Page 26 - IB March 2021

Students at AUT.
Sacred concept of the interviews, which are

also founded on a Pacific
vā underpins study framework.
“For Pacific peoples,
the vā underpins all as-
New Pacific research from AUT puts the sacred concept of pects of our lives – yet
the vā at the heart of its study. many Pacific-focused
For pan-Pacific peoples, the vā is generally acknowledged programmes and initia-
as the relational spaces that bind and unify all people and tives fail to incorporate
things. this all-important con-
Nationwide, more than 500,000 Kiwi adults live with low cept into their approach-
literacy and numeracy (L/N) skills. Māori and Pacific peo- es or outcomes. We are
ples are strongly over-represented in this cohort. committed to creating in-
Led by AUT’s NZ Work Research Institute, “The expres- clusive environments, so
sion, experience and transcendence of low-skill in Aotearoa, Dr Betty Ofe-Grant from the AUT our participants feel safe
New Zealand” is a qualitative study that explores the barri- Business School. to share their experiences
ers against and enablers to transcending this low skill base. with low L/N skills. Sim-
The Pacific component of the research aims to understand ilarly, the way we understand and interpret their responses
the reality of what does and doesn’t work for Pacific peoples will be founded in teu le vā, or Pacific methodology and
living with low L/N skills - how they became part of this analysis,” says Dr Ofe-Grant.
cohort in the first place, how their lives and livelihoods are The impact of low L/N skills has significant economic and
affected by low L/N skills, and what kind of pathways could social costs nationwide, including increased risk of unem-
help them improve these skills. ployment and poverty, detrimental effects on physical and
Dr Betty Ofe-Grant (AUT Business School) leads the mental well-being, and decreased social and political con-
Pacific component of the study, which will comprise 150 nection.
– 200+ participants recruited from Auckland, Wellington, Dr Ofe-Grant says the research objectives include policy
Christchurch and Dunedin. Focus groups and interviews recommendations, effective interventions that align with the
will be conducted by research assistants of Pacific descent. OECD focus on skills development, and implementation of
Dr Ofe-Grant says it is vital that participants are “seeing a holistic, fresh and integrated response that is mindful of
themselves” represented in the small group discussions and entrenched patterns of social and economic insecurity.

Read about the NZWRI-led study into low literacy and numeracy skills here:
https://workresearch.aut.ac.nz/research/low-literacy-and-numeracy-research
Read about Betty Ofe-Grant here: https://academics.aut.ac.nz/betty.ofe.grant

26 Islands Business, March 2021