COUV ACTES - Psychologie communautaire

Community Psychology: Common Values, Diverse PracticesEducationEducation is vital for the development of Oceania; and can be a powerful tool for emancipation (Freire, 1970).Currently education is based on colonial models brought by well-intentioned Christian missionaries which haveproven resistant to change (Teasdale, 2005). Much of the curriculum fails to provide an education that meetscommunity aspirations (Crocombe, 2001).Colonial assumptions need to be much more carefully and critically questioned (Teasdale & Puamau, 2005).Pacific educators at USP have researched Pacific philosophies to affirm Pacific ways of learning andepistemologies, to ensure these become part of educational curricula. Their work calls for the integration ofPacific values so students’ experience is more relevant and conducive to harmonious societies in the future(Huffer & Qalo, 2004).Little of this work focuses on tertiary education (Hau’ofa, 2008). Universities have remained for the most part“ivory towers” - gatekeepers of knowledge available only to a privileged few. Until this elitism is challenged,tertiary education remains beyond the reach of many, with curriculum grounded in Western priorities.USPThe USP with more than 16000 students is the largest educational institution in Oceania with campuses in 11Pacific member nations. Its goal is to be a centre of excellence in all things Pacific, including values, ethics andknowledge systems. Nevertheless, course content draws on Western rather than Pacific epistemologies(Crocombe, 2001; Huffer & Qalo, 2005; Teasdale, 2005).The main campus is in Fiji; other campuses are linked via satellite. Lectures are either broadcast live or availableonline; many courses are offered online. Satellite technology provides high speed internet to all campuses,enabling staff and students to communicate. However, despite such innovative technologies, satellite campuseshave fewer resources, less access to services and fewer trained staff than the main campus. Structures andprocesses continue to impose Western ways of organising and decision-making in ways that marginalise smallerstates (Crocombe, 2001).The smallest USP campus is in Tokelau, 1500 kilometres from Fiji. Even the relatively meagre resourcesavailable there provide significant educational opportunities. My goal as Director was to make campus resourceswidely available within the community, so that all Tokelau atolls benefitted.TokelauTokelau consists of 3 low-lying atolls 500km north of Samoa. Tokelau remains a New Zealand territory with apopulation of 1600. More Tokelauan people live in New Zealand and Australia than in Tokelau.Tokelau seems very isolated, although there are strong links with neighbouring countries. To travel there, youfirst fly to Samoa, from where a boat travels to Tokelau twice a month. The trip takes 2-4 days, with 60 peoplesleeping on the deck. When it rains, passengers scramble to find cover, with flimsy tarpaulins providing shelter.There are no harbours or wharves in Tokelau; all passengers and freight are transported ashore in small boatsthrough the surf.302