What is a knowledge system?
In this recorded webinar Pauline Waiti and Rosemary Hipkins explore the idea of knowledge systems with examples from science and mātauranga Māori.
The report Enduring Competencies for Designing Science Learning Pathways introduced the idea of exploring both science and mātaurang a Māori as knowledge systems. Thinking about knowledge as a system is likely to be an unfamiliar idea for many teachers. In this webinar we unpack the metaphor, using familiar science concepts to show which of them might be appropriately explored through both knowledge lenses (i.e. science and mātauranga Māori) and when this might not be helpful.
This is an awesome and profoundly important and vital discussion – this discussion today has helped me heaps.
Teacher
The aim of the session is to show how our thinking habits and frameworks are influenced by our primary knowledge system, in ways that can be invisible to us. Having two knowledge systems to draw on is a taonga because it helps us become aware of differences in how we see the world that might otherwise remain hidden.
What is a knowledge system?
This is an edited recording of the webinar What is a knowledge system?
This was a perfect start to some critical thinking and reflection .
Participant
What is a knowledge system? – slideshow
This slideshow, from the webinar What is a knowledge system?, provides additional support for the video tutorial.
This session will be valuable for all educators.
You can download the video and slideshow presentation.
Topic
Slideshow number(s)
Video timecode
Introducing the Science Learning Hub and presenters
1–2
00:00
Index
3
00:29
Why ask the question ‘What is a knowledge system?’, definitions
4–5
04:25
The CMP model applied to knowledge systems
6
07:51
Unpacking knowledge systems – the Rena disaster
7–11
11:00
Diffusion
12
20:54
Cosmic phenomena
13–14
25:17
Naming and grouping things
15
27:56
Complex systems behaviour
16
30:28
Emergence – fire
17
31:37
Te reo o te Repo
18
33:36
What ‘equal status’ might (and might not) look like…
19–20
37:00
Participant questions
21
48:41
SLH links, keep in touch and thanks
22
53:41
Related content
Watch part 1 of : Enduring competencies for designing science learning pathways.
Watch part 3 of this webinar : Learning benefits of a knowledge systems approach to science.
Science Learning Hub resources mentioned in the webinar include:
The video He awa whiria – braided rivers shares the analogy of a braided river for the weaving of knowledge streams.
Useful links
The article Enduring competencies for designing science learning pathways by Rosemary Hipkins, Sara Tolbert, Bronwen Cowie and Pauline Waiti introduces the idea of exploring both science and ma Māori as knowledge systems.
Knowledge systems are complex, learn more about complex systems in Rosemary Hikpins’ book Teaching for Complex Systems Thinking.
The initiative Mana ōrite mō te Mātauranga Māori supports equal status, support and resourcing for a Māori in NCEA.
References
Transforming knowledge systems for life on Earth: Visions of future systems and how to get there, Energy Research & Social Science, e 70, 2020, 101724, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2020.101724.
: Utilising Māori in Heritage Institutions. Journal of Conservation and Museum Studies, 20(1), p.2. https://doi.org/10.5334/jcms.215.
Acknowledgement
Thank you to Pauline Waiti and Rosemary Hipkins. Ngā mihi nui ki a kōrua.
