The Textbook as a Medium of Instruction: The Book as a Medium for Learning

By:
Justine Rutherford,
Pamela Streeter
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What is a textbook? Can good teachers make any book a “textbook”? What makes for good design in educational publishing? Where do new technologies fit in this picture? For New Zealand’s Ministry of Education finding the answer to these questions is a vital step in achieving an educational publishing programme that supports both the current and future needs of our schools, teachers and students. The underlying assumption of the ministry’s supply of publications is that teacher and student materials contribute to improvements in the quality of teaching practice and learner outcomes. In order to test this assumption, and to ascertain how this happens the ministry has begun research to evaluate the link between its publications and student achievement. Trying to map and analyse this complex relationship has presented both challenges and opportunities. This workshop offers our reflections on the process and preliminary findings of the research, and will invite participants to explore the implications of such findings for educational publishing.


Keywords: Educational Publishing, Learning, Learning Outcomes, Research, Student Achievement, teaching practice
Stream: Educational Resources and Learning
Presentation Type: 60 minute Workshop Presentation in English
Paper: A paper has not yet been submitted.

Justine Rutherford

Team Leader: Curriculum Support, Schooling Group, Ministry of Education
Wellington, NEW ZEALAND

As Team Leader: Curriculum Support for New Zealand’s Ministry of Education, my role is to lead the ministry’s publication and curriculum resourcing programme. The position sees me progressing the strategic framework which surrounds the supply of free print and online resources to all New Zealand classrooms. Questions I currently face include: How to balance a need for both print and online resourcing? What are the implications of the democratisation of knowledge? What is the role of the government in the supply of texts for schools? My work allows me to bring my knowledge of curriculum and pedagogy to conversations with librarians, publishers and education researchers.

My background is in education and I begun my career teaching in a primary classroom. Before joining the Ministry of Education I lectured in professional studies to trainee teachers at the Auckland College of Education.

Pamela Streeter

Senior Advisor: Publications, Schooling Group, Ministry of Education
Wellington, NEW ZEALAND

Ref: B07P0016