARY REFURBISHMENT
Linwood Library
How libraries link learners to better learning outcomes
By Polly Nichols
It’s said that public libraries are some of the last places where visitors aren’t expected to make any purchases or financial contribution – unless you’re one to rack up late fees. Even though there are few expectations of library users, public libraries have a larger role in their communities than most realise.
Linwood Library is one of Christchurch’s 20 libraries that make up Christchurch City Libraries – not including the FingerTip Library, a virtual information service, and the Mobile Library which caters to areas without library services. In March, Christchurch City Libraries announced that Linwood Library and Service Centre would undergo a three-week refurbishment. Completed in April, the library now has new décor, furniture and a change of layout. Three weeks isn’t very long in terms of renovating or refurbishing. However, the project highlights the importance of public libraries and their everchanging roles in our communities. Along with housing a number of books and computers, the Linwood Library also facilitates a Christchurch City Council service desk. There, patrons can top up their bus cards which is helpful to those who don’t have access to the internet and can’t do so online. The new refurbishments also allow for more staff at the service centre and privacy for staff handling cash. At first glance the improvements seem small but they add to Linwood Library’s place in the local community. Unique to others within the library network, Linwood Library is located within Eastgate Mall. Not only is the location convenient for shoppers, but it’s also beneficial to those without personal transport; four different bus routes have stops close to the library. Library services are critical to the livelihood of those with limited resources – especially students. Dependant on others, students often have little control over their living situation.
For example, according to the 2018 Census, Stats NZ reported that nearly one in nine New Zealanders live in a crowded house. Overcrowding is frequently a concern in regard to infectious disease transmission, but it’s also a concern when creating a space conducive to study outside of school. Stats NZ released 2018 Census household crowding data early in response to concerns around COVID-19 in 2020. During the onset of the pandemic, we were reminded of students’ limited access to digital technologies and the internet. On this side of the national lockdown, some students still face the same challenge. In Victoria University of Wellington’s literature review, Equitable digital access to the internet beyond school, limited
Public libraries fill the gap that is experienced in many communities.
access to digital technologies and the internet disadvantages students in three ways. First, students with limited access have more difficulty completing assignments that require access outside of school.
Second, lack of access means students have less time to gain competency with different technologies. Third, students with limited access are less likely to benefit from digital literacy whether it’s educationally, socially or in regard to future job prospects than their peers. Although libraries like Linwood Library don’t solve issues like overcrowding and limited access to the internet and technologies, they fill the gap that is felt in many communities by creating a space for self-advancement and learning.
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University of Canterbury’s innovative new approaches to teachers’ professional development
Staying up-to-date with the latest educational practices and policies is vital to delivering the best outcomes for students and learners.
Many teachers decide to specialise in an area of teaching they are passionate about, or further develop their range of skills.
This is where the University of Canterbury (UC) taps into its long history and depth of teaching and learning expertise to support teachers into leadership with innovative resources and opportunities. “Teaching is a profession of lifelong learning,” Associate Professor Misty Sato, Head of UC’s School of Teacher Education | Te Kura Whakangungu Kaiako, says. “As society changes and innovations are developed, we, as teachers, need to find those moments to refresh our thinking on issues like cultural diversity and racism, add new understandings in key areas such as well-being and mātauranga Māori, and invigorate our skills in digital delivery and te reo Māori.” Teachers and school leaders have access to a variety of professional development opportunities through the Ministry, their schools and Kāhui Ako. In-depth learning and transformations in how teachers understand a complex educational issue, however, takes time.
The Hikairo Schema for Secondary – supporting teachers towards culturally responsive practice
Deputy Head of the School, Dr Te Hurinui Karaka-Clarke led the development of The Hikairo Schema for Secondary: Culturally responsive teaching and learning, working with Jennifer Smith, Matiu Tai Rātima, Angus Hikairo Macfarlane, Sonja Macfarlane, Rachel Maitland, Lisa Davies, Kari Moana Kururangi and Susannah Stevens. “Teachers in all sectors have long been wanting a resource that provides practical strategies to implement culturally responsive pedagogies into their everyday classroom practice,” Dr Karaka-Clarke says. “The aim of the schema is to provide guidance for teachers and schools on how to implement cultural responsive practices and, as a consequence, improve engagement and educational outcomes for their Māori students.” The Hikairo Schema for Secondary is the third iteration of the resource that provides concrete strategies and examples, built around seven components that embrace and draw on traditions of tikanga (practices/customs) and uara (values) Māori. Rather than provide an exhaustive number of examples for each component, the resource suggests starter strategies that can be explored and enhanced to suit the teacher and their context.
“The schema can also be used to provide teachers who have already begun this journey with a level of guidance or assurance that they are on the right track. While not purposely designed as such, some schools have integrated aspects of the schema into their appraisal programme,” he says.
The national Better Start Literacy Approach (BSLA) was developed by a team of researchers at the Child Wellbeing Research Institute at UC. Led by Professors Gail Gillon and Brigid McNeill, the approach was successfully trialled in schools in Auckland and Christchurch and rolled out in increasing numbers of Year 0/1 classes across the country. The approach teaches letter-sound knowledge, phonological awareness, oral language, word reading and spelling through fun, game-based activities. It also integrates the new Ready to Read – Phonics Plus early readers series. These early readers include beautiful illustrations of local flora and fauna, and New Zealand characters doing New Zealand things, like swimming sports, picking up rubbish at the local park and cheeky weka playing in the bush. An innovative new micro-credential programme provides training in the Better Start Literacy Approach for teachers and literacy specialists across Aotearoa New Zealand. New funding has just been announced, providing places for 125 new literacy specialists (facilitators) and 722 teachers starting this July.
“Master’s degrees and doctoral degrees may feel like they are hard to fit into an already-busy life. It does take some planning to manage this kind of study over several years, but the rewards of deeper learning, and the opportunities that come from higher level qualifications, make the planning and time spent well worth it for the individual and for the education sector,” Associate Professor Sato says. Te Hurinui Clarke and Lynette Brice were the first graduates of UC’s new Doctor of Education, in December 2020. Dr Brice completed her thesis ‘Loving Learning? Emotional Experiences in Second-Chance Teaching and Learning’, over four years while balancing full-time work at the Open Polytechnic in Wellington. It was important for Brice that her research had real world application, to be practical and useful to others. Teachers, counsellors and education professionals will find the programmes at UC provide theory, research and skills to deepen professional practice. They can undertake practitioner or action research in a workplace context. Those who pursue a thesis pathway can focus on an area of specific interest in collaboration with their supervisor.
Dr Te Hurinui Karaka-Clarke (Te Arawa/ Ngāi Tahu) addresses graduates at UC’s Rotorua graduation ceremony. For his doctorate, Karaka-Clarke explored the challenge of incorporating Taha wairua (spiritual health), one of the four pillars of the Māori health model Te Whare Tapa Whā, into online learning. The Hikairo Schema for Secondary is a new guide with concrete strategies for teachers to engage students and facilitate culturally sensitive and inclusive learning in secondary settings. (Left to right) Dr Amy Scott, Professor Gail Gillon (Ngāi Tahu), Associate Professor Alison Arrow and Professor Brigid McNeill, developed the new Ready to Read – Phonics Plus early readers series, published by the Ministry of Education.
Upskill with UC Education.
Phone: 03 369 3333 email: educationadvice@ canterbury.ac.nz www.canterbury.ac.nz/education
