Learning and pedagogy

Our research in Learning and Pedagogy spans e-learning, special education and literacy improvement in children and adults. 

The e-Learning Lab leads research and development of e-learning including creative and innovative approaches to learning and teaching. Our achievements and projects include forward-thinking areas such as development of blended online learning across schools, tertiary and teacher education, and new Literacies including e-learning for adults with literacy and numeracy needs.

Work by the Language and Literacy Research Lab research group, which has links with groups including the New Zealand Insitute of Language, Brain and Behaviour, includes: language impairments and interventions, work with special groups (such as childhood apraxia of speech), teaching English as a foreign language and literacy development across different languages.

Award-winning Te Rū Rangahau: The Māori Research Laboratory supports the advancement of Indigenous postgraduates in the College of Education, Health and Human Development and aims to advance research that is responsive to Māori and Indigenous needs and aspirations. Te Rū Rangahau facilitates overseas scholars whose research and teaching are in tandem with Māori and Indigenous development, and the development of minoritised communities.

Research strengths

Inclusive and special education

Areas of current research in inclusive and special education include:

• Preventing school failure
• Supporting teachers in inclusive practices
• International reviews of inclusive education
• Meeting the needs of diverse learners
• Culturally and linguistically diverse students
• Technology in education
• Holistic development and learning in inclusive education settings

Research centres and groups

• Inclusive and Special Education Research Group (ISER)

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Language and literacy

Areas of current research in language and literacy include:

• Literacy-related learning difficulties assessment in Arabic
• Interventions for children with English as an additional language
• Mathematics learning difficulties in Arabic
• Inclusion in mainstream Kuwaiti schools for children with learning disabilities
• Prospective evaluation of the validity and nature of Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS)
• Spelling instructional practices in New Zealand
• Literacy learning in English as a second language or multilingual children
• Literacy in Persian
• AVAILLL: Audio Visual Achievement in Literacy, Language and Literacy
• Children with Down syndrome telling a story: Does listener familiarity matter?
• Assessing the impact of self-directed video coaching on shared book-reading between children with Down syndrome and their families

Research centres and groups

• Language and Literacy Research Lab

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Creativity and educational change

Areas of current research in creativity and educational change include:

• Creativity in learning
• Creating change for Maori and Pasifika in education
• Creating change in education in international contexts
• Participatory action research, reflective practice and arts-based research

Research centres and groups

• Research Lab for Creativity and Change

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Early years development

Areas of current research in early years development include:

• Expanding opportunities for children in their early years to reach their full potential.

Research centres and groups

• Early Years Enquiry Research Hub

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Science and technology education

Areas of current research in science and technology education include:

• Science Learning hub development
• Teachers' use of materials
• Key concepts in science for primary students

Research centres and groups

• Science and Technology Education Research Lab

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Educational theory, policy and practice

Areas of current research in educational theory, policy and practice include:

• The emotional impact of the christchurch earthquakes on teachers
• Ethical internationalism in higher education
• Principals as literacy leaders in indigenous communities

Research centres and groups

• Educational Theory, Policy and Practice Research Hub

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Māori education

Areas of current research in Māori education include:

• Maternal health, pregnancy and early childhood
• Successful transition into adulthood
• Education: Living in a Digital world
• Te Rū Rangahau | The Māori Research Laboratory and Superu | Social Policy Evaluation and Research Unit relationship

Research centres and groups

• Te Rū Rangahau | The Māori Research Laboratory

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Teacher learning and practice

Areas of current research in teacher learning and practice include:

• Enhancing the intercultural capability of students of additional languages
• Pre-Service Teachers (PSTs) and mathematics
• Māori-medium PRT pilot programme
• Teacher Education for learning equity
• Programme evaluations

Research centres and groups

• Teacher Learning and Innovations in Practice Research Hub

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Language pedagogy

Areas of current research in language pedagogy include:

• Intergenerational transmission of minority languages 
• Chinese heritage language learning and identity in New Zealand
• Valid and ethical use of IELTS
• Computer-assisted language learning (CALL) in the New Zealand ESOL context
• Use of podcasts for vocabulary development
• Intergenerational transmission of the Korean language in Christchurch
• Mobile assisted language learning on perceptions, beliefs and practices of tertiary students in Pakistan
• Social networking sites in teaching and learning English in high schools in Vietnam

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

e-learning

Areas of current research in e-learning include:

• National Science Challenge: E Tipu e Rea – a better start
• Research and evaluation of innovative postgraduate initial teacher education
• Model Learning Environment (MLE)

Research centres and groups

• e-Learning Research Lab

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Geoscience education

Areas of current research in geoscience education include:

• Tertiary geoscience education research
• Tertiary geoscience curriculum development
• Geohazards and risk education
• Geoscience communication and field skills research
• Tertiary transforming tertiary science education

Research centres and groups

• Geoscience Education Research Group

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are:

Computer science education

Areas of current research in computer science education include:

• Computer Science Unplugged
• Computer Science Field Guide
• Computer Science for High Schools (CS4HS) Conference
• Computer Science for Primary Schools (CS4PS) Conference

Research centres and groups

• Computer Science Education Group

Researchers and supervisors

Staff actively working in these areas are: