supporting tiriti-based curriculum delivery in mainstream early ...

into account when selecting centres were the ages of the children, socio-economic
status, and management practices. It is these findings that are presented at the end
of this chapter, which begins with a description of Case Study One.
5.2 Case Study One
Case Study One was an urban, full day, education and care centre, which
was situated in a converted three-bedroom house in a South Auckland suburb.
There were 48 children of mixed-ages on the roll. This means children of all ages
were able to play together (rather than being separated into physically different
areas according to their age) in what is called a mixed-age range setting.
The centre staff defined children‟s ethnicity as being Pākehā (37.5%,
n=18), Māori (18.75%, n=9), Indian (16.6%, n=8), Samoan (6.25%, n=3), Chinese
(6.25%, n=3), Fijian (6.25%, n=3), Tongan (4.16%, n=2), and Niuean (4.16%,
n=2). The nearby schools were decile 2-4, at the lower end of the socio-economic
scale. The teaching staff had a range of tertiary qualifications (see Table 5.1). The
self-nominated ethnicities of the staff were Indian, Dutch, Niuean/Cook Island and
Pākehā with four having English as an additional language (see Table 5.1). While
this means these teachers may have been less familiar with Māori culture,
potentially they were experienced in learning additional languages which could
enhance their aptitude to acquire te reo Māori.
Table 5.1 Teacher Ethnicity and Qualifications Case Study One.
Identifier Ethnicity Qualifications
D. Indian Diploma of Teaching (ECE) – N.Z;
MA. Special Education – India
J. Dutch 90 Licensing points based on Playcentre
Certificates and 8 years experience
Sb. Indian 3rd year Diploma of Teaching (ECE) student;
M.A. Education and M.A. Public Education –
India
T. Niuean/Cook
Island
1st year Diploma of Teaching (ECE) student;
S. Pākehā B.Ed – N.Z. Studying for Diploma of Early
Intervention
J.T Pākehā 3rd year Diploma of Teaching (ECE) student.
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