Page 10A creepy pestWhen good plants go bad

Page 12Future fuelsNew Zealand’s energy future

Man’s best friend Page 4 The life of Samoan dogs

editorial editor Simon Peel writer Karen Burge art direction Nadja Rausch design Aaron Bold cover image Grant Southam printing Norcross Group of Companies

published by Unitec Institute of Technology ISSN 1176-7391 phone 0800 10 95 10 web www.unitec.ac.nz

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3» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011

Collaboration is keyEach issue of Advance profiles the diverse range of research activity at Unitec. The idea that research in an academic environment is primarily driven by individual staff pursuing their own particular research interests is a stereotype. But like many stereotypes it is only partially accurate, as the content of this issue shows.

The chances of a research project having impact are greater when done collaboratively and with partners outside of the research institution. For example, Mark Farnworth’s research on dogs, done in conjunction with the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and the Animal Protection Society of Samoa (APS) is a case in point. As is the collaboration between Unitec researchers John Perrott and Sabina Schragen with the Department of Conservation and Te Arawa.

A significant amount of Unitec’s research activity is related to student research, under staff supervision. In this issue we profile one of Unitec’s most successful research degree programmes, the Master of Educational Leadership and Management (MEdLM), which has just celebrated its 100th student completion. Many of the students in the MEdLM have chosen to undertake applied research projects in their own schools or to investigate important contemporary issues relevant to their practice. Our profile of Mike Kelso, the 100th student to finish, illustrates this through Mike’s study on student feedback as a part of teacher performance appraisal.

When considering student research, attention is immediately drawn to Unitec’s thirteen masters degree programmes and two doctoral programmes. But at undergraduate level Unitec students are often involved in significant projects as well. In the issue we profile the research of Hayley Nessia and her supervisors from the Department of Natural Sciences into the invasive weed Selaginella. Undergraduate research is also illustrated in our story on nursing research, showing how this is incorporated as a significant element in nursing education. Likewise our story on yachtsman, lecturer and

researcher Rob Shaw, shows how one line of highly-applied research can cross the boundaries of staff and student research in ways that enrich the experience of all involved.

Another significant part of Unitec’s research landscape is occupied by contract research or projects that are funded by outside institutions or industry. These links can be seen in the work of one of Unitec’s leading researchers, Associate Professor Jonathan Leaver. Jonathan’s groundbreaking modelling of New Zealand’s energy future has its roots in collaborative research conducted for outside funders.

The research landscape at Unitec is also enriched by significant contributions in the areas of art and design, where exploration of leading edge and innovative techniques leading to new knowledge, understanding or expertise are recognised as research. We report on how Wallace Award winners Sue Jowsey and Marcus Williams spent six months in New York researching new techniques and producing a new body of work.

Finally, to return to the notion of a researcher using her discipline expertise to explore a topic of interest to her, and one of contemporary social importance, we profile Joanna Smith’s work on reversing ‘brain waste’ in new migrants to New Zealand. While the language difficulties of new immigrants from non-English speaking backgrounds is well known, Joanna’s research highlights how the subtle changes in pronunciation can remove barriers to employment and contribute a wealth of valuable talent.

I hope that you enjoy this issue of Advance with its updated layout and design. As always, we welcome any comment or feedback you may have.

Contact: Dr Simon PeelAssociate Professor Dean, Research Email: speel@unitec.ac.nz

It’s a dog’s lifeDogs and humans have lived together for 100,000 years but the nature of that relationship varies around the world. In our own Pacific backyard, the treatment of dogs varies greatly to what we know here in New Zealand. How dogs are viewed by people in Samoa is the subject of new research by Unitec Senior Lecturer in animal welfare, Mark Farnworth.

It would seem that ‘it’s a dog’s life’ has a different connotation when you’re a Samoan dog. In a research study funded by the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), and with the assistance of the Animal Protection Society of Samoa (APS), Mark Farnworth looked at the dog population in Samoa and how it is perceived by local people. The research gives animal welfare agencies working in Samoa data to work with when looking at legislative and education needs and has an implication for the New Zealand context by providing greater understanding of how diverse multicultural populations may view their animals differently.

Overall , Samoan people have a much higher level of dog ‘association’ than here in New Zealand but one which is potentially more utilitarian. Few dogs are confined, sterilised, registered or taken for regular veterinary care. In addition, the study found that the main reason for keeping a dog was for protection, so aggressive dogs are common and dog bite injuries an ongoing problem. This is not to say that those surveyed do not love their dogs, 82 per cent said their dog was ‘one of the family’ and 75 per cent said dogs were an important part of Samoan life. The question is how can Samoa be supported in improving the welfare of its dog population?

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Guard dog or pet?As part of the study, APS volunteers surveyed households in six different areas across Samoa, asking people about their dogs. Mark’s work was first translated into Samoan and then back into English so he could work with the findings.

“We managed to get data on around 700 dogs and it appears that most households (88 per cent) report that they have a dog, although some of those dogs may actually be associated with several households. Ownership is quite a loose concept and runs more along the African concept of ownership, where you have village dogs and the dog belongs to a group of people – you see the same thing in Aboriginal culture. Dogs are associated with people rather than owned by people.

” Of those 88 per cent of households that have dogs, more than three quarters said they kept the dog to protect their property and livestock, with only a small number (less than five per cent), saying the dog was a pet or a companion.

“In Samoa there is a far more utilitarian purpose for keeping a dog. There are a large number of dogs, many of which are not sterilised, and so you have a very viable population which has resulted in a significant free-roaming population within Samoa.” Free-roaming dogs, irrespective of whether they are owned or not, may then form packs. “ Even in New Zealand, when dogs are allowed to form packs and are not effectively controlled, they represent significant danger to people. And when we look at Samoa, where the majority of dogs are used for protection and are encouraged to be territorial, then there could be an increased incidence or risk of dog bites and that is something that we are still exploring and analysing data on.”

Health and harmMark says an interesting finding was that male dogs made up a far greater majority of dogs than female. “So that begs the question why is this skew occurring? I assume it is because you don’t want to own a bitch because then you have to deal with the puppies, but what is happening to those bitches when they are born or when they fall pregnant? It is possible they are being disposed of in some way but we don’t know where or how or at what point.”

Mark says that as part of the research, questions were asked about the harming of dogs. “When we asked people if they knew someone who had killed a dog or harmed a dog and why, quite often it was for the sort of things that we in New Zealand would have had a dog put down; it’s extremely aggressive, it’s extremely sick or it’s extremely old. However, in the absence of a trained professional (a vet) how this is occurring may be of concern.”

“We also found that 90 per cent have never been to the vet and that’s in line with large numbers that have never been sterilised or vaccinated and this has repercussions. The dog population gets diseases and people quite often cite dogs as a nuisance because they are thought to infect children. So it’s an issue of human health and the welfare of the animals themselves.”

One major issue is that basic education about dogs is uncommon and only 16 per cent of respondents had any education about dogs. Through effective education about dog care many of the free-roaming dog problems in Samoa could be improved.

Looking aheadWhile Samoa already has legislation around dog registration and limited legislation around the protection of animals, it is largely inactive. Mark says that the information gleaned through the research process will be useful in Samoa as the APS and WSPA work towards encouraging effective legislation to promote dog registration and for people to be responsible for the dogs associated with them.

“And it is also interesting in a New Zealand context because New Zealand has a diverse cultural landscape. There needs to be greater understanding of how some New Zealanders may view their pets or associated animals differently to others. Through greater understanding there can be better education within New Zealand, improving the lives of people and animals alike.

“Globally, free-roaming dog overpopulation is cited as one of the major welfare issues facing dogs. Hopefully this study will lead to further research and better understanding of the issues.”

Contact: Mark FarnworthSenior LecturerFaculty of Social and Health SciencesDepartment of Natural SciencesEmail: mfarnworth@unitec.ac.nz

» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011

Nice one Mr KelsoMike Kelso was looking to keep his brain sharp when he entered the Master of Educational Leadership and Management programme at Unitec. Four years on and with well-regarded research under his belt, he has become the 100th person to complete the programme, finishing with 2nd class honours.

Mike Kelso works with some of the brightest secondary students in New Zealand and for him constructive feedback is a two-way street. But in most schools the idea of students critiquing their teachers is unusual, so it is that concept that Mike chose to research for his Master of Educational Leadership and Management thesis.

Mike is currently the Year 13 Dean/University Counselor at Auckland International College, a very academic, private senior high school, which offers only the International Baccalaureate (IB) programme. The school has a mix of international and domestic students in years 11, 12 and 13, with their focus firmly on winning places at prestigious Northern Hemisphere universities.

Students at the school regularly provide feedback on the performance of their teachers as part of professional appraisals. “Student feedback is a regular reality in my current school and I am personally fine with it,” says Mike. “But on the whole, high school teachers tend not to ask students for feedback on their teaching, for a number of reasons.”

Mike says student feedback can make teachers feel insecure or concerned about how management might perceive the feedback, while others believe students are incapable of providing meaningful feedback. “For these and other reasons, student feedback at high school level has therefore largely escaped the attention of academics and there is a gaping hole in the knowledge base.

Mike Kelso, the 100th graduate from Unitec’s Master of Educational Leadership and Management,

with students from Auckland International College where he teaches.

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Teaching the teachersThe Master of Educational Leadership and Management at Unitec recently celebrated its 100th completion. Programme Leader Howard Youngs talks about the programme, the research, and the impact it’s having on educators across the country.

In schools, kindergartens and tertiary settings across New Zealand, the graduates of Unitec’s Master of Educational Leadership and Management degree are leading the way. Add to that more than 600 others who have undertaken educational leadership and management programmes at Unitec in the past 20 years and that’s an impressive group of educational leaders who have graduated through the Unitec programmes. Programme Leader Howard Youngs says that the programmes attract a wide range of people across the broad spectrum of education, from early childhood

through primary, secondary and tertiary, all looking to grow as innovative, informed and proactive leaders.

“A key aim of the Master of Educational Leadership and Management (MEdLM) degree is to engage educational leaders in applied research. Our view is that postgraduate research through thesis studies provides an opportunity for experienced professionals to engage in deep learning over a sustained time. That applied professional learning then enhances their understanding as leaders in education.”

I wanted to know how teachers reacted to, and were affected by, student feedback. Did it discourage them? Hurt their feelings? Assist them? Did they use it to inform or improve their practice?”

Feedback findings“My research revealed strong support for, and minimal negative consequences of, student feedback as a source of data for appraisal. Few teachers report being negatively affected by student feedback, and most report that they reflect on the data provided by students and seek to apply the feedback to their practice in a formative sense. My thesis concludes that the impact of student feedback as a part of the formal appraisal process within a school, on the teachers at that school, is overwhelmingly positive.”

Mike says that he is open to being involved in further discussions on the student feedback work and sees a place for it in the education system. “I do believe the research has contributed meaningful knowledge to education in New Zealand on an issue that is not well understood and researched.”

Mike has been at Auckland International College for seven years in senior management and started the Master of Educational Leadership and Management as a mental challenge. “I think it is a quality programme, so with 100 graduates already it is contributing meaningfully to the development of educational thinkers and leaders in New Zealand. The programme was recommended to me by a previous principal at my school, who also completed it, and at the time I was open to some challenging professional development opportunities. “

“The Education Department at Unitec is very strong and runs challenging programmes and I suspect the MEdLM is one of the most rigorous in the country. Professor Carol Cardno has my complete respect – she is a formidable academic and deserves much of the credit for the quality of the education qualifications at Unitec.”

Accidental career Mike stumbled into teaching by accident after he graduated with an environmental science degree in the 1980s but couldn’t find work in the field. “After relief teaching for a couple of months I realised that I quite enjoyed it and it was a positive career with plenty of opportunities.” He completed a one-year teaching diploma and then got his first job teaching Chemistry and Biology at Auckland Grammar School. He still teaches senior Biology and Theory of Knowledge (an introduction-to-philosophy course, mandatory for all IB students) at his current school.

He says working with his current students is very rewarding. “They are really engaged and focused and have some wonderful successes. Every year, since our first students graduated in 2006, at least one of our students has received an offer from either Cambridge or Oxford, and this year we are delighted to have a student entering Harvard University and another Princeton on a full scholarship.” Mike sees himself moving towards a more senior role in a high school, but says the fit has to be right.

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Applied research focusThe field of educational leadership and management has been around for decades and has developed in its own right outside the sphere of business leadership and management courses. Howard says the applied research focus at Unitec makes a transformational impact on graduates, their settings and their career opportunities and has resulted in a wide range of worthwhile research by students over the years. Independent researcher Ronald McPherson looked at similar programmes offered at universities throughout the country and wrote up a journal paper on how many people were coming out of those programmes.

“He took a snapshot of one year and Unitec’s MEdLM had more graduates then all of the universities combined in this area of study and I think it is because of the strong applied focus that has always been there,” says Howard.

The emphasis on application started back in 1990 with the pioneering Diploma in School Management. With a 30-credit action research project built into its framework, it resulted in hundreds of projects throughout New Zealand schools, overseen by Professor Carol Cardno and Associate Professor Eileen Piggot-Irvine. The MEdLM then grew out of this.

Research outputsHoward says seeing educational leaders and managers develop and challenge themselves through the programme is a real highlight for the team and also throws up some interesting research. They have had some students present at conferences and others who have published in journals, which is great evidence of the quality of their research.

For some, their research has opened up new opportunities internationally and nationally. Graduate Enosa Auva’a’s research

on the low numbers of Pasifika educators who aspire to become school principals saw him awarded a Fulbright-Cognition Scholarship, while Maggie Reid was invited to speak by the Ministry of Education on her research about whether the next generation of school leaders were being prepared for future roles.

Other recent completions reflect the breadth and depth of applied research coming out of the MEdLM, and include:

» Professional development that supports change in teachers’ practice

» The challenge of strategic management and strategic leadership in the case of three New Zealand secondary schools

» The impact of the new teacher appraisal on secondary teachers’ professional lives at a trial school in South Korea

» Meeting the demands of a new curriculum philosophy: A study of the challenges of curriculum implementation for small rural schools in New Zealand

» The expectation and the reality: The challenges for principals in leading learning.

“When you look at the theses that come through, the research is very sound, yet applied,” says Howard. “People can go through a real transformation and step up in terms of what they have learnt. These are fellow education professionals out in the field who are coming to us and we have the privilege of helping them scaffold and reframe their application of leadership and management in education. It’s a great journey for us to be on.”

Contact: Howard Youngs Senior Lecturer Faculty of Social and Health Sciences Department of Education Email: hyoungs@unitec.ac.nz

» Education » Advance Autumn 2011

Members of the MEdLM team: (L-R) Dr Jo Howse, Assoc. Prof. Eileen Piggot-Irvine, Howard Youngs, Assoc.Prof Jenny Collins, Prof Neil Cranston (adjunct Professor from the University of Tasmania) and Prof. Carol Cardno.

» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011

Unitec hosts architectural science conferenceArchitectural practitioners and academics from around the world gathered at Unitec for the 44th Annual Conference of the Australian and New Zealand Architectural Science Association. The event was jointly hosted by Unitec’s Departments of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, with 80 delegates attending the three-day programme.

Architectural science focuses on the technical aspects of design, materiality and sustainability. At the conference the research focus centred around architectural science with sub-themes that encouraged other disciplines such as landscape architecture and urban design.

The theme was ‘On the edge: Cross-disciplinary and intra-disciplinary connections in architectural science’ and included a thought-provoking keynote address on New Zealand’s future by Member of Parliament for Mt Albert, David Shearer. At the closing address delegates moved to draft a remit representing the Architectural Science Association’s view regarding climate change and the role of the building industry which will be passed back to David Shearer to present.

Papers presented at the conference covered a range of perspectives, including those focused on education, demographics, the effects of landscape elements on the built environment, photography, trees for cooling and carbon stores as well as for building, and plant databases. These sat comfortably

beside presentations on more classic architectural science topics such as leaky homes, historical treatises, climate change and control, and a focus on computer and web-based technologies. The conference was quality assured with double-blind refereeing and production of full refereed proceedings, with the help of an international committee of referees.

Organising committee co-chair Sue Wake, Lecturer in Landscape Architecture, said that aside from the full programme of presentations, delegates enjoyed the chance to join in the buzz of the Unitec Grad Show and participate in a powhiri that welcomed them onto the Unitec marae, Te Noho Kotahitanga.

“The conference gave Unitec staff and students the opportunity to experience and contribute to an academic conference without needing to travel, with 15 staff and students presenting papers. This conference has helped put Unitec on the Architectural Science Association map and highlighted the wonderful skills, resources and collegiality present within the institution.”

Contact: Sue WakeLecturer Faculty of Creative Industries and Business Department of Landscape ArchitectureEmail: swake@unitec.ac.nz

Delegates for the 44th Annual Conference of the Australian and New Zealand Architectural Science Association mingle outside the Unitec marae.

When good plants go badA creeping weed that smothers the forest floor is the focus of a new study by Unitec’s Department of Natural Sciences in association with the Auckland Council.

Unitec graduate Hayley Nessia is knee deep in noxious weeds and she couldn’t be happier. Hayley was the recipient of a studentship from the Auckland Council in collaboration with the Department of Natural Sciences, and is tasked with researching the invasive weed Selaginella and its impact on native plants in Auckland parklands.

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Selaginella is a fern-like ground cover, also known as African Club Moss, that was first introduced to New Zealand 100 years ago as an ornamental plant. However it’s now made its way onto the noxious weed list for its spreading habit that creates a dense loose mat that smothers other plant life. “As it invades the bush it covers everything and makes it easier for other pests and pest plants to come in.”

On siteHayley’s project involves studying the weed in situ at Spragg Bush, an area of parkland in the Waitakere ranges, by drawing up 15 study areas and looking at the diversity of plant life in those areas. As well, the study is looking at whether there are any natural enemies of Selaginella and whether these could be potentially used to control its spread.

“We’re measuring sites with Selaginella, and then we’re finding the next random site left or right without Selaginella and comparing biodiversity between those sites. So our hypothesis is that Selaginella decreases biodiversity and we’re putting that to the test.

“Our observations are that it’s actually smothering native nikau seedlings but we need to conclude the study to confirm that and look for any other effects, like the impact on native bryophytes, like mosses and lichens. And also there’s speculation that it may be bad news for our native land snails. Once it covers the ground then they can’t move through it so it ruins their habitat, and they’re already endangered so we don’t want that.”

How it spreadsHayley says that because the plant reproduces from nodes that break off the parent plant, it is easily spread from place to place on people’s shoes and outdoor equipment. “We’ve mostly found it along the track and in the ditches because there’s a lot of water running through there and it seems to like damp areas. But we haven’t found it going into the bush where it’s darker and we’re not exactly sure why yet.”

Hayley has taken a GPS outline of the area and her current work is around light measures and soil samples to establish the pH, moisture and organic content, which should better answer those questions. Dr Nick Waipara, Principal Advisor Biosecurity for the Environmental Services Unit at Auckland Council, says that using biological controls to manage the spread of Selaginella in large areas, like regional park settings, is the only viable long-term option. Conventional chemical methods are expensive and can’t be used on the forest floor as they will kill native bryophytes, like ferns and mosses. Nick says that despite anecdotal reports that Selaginella is spreading in parks, bush and on private land, there is little New Zealand research on it.

“We have prioritised Selaginella as a high priority target for biological control research and part of the studentship at Unitec is to begin this research looking at the impacts of this weed on native biodiversity. Knowing the rate of invasion and impact of this plant will help us assess and prioritise its management, relative to the plethora of other invasive weed species. Additionally, the

studentship will assist with gaining more data and ecological information we need to initiate a larger biological control project.”

Ongoing research needed Nick says the research needs to be ongoing over several growing seasons/years to accurately portray the extent of the problem. Hayley hopes an ongoing Selaginella study will allow other students to work on the project. “We were hoping that someone would go back every year and see what the

changes are on an annual timescale. Then that data is going to be really useful because we can see over time what kind of impact it has. It’s harder to say something definite after one survey.”

Hayley and her research supervisors Dr Dan Blanchon, Dr John Perrott and Dr Glen Aguilar from the Department of Natural Sciences and Dr Nick Waipara from Auckland Council, plan to publish a paper on the study to add to the limited literature on the plant’s impact. “I read everything I could find on Selaginella but there isn’t a lot of literature at all regarding it, which is why we’re doing this study. I’ve never published anything before so that’s pretty exciting for me.”

Hayley has a Bachelor of Applied Science, majoring in Biodiversity, and will start postgraduate study next year towards a Master of Environmental Science at Massey University. Eventually she would love to work in conservation research, an area she became deeply interested in after working with Landcare Research as part of her course work and again as a summer intern. “Biosecurity is one of the things I’m really interested in and it’s really relevant in today’s world.”

Contact: Dr Dan Blanchon Senior LecturerFaculty of Social and Health Sciences Department of Natural SciencesEmail: dblanchon@unitec.ac.nz

» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011

13» In the Limelight » Advance Autumn 2011

Jonathan Leaver’s career has taken a road less ordinary through the engineering landscape. Unlike many who pursue one direction, he has had twists and turns that have led him through structural, roading, geothermal, petroleum and mechanical engineering. Now Associate Professor in Civil Engineering at Unitec, Jonathan’s broad experience gives him a unique perspective to research New Zealand’s energy future and predict what it could look like in 2050.

His most significant current research project involves the development of an extensive computer model of New Zealand’s energy system to 2050. The project started in 2002 and will finish in 2012 and has been performed under contract to CRL Energy and Industrial Research Ltd, in collaboration with Stanford University. The UniSyD model includes existing and potential energy sources and related technologies to 2050 and assesses consumption in four key markets by a complex series of criteria involving 1150 variables. The markets are the electricity, hydrogen, forest-based lignocellulose, and vehicle fleets.

Hydrogen potentialInitially Jonathan’s research was prompted by the potential to use hydrogen as an automotive fuel, where the only thing coming out of the car’s exhaust is clean water. In order to do this effectively Jonathan and his co-researchers created the UniSyD model of New Zealand’s energy economy to examine the potential role of hydrogen. “Hydrogen has great potential for the future but we had to look at it in the context of the entire New Zealand economy so that hydrogen was there on a level playing field with all other fuels.”

Jonathan says that the issues surrounding the global debate on preferred future energy sources and greenhouse gas emissions are complex. His research helps to inform debate on the issues by providing data, information and objective analysis that cuts through the often emotive and political debates on future energy sustainability and helps translate international developments into a New Zealand context.

New Zealand is in the enviable position of having a viable wind resource that could generate at least three times the power we currently use, albeit with the need to provide backup generation for when the wind doesn’t blow. However, New Zealand also has enough low-cost coal to power the country for at least 100 years at current usage rates. The challenge is to create a resource development plan that balances the economic return and social and environmental goals.

The future automotive fleetWith new vehicle technologies already available and others under development, Jonathan says New Zealand needs to watch and wait before choosing a system that is going to work for individuals, businesses and the Government in terms of price, usefulness or utility and the supporting infrastructure.

“There is a lot of work going on in the automotive industry into producing alternative vehicles, such as battery-electric vehicles but our model is showing that there are some very large barriers to this if the auto industry doesn’t approach it right.

“People rate any increase in the purchase price of a vehicle twice as highly as they do fuel efficiency. They don’t part easily with their money up front on the guarantee of some future savings.”

Added to that, 50 per cent of New Zealand drivers live outside the main urban areas and are likely to have an aversion to owning a car with a limited driving range. “New Zealand should not try to be a world leader in this technology. We should not rush into installing

Drive for the futurePredicting New Zealand’s energy journey over the next 40 years is the focus of ongoing research by Unitec’s Associate Professor in Civil Engineering, Jonathan Leaver.

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electric-vehicle recharging infrastructure before we see what is going to happen with overseas trends. The cost of installing infrastructure for electric vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells has been shown from overseas studies to be similar or slightly less than that for battery-electric vehicles. Similarly priced battery-electric vehicles will require refuelling four times as often as hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Hence we want to move slowly but not so slowly that we are seen to be dragging our heels in terms of our environmental commitments.”

Jonathan says that the uptake of new vehicle technologies is likely to be slow to 2050 due to a combination of factors, including price and increased efficiencies in existing technologies, such as advances in diesel technology. “Auto manufacturers have a lot of room to move to make the existing technology more efficient. We are seeing diesels, turbo diesels, super-charged petrol engines, hybrids and weight savings. There’s the potential to take 30 to 40 per cent off the average current fuel consumption without too much pain.

“Future vehicles have to incorporate some of these new technologies because you couldn’t make those efficiencies with a standard engine. For instance a small turbo-charged diesel vehicle has similar fuel economy to a small petrol hybrid. Unfortunately the efficiencies are going to take over a decade to filter down through to most of the vehicle fleet. Vehicles more than ten years old are cheap to keep running because the annual savings in depreciation and insurance far outweigh the fuel savings for a newer vehicle. This of course neglects the benefits of improved comfort and safety.”

By 2050 he believes vehicles that rely mainly on the internal combustion engine will still compose more than 60 per cent of vehicles, possibly more, while pure battery electric vehicles are unlikely to constitute more than 10 per cent due to their predicted high purchase price.

Hydrogen or battery?Jonathan says the current international focus for electric vehicles is on the development of plug-in hybrid vehicles to dramatically improve fuel economy in the short term until hydrogen fuel cell technology becomes dominant post-2050.

“Hydrogen research has gone on the back burner at the moment and part of the reason for that is that the Bush administration in the US was pro-hydrogen while the Obama administration is pro-battery. So hundreds of millions of dollars were cut from hydrogen research and transferred into battery research.”

Added to this are constant international changes, such as the US discovery of very large reserves of shale-based natural gas, enough for at least another 70 years at current US consumption rates. “The likely result of this will be a significant portion of the US heavy fleet and some of the light vehicle fleet converting to natural gas. This will delay the adoption of more advanced electric vehicle technologies. And with China now the largest market for new cars and the largest producer of new vehicles, this will also influence the future makeup of vehicle fleets.”

Development of hydrogen technology is currently led by the Germans and Japanese, with both countries stating they will have hydrogen vehicles available for market by 2015. “As a consumer a hydrogen car is no different from a natural gas car, you go to the pump where the station has hydrogen in a tank and you use a nozzle screwed to your tank to put hydrogen in your car. Instead of it going into an engine with moving parts, the hydrogen goes into a black box called a fuel cell with no moving parts and that black box converts the hydrogen to water and electricity. The electricity is used to power electric motors that drive your vehicle. It’s very quiet and with a range that is at least as good as your existing petrol vehicle.”

Powered by the windHowever, producing enough hydrogen to power New Zealand’s fleet on hydrogen is problematic, he says, and the UniSyD computer model looks at various options. “In New Zealand both coal and wind could be major sources of hydrogen production. If you used coal the revenue from any carbon tax could go towards planting trees to offset those emissions. Alternatively, you could use a wind generator to produce electricity, which is used to split water into hydrogen and oxygen to be used in your vehicle.”

He says wind is our best clean energy source but he acknowledges that wind turbines can be seen as an unwanted intrusion on the landscape and their swishing noise can be troublesome to some nearby residents. “They may create a blot on the landscape if you want to see it like that, but the alternative is coal-fired and gas-fired power stations. You can’t have all the luxuries you want in life with zero environmental effects – you have to pay a price for it. In my mind wind turbines are a beautiful thing because they have a very low impact on the environment and they can be easily removed at a later date.” Jonathan says New Zealand has one of the most consistent wind resources in the world,

» In the Limelight » Advance Autumn 2011

» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011

with places where it blows close to 40 kph most of the time. “Wind is a tremendous resource and we have the ability to generate at least three times our current amount of electricity consumption as a country with wind, if we took that advantage, and that’s at electricity rates that we can afford. However, statistics tell us that if you had wind turbines across the whole of New Zealand, there is one day a year where very few of them would be producing any electricity and a number of days where they would produce only a portion of what they are capable of.

“Nuclear is a low greenhouse gas-emitting technology but we haven’t included any nuclear in our computer model because we don’t see it as an option to 2050, given New Zealand’s position on nuclear. But if you don’t have nuclear then you need something to fill the gap when the wind isn’t blowing. The ideal one is hydro because if you can store enough water in your hydro dams then you can release it when the wind isn’t blowing and replace the electricity shortfall from wind turbines. Unfortunately there is not enough hydro storage in New Zealand to do that so we will likely have to fall back on coal and natural gas, with some biomass to make up shortfalls.

“Other options to fill the shortfall include installing spare wind capacity to produce extra hydrogen that can be stored, so when the wind is not blowing you can still produce the hydrogen for vehicle fuels and you can also reconvert excess hydrogen back into electricity. Electricity can also be stored in very large battery banks and in a number of other innovative ways such as in flywheels which work by accelerating a rotor (flywheel) to a very high speed and maintaining the energy in the system as rotational energy.”

New energy sources“The UniSyD model clearly shows us the implications of choosing a larger proportion of wind generation in New Zealand, or a larger proportion of geothermal generation and how that might impact the energy price. The beauty of the computer programme is that you are running futures for free and you are looking at where the road blocks occur.”

Jonathan says that New Zealand has very large energy resources, which give us many options. Even though our farming sector produces half of our greenhouse gas, with our high proportion of

hydro, geothermal and increasing proportion of wind, we are in the top five per cent of countries internationally for our proportion of renewables. He says research projects across the country are also looking at areas that could impact on New Zealand’s energy future. Forest research is underway on converting timber into bioethanol and his computer model has projections for planting out marginal farming land with pinus radiata that could be milled and converted into fuel.

“You would set up regional plants around the country, chop your trees down, turn them to wood chips on site, and transport to a digester. While in that digester the enzymes process the wood chips into ethanol and waste pulp. It’s a good option but they are not quite there with the technology yet. You need these enzymes to break down the fibre in the wood and they haven’t quite got those working fast enough.

“Using the tides to generate energy and utilising the waste products from dairy waste are areas of ongoing research, as is research into reducing the amount of methane produced by our dairy herds by looking at the types of enzymes they use in their stomach to process food. If you get cows to stop producing methane and to produce carbon dioxide instead, that’s a big advantage as methane has 25 times the effect of the same mass of CO2 emissions over a 100 year period. That would bring our greenhouse emissions down considerably.”

And as a not insignificant aside, Jonathan is also involved in separate research into wind turbine viability assessment on the Canterbury Plains and developing techniques to measure the impacts on geothermal features of the extraction of geothermal fluid, such as that used in a geothermal power station. “Passion drives your career and I don’t have the personality type that can do the same job for decades, I’m more of a big picture creative type person and that is reflected in my research.”

Contact: Dr Jonathan Leaver Associate ProfessorFaculty of Technology and Built EnvironmentDepartment of Civil EngineeringEmail: jleaver@unitec.ac.nz

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Skinks, mites and parasitesA mite discovered on the Speckled Skink on Mokoia Island in Lake Rotorua is providing Unitec researchers with the chance to study disease patterns that could assist captive breeding programmes and the management of endangered species.

Unitec natural sciences lecturers Dr John Perrott and Dr Sabina Schragen have visited the Mokoia Island on five separate occasions in the past two years to trap, measure, and take blood and tail-snip samples from the resident Speckled Skink population, initially to assist the Department of Conservation and local iwi Te Arawa to develop a speckled skink management plan.

“While skinks had been reported, no one knew how many there were or where they were. Initially we went to investigate how many skinks there were on the island, how long they had been isolated on the island and whether the population had any immediate threats, such as diseases or predators,” says Sabina.

It was on a recent trip to the island that the pair found mites and a blood parasite in about half of the sample group. The mite has been identified as Trombiculidae, or chigger mite. It was previously found in 1988 on Tuatara and Spotted Skink in Stephens Island, in the Cook Strait, so the Mokoia Island discovery is a new locality. John says that it is likely the mite is a skink mite that happened to be found on a Tuatara.

Sabina says that mites can spread blood parasites while sucking the skinks’ blood, which they have tentative evidence is occurring on Mokoia from their recent tests. They are now working to identify the parasite. While blood parasites are unlikely to kill otherwise healthy skinks, they can have an effect on growth and reproduction and if introduced to an unrelated population could prove deadly.

“We don’t really know a lot in New Zealand about what these blood parasites do to skinks and we need to compare infected versus non-infected skinks and how they go into hibernation and how they come out of hibernation and their reproductive state. This has got a huge potential for research.”

“Very often the blood parasite and the skink have morphed together over thousands of years and the infection doesn’t necessarily cause deadly disease. But if the same parasite is introduced into a new population for example it can cause severe effects and the whole population could die. This research is important if you want to start a breeding programme or breed for release,” says Sabina.

“If you have a population that is rare and endangered and you bring in a novel disease that lowers their reproductive output even a little bit more, then that might just be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. It’s a reason to be cautious because you don’t want to introduce another factor that would lower their breeding or survival rate,” says John.

“It’s part of modern conservation – taking a more modern microbial view and looking at the passengers that animals take with them. We are studying skinks but skinks are really just our vehicle for studying microbial associations and patterns.” They are also using their findings to map the future for the Mokoia Island Speckled Skinks using Population Viability Analysis, in conjunction with advisor and analyst, Professor Doug Armstrong, Massey University Head of Ecology. “From there we can predict from small patterns the long-term consequences of disease and this sort of modelling is brand new.”

The pair presented findings to the recent Biennial Conference of the Society for Research on Amphibians and Reptiles in New Zealand and have taken research students and study groups to the island to work with them.“This is an example of a living curriculum, which is particularly important to how we deliver our information to students at Unitec these days. And we are underpinning a lot of the content of our courses with our own research. It’s part of the package that we use to inspire our conservation medicine students.”

John says the experience of working and assisting research on an iwi-owned island where DOC manages the wildlife, provides valuable vocational experience for students. “Mokoia is a great example of New Zealand conservation biology.”

Contact: Dr Sabina Schragen LecturerFaculty of Social and Health SciencesDepartment of Natural SciencesEmail: sschragen@unitec.ac.nz

» Natural Sciences » Advance Autumn 2011

Dr John Perrott and Dr Sabina Schragen searching for skinks in the Mokoia Island bush.

Testing times on the waterRacing around the North Island in gruelling conditions gave Unitec Lecturer Robert Shaw the perfect chance to put new boatbuilding ideas to the test.

Buffeted by the swells off the North Island coast, Unitec Lecturer Rob Shaw was in the thick of applied research. With crew member Ben Costello, Rob was sailing 9.1 metre carbon fibre racer Karma Police in the SSANZ Round North Island two-handed race; pitting the boat he designed and Unitec students helped to build, against boats nearly twice its size.

In gruelling weather conditions that saw more than half of the 38 boats withdraw during the 1,244 nautical mile race, Karma Police competed strongly, finishing first on line in its division and second overall on line and PHRF (performance handicap rating formula) (corrected time). “Based on the conditions we had for the race, we are really pleased with how well we did. The bigger boats have a natural advantage in those conditions and we were able to overcome that most of the time and that felt really good.”

» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011 19

New yachts designedKarma Police and its sister ship Deep Throttle, were designed as part of Rob’s thesis for his Master of Design degree at Unitec and then built as part of the Certificate of Applied Technology (Boatbuilding) and Bachelor of Applied Technology (Marine) programmes.

When Rob set out to design the Shaw 9 metre, his aim was to develop an innovative 9 metre racing yacht which would define and fill a previously undeveloped niche in the performance yacht market and be the fastest of its size and type in the world. The success of the yacht would be evaluated against performance, handling and feel, and accessibility (cost, ease of construction and transportability of finished boat).

To do this he looked at conventional wisdom and ways to expand on it; drawing on a balance of science (mathematical and computer-driven processes) and art (intuition, past experience and the ‘designer’s eye’). With the development of mathematical or computer-based design models and greater reliance on it by yacht designers, scrutinising the blend of science and art in yacht design was a big consideration for Rob throughout the development of the Shaw 9 metre.

“The objective was to bring creativity to the fore in the design and development process and complement this with specific engineering expertise where it could enhance the yacht’s development,” says Rob. “This is a refreshing look at the development process as applied to yacht design but one which I believe has significant benefits over the engineering-driven processes which have become predominant in recent published material.”

Karma Police heading out of Wellington during the Round North Island two-handed race.

Testing the ideasThe action research method used by Rob assumes and values intimate engagement by the researcher in the process, where a basis of neutrality and objectivity would be counterproductive. Through the action research method, each aspect of the design, including the overall look, construction methods, hull and deck design, keel and appendages, rig and sail design, was examined and developed using the processes of planning, acting, observing and reflecting, which then led in turn to the next iteration of each aspect and its development. At each stage science, art, intuition and practical experience were carefully considered.

Karma Police has a couple of less conventional features, such as a canting keel that swings from side to side, which is quite unusual in that type and size of boat. The method of controlling it is also quite unique in that size of boat, being a manual system with a rope purchase controlled by a pair of winches on the deck as opposed to a mechanical or hydraulic system.

Performing on the waterSince its launch Karma Police has won a number of races and regattas and its PHRF handicap has been revised upwards four times, reflecting that the boat’s actual performance consistently exceeds what would be expected of a boat of that size and type.

With regard to handling; on-water testing has led to minor refinements of deck gear and set-up and more sail options have been added to enhance performance but all other design aspects have remained as originally designed.

One area of the yacht’s performance that Rob was able to put to the test recently was the competitiveness of the boat when sailed short-handed. He always intended the boat to be competitive in a wide range of events from short harbour races to events like the Round North Island race and to be sailed by either a full crew of six or short-handed with just two. “While I set those objectives for the boat, I expected that it would be stronger at some things than others. There was always the expectation that its performance would be reduced when sailed short-handed but it has performed beyond expectations as a short-handed boat and that has been really encouraging.

“It’s about getting the concept right in setting the broad parameters of the boat and then having well-designed details, such as systems for managing sails and keels and the rig and all

those detail things. So when the systems work well the boat can be managed effectively by fewer people.”

And when it comes to accessibility, the cost was comparable to other boats of a similar size and considerably less expensive than larger boats offering a similar performance. “This in turn made the boat appealing to the wider market sector.”

Lastly, when it comes to physically moving the boat about, the fact that it was designed to be transported in a container has resulted in considerable overseas interest in constructing new hulls in New Zealand from the design plans and shipping them off-shore.

Research feeds back to studentsRob says the boat’s success on the water continues to provide information that feeds back into what happens on land in Unitec’s boatbuilding courses. “It gives us a really good base line as an organisation that we’ve had a project that we have followed through right from the very beginning and that the students have been involved with. We’ve achieved recognised success and a real outcome where you are being assessed by your peers, so it is applied research and I think that puts us in a really strong position.”

Rob says many of the students involved in building Karma Police have taken an ongoing interest in its performance. “They’ve sailed on the boat, followed the race reports and are really interested in what has happened and how things have worked and I think it has really added value to what they have done and what they see themselves being a part of.

“Putting the boat into an event like this meant that we were able to test whether it really did meet its objectives. We went from a subjective analysis of its stated objectives to an absolute measure. We all come up with what we think are good ideas but the next step is taking an idea and turning it into something that works and meets its stated objectives. That’s the really interesting part to me and what feeds back into the programmes.”

Contact: Rob Shaw LecturerFaculty of Technology and Built Environment Department of Transport TechnologyEmail: rshaw@unitec.ac.nz

Karma Police heading up Auckland Harbour to the finish line.

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“Putting the boat into an event like this meant that we were able to test whether it really did meet its objectives. We went from a subjective analysis of its stated objectives to an absolute measure.”

Rob Shaw

» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011

The move to educate nurses in the tertiary system rather than the previous hospital-based system brought a parallel need for staff to have tertiary qualifications beyond the diploma typically held by nurses, meaning research in the early years of nursing at Unitec was very much focused on staff working towards undergraduate degrees, then on to masters and beyond.

“We were busy upgrading our qualifications and within that context there was the recognition that research was very important to underpin practice and was a very important component of the academic course, but first we had to position ourselves so we could teach it,” says Nursing Curriculum Leader, Dr Dianne Roy.

Both Dianne and Nursing Head of Department, Sue Gasquoine, have been with Unitec’s Department of Nursing since just after it started. They say the research culture for students and staff at Unitec has changed considerably in that time, reflecting the growth of nursing research here in New Zealand and around the world. This is certainly the case for staff in Unitec’s Department of Nursing, where staff are increasingly involved in collaborative research projects with colleagues both within Unitec and in external health organisations and universities.

“We are working much smarter in terms of collaborations. Trying to make progress as a solo you are never going to get anywhere but as part of a group you are taking on something bigger that is manageable together,” says Sue.

Staff projectsSue is currently working with Unitec’s Judy McKimm and Mark Barrow and Deb Rowe from the University of Auckland on research into leadership in inter-professional healthcare teams. Sue was a member of a previous research team that looked at how newly-registered nurses and doctors worked in healthcare teams and the latest study looks at senior nurses and doctors in the specialist areas of oncology and neonatal intensive care and how they learn leadership skills in those environments. As part of that study, staff in Unitec’s Department of Language Studies will also conduct a linguistic analysis of dialogue within the teams.

Sue is also working on a project with colleagues from Otago and Auckland universities, dubbed ‘The Facebook Study’. It will look at the use of social media and networks by students of health professions and how students learn boundaries and what is professionally appropriate or not. The first stage is underway and involves running focus groups with year one and five medical students from the University of Otago, year one and six medical students from the University of Auckland, and year one and three Bachelor of Nursing students from Unitec.

Dianne has been working on a Health Research Council-funded study for the past three years as part of a multi-disciplinary team looking at improving pre-pregnancy, maternity and early childcare health interventions and support for women experiencing disability or sensory impairment. She is also working with Lynne Goldings from AUT University on ongoing research into women’s experience

Diagnosis excellent for nursing researchIt’s been a quarter of a century since Unitec started educating nurses and in that time the approach to research within the profession has changed considerably.

» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011

of ageing with a long-term condition and how ageing shapes and is shaped by, a woman’s illness experience. The research continues with increasingly older age groups of women.

In addition, Dianne is involved in a study with colleagues from the University of Auckland looking at consumer health information needs, and has recently completed a study with another group from the University of Auckland to assess the effectiveness of the Flinders Programme in improving health outcomes for New Zealand populations with long-term conditions, with the final of four articles from the study to be published shortly in the Journal of Nursing and Healthcare of Chronic Illness.

And importantly for Unitec students, Dianne is leading a collaborative study with staff from Unitec’s Department of Nursing

and the Waitemata District Health Board aimed at improving outcomes for the family/whanau of people who have experienced a stroke (read more about this in the following story.)

Lecturers Shireen Caldwell and Hongyan Lu are currently researching ethical decision-making for students of non-Western cultures and how they approach decision-making based on cultural beliefs and experiences. Lecturer Bernard Kushner is working on his masters thesis looking at gay men ageing in New Zealand and their decisions on issues such as retirement and rest homes, while Frances Ward continues to work with data generated by the Selwyn Project.

“In terms of staff research we are going from strength to strength,” says Sue.

The chance to be involved in active research has given Bachelor of Nursing students the chance to work first hand with data and research participants and has increased pass rates and grades along the way. Over the past seven years, Bachelor of Nursing students have worked as research assistants on two ongoing research projects, which have not only delivered valuable research outcomes but also increased students’ pass rates and grades.

Nursing Head of Department, Sue Gasquoine, says that the move to involve students more directly in research came when staff looked to change the way they delivered the second-year paper Research for Health Professionals.

“Students saw the paper as something quite removed from the exciting clinical papers where they got to do ‘real nursing’. It was seen as a boring add-on of questionable relevance but of course by the time

students got to the end of third year they could see the relevance and many wished they had paid more attention,” laughs Sue.

Research in actionNursing Curriculum Leader, Dr Dianne Roy, says the resulting discussions led to the creation of a five-year longitudinal study with the Selwyn Foundation, looking at the use and place of technology in the lives of older people in Selwyn Village.

Over the following five years, different cohorts of supervised students collected data through qualitative interviews and a quantitative questionnaire. And at each stage the hands-on research was tied

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back into the Research for Health Professionals paper to illustrate various components of the research process.

“We have a real live study to draw on to provide examples and illustrate the theory. The emphasis is on engaging the students and it’s much easier to do that when you can involve them in the research,” says Sue.

The study has now concluded and staff then turned their attention to what further research options they could offer students.

“We realised the benefit it had been to the students and that was reflected in improved grades and pass rates in the course, but what is harder to measure is how they went into third year with a much better understanding and appreciation of the place of research in their practice. It’s hard to measure but the theory-practice gap has definitely been narrowed,” says Dianne.

New study with stroke familiesHappily, the ‘what now?’ question coincided with an approach from colleagues at Waitakere Hospital offering the chance to research an area of clinical practice that was presenting challenges and the Stroke Family Whanau Study was born. Each year has a slightly different focus, with the first year focusing on the education and information needs for families when a family member has a stroke.

Students were involved in collecting data from family members and health professionals, and staff are working on the analysis.

“There are very good national guidelines around stroke management and stroke care for the person who has had the stroke but what health professionals find is that often the person who has had the stroke seems to move on with their life – even though it may be a different life to the one they had before – but that family members often get stuck. Staff wondered what they might do in their clinical area to improve the outcomes for family members,” says Dianne.

There is currently very little literature on the needs of family members who are not the primary caregiver of the person who has had a stroke.

“Anecdotal evidence from our colleagues at Waitakere suggests some of the difficulties arise for the family beyond the principal caregiver. On the one hand the health professional is obligated to talk specifically and clearly with the primary caregiver of the person who has had the stroke but there seems to be this assumption that that person will then pass it on to the rest of the family but we know that this doesn’t necessarily happen,” says Dianne.

“We feel that we are on the right track with the wider family/whanau issues because it hasn’t been well researched,” says Sue. “And while the Selwyn study was a longitudinal study, we see this one turning into more of a research programme, where a number of studies will come together over the five years.”

The next strand in the Stroke Family Whanau project will be a four-year phenomenological study (first-person experiences) following three or four families from the time when they become a stroke family. This will include not only the primary caregivers but as many people from a family as possible, who will all be interviewed at set intervals over a four-year period.

Sue says keeping the students connected with the project is critical to their learning and in this instance they will be presented with a phenomenological interview and asked to distil the key messages.

Student research across the decadesDianne says that just as the teaching has changed over the past 25 years to reflect the increased technology and acuity in today’s hospitals, the way research is studied and used in daily practice by nurses has also taken great leaps forward.

“Our early attempts (at student research), while we don’t look back on them in horror, were a little naïve,” says Dianne. “Students were expected to do a small research project and not necessarily related to nursing specifically but more to practise a research method. Our intentions were good in terms of experiential-based learning but in terms of the outcomes they were a bit unrealistic.”

As a result of that, the focus switched to developing students as critical consumers of research. “We focused on students having enough knowledge of research, research methods and research processes for them to read, critique and utilise in their practice the research that was being done by others,” says Dianne. “And that remains the underpinning of where we are at in teaching research in the programme.”

Contact: Dr Dianne RoySenior LecturerFaculty of Social and Health Sciences Department of NursingEmail: droy@unitec.ac.nz

Head of Nursing Sue Gasquione (left) pictured with Unitec Chief Executive Rick Ede and inaugural head of nursing Isabelle Sherrard, at the celebrations for 25 years of nursing at Unitec.

» Editorial » Advance Autumn 2011 25

eLearning conferenceUnitec will play host to eLearning experts from around the world later this year when delegates arrive for the International Conference on eLearning Futures 2011.

The conference will be held from 30 November to 2 December, with a focus on eLearning strategy, research, policy, pedagogy, technology and practice. It promises to be technologically innovative with opportunities to network with key stakeholders who are leading worldwide thinking on eLearning.

Keynote speakers include Steve Wheeler, author of The Digital Classroom and co-editor of the peer-reviewed journal Interactive Learning Environments. Steve is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Plymouth and serves on the editorial boards of ten international journals. He has research interests that include eLearning, distance education, creativity and Web 2.0 social software.

Fellow keynote speaker is Agnes Kukulska-Hulme, Professor of Learning Technology and Communication in the Institute of

Educational Technology at the UK’s Open University, and president of the International Association for Mobile Learning. Agnes has been researching mobile learning since 2001 and is a co-editor of two books on the subject. Her original discipline background is foreign language teaching and learning, and from this perspective she has a long-standing research interest in effective communication with technology and human concerns in technology-mediated interactions.

Judy Kay, Professor of Computer Science at the University of Sydney, will also deliver a keynote address. Judy is a principal on the Computer Human Adaptive Interaction (CHAI) lab, which conducts fundamental and applied research in personalisation and pervasive computing. She has published extensively in the areas of personalisation and teaching and learning, is on numerous editorial boards and is currently president of the International Artificial Intelligence in Education Society.

For more information on the programme and registration, go to: www.icelf.org

Pronunciation training for skilled immigrants could not only help them be better understood but also give them skills to decipher the local accent, according to new research by Unitec Lecturer Joanna Smith. In a longitudinal survey of skilled migrants experiencing under-employment or ‘brain waste’, Unitec Lecturer in Language Studies, Joanna Smith, together with Adam Brown from AIS, looked at the employment problems the migrants faced related to their language skills and particularly, their pronunciation.

‘Brain waste’ is a particularly apt term for the group of immigrants who are under-employed, either because they can’t find a job in

their new country or the job they are doing is beneath their skill level and qualification. Joanna says there has been little focus on pronunciation in previous studies on workplace communication so their study asked the question: What role does pronunciation play in the under-employment of migrants in New Zealand?

To answer that they recorded the experiences of a group of 13 recent migrants taking a class called Pronunciation in and for the Workplace in a New Zealand polytechnic. Half of the participants were also interviewed a year later to follow their employment progress.

Doctor drives taxi – beating the brain wasteNew immigrants who experience ‘brain waste’ in their new country through being unemployed or under-employed could be helped by pronunciation training.

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27» Language Studies » Advance Autumn 2011

Pronunciation problemsParticipants in the study experienced pronunciation problems in three areas: making themselves understood; understanding others; and as a marker of social identity ‒ what people assume about someone when hearing their accent ‒ particularly in job interviews. One of the most obvious roles pronunciation plays in communication has to do with intelligibility, particularly if the migrant employs phonological rules in his or her English that are quite different to those employed in the host country.

“When someone is described as having bad pronunciation it generally means that the listener can’t correctly identify the words in the speech signal and the assumption is that the it’s the speaker who needs to change they way she or he speaks to more closely align their pronunciation with the local one,” says Joanna.

But the intelligibility issue is not a one-way street. Anecdotally many migrants ‒ even those who are native speakers of other varieties of English, such as American English ‒ say they initially have great difficulty understanding local New Zealand speakers. “With time, however, people ‘get accustomed’ to a new accent and the difficulties reduce. However, the process of understanding a new accent can be facilitated more quickly by training migrants with productive articulation skills in that new accent.”

Making new soundsResearch shows that one of the ways in which people ‘recognise’ speech is by remembering what it feels like to make those sounds. For migrants whose first language has a phonological system quite different from the target language, there is no memory of making the sounds and thus understanding others’ pronunciation is much harder.

“If we help learners to experience making the sounds and rhythms of the local accent, they may be better able to perceive them in the speech signal,” says Joanna. “This alone may be a valuable reason for the migrant to undertake training with pronunciation in the local accent, even if that accent is not adopted productively by the migrant.”

Joanna says teachers can encourage ‘additive bi-dialectism’ where learners are encouraged to code-switch and use different accents in different situations as best suits them. This is a bit like Kiwis over-pronouncing ‘r’ sounds when they visit the USA ‒ sometimes it is the easiest way to be understood. “Any changes in accent need not be permanent, which would dramatically influence social identity. Rather, subtle shifts and temporary changes in pronunciation, like accommodating an interviewer, might be the best way to approach situations where selection bias may be an issue.”

Removing barriersInterestingly, while some in the study found that their pronunciation had disadvantaged them in the workforce, others, despite having intelligibility issues, were not disadvantaged. Because of their technical skills, they were able to secure a relevant job, and in three cases, employers had made an effort to assist them with their language development.

“From the stories we gathered, it is suggested that intelligibility does not need to be a barrier to employment; however employers may need to provide extra assistance.”

Study participant Sharma*, a young man from India, says his job at a burger chain gave him the chance to have interactive training including pronunciation and then try the new skills on customers. “There are lots of things you have to learn, like customers say ‘hi, how’s it going? ‘Things are fine’ and that. More of the casual kind of talking. We never do that in India. I didn’t know that.” Sharma later became a police officer in an area with a large migrant population, including many Indians. He speaks three Indian languages which gives him an advantage over other officers in terms of understanding and dealing with Indians.

A year on, participants in the study were still facing pronunciation challenges but five of the six subjects said the course had helped them with their listening and comprehension, supporting the idea that the brain perceives speech better when a person has had experience making the target sounds. All were employed in meaningful employment except Najib*, a middle-aged doctor, whose English was good enough to enter New Zealand but not to register with the New Zealand Medical Council.

Looking forwardJoanna says of all the participants Najib* is the one who best illustrates the concept of brain waste. He originally fled his own troubled country, trained as a doctor in a European country, and worked as a GP for eight years before coming to New Zealand but he now drives a taxi. While frustrated, he understands the need for a doctor to be well understood and is continuing his English language studies in order to achieve the desired level of spoken English. “When I’m ready for IELTS then I will sit the exam. If I pass this one I am 100 per cent sure that I will be a registered doctor in New Zealand one day in the future.”

Joanna says that unlike other markers of identity, such as physical appearance, accents can be modified. In a country like New Zealand, with large migrant populations and large numbers of ‘second generation Kiwis’, if a speaker used a local accent they would likely be assumed local, regardless of physical appearance. “Any selection bias based on perceived country of origin might disappear, if an applicant chose to employ a local accent.”

The study will be reported in a special intercultural communication issue of the New Zealand Journal of Communication.

*Pseudonyms have been used.

Contact: Joanna SmithLecturerFaculty of Social and Health SciencesDepartment of Language StudiesEmail: jsmith@unitec.ac.nz

Biting the Big AppleFollowing on from their success in winning the annual Wallace Award Paramount Prize in 2009 – the first photographic work to ever win the paramount prize – Sue Jowsey and Marcus Williams report back on the six months they spent living, working and researching in New York City as part of their Wallace prize.

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Sue Jowsey, Lecturer in Design and Visual Arts, and Marcus Williams, Associate Professor Design and Visual Arts, began collaborating about 15 years ago. With their stipend from the Wallace Foundation, a research grant from the Unitec Research Committee and their own funds, Marcus, Sue and their children Jesse, then 12, and Mercy, 10, headed to New York in June last year to experience artistic immersion New York style.

Arriving in a New York heat wave, they chanced on a loft to rent in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, only three minutes to the L train subway and right in the centre of one of the most dynamic art scenes in the world. They quickly set up their Wallace-funded studio at the International Studio and Curatorial Program (ISCP), set in the midst of brick industrial Brooklyn architecture, and began to experiment.

Research = new knowledgeFor Sue and Marcus, New York was a time for conducting research and gaining new knowledge, which involved producing a body of new, original artwork. Marcus says that in a similar way to scientific and social scientific research, creative research involves the gathering of data, information and facts for the advancement of knowledge. This knowledge is then interpreted, summarised and communicated.

“Artists begin a project by posing a hypothesis… ‘What if I combined these forms with that concept using this range of techniques?’ The artist must then test the hypothesis and the results generally lead to a range of new possibilities, which in turn are tested,” says Marcus. “The results are summarised, interpreted and communicated appropriately. In a general sense, all art could be seen as research, but in academic or professional terms, not all art is quality research.”

Marcus says that there are benchmarks in art at both academic and professional levels with respect to rigour and particularly context, the latter of which ascertains the level of relevance and significance of the work in terms of ‘advancement’ – ‘Is the art in question (the research) advancing our knowledge?’

“That is the million-dollar question and just as is the case in academia, art has peers and experts who cooperate in a dynamic, increasingly-globalised, hotly-contested discourse about meaning, value, quality and advancement. This field is extremely competitive and difficult to navigate. All the problems in academia, (prestige, funding and the limitations of paradigmatic thinking) exist in art.”

New workMarcus says that the ISCP fellowship gave him and Sue the opportunity to test their ideas and bring the results into a highly-contested, professional arena, equivalent to a high-calibre research think-tank and conference. The pair chose to work exclusively within a studio context while in New York, as the neutral background allowed greater freedom for digital construction and reassembly

and meant that images shot at different times could exist in the same moment, without predetermined relationships. Added to that, they also introduced elements directly onto or into the surface of the photograph, through ripping, stitching and the introduction of other materials, such as plaster and clothing.

“We were inspired by the Big Apple and challenged by the sheer calibre of the 29 other artists at the fellowship programme who came from across the world,” says Sue. “We were able to build on existing ideas, develop new strategies, discover previously unexplored terrain and create new works, which would never have been possible otherwise.” Sue says the time to devote to practice-based research was the key element, but having access to some of the greatest cultural institutions in the world and the highly-competitive and professional nature of the fellowship was both intellectually stimulating and highly motivational.

Global influencesThe new contacts and networks formed during the fellowship have already given Sue and Marcus numerous opportunities and future possibilities. They have since exhibited in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Chicago and Colorado and have just been invited to participate in the trans-disciplinary Kaunas Bienniale in Lithuania.

While in New York they were invited to lecture at New York University, Parsons New School of Design in Manhattan, Rochester Institute of Technology and Georgia South University and Sue has since been accepted to present a paper at the 6th International Conference on the Arts in Society at the Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Berlin. “The ISCP in New York was an incredibly important opportunity for us and the benefits of this are already filtering back to Unitec,” says Marcus. “It was also a rich and fascinating personal experience.”

With two hundred languages spoken in New York and world cuisines to match, Sue says even choosing where to have dinner offered unlimited opportunities ‒ the choice not being Somalian food but whether it would be southern or northern. “The strain of having to decide was somewhat offset by the fact that you can easily walk to both restaurants.” And while they arrived in a heat wave, their parting gift from the American continent was a 45 centimetre-deep snowdrop on Boxing Day. “The snow completely transformed grimy, dusty Brooklyn and made the final trek up Metropolitan Avenue to the chrome and neon Kellogg’s Diner for pancakes, bad coffee and lashings of Brooklyn hospitality all the more rewarding.”

Contact: Sue JowseyLecturer Faculty of Creative Industries and BusinessDepartment of Design and Visual ArtsEmail: sjowsey@unitec.ac.nzWeb: Jowseywilliams.wordpress.com

» Design and Visual Arts » Advance Autumn 2011

30 » Advance Autumn 2011

Completions Unitec congratulates the following students who have recently completed postgraduate research projects at Unitec. The list below outlines significant postgraduate student research projects, theses and dissertations across a range of academic disciplines and gives some insight into the depth and scope of this research. Copies of these studies can be found in the Unitec Library or through the Unitec Research Bank, http://unitec.researchbank.ac.nz.

Master of ArchitectureName: Martin VarneyResearch Title: Stadium Design Contex-ture

Name: Shubhendu BanerjeeResearch Title: Appropriate Architectural Vocabulary for a Hindu Temple in Auckland

Master of Architecture (Professional)Name: Melodi BarzandehResearch Title: Fashion-Architecture and the Urban Environment

Name: Rachel DawkinsResearch Title: Engaging Sensibility

Name: Matthew DeebResearch Title: Live-Work Infill

Name: Haoyue (Susan) FuResearch Title: The Emotion of Space

Name: Lydia GarrattResearch Title: Community Christians who Integrate

Name: Gian HartonoResearch Title: Architecture, Algorithm, Art of Sound

Name: Renee HoltomResearch Title: Māori Parliament

Name: Nina HorvathResearch Title: A centre to aid in the spiritual process of ‘enlightenment’ for the Buddhist community in Auckland city

Name: Jie (Joyce) JiaoResearch Title: Design of a Campus Social Space

Name: Piers KayResearch Title: A Place for Reflection

Name: Hanieh MahdaviResearch Title: Fusion of Contemporary Architecture with Historic Persian Elements

Name: Adele McNabResearch Title: An arts and craft centre

Name: Cameron MooreResearch Title: A University Campus in Oamaru

Name: Hannah PennlingtonResearch Title: Adaptive reuse and the retrofitting of contemporary technologies

Name: Luke PetrieResearch Title: Improving processes to reduce the environmental impact of a building’s lifecycle

Name: Anthony SephtonResearch Title: Loose Space and Place

Name: Michael WareResearch Title: To design a Swedish Embassy through architectural strategies that fulfil the functional needs of a diplomatic post as they derive from Swedish cultural reality within the NZ context

Name: Max WarrenResearch Title: Ephemeral, Adaptable, Prefabricated Architecture: Building Systems for Fluctuating Briefs

Name: Rui (Jeff) WenResearch Title: Architecture and Culture

Name: Ruth WigglesworthResearch Title: How can craft inform a contemporary architecture in terms of a tectonic language?

Name: Amie WillockResearch Title: Te Tairawhiti Polytechnic/Te Kuratini o Te Tairawhti - a self-sufficient mode

31 » Advance Autumn 2011

Name: Li ZhangResearch Title: From Efficiency to Sufficiency – towards the green high-rise building

Master of BusinessName: Albert PauloseResearch Title: Motivation to become entrepreneurs: The case of Indian immigrants to New Zealand

Master of ComputingName: Jochen KaempferResearch Title: Social Software for Expatriates: A Case study of Social Software usage by Expatriates based on the Use and Gratification theory

Name: Martin ShatwellResearch Title: Towards a valued ICT Department by inducting, developing and retaining talented employees

Master of EducationName: Kay FentonResearch Title: Beyond the books: a qualitative study of a library learning centre

Master of Educational Leadership and ManagementName: Christine BashamResearch Title: The role of career education and guidance for students in year 13 and its implications for students’ career decision making

Name: Paul BennettResearch Title: Professional development that supports change in teachers’ practice, in the context of a new curriculum

Name: Kyle BrewertonResearch Title: Leading the development of thinking for understanding within inquiry

Name: Michael KelsoResearch Title: The Impact of Student Feedback on Secondary Teachers

Name: Jennifer SherrifResearch Title: Investigating Factors Influencing the Retention of Māori Students within Secondary Education in Aotearoa- New Zealand

Name: Alan StephensonResearch Title: An examination of the issues facing Heads of Departments in New Zealand secondary schools

Master of Health Science (MRT)Name: Kara HealResearch Title: An evaluation of the main effects of shift work and their impact as viewed by New Zealand medical radiation technologists

Name: Shona MatthewsResearch Title: On the edge of the whirlpool: Living with a fear of needle procedures

Master of International CommunicationName: Natascha PancicResearch Title: Crisis communication in theory and practice: Analysis of culture influence strategy applicability and stakeholder relevance in Australia and New Zealand

Master of Landscape ArchitectureName: Elizabeth MilneResearch Title: Spatial Status

Name: Paul WoodruffeResearch Title: The everyday collective laboratory

Master of OsteopathyName: Jennifer BenfellResearch Title: The effect of a six-week training programme on Turnout in Amateur Ballet Dancers – A Pilot Study

Name: Joanna BraybrookResearch Title: An exploration of the influences that shape the opinions and practices of osteopaths in relation to osteopathy in the cranial field

Name: Richard ClarkeResearch Title: Depression, Anxiety and Positive Outlook amongst patients presenting to an osteopathic training clinic: A prospective survey

Name: Iain DexterResearch Title: Monitoring self-reported events in the New Zealand osteopathic teaching clinic

Name: Rebecca McKay-WattsResearch Title: Development of a preliminary questionnaire to investigate the attitudes of NZ osteopaths regarding the use of exercise in osteopathy

Name: Claire O’BrienResearch Title: Pilates can decrease chronic low back pain and related functional disability Name: Laura HopkinsResearch Title: Osteopathic muscle energy technique to the temporomandibular joint: The effect on the pain and disability perception and maximal range of mouth opening of symptomatic temporomandibular joint disorder sufferers

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