College research excellence recognised

4 December 2003
Media Release

College research excellence recognised

One of the three awards presented this year by the New Zealand Association for Research in Education (NZARE) has gone to a researcher at Auckland College of Education.

Helen Hedges, early childhood practicum coordinator at the college, won the Rae Munro Award for excellence in an area of educational research having implications for teacher education or classroom practice, at the 2003 NZARE conference held in Auckland this week.

It is the first time an early childhood thesis has won the award.

It comes at a time when the Government is seeking to bolster early childhood education through its ten year plan for the sector: “Pathways to the future: Nga Huarahi Arataki.”

Titled: ‘Subject content knowledge in early childhood: curriculum and pedagogy’ Helen Hedges’ thesis has already made an impact on the field by inclusion in the Quality Teaching Early Foundations: Best Evidence Synthesis released in June this year by the Ministry of Education, and through publication in key refereed journals.

Her research addresses what should be included in early childhood teacher education programmes, how to include content knowledge in teachers’ interpretation and implementation of Te Whariki, links between early childhood and primary curricula and the teaching approaches and roles of those involved with children’s learning.

The award honours the late Dr Raeside Munro’s outstanding contribution to educational research and teaching practice. Dr Rae Munro was a dean of the Auckland Secondary Teachers' College in the late 1980's prior to its merger into Auckland College of Education. He died in 1995.

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