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| Prof Barbara Oakley | Adjunct Senior Fellow | info@nzinitiative.org.nz | ||||||||||||
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I’ve spent much of my career exploring how people learn best, blending insights from neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and practical teaching techniques. My online course, Learning How to Learn, has reached millions of students worldwide, and my books—including A Mind for Numbers and Uncommon Sense Teaching—focus on helping students and educators apply science-backed strategies to master even the most challenging subjects. I’ll be working closely with the Initiative’s education team, including Michael Johnston, whose deep understanding of evidence-based learning aligns with my own passion for practical, research-backed approaches. New Zealand is known for its innovative thinking in education, in part arising from the Initiative’s efforts, and I’m excited to both share insights and learn from the incredible work already happening here. One of my key focuses will be on how we can help students develop better learning habits—techniques that make studying more effective while reducing stress and frustration. Many people believe they’re simply “not good” at certain subjects. But most of us have never been taught how to learn properly. Small changes—like leveraging retrieval practice, interleaving different subjects, and improving working memory strategies—can make a world of difference. I’ll also be discussing how we can support teachers in bringing these strategies into the classroom. Teaching is one of the most intellectually demanding professions, yet teachers are often asked to implement new methods without clear evidence of effectiveness. My goal is to provide research-based tools that not only help students thrive but also make life easier for educators. Phil and I look forward to exploring more of New Zealand’s breathtaking landscapes while also diving into meaningful discussions about learning. Whether in a classroom, at a conference, or over coffee, I hope to connect with many of you. So, whether you’re a teacher, a parent, a student, or simply someone passionate about learning, let’s work together to make education more engaging, more effective, and maybe even a little more fun. |
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| Dr James Kierstead | Research Fellow | james.kierstead@nzinitiative.org.nz | ||||||||||||
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As a young, idealistic academic, I saw an opportunity to clarify values that I assumed most academics held sacred – values such as rationality, civility, and an emphasis on evidence. In 2015 Heterodox Academy, a worldwide association of academics, was founded to defend those same ideals. A couple of years later, I became the coordinator for its classics chapter. My experience was sobering. Professors wrote me emails saying they supported what I was doing but asking me not to put their name on anything. Others agreed to endorse open letters defending under-fire colleagues – but only anonymously. Inevitably, the group eventually ran out of steam. I wasn’t the only academic who took up the banner of ‘heterodoxy’ in those years. Dozens of academics spoke up about their experiences. Meticulous studies were conducted showing that English-speaking universities really did have problems to do with free speech and viewpoint diversity. Through it all, we reformers stressed to colleagues that if we didn’t put our own house in order, sooner or later, somebody else would. Those years represented a window of opportunity – let’s call it the ‘heterodox hiatus’ – for universities to actively engage with efforts at reform. With a few honourable exceptions, most university leaders wasted that chance. Academics who were only trying to help their institutions flourish were ostracised, smeared as ‘far-right,’ or even driven out of their jobs. That window of opportunity is now closing. In the US, President Trump has issued an immediate ban on DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) activities on federally-funded programmes – including at universities. Here in New Zealand, prestigious Marsden grants will no longer be awarded in the humanities and social sciences. As a humanist, I deplore that decision. But considering the number of substandard and flagrantly partisan projects receiving thousands of dollars of taxpayers’ money, it was probably inevitable. The backlash is now well and truly upon us. In some quarters (especially in the US) it will be excessive, threatening the very values (like academic freedom) it is meant to protect. That too, I deplore. But the universities have to bear part of the blame. |
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| Dr Eric Crampton | Chief Economist | eric.crampton@nzinitiative.org.nz | ||||||||||||
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The long and the short of it is that I was playing with time travel and it has all gone terribly wrong. I thought I’d fixed the mess. But then I read Bryce Edwards’ column in the Post this week. The column claimed that The New Zealand Initiative drafted an early version of the Regulatory Standards Bill, which Roger Douglas introduced to Parliament in 2006. That might seem odd. Douglas wasn’t in Parliament in 2006, and the Initiative didn’t exist until 2012. You might have thought that was an innocent error introduced by subeditors trimming things to length. But the claim would have been right - if things had gone according to plan. The Initiative’s time machine is among its more closely kept secrets. We went back in time to try and make a few things better. With our tweaks, the Business Roundtable and New Zealand Institute merged to form the Initiative in 2005 rather than 2012. We installed a National-ACT coalition government that same year. Sir Roger passed the Regulatory Responsibility Bill the following year. And New Zealand’s per capita income passed Australia’s in 2016. Normally, this kind of thing is impossible. Time-travel geeks know that the Novikov self-consistency principle makes it impossible to change the past. Otherwise, you’d wind up with paradoxes and collapsing realities. Standard drill in science fiction. That’s why we bought a Novikov Attenuation Field Generator along with our time machine. We wanted to change the past to deliver a more prosperous future for all New Zealanders. But, stupidly, we bought a cheap model on Temu and it malfunctioned. Things got really weird. I thought I’d managed to reset the timeline, almost. We knew about the big glitch. Mitt Romney was supposed to have been elected US President in 2016. That was baseline reality, and I couldn’t get it back. But things otherwise looked mostly stable. At least until I read Edwards’s column. So, I checked the Field Generator. It had turned itself back on and was displaying an error message: “DO NOT MESS WITH TIME”. We don’t know how to fix it. Temu’s customer support line can’t help either. Now, the timelines are degenerating more quickly. The US might wind up invading Canada. I’m scared to read the papers to find out what else is our fault. Maybe Bryce Edwards knows more. |
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