Tūranga mō ngā Mokopuna

06/03/2025

Mōrena e te whānau o Tūranga mō ngā Mokopuna!

A group of my colleagues from my full-time mahi in early childhood initial teacher education are undertaking research into the experiences of disabled early childhood student kaiako and kaiako. If you're a disabled early childhood kaiako or student kaiako and participating in their project is something that's of interest to you, you can find more information below as well as in the project information sheet provided in the comments.

Please feel free to share this pānui far and wide with your networks - there's so little research available into the experiences of disabled kaiako, and how their contributions can and should be affirmed in the context of inclusive early childhood teaching and learning environments, so it's amazing to have 'homegrown' mahi coming through to inform our practice in this way 🙌

Ngā mihi maioha
Kate

⬇️⬇️⬇️

Kia ora

We would like to invite kaiako/teachers with disabilities to participate in a research project being undertaken by Open Polytechnic/Te Pūkenga and Te Rito Maioha/ECNZ academic staff.

The project is investigating student kaiako and kaiako with disabilities experiences via an online survey. Student kaiako and kaiako with disabilities currently working towards an early years teaching qualification and/or working within the sector can have a wide range of disabilities, including neurodiversity, learning, mental health, physical, sensory, and health. The purpose of this research is to find out more about what makes quality learning, teaching and workplace environments for student kaiako and kaiako with disabilities.

The information sheet (provided in the comments) provides an explanation of the project and a link to the survey (also copied below).

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2R8T86W

The survey is anonymous, and participation will in no way impact on your relationships with academic staff or students.

Participation is voluntary and is open to all early childhood student kaiako and kaiako with disabilities who are interested in sharing their experiences and contributing to research that seeks to deepen understanding of the barriers to and facilitators of equity in initial teacher education and the early childhood workplace. The survey should take no longer than 30 mins to complete.

If you know of other student kaiako and kaiako with disabilities who would be interested in participating in this survey, please forward this information and link to them. The questionnaire will remain open until April.

Thank you in advance for taking an interest in this important kaupapa.

Ngā mihi,

Kerry Purdue, Veronica Griffiths, Erin Hall, Derek Hartley, Fleur Hohaia-Rollinson, Jackie Solomon, and Donna Williamson-Garner.

06/03/2025

Really excited to have contributed to this incredible new course from The Education Hub as an expert guest speaker, it was a true joy to support the mahi of another organisation with a similar kaupapa to my own in this way.
Please check the link out for further info if you're an early childhood kaiako keen to avail yourself and/or your team of sustained, quality, neurodivergence affirming PLD!
Ka mau te wehi Vicki and crew 🤗

Prices shown are per person, and are subject to GST (local sales tax) of 15%. * Lifetime access means for as long as the course is hosted on The Education Hub

02/03/2025

Kia ora e te whānau,

Ngā mihi o Te Rā o Ngā Tamariki! Happy World Children's Day. I'm really excited to share our very first snack-sized webinar with you on such a day!

The snack-sized webinar (this being a format that's been in hot demand!), which is just shy of 15 minutes long and so will hopefully be readily digestible for busy early childhood kaiako in a time/place/space that works for them, explores early childhood education as a site of political advocacy and social justice, and how/why early childhood kaiako can recognise and respond to barriers they might encounter so they can more confidently operate as advocates and activists for quality, equitable, inclusive early childhood education for all.

It's also housed on YouTube, so viewers can access it anywhere, any time. Please feel free to share the video link far and wide with your networks, and let me know what you think!

Ngā mihi maioha
Kate

This snack sized webinar discusses early childhood education as a site of political advocacy and social justice, and how/why early childhood teachers can rec...

26/02/2025

📣📣📣📣📣📣📣📣📣
Our first snack-size webinar of the year will be up on YouTube (you can find our channel at https://www.youtube.com/) this weekend! Good things take time, as they say ☺️
In the interim, please check out this call for papers that's just gone out for an upcoming special issue of the New Zealand Journal of Teacher's Work, which I (Kate) am fortunate enough to be guest editing alongside colleagues from OMEP Aotearoa, within which it's my immense privilege to serve as Vice President Tangata Tiriti.
The special issue will focus on children's rights to a quality, inclusive education, which is a kaupapa OMEP as an international organisation seeks to amplify, and is very much the case here in Aotearoa New Zealand too. More information about the call for papers, and the special issue more broadly, can be found at:
https://ojs.aut.ac.nz/teachers-work/announcement/view/7
Please consider making a submission to the special issue if the kaupapa is of interest to you! We'd love to have representation from a wide range of folk doing amazing mahi in/for early childhood (and beyond!).
Kia ora e te whānau 💓

CfP - Special Issue on Children's Rights and Education Aotearoa New Zealand 2025-02-25 We invite submissions for a special issue focused on Children's Rights and Education. This issue aims to explore the role of educators in promoting children's rights and the social and political structures that im...

27/12/2024

Kia ora anō e te whānau!

Better late than never, here's our confirmed webinar programme for next year!

Still free of charge, and standing proudly in its activist orientation in the face of the watering down of quality, inclusive early childhood education on the part of Aotearoa New Zealand's current coalition government.

Still firmly grounded in research, and delivered by an expert in kaupapa of disability, equity, inclusion and rights as they pertain to early childhood education.

Still protecting and amplifying the right of early childhood kaiako to access barrier-free, quality, sustained, meaningful professional learning and development that'll strengthen the inclusivity of their practice.

Now moving to YouTube as a hosting platform for our mahi.

Looking forward to having you all along for the ride!

Any whakaaro or pātai, please feel free to reach out via [email protected].

Please feel free to share this pānui far and wide with anyone you think might be interested!

While our audience is mainly early childhood kaiako here in Aotearoa New Zealand, we're increasingly drawing in participants who are disabled folk, whānau of disabled tamariki, foster carers, primary kaiako, psychologists, occupational therapists, teacher educators, counsellors, policymakers, social workers and more - and from far beyond Aotearoa New Zealand too. All who are interested and invested in the kaupapa are welcome in this space!

Nau mai, haere mai, tauti mai koutou☺️

18/11/2024

Long time no kōrero e te whānau! Things have been incredibly busy here in my wee world as I juggle my full-time mahi, whānau commitments, speaking commitments to various groups all round Aotearoa New Zealand, the usual sliding into the end of year craziness many of us encounter, preparing to head off to Hamilton next week to present at this year's NZARE - New Zealand Association for Research in Education annual conference, and getting plans in place for next year's Tūranga mō ngā Mokopuna offerings - more to come on that front next month!

In the meantime, we're releasing our November webinar next Tuesday and if you're keen to participate in the kaupapa but haven't yet registered, you can do so via https://www.eventbrite.co.nz/e/affirming-disability-in-inclusive-early-childhood-education-tickets-1027276239887. Registrations close at lunchtime this Friday 22nd November so kia tere, don't delay in getting your name down!

I'm very pleased to confirm that you can register to 'attend' the pre-recorded webinar free of charge! This will remain in place for all of our monthly webinars going forward into 2025 as a means of giving back to the early childhood community in politically precarious times such as we're navigating in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Nau mai, haere mai e hoa mā! Please feel free to share this pānui far and wide with your networks - the more the merrier I say 😊

29/10/2024

It's been super busy today between putting in a full day's mahi in my role as an early childhood teacher educator, then straight into doing the last of my prep for tonight's webinar release!

Arohamai for some of the tech glitches I encountered in enabling access for so many kaiako and other interested folk that meant a wee bit of a delay in making the webinar available - our webinars have become increasingly popular over the course of this year, but this was a significant jump in bookings even for us - to be able to say we had 366 bookings, one for every day of the (leap) year, still blows my mind! 😲

The feedback that's already started rolling in is very much appreciated and reminds me why I work hard in sharing what I know...because it creates ripple effects and makes a difference to both inclusive teaching and learning in ECE. There's honestly no better reward for me 💖

Now I start preparing for our final webinar of 2024, being released on Tuesday 26th November - affirming disability in inclusive early childhood education, which once again will be free of charge for any and all interested parties to access. LOTS of bookings coming in for that tonight too, my phone has been pinging non stop!

But first, rest. I think a 16hr day is more than enough for now 😴😅

Appreciate your enthusiasm for the kaupapa I offer so incredibly much!

Kā mihi manaaki
Kate

23/10/2024

He pānui whakamutunga e te whānau, there's just under 24hrs to run until registrations close off for our FREE webinar, being released on Tuesday evening next week (29th October), which will explore a pedagogy of deep listening using all the senses!

We're absolutely blown away to have received so much interest from kaiako and other interested folk right round the motu of Aotearoa New Zealand as well as increasingly beyond (especially from Te Whenua Moemoeā/Australia!), and are keen to ensure that no-one interested and invested in the kaupapa of our offerings miss out on participating.

So if you haven't registered already for next week's webinar and would like to, you can do so at
https://www.eventbrite.co.nz/e/exploring-a-pedagogy-of-deep-listening-using-all-the-senses-tickets-1027259559997

Registrations will close at midday NZT tomorrow, Friday 25th October.

It's our privilege to be bringing this quality, research-evidenced PLD to you at no cost.

Ngā mihi mahana ☺️

21/10/2024

Kia tere e te whānau! Registrations for our upcoming FREE webinar, which will explore a pedagogy of deep listening using all the senses, close at midday this Friday 25th October. A huge number of you have already booked in, which we're amped about, and we want to make sure that as many kaiako and other folk interested and invested in the kaupapa know the webinar is available at no charge and come join us. So if you haven't registered already and would like to, you can do so at
https://www.eventbrite.co.nz/e/exploring-a-pedagogy-of-deep-listening-using-all-the-senses-tickets-1027259559997

We're so excited to be bringing this mahi to you in a way that eliminates financial barriers to access! 💖