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RESILIENCE AND INNOVATION
Proceedings
of the Annual Conference
of the
New Zealand Applied Business Forum
HOSTED BY: NORTHTEC, W HANGAREI
NOVEMBER 19, 2020
Editor: Ashley Lye, NorthTec
Conference Track Chairs:
1. Applied Business Research & Conceptual Papers: Paula Arbouw & Imran Ishrat, ARA
Institute of Canterbury.
2. Teaching & Learning/COVID-19: Ashley Lye, NorthTec.
3. Discussion Papers (non-peer reviewed): Geoffrey Mather & Anne Morrison, Wintec,
Waikato Institute of Technology.
1|PageAcknowledgements
The New Zealand Applied Business Conference is an initiative of the New Zealand
Applied Business Forum (NZABEF), a cooperative forum of the business
program/pathway managers of educational institutions in New Zealand. The 2020
conference, held under COVID-19 constraints, was the inaugural online version of the
conference.
NZABEF thanks NorthTec for volunteering to host the 2020 conference, the conference
coordinator, Ashley Lye, and the Track Chairs; Paula Arbouw, Imran Ishrat, Ashley Lye,
Geoffrey Mather and Anne Morrison. Without your work the conference would not have
happened.
We would like to acknowledge the outstanding work of the ‘support’ for this conference.
Lisette Buckle, Pathway Manager, Business at NorthTec was a driving force behind the
conference and without her enthusiasm and organisation skills, the online conference
would have been far more risky. Jane Martin volunteered to assist with coordinating
the conference and worked over a period of months supporting the conference.
Thanks to Jo Smith for your work for this conference. We also acknowledge the MC’s
for the conference who kept things moving and the schedule on time: Graeme Ramsey
and Peter Bruce-Iri.
Finally, a big thank you to all the authors who submitted papers to the conference. 2020
was a challenging year, with many of us delivery online teaching for the first time, with a
very short transition period. Your willingness to produce research outcomes during this
trying year is appreciated.
Rae Perkins
Chair
NZABEF
2|PageTable of Contents
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................... 2
Table of Contents ...................................................................................................................... 3
Conference Reviewers .............................................................................................................. 4
Conference Schedule ................................................................................................................ 5
Workplace Coaching Using Lagom Approach ...................................................................... 6
Monika Barton, Ara Institute of Canterbury ............................................................................ 6
Stakeholder accountability of the New Zealand SPCA: are they being set up to fail? ..... 11
Wendy Olsen, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology ................................................. 11
Diversity: Stimulating Racial Equity in the Learning Environment.................................... 12
SALVADOR R. BAOA JR, NORTH TEC (Tai Tokerau Wānanga)........................................ 12
Online Versus Classroom: Student Preferences for Learning ........................................... 19
Ashley Lye, NorthTec .......................................................................................................... 19
Why so Tired? Educators and Zoom Fatigue ...................................................................... 23
Andi Jones, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology..................................................... 23
New Zealand Secondary Schools: Financial Internal Controls .......................................... 28
Louise MacKenzie, Eastern Institute of Technology ............................................................. 28
Influence of Covid-19 on accounting materiality judgements............................................ 32
Petrus Brink, NorthTec ........................................................................................................ 32
Mātauranga Māori and Business Education........................................................................ 38
Peter Bruce-Iri, NorthTec ..................................................................................................... 38
Covid-19 lockdown effect on pass rates ............................................................................. 42
Conrad Schumacher, Eastern Institute of Technology ......................................................... 42
Nursing students' perspectives on the choice of end-of-life ............................................. 48
Jauny, R. (PI). Senior Academic Lecturer, Nursing .............................................................. 48
Dr Panko M. (PhD), Senior Lecturer Unitec Institute of Technology ..................................... 48
Determinants of tertiary level student satisfaction in New Zealand .................................. 52
Surej P John & Richard Walford .......................................................................................... 52
Holistic integration of a collaborative project model .......................................................... 56
Robert Nelson, Otago Polytechnic/Capable NZ ................................................................... 56
Beyond compliance – New Zealand Firms and Climate Action ......................................... 60
Dr Pii-Tuulia Nikula, Eastern Institute of Technology ........................................................... 60
3|PageConference Reviewers
Adrian France, Wintec
Ahmen Saadeh, Wintec
Ashley Lye, NorthTec
Bradley Hannigan, NMIT
Catherine Murupaenga-Ikenn, NorthTec
Catherine Snell-Siddle, Open Polytechnic
Clark Luo, Wintec
Cyril Peter, Weltec
Ehsan Yaeghoobi, Wintec
Heidi Lu, Wintec
Imran Ishrat, Ara
James Murry, Ara
Juan Pellegrino, Ara
Kawtar Tani, UCOL
Kay Sneedon, NMIT
Monika Barton, Ara
Niko Koya, Wintec
Ogechi Okoro, Wintec
Paula Arbouw, Ara
Peter Bruce-Iri, NorthTec
Reza Yaghoubi, Wintec
Salvador Baoa, NorthTec
Sujani Thrikawala, Wintec
Shabnam Seyedmehdi, Wintec
Trevor Nesbitt, Ara
4|PageConference Schedule
New Zealand Applied Business Education Conference 2020
Conference Schedule
Thursday November 19th
9:30am Mihi Whakatau Mihi Whakatau
Concurrent Sessions – 15 minutes presentation; 5 minutes Q&A
9:45 Paper 1: Workplace Coaching Using Lagom Paper 4: Face-to-face delivery this week;
Approach online the next
Monika Barton Liz Rainsbury, Ahesha Perera & Saman Bandara
Paper 2: Stakeholder Accountability on NZ
Paper 5: Student Preference for Learning
SPCA
Ashley Lye
Wendy Olsen
Paper 3: Diversity: Stimulating Racial Equity Paper 6: Why so Tired: Educators and Zoom
in Learning Environment Fatigue
Salvador Baoa Andi Jones
10:45 Break
11:00 Paper 7: NZ Secondary Schools: Financial
Paper 10: Covid-10 Effect on Pass Rates
Internal Controls
Conrad Schumacher
Louise MacKenzie
Paper 8: Influence of COVID-19 on Accounting Paper 11: Nursing Students' View on End of
Materiality Judgements Life Care
Petrus Brink Ray Jauny
Paper 9: Mātauranga Māori and Business Paper 12: Determinants of tertiary level
Education student satisfaction in NZ
Peter Bruce-Iri Surej P John
12:00 Break
1:00 Discussion 1: Management Courses
Paper 13: Holistic integration of a During Lockdown: Building on
collaborative project model Experiences
Discussions = 15 minutes Each
Robert Nelson Trevor Nesbit, Frina Albertyn & Monika
Barton
Discussion 2: Accounting Via Zoom:
Paper 14: Beyond Compliance – NZ Firms & Applying Pre-COVID Experiences
Climate Action Trevor Nesbit, Joanne Fraser, Adam
Pii-Tuulia Nikula Hollingworth, Fiona Hollingworth & Jeremy
Robertson
Discussion 4: Social Procurement - Discussion 3: Systems Dynamics:
Purchasing for Good Management Simulation Games
Amanda Kane Salvador Baoa
Discussion 5: The proficiency
exploration on student support service
Susan Diao
2:10 Close Close
5|PageWorkplace Coaching Using Lagom Approach
Monika Barton, Ara Institute of Canterbury
Short Abstract:
Workplace coaching has been traditionally focused on employee performance, which has been
based mostly on transactional coaching form. However, business coaches start to notice
emerging need for personal transformation support during their corporate coaching programmes,
so their clients can cope with existing VUCA environment more successfully. Therefore,
business coaches look for approaches, models, and tools that would be suitable to use in
transformational workplace coaching. Many of those transformational approaches, models, and
tools are culturally sensitive, which can limit their suitability for specific cultures. This paper
discusses cultural sensitivity and success factors of adopting Swedish approach of Lagom into
transformational coaching process in selected cultures using Hofstede’s Six cultural dimensions
model.
Keywords: Coaching, Lagom, Transformation, Wellbeing
Introduction and Research Aim
In recent economy of ongoing - often unpredictable and highly disruptive – changes, many
employees report increased level of stress and fatigue. This environment is called VUCA
(Elkington et al., 2017), and the acronym represents its four key characteristics – volatility,
uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. In VUCA, employees have been facing more frequent
behavioural change challenges (Elkington et al., 2017) like higher agility, faster learning, remote
working, highly flexible project work. Coaching has been used successfully at workplaces for
helping employees to deal with changes coming from outside and inside their organisations for
several decades. Lately, professional business coaches in many countries witness workplace
coaching to be shifting from traditional, output-based, transactional performance focus to more
more transformational topics like work-life balance, personal resilience, or individual and team
wellbeing (ICF, 2020). Transformational coaching requires more holistic approach than
transformational coaching, which deals often with single goal or single skill development.
Therefore, coaches look for more holistic approaches, models, and tools to support this
transformational change. This research discusses the options of using Swedish approach Lagom
in other selected cultures and focuses on the factors that could support Lagom approach adoption.
The aim of this study is:
To identify whether Lagom approach is applicable for transformational workplace
coaching outside Sweden
There were two research questions in line with this aim:
RQ1: Is Lagom approach culturally sensitive?
RQ2: What are the main factors that would affect potential Lagom implementation in other
cultural environment?
Background and Conceptual Model
Sweden belongs to countries that keep scoring high in Happiness index country comparison
research. It occupies 7th place in 2020 (Helliwell et al, 2020) as well as in 2019 research (Helliwell
et al, 2019), up from 9th place in 2018 research (Helliwell et al, 2018). At the same time, Sweden
6|Pageis also a top performer regarding Global competitiveness index, occupying 6th place of 138
participating countries (Grey, 2017).
Lagom is an integral part of life in Sweden and according to Nikel (2019) it is considered a typical
“Swedish thing” of both individuals and organisations in this Scandinavian country. It can be
translated as “just right” or “perfect balance” (Dunne, 2017), when a sweet spot of having all what
is needed but not too much is reached. Lagom approach balances sustainability and needs in the
right amount that everyone benefits from (Dunne, 2017). It can be also translated as “everything
in moderation” (Dunne, 2017). Dunne (2017) also argues that Lagom approach provides people
with more relaxed and less complicated focus on core needs that helps their overall wellbeing.
Looking at those wellbeing benefits, there is a question arising whether other countries could
benefit from adopting Lagom approach as well.
Transformational coaching is culturally sensitive, so to be able to identify which factors are the
most important in adopting Lagom approach to other cultures, Hofstede’s Six cultural dimension
model was used as a foundation for the research. This model is widely used in the business world
and business coaches and their clients are familiar with it.
Table 1 – Hofstede Cultural Dimensions of Participating Countries
Sweden Australia New Zealand Czech Rep. Slovakia
Power 31 38 22 57 100
Distance
Individualism 71 90 79 58 52
Masculinity 5 61 58 57 100
Uncertainty 29 51 49 74 51
avoidance
Long-term 53 21 33 70 77
orientation
Indulgence 78 71 75 29 28
Source: Hofstede, 2020
Finding how how culturally sensitive Lagom approach is and which factors are the most critical
for its adoption would help business coaches to integrate this approach into their transformational
coaching programmes that would result into more balanced professional life of their clients.
Methodology
The population for this research were certified business coaches from five selected countries –
Sweden, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Australia, and New Zealand. Convenience sampling was
used targeting ICF certified members who work with large and medium businesses. Request for
interview was sent to 30 coaches (6 per each country) and 7 coaches agreed to participate. There
was one participant from Sweden, Australia, and Slovakia, and two participants from New
Zealand and the Czech Republic.
The research onion model (Saunders et al., 2009) was applied for the research design.
7|PageFigure 1 – Research onion model
Source: Saunders et al., 2009
As the research has highly qualitative focus, interpretivism was used as the research philosophy.
This allowed all participants to bring their own experience and opinions. Deductive approach was
selected as the research aim was to discuss potential application of existing coaching approach in
different cultures. The survey was the selected strategy and mono method of data collection was
applied in the form of semi-structured interviews. The study was cross-sectional.
The research included preparation phase - all participants were sent an electronic information on
Lagom approach prior the interview and they were asked to become familiar with its concept. The
participants were also asked to refresh their knowledge of the Hofstede cultural dimension model
as its six dimensions.
Due to the ongoing pandemic restrictions and international scope of this research, all interviews
were conducted using Zoom technology. The framework analysis was used while analysing the
collected data. Thematic frameworks were identified in the form of key factors selection, and
those factors were used for mapping and interpreting final results.
There were numerous limitation connected to this research. First of all, the sample was smaller
than originally anticipated due to various reasons (different time zones, busy schedule of coaches,
pandemic effects, and limited language abilities). This affected negatively validity and reliability
of the research. Also, the collected data were limited to five selected cultures in two geographical
regions which creates space for additional research.
Results and/or Discussion and Contributions
Despite the limited sample, the answers to the research questions can be formulated with
reasonable confidence as high level agreement was identified among the participants.
RQ1: Is Lagom approach culturally sensitive?
All participants agreed that Lagom approach is culturally sensitive and culture needs to be
considered while adopting the approach outside Sweden. There are countries where it will be more
8|Pageeasily accepted (New Zealand, Australia), while it might not be completely appealing completely
(the Czech Republic, Slovakia). There were several interesting comments like the perception that
Lagom approach could be more appealing to younger generations, and the belief that individual
cultural backgrounds need to be considered as well as the organisational culture, especially in the
environment of multicultural organisations with highly diverse staff.
RQ2: What are the main factors that would affect potential Lagom implementation in other
cultural environment?
Out of the six Hofstede cultural dimensions, power distance and indulgence were identified as the
most significant factors in adopting Lagom approach in different cultures. The higher power
distance index means more acceptance of hierarchy and less willingness to apply Lagom approach
(Slovakia). The indulgence index directly measures happiness and the higher score implicates
that people in those societies believe they can influence directly how happy they are.
Implications for Theory and Practice
Transformational coaching needs to be culturally sensitive and the same applies to approaches,
models, or techniques used in workplace transformational coaching programmes. When adopting
specific approaches or models from other cultures, differences in cultural dimensions need to
considered The research confirmed that it applies to adoption of Lagom approach as well. Lagom
approach has higher probability to be accepted in countries that have similar Hofstede profile to
Sweden, when power distance index and indulgence are considered the main factors for
acceptance.
However, many organisations have diverse teams, especially large multi-national corporations,
where transformational coaching is more common than is smaller organisations. Therefore, this
should be considered also when Lagom is adopted.
9|PageReferences
Dunne, L. (2017). Lagom: The Swedish Art of Balanced Living. London, UK: Gaia Books Ltd.
Elkington, R., van der Steege, M., Glick-Smith, J., Breen, J.M. (2017). Visionary Leadership in
Turbulent World – Thriving in the New VUCA Context (1st ed.). London, UK: Emerald
Publishing Limited.
Gray, A. (2017). Why Sweden beats other countries at just about everything. World Economic
Forum. Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/01/why-sweden-beats-most-
other-countries-at-just-about-everything/
Helliwell, J.F., Layard, R., Sachs, J.D., & De Neve, J. (2018). World Happiness Report 2018.
New York: Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
Helliwell, J.F., Layard, R., Sachs, J.D., & De Neve, J. (2019). World Happiness Report 2019.
New York: Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
Helliwell, J.F., Layard, R., Sachs, J.D., & De Neve, J. (2020). World Happiness Report 2020.
New York: Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
Hofstede Insight. (2020). Cultural Compass, Compare Countries. Retrieved June 19, 2020 from
https://www.hofstede-insights.com/product/compare-countries/
International Coaching Federation. (2020). 2020 ICF Global Coaching Study. Retrieved August
12, 2020 from
https://coachfederation.org/app/uploads/2020/09/FINAL_ICF_GCS2020_COVIDStudy.pdf
Nikel, D. (2019). Move over Hygge: Why Lagom Is the Scandinavian Concept We Really Need.
Forbes. Retrieved July 26, 2020 from
https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidnikel/2019/03/06/move-over-hygge-why-lagom-is-the-
scandinavian-lifestyle-concept-we-really-need/#2516c6553e10
Saunders, M., Lewis, P., & Thornhill, A. (2007). Research Methods for Business Students, (6th
ed.) London: Pearson Education Ltd.
10 | P a g
eStakeholder accountability of the New Zealand SPCA: are
they being set up to fail?
Wendy Olsen, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology
Abstract
The New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals executes a unique role for a
charitable organisation, that of enforcement and prosecution under the Animal Welfare Act.
Utilising a grounded theory approach, a 2017 exploratory questionnaire was conducted. This
examined public opinion for a charity to be funding criminal prosecutions on behalf of the Crown,
alongside views of the concurrent amalgamation of the SPCA into a national unified body. A key
gap in the literature was identified regarding stakeholder classification and prioritisation of animal
stakeholders. Further analysis of secondary documents in 2020 found that under-resourcing of the
SPCA inspectorate alongside further enforcement responsibilities under the amended Animal
Welfare Act (2015), has led to an operational crisis. Future research directions consist of
interviews with Canadian animal welfare experts, where legislative change has provided Ontario
with publicly funded animal welfare enforcement.
Keywords: Non-human stakeholders, not-for profit, accountability, animal welfare
11 | P a g
eDiversity: Stimulating Racial Equity in the Learning
Environment
SALVADOR R. BAOA JR, NORTH TEC (Tai Tokerau Wānanga)
Abstract
This paper presents an understanding of different stages that organisations undergo to develop
interventions in addressing discrimination effectively. Racism or discrimination is a form or
treatment with a differential assessment based on race. No matter what the intention, it exists
in any institution and happens more frequently than any people know. Learning Institutions
can help leaders like tutors with a high level of control over teaching norms and policies; they
are the first to promote racial equity. As a result, interventions can be developed by
understanding the different stages in a model called AROHA. It stands for Awareness of
Problem, Root-cause Analysis. Openness (Empathy), 'How' or Strategy, Abdication, or
Sacrifices. Using thematic research as an initial framework to present actual examples to
support the discussion of each stage's interventions. Implications of this research for
organizational diversity and equality was discussed.
Keyword: diversity, discrimination, racial equity, ethnicity
12 | P a g
eI. Introduction and Research Aim
To address potential cultural clash effectively, like racism or discrimination in your classroom,
the first step is to acknowledge whether there is a problem. If so, is it linked to discrimination
or racism, and where is it coming from, if you do not believe that discrimination exists in a
learning environment OR if the problem arises through different communication channels
showing that 'Pākehā/European' feel that they are the real victims of discrimination. If so, then
increasing diversity initiatives will be perceived as the problem, not the solution.
II. The aim of this study is:
1. To understand implications of systemic discrimination in various stages that learning
institution undergo
2. To develop practical intervention and its implications to policies and practices.
III. Background and/or Conceptual Model
To understand discrimination in any learning institution and what intervention we can propose,
this initial research (conceptual research) provides possible interventions by understanding the
different stages of the AROHA model. The steps that learning organization experience
sequentially is: (1) Awareness of Problem, (2) Root identification, (3) Openness, (4) How, and
(5) Abdication. Learning organisations experience these shifts from understanding the existing
situation to the formulation of authentic sensitivity to converging on solution.
Figure 1: Pathways to Racial Equity: Learning organisations experience these shifts from understanding the existing situation
to the formulation of authentic sensitivity to converging on solution.
13 | P a g
eIV. Methodology
This research initially follows a thematic research framework focusing more on a qualitative
approach. The initial phase of the investigation is through a questionnaire sent out to learners
in different learning establishment in the North Islands, 1000 questionnaire sent to random
learners and only 356 learners responded. The questionnaire partly contains questions about
their age, ethnicities, and migrant status, including responses about any forms or incidents of
cultural clash, prejudice and how frequently teachers are fair to them. Follow-up interview to
the learners was initiated, likewise with different learning institution and business
establishments followed by extensive analysis of studies and publication relevant to the study.
The researcher uses a survey analysis primarily and accompanied by a comparative case study
analysis in both primary data and secondary data collected.
V. Results and/or Discussion and Contributions
a. Awareness of Problem
Few organizations and even schools have diversity policies and values to tell that are
committed to diversity as evidence for the absence of any form of discrimination. However,
other business organization I interviewed, they do not have any discriminatory policies in their
organization. They said that formal diversity policies could enable discrimination. They still
value diversity by ensuring that each employee feels that they are always welcome, and a work
environment is an inclusive place for everybody to work. A study shows that diversity
structures, values, and policies can make things worse, lulling institutions into a more 'relaxed'
state in which ethnic minorities felt ignored and harshly treated if they raise valid concerns
about racism (Kaiser, et al., 2013).
b. Root-Cause Analysis
According to the Ministry of Education, in New Zealand (2019), a study shows that 25% of
non-European report discriminations based on ethnicity than 8% of Pākehā/European students.
However, different ethnic group varies, for Indian, Chinese, and other Asian students, 12% -
14% reported discrimination from adults, and 7-9% reported based on ethnicity-related
bullying. Comparing Asian students to non-Asian students, more discrimination from adults
ranging from 16% - 19%, but only 3% of Māori and Pacific students and 6% from other
ethnicities being bullied by other students based on ethnicity.
Interestingly, the proportion of students from each ethnic group reporting experience of any
bullying shows that the Pākehā/European students report the highest rate of bullying, where
33% of Pākehā students reporting being bullied. Compared with Asian students report, 22%
that they are being bullied.
c. Openness
Like the Curriculum Progress and Achievement Ministerial Advisory Group (2018), few New
Zealand groups recommend changing the idea of the learning system. They proposed a more
culturally responsive and adaptive to the students' needs, emphasizing diversity, inclusion, and
well-being. To do so, tutors and employees require support from the management to ensure
deep cultural capabilities by adapting Māori and Pacific language and cultural values. The
students and whanau from different cultures feel they belong to the school.
14 | P a g
ed. How (Strategies)
Organisations use initiative not only 'forcing' developers to create diversity but to go out and
do it. Other companies used this as part of their KPI for promotions or salary increases. In
short, the most significant barrier to diversity is not what the origination can do; instead, are
they willing to do it. For example, a case of Massport, a public organization with massive
commercial lots worth billions of dollars, owns Logan Internation Airport. They decided to
leverage their land to increase diversity and inclusion in their real estate development project
in Boston's Seaport District. Leaders initiated dramatic changes in all potential developers'
selection criteria with their lucrative contracts to build and operate hotels and commercial
establishments inland. The criteria were: (1) developer's experiences and financial capabilities,
(2) revenue potential of the project, and (3) architectural design. But they added one criterion
called 'comprehensive diversity and inclusion'.
e. Abdication (Sacrifice)
The assumptions of sacrifice have some significant effect on teaching and guiding diverse
talent. There are two reasons beyond. First, most people assume that when you increase
diversity, you are sacrificing the idea of fairness and quality because giving 'special' treatment
to people with non-European ethnicities relatively than treating everyone the same. Some
people assume that fairness is treating everyone equally. But in reality, fairness is treating
people equitably, where you treat other people differently, but sensibly. The word 'sensible'
depends on the context and the one who interprets it. For example, does it make sense to place
a parking space for PWD near the school buildings? Is it fair for parents to take six months
paid leave to take care of their dependents? Is it fair to invite poor-performing students who
appear to have problems with the course and provide time for tutorials? Definitely yes, but
again, not everyone will agree with my answer.
The second assumption that people believe that increasing diversity initiatives means you are
sacrificing high quality and standards. As teachers, we are responsible for making an action
when differences in outcome caused by unfair privilege and discrimination and not someone's
capability, colour, or ethnicity. We always think of how much our learner's potential left
unrealized if we do not take action. Besides, it is essential to understand that there are no
'standardised' or 'high quality' ways to deliver and teach students to enable you to have the
'perfect employee' in any industry. A study argues that the schooling system in New Zealand
is racially biased, which only focused on Pākehā students and failed to consider any cultural
differences between students. The education system and curriculum are 'colour-blind' and
assume that it is a 'one-size-fits-all' to all students and silencing the minorities' ethnicity, values,
culture, and learning ways like Mātauranga Māori and te reo Māori. (MacDonald & Reynolds,
2017).
VI. Implications for Theory and Practice
a. Awareness of Problem
Some organisations deny the existence of racial discrimination in their organization, and they
are committed to diversity. Interestingly, in one field experiment by Bertand and Mullainathan
(2004), shows that white-sounding names received, on average, about 50% callbacks for follow
up interviews than equally qualified applicants with black-sounding names. Similarly, in New
15 | P a g
eZealand, some Chinese and other Asians (like Koreans, Japanese, Cambodians, and other
Asians) were aware of these discriminatory tendencies. Sometimes, they try to counteract them
by masking their race (Kang, DeCelles, Tilcsik, & Jun, 2016).
This research focused more on racism and discrimination based on ethnicity. We need to
consider for future discussion about discrimination based on different areas such as
discrimination based on migrant status or religious affiliation, based on sexual orientation and
gender identity, and based on disability or health conditions of students in Aotearoa, New
Zealand. Examples previously presented were focused on interpersonal discrimination. How
about the institutional setup or the system? It can hurt people. From top management down to
teachers can prevent structural discrimination, also known as systemic racism.
b. Openness
It is a similar concept with empathy, whether people care enough to do something once they
already know that discrimination exists and its underlying cause. We need to take note that
sympathy is different from empathy. Few Pākehā feels sympathy or pity if they witness racism.
However, what actions in confronting the problem are empathy – the feeling of the same hurt
and anger that the minorities felt. Through exposure and education can increase our
understanding of what empathy is.
c. How (Strategies)
In this stage of 'what-to-do-about-it', the most feasible strategies for change are to adequately
address the three distinct but integrated categories: attitude, cultural norms, and organizational
policies. Leaders and managers should be aware of these three; focusing on one could likely
be ineffective and could backfire. Establishing an anti-racism organisational culture linked to
the organization's core values and modeled by the practice and behavior of the CEO and other
key top leaders in the organization can provide significant implications both attitudes of
employees and clear understanding and formulation of organizational policies.
d. Abdication (Sacrifice)
Learning institutions or organisations' desire for greater diversity, inclusion, and equity may
not be willing to invest their time, effort, resources, focus, and commitment to make this
happens. Achieving one goal means that you sacrifice another goal; this assumption inhibits us
make things happen. However, it is not always the case. Sometimes, competing goals and
contradicting commitments are easy to reconcile once you identify the assumptions behind
them. Equity requires greater consensus compared with equality. Sometimes equality is the
easiest solution, but is it fair? For teachers, fairness in our actions is far more challenging, given
that you are aware of existing systematic racism; sometimes, we are making difficult and
controversial decisions. Fair outcomes involve treating people differently; different treatment
is not the same as 'special' treatment because these ties with favoritism, which is different from
equity. Some students may excel in one aspect of the course and not on the other, but this does
not mean that they are weak and do not deserve to graduate. As an institution, we should
abandon the notion that there is a 'one-size-fits-all' education system. Instead, we should
recognize the learners' band of potential and choose a diverse way to tap these potentials. These
require investing time, effort, resources, and commitments to help them reach their potentials
16 | P a g
eVII. Conclusion
Recently, we witnessed racism cases in one of the well-known universities, which increased
public awareness and concern about discrimination and racism as a problem in the education
sector. As educators and institutions, the challenge is, are we willing to take the extra mile to
change attitude, assumptions, practices, and policies. Collaboration, cooperation, and unity
among people with different races, ethnicities, values, and cultural backgrounds are needed to
achieve this, and it starts in our classrooms, department, and school. Teachers like us can start
by assessing how our learning institution is doing at each stage of the model – act with AROHA
for more meaningful, reflective, and continuous progress.
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eREFERENCES
Bertrand, M., & Mullainathan, S. (2004). Are Emily and Greg More Employable than Lakisha
and Jamal? A Field. The American Economic Review, Vol. 94, No. 4., 991-1013.
Curriculum, Progress and Achievement Ministerial Advisory Group. (2018). Retrieved
from Curriculum, Progress and Achievement Ministerial Advisory Group
background paper: Commit to a system that learns.:
https://conversation.education.govt.nz/
Kaiser, C. R., Major, B., Jurcevic, I., Dover, T. L., Brady, L. M., & Shapiro, J. R. (2013).
Presumed Fair: Ironic Effects of Organizational Diversity Structures. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology Vol. 104 (3), 504-519.
Kang, S. K., DeCelles, K. A., Tilcsik, A., & Jun, S. (2016). Whitened Résumés: Race and Self-
Presentation in the Labor Market. Administrative Science Quarterly, 1-34.
MacDonald, L., & Reynolds, M. (2017). "It's all part of the job": Everyday silencing in the
life of a secondary school teacher. MAI Journal 6(1), 47-60.
Meissel, K., Meyer, F., Yao, E. S., & Rubie-Davies, C. M. (2017). Subjectivity of teacher
judgments: Exploring student characteristics that influence teacher judgments of
student ability. Teaching and Teacher Education Volume 65, 48-60.
Webber, A., McGregor, A., Education Data and Knowledge, & Ministry of Education. (2019).
He Whakaaro: What do we know about discrimination in schools? Wellington:
Ministry of Education.
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eOnline Versus Classroom: Student Preferences for
Learning
Ashley Lye, NorthTec
Short Abstract:
The current Covid-19 lockdowns forced educational institutions into online education, with a
rapid development of material to support an online environment. This paper focusses on the
students’ perception of learning in that online environment and whether they preferred an online
environment to complete their qualifications. The responses reveal some interesting
perceptions, with program, campus and ethnicity variations.
Keywords: Online, students, preference
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eIntroduction and Research Aim
Covid-19 disrupted education, forcing many institutions to move to an online environment
within a few days. The business programs at a regional polytechnic moved to a Zoom-based
classroom within one week and classes continued for the remainder of Term 2, 2020. On return
to the classroom, the students were surveyed to determine their preference for online versus
classroom delivery to inform future decisions on education delivery in the region. The purpose
of this research is to: Understand students’ preference for learning environment based on
recent experiences. The focus here is not on the web-enabled learning environment, as it is
available for both online and class delivery. The focal point is the student perceived differences
to their learning within the two delivery formats.
Brief Literature
Harris & Parrish (2006) studied students who participated in online and in-class courses,
examining their ‘comfort’ with technology and their locus of control. They found the key
difference was in the student’s computer abilities, not educational outcomes. Schulman & Sims
(1999) found pre-test differences in student understanding, but no significant different in post-
test results for online and in-class students. Taylor et.al (2013) found pharmacists scored higher
online than in face-to-face continuing education classes. Interestingly, the research on online
versus classroom delivery focusses on objective results, primarily grades, rather than the
students perceptions of their learning environment. This research asked students their
preferences of online, in-class or mixed delivery modes of learning.
Methodology
The population of students for this study were all students enrolled in business courses at a
regional polytechnic in New Zealand. These students ‘normally’ attended in-class courses
supported by online material, however Covid-19 forced them into an online environment for
approximately 8 weeks, which was the majority of the second term courses for the programme.
168 students received a 2-page anonymous survey assessing their perception of online and in-
class delivery in terms of ‘convenience’ and the ‘learning environment’, different modes of
course delivery and their overall preference for learning. The survey used a 7-point semantic
differential scale. Basic demographics on program of study, gender, campus, major and
ethnicity were gathered. There were 34 responses, yielding a 20% response rate.
Results and/or Discussion and Contributions
Overall, students found the online class to be more convenient (6.21) than in-class (3.75). They
also found the online course created a better learning environment (5.85) than in-class (4.47).
56% preferred online delivery, 25% a mix of class and online, with 19% preferring in-class.
No students expressed preference for a weekend intensive delivery mode. These results are
interesting, however the overall results mask some underlying drivers of the student
preferences.
The Auckland students had a clear preference for online, rating convenient (6.78 vs 2.75), and
a better learning environment (6.5 vs 3.69) much higher for online learning. 89% rated online
learning as their preference. This is in contrast to the regional campus, where online was more
convenient (5.56 vs 4.75) but was not a better learning environment (5.13 vs 5.25). The regional
campus preferred a mixed mode delivery (44%), followed by in-class (33%) and online (22%).
The Auckland campus is 100% international students, while the regional campus had 78%
domestic respondents.
By program, the NZDB level 5 (L5) students prefer online delivery (86%), however the BAM
and Graduate Diploma students’ online preference is much lower (40%, 50% respectively). All
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egroups found online more convenient, however only the L5 found the online a clearly better
learning environment (6.29, 3.33). 50% of the L5 respondents were Chinese, project
management majors, both of which have a clear preference for online study, so the data may be
slightly skewed. For the other 2 programs, there was no major difference in the preferred
delivery mode.
There was very little difference between genders, with males preferring online delivery at a
slightly higher rate (60%) than females (50%).
Accounting majors overwhelmingly rejected online (0%) with in-class (56%) and mixed mode
(44%) preferred. Project Management majors overwhelmingly preferred online (92%), while
Leadership and Management majors were split between mixed mode (57%) and online (43%).
There are stark differences with different ethnic groups: Chinese students prefer online (83%)
learning. As these students comprise 50% of the survey respondents, their preferences are also
reflected in the overall results. Of the remaining groups, only NZ European had a slight
preference for online study (50%), with Indian (33%), Māori (11%) and Pacifica (0%)
preferring either in-class or mixed mode delivery. This is consistent with the ‘relational
learning’ preferences associated with Māori and Pacifica students.
Implications for Theory and Practice
Auckland-based students had a clear preference for online delivery. It is interesting to note that
Auckland campus is 100% international students and their visa requires in-class study; with the
restriction being suspended for COVID lockdown. These students prefer online study, even
though, in ‘normal’ times this option is not available to them. There are anecdotal explanations
for their responses, however the reason for this preference was not explored in this study.
The regional students had a clear preference for either a mixed mode or in-class delivery, with
only 22% preferring online. This is consistent with the anecdotal evidence from the students;
for example, in Term 3 the student specifically requested a move back to the classroom under
Level-2 restrictions rather than stay online. When asked, their reason was both the learning
environment and the desire for the more physical presence of other students in the classroom
and the relational ‘banter’ that occurred. The students expressed a preference for human
proximity during their learning. This is not reflected in the learning literature and is worth
exploring further.
These results are informative for our program delivery decisions, particularly in an environment
where enrolments are reducing, there is a move to reduce the cost of educational delivery, and
a push to move online to reach a new cohort of students. For domestic students, online learning
is not their preference and we may need to rethink the drive towards online learning. Also, there
is major competition from more reputable and larger international educational providers in the
online environment and we must position online learning very carefully to avoid competing
where we have a disadvantage. Online learning must be driven by the potential students’ needs,
not an institutions drive for more students and revenue. Domestic students have expressed their
preference for in-class or mixed mode delivery where feasible – as an institution we must listen
to our students.
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eReferences
Harris, D.M., & Parrish, D.E. (2006). The Art of Online Teaching: Online Instruction versus In-Class
Instruction. Journal of Technology in Human Services, Vol. 24(2/3).
Schulman, A.H., Sims, R.L., (1999). Learning in an Online Format versus an In-Class Format: An
Experimental Study. The Journal (Technological Horizons In Education), Vol. 26 (11).
Taylor, R., Jung, J., Loewen, P., Spencer, C., Dossa, A. & de Lemos, J. (2013) Online versus Live
Delivery of Education to Pharmacists in a Large Multicentre Health Region: A Non-inferiority
Assessment of Learning Outcomes. Canadian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy 66(4), 233-240.
22 | P a g
eWhy so Tired? Educators and Zoom Fatigue
Andi Jones, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology
Abstract:
Imagine having your Net Worth increase by 396.5% in Just a few months (Rogers, 2020). The
proliferation of Zoom was exponential. The impact of Covid-19 left New Zealand with very
little time to prepare for a full lockdown that was enforced on 25th March 2020 (Westbrook,
2020), teachers across New Zealand adapted to their new normal, Information Communication
Technology (ICT) tools like Zoom aided their delivery. Ramifications of this new teaching style
became quickly apparent. “Zoom-Fatigue” left educators burnt-out and stressed (Carter, 2020).
Theorising factors that may contribute to this new affliction; this paper investigates
multitasking through silos, emotional intelligence, intuition and non-verbal cues and the
immersion of full ICT teaching, corner-stoned by the Activity Theory are explored through
literature review, with a view to attempt to reduce burnout as our teaching environment changes.
Keywords: Zoom-Fatigue, ICT, multitasking, Emotional Intelligence,
23 | P a g
eIntroduction and Research Aim
“Two hours; it was just two hours, why am I so tired?” I asked myself. During the height of the
lockdown in New Zealand’s elimination approach to halt the spread of COVID-19 which lead
to workplace closure and restriction of movement (Wilson et al., 2020) on March 23, 2020 the
Tertiary Education Union announced “all educational facilities are to close and provide distance
learning where this can be reasonably managed by staff working from home” (Education,
2020). Tutors across the country adapted to full distance learning, up-skilling and adapting to
new technology, ICT is presently used as a supplement to learning in face to face delivery of
tertiary institutions to enhance learning (Ghavifekr et al., n.d.). It was business as usual with a
new delivery style, Microsoft Teams, Skype, and Zoom became the portal between teacher and
student (Carter, 2020) The research question asks “Why so Tired? – Educators and Zoom
Fatigue - humans communicate through non-verbal cues taking the whole body into
consideration, we cannot interpret these cues through a small square (Wiederhold, 2020) the
small squares become silos forcing our brain to multitask, which contributes to cognitive fatigue
(Subramanyam et al., 2013) the aim of this study is to investigate the literature to understand
beyond the digital elements of Zoom Fatigue instead focusing on the cognitive impact, if we
can understand, we can reduce the impact mental fatigue across the tertiary sector.
Background and/or Conceptual Model
The concept of “Zoom Fatigue” became popular during the COVID-19 Pandemic, causing
many to question “Why am I so tired?” (Fosslien & Duffy, 2020), having found this myself and
beginning to question why I felt so earth shatteringly drained; yes, there was extra work in
redesigning content, tutors are consistently changing and updating material, this felt different;
it was a sense of burnout, complete brain-fog, a confusing sense of utter exhaustion, but why?
Finding the answer has been challenging, this is a new concept, there does not yet appear to be
much academic literature. I designed a framework of individual concepts that interlink to form
a framework that explains the taxing cognitive processes of brain analysis required contributing
to a feeling of burn-out. Teaching using full ICT, learning new technology, we are now
teaching individual students in small silo’s, our brains are multi-tasking, meaning we cannot
“read the room”, intuition is unable to pick up non-verbal cues that the emotionally intelligent
tutor searches for, the combined effect causes the brain to work overtime with factors it cannot
solve, causing a deep sense of weariness, otherwise known as “Zoom Fatigue”.
Methodology – Overall Question – Why So Tired? – Educators and Zoom Fatigue
Aim & Operationalisation 1: To frame the concepts that contribute to fatigue when
teaching through Zoom: this has been done by creating a conceptual framework defining the
interlinking concepts to form an overview of the factors that contribute to “Zoom Fatigue”, this
include ICT, Multi-tasking with Silos, Non-Verbal Communication, intuition and emotional
intelligence.
Aim & Operationalisation 2: Understand the concepts within the framework: by reviewing
academic literature relating to the impact of ICT on education, silos and multi-tasking activities,
searching for non-verbal cues in the student and the role of intuition and emotional intelligence
in teaching.
A qualitative interpretivist paradigm has been used to analyse and interpret this subjective
research via a thematic literature review in line with aims and operationalisations numbers One
24 | P a g
eand Two, the literature review assisted in comprehending the key concepts of the conceptual
framework to answer the research question. The literature review has been undertaken using
explanatory research methods, and has attempted to identify causation and reasoning (Veal,
2005, p. 26). The literature was obtained from a variety of academic sources; such as Google
Scholar, Proquest, various Academic Journals, articles and books; this increased the validity of
the evidence gathered; it has explored the factors that formed the scope of the research.
Results and/or Discussion and Contributions
The Activity Theory in pedagogy attempts to explain relationships of human activity through
transactions within various environmental contexts through constructivist learning. Explicit
conscious learning is established through “doing” and the constructivist approach tries to
emulate the “doing” through as tools, systems and socio-cultural customs in a situations where
“actors” consciously participate within the processes, the learning happens through the
synthesis of performance (Jonassen & Rohrer-Murphy, 1999). It was thought the introduction
ICT would revolutionise the education system alleviating its problematic features, the aim of
transforming educational practices has still not been obtained. Research suggests that the rate
of technology use is still minimal and technology is still mostly used to support established
practices rather than transform them (Karasavvidis, 2009). The act of doing contributes to
learning, yet we are not using ICT effectively to support this.
Furthermore to provide an effective learning environment we must consider a multitude of
factors, inclusive of the individual needs of the student, the facilitation method of the content
melded together by intuition (Dorward, 2002). Intuition concerns not one individual aspect but
a whole (Cloninger, 2006). Psychology proposes two different types of learning, implicit or
incidental learning and explicit conscious learning, each type contributes to the ultimate goal
of attaining information synthesised into knowledge (Cloninger, 2006). It is essential for
lecturers implicitly know their subject to ensure the optimum transfer of knowledge, but they
must also possess a high degree of emotional intelligence emotional intelligence (Hassan et al.,
2015) this allows them to use their intuition to “feel” and interpret the nonvisual cues.
Birdswhitsell, 1970 suggested that two thirds of humans daily communication in non-verbal,
leaving only one third of communication in actual spoken words (Gregersen, 2007). Further to
this the brain is determining and reading many individuals and actively searching in each square
creating silos, forcing your brain to multitask between each silo searching for non-verbal cues
(Sklar, 2020) Multitasking requires the brain to attempt to order activities into subtasks and
prioritise, this increases the mental load due to the multiple cognitive resources being used
synchronously resulting in fatigue (Subramanyam et al., 2013). The silos presented in a zoom
call cause the brain to multitask, we use intuition and emotional intelligence to perceive non-
visual cues to aid in teaching practices, contributing to cognitive fatigue.
Implications for Theory and Practice:
Understanding the functions that contribute to Zoom Fatigue can help educators design material
to deliver using ICT effectively while minimising the cognitive impact that left many feeling
burnt out and stressed. This will lead to a better experience for students and increase the
learning and quality of the content being delivered as we navigate a developing and promptly
changing learning environment, furthermore opportunities for new markets in education to offer
the freedom to study from home allowing tutors to delivery quality education by designing
resources the reduce the mental load for the tutor.
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