My Writing
AN ESSAY Posted 31st May 2026 A pdf of the essay is available on the Home Page and also on the 'Education in Democracy' Research Area page. What it it to be a New Zealander – Who do we believe ourselves to be? New Zealand has a public culture grounded in Enlightenment principles of …
SUBMISSION TO THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS, DEFENCE AND TRADE COMMITTEE ON THE NEW ZEALAND–INDIA FREE TRADE AGREEMENT Submitted by Professor Elizabeth Rata, University of Auckland 16 May 2026 MY POSITION I oppose the inclusion of …
Date: 22nd April 2025 The Draft Social Sciences Draft Curriculum, 0-10 is knowledge-rich because it has the features of a knowledge-rich curriculum. They are: Disciplinary-derived and accountable knowledge. Subject-defined concepts and content. Epistemological coherence. Logical progression. Appropriate balance of explicit teacher instruction and related student activities. Curriculum content connected to students' understanding informed …
In a Nutshell Capitalism creates prosperity. But its relentless drive to accumulate must be controlled by democratic politics. Neotribal economic corporations (the 'neo' means they are different from the pre-modern tribal re-distributive economy) are like socialist ones. They merge the economy with politics. Dangerously, they institutionalise the merger in legislation, policy and practice. Because those combined interests are invisible, they …
PUBLISHED: UNIVERSITY WORLD NEWS, 3 June 2023 When a university no longer commits to the principle of universalism it can neither claim, nor does it deserve, the title of university. New Zealand universities are rapidly …
This article was published in The Democracy Project, 3rd October 2023 Elizabeth Rata: Two Treaties of Waitangi: The Articles Treaty and the Principles Treaty October 2023 Commentary There are two versions of the Treaty of …
This extract about partial loyalty from Chapter 6 ‘Social Relations of Trust‘ in my 2012 book ‘The Politics of Knowledge in Education’. The objective knowledge developed in the arts, humanities, social sciences, and sciences …
Our accelerating retreat from the idea of universal knowledge will do us harm, warns the University of Auckland’s Elizabeth Rata ‘Critical times as a species’. These are extreme words, made more powerful recently by …
Authors: Michael Corballis – School of Psychology, University of Auckland | Robert Nola – Department of Philosophy, University of Auckland | Elizabeth Rata – Faculty of Education and Social Work, University of Auckland AbstractWhat …
