Balanced development: a Mori model for beginning teacher support

摘要

This article discusses how the traditional Mori concept of Hauora (balanced development) can be applied to beginning teacher induction programmes. To develop this idea, several steps were taken. From a nationwide survey, five primary schools were chosen with exemplary induction programmes. Data from interviews and observations indicated that these schools had successfully integrated practices in four domains: socio-emotional, personal growth, pedagogical, and physical. During the final series of interviews, a beginning teacher suggested that effective induction could comprise the four components of the Hauora model. The traditional Mori concept of Hauora incorporates physical, spiritual, pedagogical, and socio-emotional dimensions of support. Selective coding of the data indicated that the Hauora model indeed fit the data. The result is a contextually derived, culturally relevant definition of effective induction in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Further expansion and investigation of this model may be of interest to the educational community, particularly in light of the Kaupapa Mori theory.