Overview 
         International post-2015 education & development 
          discourse emphasis on ‘quality’ education
         Implicit & explicit implications for teacher 
          education, policy & practice 
         This collaborative exploratory study to investigate 
          the context of teachers and teaching in Fiji
         Potential starting point for wider regional 
          investigation
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                                Purpose 
          To generate insights into the process of international 
            research collaboration to help understand potential, 
            challenges & realities of cross-cultural research 
            partnerships in education 
          To determine stakeholder perspectives of:
             i. the nature & quality of teaching in Fijian schools, and 
               of teacher education; 
             ii.their understanding of the challenges being faced in 
               practice; and, 
             iii.The priorities for attention if the quality of education is 
               to be improved.
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          Methodology & Methods 
         Qualitative methodological approach 
         Mixing western and Pacific techniques
         Methods: 
            i. Questionnaires (consensus building through 
              structured stakeholder consultation/focus groups)
            ii.Talanoa (dialogic informant- research conversations)
            iii.Talanga
           Research Ethics – MOE (2014), USP (2015)
          
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           Changing Policy Context 
          1978 Education Act 
          Post-2000 policy initiatives incl.
              o Ed Commission report (2000)
              o Systems-based curriculum mapping exercise (2003 – 
               ongoing)
              o Suva Declaration (2005)
              o       st                 nd
               NCF 1  Edition (2007), 2  Edition (2013)
          Primary concern post-2000 was content overload, repetition/ 
           overlapping and poor-sequencing/gaps
          Also, labor market needs & cultural relevance
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                    Disconnections 
     Education Act (EA) review 2013 (IP) 
     NCF (2013) contrasts EA (1978) with strong 
      philosophical standpoint:
      To provide a holistic, inclusive, responsive and empowering 
      education system that enables all children to realize their full 
      potential, appreciate fully their inheritance, take pride in their 
      national  and  cultural  identity  and  contribute  fully  to 
      sustainable national development (Fiji Ministry of Education, 
      Heritage and Arts, 2013a, p. 1).
     Emphasis on social constructivism, Delors’ Pillars of 
      Education and Cultural Influences
     Some progress towards development of new curricula 
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      under broad banner of ESD 
     Post-2014 elections shift in priority confusion