Sa’ilīga Mālō: Search for success in the transition into a teaching degree

Abstract

Sa’ilīga Mālō is a qualitative study concerned with the transition experience of Samoan school leavers on their search for success at the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland. While it seems that a significant body of research about the transition experience of Pacific school leavers has developed over the last two decades, less documented are the contributing factors to a successful transition for Pacific school leavers into professional degree programmes such as teaching. Furthermore, as explored in this thesis, there is no comprehensive published research of the experiences of Samoan students enrolled in the professional degree of teaching in a New Zealand (NZ) university. It seems that western research methodologies dominate current research in New Zealand. (Leenen-Young, 2020). However, over the last two decades, research approaches have been developed to explore Pasifika educational and social issues in New Zealand. (Vaioleti, 2013). It has been noted that “when conducting Pacific research, it is important to consider Pacific knowledge systems and frameworks” (McFall-McCaffery, 2010, p.2). Thus, this study is a fusion of Talanoa and focus group interview research methods. In departing from deficit-based approaches, this thesis claims that alternative approaches are required to ensure that Samoan school leavers successfully transition into student teachers at the University of Auckland. The students specified that their transition process to the Faculty of Education commenced in their last year of high school, suggesting the importance of their final year of high school. Family presence was the most common factor which occurred in more than half of the participant's responses. Positivity and self-belief were other common factors. Considering that more than half of the participants were first in the family, transitioning into university was a new environment for them and their families. Students signified the importance of having a positive mindset and believing in themselves to navigate these new spaces independently. Although this study duplicates similar themes to existing research publications regarding transition, the critical difference of this exploration is the ethnic-specific research of Samoan school leavers transitioning into the professional degree programme of primary teaching.