Ko Mohio Tenei Kia Koe What You Think
Ko Mohio Tenei Ana Tatou What We Know

Design Researcher Jordache Mackenzie
Supervisor Deborah Shackleton
2018

2

What you think,
What we know
Culturally inclusive narratives for
student engagement in NZ

A critical & process documentation paper submitted in
partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

MASTER OF DESIGN

Emily Carr University of Art + Design
2018

Design Researcher:
Jordache Mackenzie
Advised by:
Deborah Shackleton
Dean, Faculty of Design + Dynamic Media

© Jordache Mackenzie, 2018

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Abstract
The design disciplines are increasingly struggling to address the systemic
ecological, social and cultural issues affecting our global community, a call for
alternative approaches to how designers shape interactions with the world.
This design research builds on theory emerging from across the disciplines
which argues that design, regarded as an “ontological instrument that is able to
transform the social and cultural reality” (Tlostanova, 2017) which determines
how we perceive and interpret the world, is in a state of “defuturing” (Fry, 1999),
restricted by the coloniality of a north/western modernity to perceive and
interpret the world within certain legitimized principles. What is needed and
what this design research proposes is to start exploring ways in which design,
grounded in indigenous principles and sensibilities might begin to create multiple
realities and options outside of a context of modernity/coloniality for how we
might be in the world.
Primary research is undertaken in one part as a case study which seeks to
explore curriculum around identity development in Aotearoa New Zealand,
appropriating research methods which align with Māori epistemology, focused
around collective participatory actions and relational understandings of being,
grounded in matauranga, tikanga and kaupapa Māori. The intent of this research
is to investigate potential opportunities for resources and supports that facilitate
better pathways for learning and identity development with Māori students in
New Zealand public schools at grades 5-6. Research is executed using a cultural
design probe which, through a variety of activities, guides students to identify
learning and future growth aspirations, support networks and identity markers.
These activities include Make-a-Robot, which asks students to design a robot,
assigning it personality and traits as well as physical and mental abilities, and
allow insights to be drawn on students’ needs and aspirations. Cultural probes
are useful here as they “offer a less obtrusive way of gathering information”
(Celikoglu, Ogut and Krippendorff, 2017) and align with Māori principles and
protocols. These principles and protocols begin with whakapapa, which
recognizes the interconnected and relational nature of oneself within a larger
social/environmental/spiritual network.

4

Education,
Kaupapa Māori,
Inclusive Design,
Storytelling,
Cultural Identities,
Design Ethics,
Decolonizing Design,
Reciprocity.

Acknowledgments
I would firstly like to thank the students of Room 8 at Tongariro School for their
invaluable participation in and considerable contribution to this research process,
as well as their teacher and facilitator Ms. Devonshire.
I would like to thank my supervisor, Deborah Shackleton, for her expert advice and
encouragement throughout this endeavor, and our other instructors at Emily Carr
University for their support. This thesis would not have been possible without
the support of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee scholarship, along with
support and guidance from my cultural advisor and scholarship organizer Brenda
Crabtree.
I would also like to thank my colleagues for their encouragement and input into
this thesis, and the vital support they provided when the process became difficult,
without which this thesis would not have seen the light of day.
Lastly, I would to thank my family, friends and others who have supported me on
this journey.
Ngā Mihi,
Jordache Mackenzie

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Mihi

Opening Words

Ka tangi te titi
The titi calls

Ka tangi te kaka
The kaka calls

Ka tangi hoki ko au
Now I will also call

Karanga mai, karanga mai
Call to me, call to me

No Aotearoa ahau, ko Jordache toku ingoa
I am from New Zealand, Jordache is my name

He marumaru au mai I nga iwi e rua, ko Muaupoko, ko Ngati Raukawa
I am a small chip from two Māori tribes, Muaupoko and Ngati Raukawa

Kei ahau hoki he taha Pākehā
I also have a Pakeha side

No reira, aku Rangatira, kei te harikoa ana ahau n ate mea kua tae mai
And so you noble people I wish to say I am very pleased to be here

Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa
Greetings, greetings, greetings to you all

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Preface
This story starts before my arrival on these distant shores in the North Pacific,
it starts with a farewell. A few days before my flight was due to leave from
Auckland, New Zealand, my mother and I made a trip down to te upoko o te ika a
maui where my extended family and grandparents live, which translates to the
head of the fish of Maui or, the Lower North Island. I spent time saying farewells
to my family, all eager to give me advice and ask questions, curious about this
strange adventure I was taking. It was on one of these days, sitting in the living
room of my grandparents’ house, enjoying the warm Wairarapa air, eating
coleslaw and chicken buns that have been a staple of the many school holidays
and summers spent with my grandparents and cousins, that this story takes
place. My grandfather walks into the living room brandishing a yellow folder in
my direction, “here you go moko, come and take a look at this”. He lays the folder
on the table and opens it, inside is a single sheet of paper, stapled to thick card
paper for extra support. It has a mihi written on it, carefully typed out for me with
the English translation alongside, “what is this for?” I ask, my grandfather replies
“this is your mihi, you’ll know when to use it”. I gratefully accept his gift, aware of
the great value of the object and significance of this exchange, trying not to look
confused as I wonder when I might possibly need to use this, trusting that this
was some wisdom that I would come to understand in time.
Receiving this parting gift from my grandfather was fundamental to shaping
my perspectives throughout this degree, inspiring much in this research, and
reinforcing my connection to home while studying far away beyond the Pacific.
He has spent considerable time and effort into maintaining Māori culture through
us, his descendants, by taking us through Māori language lessons, teaching us
the proper ways of participating in customary Māori practices on the Marae
(gathering place) and not being afraid to give us a clip around the ears.

8

Contents
Abstract
Keywords
Acknowledgments
Mihi Opening Words
Preface
Contents
Lexicon

4
5
6
7
8
9
10

1.0 Te Wero The Challenge

11

1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
1.5
1.6
1.7
3.2

The learning landscape of Aotearoa New Zealand
Place-based, contextual inquiry
Building a narrative of here
Generating options for sustainable futures
Research Questions
Theoretical Framework
Scope + Limitations
Ethics in participatory design research

2.0 Te Ara o te Rangahau The Path the Research Has Taken
3.0 I Waenga I nga Kohatu In Between the Stones
3.1
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
3.7

Research Approach
Starting from the Roots
In the Studio: Whakapapa
Seeing the Island: A Lense for Research
Marking Boundaries/ Crossing Thresholds
In the Studio: Demarcation of Space

4.0 In Action at Tongariro School
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6

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Practice-led outcomes
Make-a-Robot Cultural Probe Responses

6.0 Nga Kemu mo te Korero Games for inclusive Conversations
6.1
6.2

Play: Setting out the Board
Symbols: Drawing out the Tacit

6.2
6.3
6.4

Emergent, Reflective Practice
Annotations as Recursive Reflection
Board Games: Decolonizing Tools for Organizing Conversations

7.0 Conclusions
8.0 Bibliography
8.1
8.2
8.3

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Familiar Places, Familiar Faces
What is Action Research?
Why use a Case Study Approach?
Designing the Probe
The Importance of Play
Inside the Probe

5.0 I Haere ai Matou Where We Landed
5.1
5.2

18
20

37

42
44

References
List of Figures
Appendix

9

Lexicon
Aotearoa

Tongariro

noun /ˌɑːəʊtiːəˈrəʊə /

noun

Land of the Long White Cloud / New Zealand

“Belly of the fish that Maui caught”
Tongariro is one of three mountains in the Central

Coloniality

Plateau of the North Island of New Zealand.

The imperial/colonial organization of societies.
“Conceptually, coloniality is the hidden side of

Whakapapa

modernity i.e. coloniality is constitutive of modernity,

noun / ˈhwækəpæpə , ˈfæk- /

and that there is no modernity without coloniality”

“to place in layers”, Genealogy. A fundamental

(Tlostanova, Mignolo, 2009)

principle in Māori culture. A person reciting their
whakapapa, places themselves in a wider context,

Defuturing

links themselves to land and tribal groupings and

Activities, processes and products which reduce,

the mana of those. Whakapapa is fundamental to

rather than enhance, the possibility of a future which

identity.

can be sustained.
Wero
Education
A formal process in which the knowledge, principles

noun
Challenge.

and values that are important to a society are
transferred from one generation to the next

Whānau
noun

Kaitiakitanga
noun
guardianship, stewardship, trusteeship, trustee
Kaupapa
A set of principles and ideas that inform behavior
and customs.
Mātauranga
Māori knowledge tradition or epistemology, closely
aligned to pre-European contact that encompasses
traditional concepts of knowledge and knowing.
Tikanga
The customary system of values, practices and
beliefs that have developed over time and are
deeply embedded in the social context and derived
from whakapapa

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Family.

Te Wero | The Challenge
Fig. 1 River in the Central North Island of New Zealand. Oceans,
lakes, rivers, mountains and other natural landmarks are
fundamental to our identity as Mā ori.

Te Wero
The Challenge

This section provides contextual framing for conclusions suggested by the research
process. Recent NZ public school statistical data is discussed with a focus on the
achievement of Māori in the NZ public school system in order to establish the clear,
nominal opportunities for this type of research to take place at this point in time.
This is followed by a discussion of the wider disciplinary discourses which support
this research as it seeks out moments where spaces might be created which allow
for a more diverse range of perspectives and world-views to be drawn into the
conversation, and multiple options to be presented.

The learning landscape of Aotearoa
There have been numerous initiatives undertaken in New Zealand over the years
which attempt to address disparities in educational achievement and participation
for indigenous Māori students in the public-school system which, although see
some progress in improving achievement for Māori and Pacific students, are still far
below parity with non-Māori (Office of the Auditor-General, 2016) (see Side note 1 for
Indicators of Inequality for Māori and Pacific People in New Zealand).

More recently, there have been a number of government led initiatives aimed at
improving Māori achievement in the public-school system, these have identified
a need for greater cultural visibility for Māori in mainstream public schools in New
Zealand (Ministry of Education, 2017) and attribute this as a key contributing factor
to Māori students achieving success not only on standardized testing but also
‘Māori enjoying educational success as Māori’, a statement created as part of the
most current government initiative “Ka Hikitia: Achieving Success” (2016) to act as a
collective vision and recognition of a need for a more holistic educational framework:

The vision of Ka Hikitia – Accelerating Success 2013–2017 is ‘Mā ori enjoying
and achieving education success as Mā ori’.
This vision means ensuring that all Mā ori students, their parents and
their whā nau participate in and contribute to an engaging and enjoyable
educational journey that recognizes and celebrates their unique identity,
language and culture. This journey will support Mā ori students to achieve
the skills, knowledge and qualifications they need to achieve success in te ao
Mā ori, New Zealand and in the wider world. (Ministry of Education, 2016)

12

Side note 1. Indicators of Inequality for
Maori and Pacific People in New Zealand.
In a 2016 report by the Office of the
Auditor-General, "The percentage of
18-year olds who achieved a minimum of
NCEA Level 2 or equivalent has increased
from 79% in 2011 to 86% in 2014 for
NZ European students, compared with
an increase from 57% in 2011 to 68%
in 2014 for Maori students" (Ministry
of Education, 2015). The distribution
of Maori students by school decile
(indicator of socio-economic position)
reports that Maori student populations
are heavily concentrated in low-decile
schools compared to the overall student
population. Of the population, 14% of
Maori students are in a decile 1 school
with 5% attending a decile 10 school, in
contrast, the general population shows
an inverse distribution with 6.5% of total
students attending a decile 1 school, and
16% attending a decile 10 school.

These reports underscore the complex political, social and economic conditions
that perpetuate the insufficiency of the public education system in New Zealand in
providing for Māori students. One of the recommendations provided by the ‘Report
on Indicators of Inequality’ (2016) was that “the education sector should give more
priority to promoting ‘success as Māori’. It should also include better incentives for
schools to work together and share practices that help Māori students to succeed.”
(Office of the Auditor General, 2016). What the recommendations provided by this
report indicate is that there are an abundance of opportunities for action to address
aspects of this complex, multifaceted topic.

Place-based, contextual inquiry
Research conducted for this thesis in the form of a cultural probe was undertaken at
Tongariro School in Turangi, New Zealand. This community was selected primarily
because of the fiduciary relationship between myself, the researcher, and the school
community, having been educated and worked there prior to commencing this thesis.
It attempts to provide an opportunity for participants to identify and reflect on their
own values and social systems, and express themselves authentically within a design
research process.

As Mā ori, our experience of research has been dominated by being the
‘object’ that is studied and theorized about. Our lives, our whā nau, our
culture, our language, our entire being has been theorized by Pā kehā
academics and researchers over the past 200 years. Our world has been
theorized through paradigms that bear no resemblance to the ways in which
we would explain and understand ourselves. (Pihama, 2015)

This thesis suggests that in order to have meaningful impact, design can and should
be aware of its own role in perpetuating inequalities, especially when working with
historically marginalized communities, and work to change itself. This should not lead
designers to avoid these communities, as they are often the ones whose needs are
not being met, rather it requires care and attention to the protocols, world-views and
wellbeing of the people in these communities. This thesis explores how tools and
actions might support this sort of design research.

13

Building a narrative of here
There is a need for more and better design research methodologies and frameworks
which are created with the specific including commonly excluded groups in the design
research process.

This thesis suggests that by collecting and situating research in local contexts,
design will be better able to serve a wider variety of communities, for example, this
thesis does this by using cultural probes designed specifically for the participant
group, designed around their context, values and world-view, as opposed to
designing around the desires of the researcher. Another study done as part of this
research involved designing board games intended to be used in a design research
process with inclusivity in mind. This is done in order to facilitate conversations
about concerns raised by people who may have varying degrees of familiarity or
engagement with a topic, or with a design research process and who may have
been excluded from a formal design process due to perceived lack of knowledge,
understanding, value.

What the research activities undertaken in this thesis intend is to create methods
that lower the barriers to participation in a design research process, especially for
communities who have traditionally been excluded from or the subject of research,
rather than an active participant with equal input and purpose. The benefits to
the design disciplines as well as the communities described, will be mutually
advantageous. Design disciplines will be able to generate more accurate, appropriate,
situated research narratives grounded in the real, lived experiences of communities,
communities who will then benefit from having themselves, their values, their
aspirations and needs represented accurately in the design processes.

Ko Tongariro te maunga
Tongariro is the mountain
Ko Taupo te moana
Taupo is the lake
Ko Tuwharetoa te iwi
Tuwharetoa is the tribe

For this research, the first step in situating this research and working in this
community meant acknowledging the whakapapa (genealogy) of the primary
research context, Tongariro School, a fundamental aspect of identity and culture
in Māori epistemology. Discussed in further detail later in this thesis, whakapapa
describes social relationships and relationships to the environment which are crucial
elements of our identity. The act of reciting whakapapa is integral when introducing
oneself or when entering a community, as it allows both parties the opportunity to
situate each other in relation to themselves.

14

Generating options for sustainable futures
I am fortunate enough to be undertaking this research at a time when conversations
about the role of design in driving humanity into an unsustainable “defutured” (see

Side note 2. Defuturing. Fry defines defuturing
as "a condition of mind and action that
materially erodes (un-measurably) planetary
finite time, thus gathering and designating the
negation of 'the being of time,' which is equally
the taking away of our future" (Fry, 2011).

Side note 2 for defuturing) state are being had, Tony Fry’s writing on defuturing and its
alternative “human-futuring”, that is, options that increase the lifespan of humanity’s
continued existence, question designs predominant role as a tool of commercialism,
being used to sell yet more products, and along with other works proposes that our
actions be redirected toward more ethical practices for social impact.

Side note 3. Mignolo's Colonial Matrix of Power.
The colonial matrix of power defines four
areas which were created out of 16th century
colonization and persist as sites of struggle
today, Mignolo defines these areas as follows:
1. The struggle for economic control (i.e the
appropriation of land, natural resources and
exploitation of labor);

This is integral to this thesis as it is precisely the exclusion of other ways of knowing
and being in the world, outside the “single story” of western colonial history, that
has led us to this state, and precisely why we urgently need to create space for other
ways of being in the world. As has been suggested by Castellano (2000) indigenous
communities around the world have largely lived in sustainable relationships with the
planet for millennia before colonization, and may perhaps offer an alternative path
from our defutured state of being. For example, Māori did not have a concept of land
ownership before colonial British settlers arrived and bought, sectioned and sold off
New Zealand, the idea that one could own the land on which we live was foreign to
Māori.
This study builds on writing by Mignolo, Fry and Tlostanova who propose that we
create (decolonial) options outside Mignolo’s “colonial matrix of power” (see Side note
3 for Mignolo’s Colonial Matrix of Power), and attempts to understand how that might
shape a more ethical, culturally relevant design discourse in New Zealand, amid the
complexities of our mixed, bi-cultural nation.

2. The struggle for control of authority (setting
up political organizations, different forms of
governmental, financial and legal systems, or
the installation of military bases, as it happens
today);
3. The control of the public sphere - among
other ways, through the nuclear family
(Christian or bourgeois), and the enforcing of
normative sexuality and the naturalization
of gender roles in relation to the system of
authority and principles regulating economic
practices. It is based on sexual normativity and
dual "natural" gender relations;
4. The control of knowledge and subjectivity
through education and colonizing the existing
knowledges, which is the key and fundamental
sphere of control that makes domination
possible.
This research is situated within Mignolo's
fourth area, that is to say it acknowledges
that our world-views and fundamental
understandings of the world are shaped by the
conceptual frameworks and knowledges of
modernity/ coloniality.

In order to achieve this, research was undertaken in the expectation that it may
provide decolonial options outside the colonial matrix from which designers,
especially designers working in countries such as New Zealand, with high indigenous
communities whose needs are not always being met. It is an important conversation
to be having in the design discipline, and echoes sentiments being brought up around
decolonizing design. It is timely and crucial more than ever that we are able to get
outside input into the way we shape the environment and things that we put into it if
we desire a sustainable future.

This study sits within a larger conversation that is emerging, around the coloniality of
design which suggests that the design disciplines are currently incapable of getting us
out of our defutured state, and that there is an urgent need for alternative options.

Decolonization is an
approach that has
everything to do with
how the world as been
constructed in a manner
that has very specific
powers in play, utilizing
very specific notions
of what modernity
and coloniality may
mean within a capitalist
framework. (Rizvi, 2016)

15

Research Questions
How can we design better learning experiences which
promote educational achievement for Māori students in
New Zealand public schools?

How can indigenous ways of knowing create a more
inclusive, holistic learning experience for all students?

How can design better serve the needs of those who have
been excluded by design?

How can design foster learning communities that embrace
indigenous ways of knowing?

How can we embrace place-based cultural sensitivities into
pedagogical approaches to create more inclusive learning
environments?

Theoretical Framework
Situating this research between theoretical frameworks used in Māori research
practices and more common disciplinary research practice allows for a flexibility in
approach and sensitivity in action. A brief introduction of the research frameworks
follows, along with a contextual diagram that clarifies the intersectionality of the
different research paradigms.

Kaupapa Māori research has been used as both a form of resistance and
a methodological strategy, wherein research is conceived, developed, and
carried out by Māori, and the end outcome is to benefit Māori. (Walker, 2006)
Kaupapa Māori theory “was first developed by Graham Smith
and other Māori academics in Te Aratiaita (Māori Education), in
the early 1990s (Pihama, 2001) and aims to “alter the balance
within power relationships” (Lee-Morgan, 2016), it is based on
six principles (“Kaupapa Māori Research,” n.d):
Tino Rangatiratanga - the self-determination principle
Taonga tuku iho - the cultural aspirations principle
Ako - the culturally preferred pedagogy principle
Kia piki ake i nga raruraru o te kāinga - the socio-economic
mediation principle
Whānau - the extended family principle
Kaupapa - the collective philosophy principle

Together with social constructivism, as defined in Creative
Research: The Theory and Practice of Research for the Creative
Industries by Hilary Collins (2010):

Fig. 2 Theoretical Framework diagram

Knowledge is created through interaction with the environment, developed
and transmitted primarily within a social context. (Collins, 2010)

The social constructivist theoretical framework based on Collins definition shapes the
methods on which I have chosen to act out my research. In Collins (2010) definition,
social constructivism is often misinterpreted as/compared to but is different from
social constructionism in that the focus is on the individual learning that takes place
because of a participant’s interactions in a group construction activity, rather that the
artifacts that are created.

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Te Ara o te Rangahau
The Path the Research Has Taken

The diagram shown in Fig. 3 synthesizes the research path taken through this thesis
and portrays the interconnectedness and relationality between the different elements
that arose and guided this research.

The Ngutu Kaka (Kaka beak) encasing either side of the diagram, are used to
represent ethics and whakapapa, the two fundamental elements of this research
process, together they create a rigorous, grounded framework for research.

The Kowhaiwhai at the top of the diagram are customarily used most
commonly to represent genealogy and family members, here they
are used as the starting point of this research path, a place of
familiarity and support.

The red and white stepped pattern of the Poutama is commonly
translated to “the growth of man” and is used to represent learning,
growth and development, here they are used to denote the
ambiguity of the design research process and the opportunities
for emergent, generative research to arise when stepping beyond
what we are already know.

Finally, the central pillar comprised of chevrons as they are commonly
known or Kaokao (armpit) pattern in Māori culture, customarily connected
with strength, resilience and training, along with the side beams of the pillar
itself, which are common features of customary Māori meeting houses. These
are used to show the strength of a reflective research practice, the importance of a
wayfinding mindset, and using boundaries and thresholds to create safe, open spaces
for conversations to take place. These elements were crucial to successful facilitation
of primary research activities in this thesis and are discussed in more detail in the
following section. Together they allowed for successful navigation through the often
at times ambiguous nature of the research process and ensured participants were
given the space and time needed to express themselves comfortably.

18

Fig. 3 Research Process diagram “Te Ara o te Rangahau”

19

I Waenga I Nga Kohatu
In Between the Stones

The following section takes a detailed look at the approach taken by this research,
exploring the interconnected relationships and connectivity between the different
methodological elements. It provides a detailed, intersectional analysis of the primary
and secondary research methodologies, a reflective account of the conditions that
led to their inclusion in this thesis and proposes how they led to the insights and
outcomes suggested by it.

Research Approach
It was important to establish early in the design research process the importance of
self-determination of any research participants, and being as inclusive as possible.

An emic approach is one which originates from within a culture, without attempting to
act impartially or draw broad conclusions. This approach places value and emphasis
on the statements, knowledge and world-views of local people. As described by Kotto
(2005):

“An emic approach investigates how local people think. How do they
perceive and categorize the world? What are their rules for behavior?
What has meaning for them? How do they imagine and explain
things?”

The approach taken by this research is primarily emic, with importance placed on the
contextual exchange of past, present, external and internal dialogues. Insights gained
from these dialogues, while intrinsically situated within the specific context of this
research, are potentially translatable to other similar situated indigenous peoples.
This approach is however, specific to the bi-cultural Māori context of this thesis and
should be treated as such. There is no expectation that results will be reproducible in
contexts other than those in which they arose.

The Designers Role
In attempting to take on socio-cultural design opportunities such as those that have
arisen in this research, the designer necessarily must wear a number of different
hats. In this research process I have worn the hat of designer, researcher, facilitator,
student., observer. The "thing" that ties these different hats together is intent, the
designers intentions provide a continuing thread to ground the research when
navigating the messy realities of an emergent design research process.

21

Ethics in participatory design research
As this research primarily involved working with two of society’s most vulnerable
groups, children and indigenous peoples, it is important that the ethical implications
of actions undertaken as part of this research process are supported by guidance and
dialogue with advisors.

Consideration of historical Māori experiences of research which, according to
(Pihama, 2015), have been “dominated by being the ‘object’ that is studied and
theorized about". It was imperative that this research look to cultural frameworks
provided by Kaupapa Māori theory which are able to utilize and validate Māori
approaches and practices when necessary (Pihama, 2016).

Smith (1999) describes guiding codes of conduct for Māori researchers:
+ Aroha ki te tangata (a respect for people)
+ Kanohi kitea (the seen face, that is present yourself to people face to face)
+ Titiro, whakarongo... korero (look, listen... speak)
+ Manaaki ki te tangata (share and host people, be generous)
+ Kia tupato (be cautious)
+ Kaua e takahia te mana o te tangata (do not trample over the mana of people)
+ Kia mahaki (don’t flaunt your knowledge)

These codes describe fundamental guidance for researchers wishing to work with,
not just Māori, but any participants in a mindful way, deeply rooted in reciprocity
and respect for others. Over the next three segments I discuss in detail three pivotal
elements of the research process that arose over the course of this thesis.

Scope + Limitations
This thesis acknowledges the complexities of culture and identity in our
interconnected, global community, and does not attempt to assume that any
conclusions drawn here can be generalized or applied to any context other than that
in which they arose.

However, there are opportunities for parallels to be drawn and insights to arise
that may serve as inspiration or inform research and conversations in comparable
areas. The findings generated here are preliminary in nature and should serve as a
starting point for further dialogue on how design might go about working to partner
with under-served communities, and by doing so experience mutual benefits and
opportunities in the global pursuit of sustainable futures.

22

Fig. 4 Whakapapa prototyping for participatory design activity

Starting from the Roots
Māoritanga (being Māori) begins with whakapapa (genealogy), whakapapa defines
how Māori relate to each other, to whenua (land), to tribal groupings and the mana of
those. Positioning oneself in a wider context is fundamental to identity as Māori and
therefore ensuring that I had an appropriate understanding of my own whakapapa
was essential to ensure that this research arose from a position of integrity
and authenticity. Some of the initial explorations involved researching my own
whakapapa with my grandfather, as well allowing my personal explorations to inspire
the development of potential design research tools. Both of these explorations will be
discussed briefly here.

The exchanging of whakapapa has customarily been about introduction and
welcoming. In this research activity, I investigated how whakapapa might be used
to guide conversations in a context where participants may be unfamiliar with the
concept, the importance of this exercise was integral to framing the development
of later research activities, in particular the cultural probe. I worked under the
assumption that even though primary research activities would take place in a
majority Māori student population, there might still potentially be students from
non-Māori backgrounds who may also wish to participate and whose voices would
be equally welcome. Therefore, it was important that though this design research tool
was inspired by whakapapa that it was inclusive and open to participation by all.

In the Studio: Whakapapa
The activity involved Emily Carr participants using the objects provided to map out
their ancestry as they saw it, as well as describing any stories, myths or legends
that they associated with to their partner (see Fig. 5). Responses from participants
were positive, notably that the physical tool allowed them the time to think through
what they were doing as they pieced together the different objects. The hexagonal
shapes were used to symbolize people or other important “nodes”, different length
rods symbolizing strength of connections. Hexagons were used here for their large
number of flat sides in a 2D plane. There were suggestions for the potential for this to
be used as an icebreaker tool in one on one or other intimate settings, both as a way

Fig. 5 Participant using participatory design research tool.

of introducing oneself to another and creating a visual map of how an individual sees
themselves as part of a wider network.

23

Over the course of the summer I returned to New Zealand and worked with my
grandfather to research our own whakapapa in relation to the Muaupoko tribe. This
was something we had not done previously as our primary tribal connection was to
Ngati Raukawa, however, as our connection to Muaupoko was the reason I was able
to make this journey it was important that we researched this whakapapa and our
connection to it so that I could represent that connection and add to the mana of our
tribe.

What followed was a few weeks of back and forth both in person and over the
phone as we individually researched the elements of our whakapapa, checking in to
compare and discuss our findings. This resulted in the whakapapa below as well as
a greater understanding of the significance of learning and knowing these ancestral
connections.

Ko Tararua te Maunga
Tararua is the mountain range
Ko Rangitikei te Awa
Rangitikei is the river
Ko Kurahaupo te Waka
Kurahaupo is the canoe
Ko Muaupoko to iwi
Muaupoko is the tribe
Ko Ngai te ao te Hapu
Ngai te ao is the sub-tribe
Ko Kawiu te Marae
Kawiu is the meeting place

Knowing the significance of being able to place oneself in relation to wider networks
and being able to recite my own whakapapa, as well being able to share these
understandings through the creation of design tools was integral to the design of a
research process grounded in reciprocity and inclusivity.
Fig. 6 Whakapapa research activity participant outcomes

Seeing the Island: A Lense for Research
I was introduced to wayfinding by Dr. Eruera Tarena from Te Taupae o Rehua, at
the Design for Social Innovation Conference in Christchurch, NZ. Wayfinding is an
alternative leadership model drawn from ancient Māori/Polynesian navigational
knowledge. It uses the metaphor of setting out for unknown destinations as a model
for navigating the uncertainty and increasingly complex challenges leaders face today.

Eruera described the mindset of ‘seeing the island’, of visualizing where you want to
go, holding that vision in your mind, and then opening yourself to the present, reading
signs that appear to guide the journey. The way finder seeks not only the ‘thing’, but
the underlying relationships and patterns, being able to discern these connections
reveals insights which might not be obvious at first, enabling them to act, rather than
react.

After being introduced to wayfinding I found myself frequently coming back to the
metaphor of ocean navigation as a way of positioning myself and my current research
activities within the overall research process. This allowed me to proceed with
activities which did not always have a clear pathway to stated research goals, creating
flexible spaces for experimentation and emergence.

Marking Boundaries/Crossing Thresholds
Boundary
noun /ˈbaʊn.dər.i/
A real or imagined line that marks the edge or limit of something.

Boundaries became an important part of the research design of this research,
through preliminary secondary research. Although we are generally familiar with what
a boundary is and what purposes they server, I was only able to fully appreciate the
significance of creating boundaries and demarcating spaces to the sustainment of
Māori cultural identity and knowledge after reading ‘Decolonization in Aotearoa’ by
Jenny Lee-Morgan (2015). In this text Jenny Lee-Morgan discusses the importance
of Marae-a-Kura (meeting place in school) in schools, and the role they play in
supporting Māoritanga in the public-school system.
Furthermore, they are powerful because they create cultural boundaries and
cultural expectations that demand that Mā ori language be heard, and Mā ori
cultural protocols be adhered to. (Lee-Morgan, 2015)

25

In the Studio: Demarcation of Space
This led to studio explorations which I used to dig deeper, unpack and synthesize what
I might take away from this to apply to the creation of my own participatory research
activities. I looked to Māori knowledge for guidance on how to approach this, by going
back to the spaces I was familiar with, the marae and the wharekura, and observing
with purpose, how Māori culture is transmitted in these spaces.
There was the explicit, carvings, tukutuku (wall panels), and painting, which all
provided the visual sign that one was in a Māori space. But there are also other
aspects, the physical space between the carved meeting house and the waharoa
(exterior gate) has a tacit presence of its own, that can be felt even by someone who
has not entered the space before, as they stand under the waharoa, waiting to be
welcomed on.

This then led to a period of reflective making, through which I tested how I might
begin to reflect some of the essence of these spaces, and apply it to the process of
creating welcoming participatory research spaces. I was looking at how to capture
and transmit this essence in a meaningful way, that evokes Māori customs and ways
of knowing, and reflecting on this to see if it could lead to a sense of internal and
external cultural empowerment. In reflection, I feel that it does create a presence
of its own in some way, and was significant in the creation of the cultural probe and
board games.

Fig. 7 Studio based research exploring intuitive
responses to physical boundaries

26

In Action at Tongariro School
Fig. 8 Students working on cultural probe activities during
participatory research sessions at Tongariro School.
Turangi, NZ

In Action at Tongariro School
Following on from the previous section which described the overall research approach
and reflections of the significant supporting explorations, this section
discusses the primary research site in detail. It covers how the actions described in
the last section supported the creation of an action research case study at Tongariro
school using a cultural probe, and discusses the cultural probe in detail. This will
provide clarity into how these elements work together in service of the overall
learning objectives.

Familiar Places, Familiar Faces
Tongariro School was selected as the research site for primary participatory activities
as it was a site I am personally familiar with, having recently worked there as a
teacher aide as well as being educated there for a number of years. Having spent
considerable time in the classroom gave me the benefit of being able to identify
areas of opportunity for design research to have an impact early in the process, then
proceeding to validate my personal assumptions and experiences with data from the
Ministry of Education as discussed in earlier sections.

Another reason for choosing to do primary research at Tongariro School, specifically
with grades 5-6 students, was that my mother teaches students in this age range,
and it was her classroom that I had worked in as a teacher aide. The main benefit of
this were that I had already spent considerable time with her in the research site, this
gave me confidence in her ability to take on the role of facilitator, as it was a natural
transition from her daily role. It also provided participants a degree of safety and
familiarity when participating in the research.

Tongariro School is a mainstream public school with a majority Māori student
population, located in Turangi, a small town in the Central North Island of New
Zealand. It is physically remote from the main metropolitan centers of New Zealand,
and as such has a more traditional cultural make up of indigenous Māori and NZ
European. Lessons follow a traditional stem focus with time set aside each week for
Information Technology, Art and Physical Education. A typical day for this age group
is split into five one hour time slots, with early morning sessions containing the core
subjects; reading, writing and math, with the afternoon slots alternating between
physical education, art, and information technology, depending on the day of the
week.

28

What is Action Research?
Situating the focus of this research in a highly structured social setting, the public
elementary school classroom, required finding the most appropriate research
approaches and methods for working towards change through place-based
qualitative paradigms. The first framework used was that of action research, which
Swann (2002) defines as “a program for change in a social situation”. He lists three

Plan

conditions required for research to be considered action research:

•

Subject is based in a social practice that needs to be changed.

•

Action Research is an explicitly participatory activity.

•

The project proceeds through a systematic & documented cycle of

Reflect

Act

plan>act>collect>reflect (see Fig. 9)

Collins (2010) describes action research as a “form of inquiry conducted by
researchers who wish to inform and improve their practice, their understanding, and

Collect

decision making”. This differs slightly from Swann in that the desired change is in
the practice of the designer as practice led vs practice based research. This research
draws insights on both the research space and design practice.
Fig. 9 Action Research Cycle

Why use a Case Study Approach?
Using a case study approach to drive the research enabled me to fulfill both the
vehicle objectives and learning objectives of the thesis project. A case study is useful
in this research context as it “involves situating the case within its appropriate setting
be it historical, social, clinical, cultural, economic, physical, to name a few” (Creswell,
1998), and can be described as “a fairly intensive examination of a single group of
people” (Collins, 2010). It allows data gathered to be viewed within the context in
which it was gathered. It is inclusive and generally has a depth that “compensates for
any shortcomings in breadth and the ability to generalize” (Martin, B., Hanington, B.,
2012).

The benefit of using a case study in this context is that it has the potential, when
managed carefully, to more accurately represent the world-view of those being
researched.

29

Designing the Probe
Designing the cultural probe “All About Me” to be used in the facilitated participatory
research activities required a lot of thought and revision. The probe needed to be
simple enough that it could be managed by a team of two facilitators, who were
working with a group of 12 grade 5-6 students and flexible enough to facilitate
multiple learning styles.

It involved a number of generative, reflective, and exploratory activities around
cultural identity, self-expression, and identification of social structures and
aspirations. These activities were designed to paint a picture of the lived experiences
of these students in the education setting, and provide self-expressed narratives
for change. The creation of this probe and the analysis and reflection of results has
provided both practice-led and practice-based insights which will be discussed in the
following section.

Fig. 10 Students at Tongariro School completing cultural probe
activities

So why use a cultural probe in an action based research activity?

This probe was primarily designed with the goal of providing an inclusive, accessible,
and enjoyable participatory research activity for participants, and to reaffirm their
agency within a design research process. Cultural probes consist of a wide range of
activities designed to elicit to participants new forms of “self-understanding and
communication about their lives, environments, thoughts and interactions” (Martin,
B., Hanington, B., 2012). Martin and Hanington describe cultural probes as being
“specifically casual and informal, yet thoughtful in their aesthetic craft, message
and delivery”, and when done well result in enthusiastic, invested participants. This
was essential here, as the students at Tongariro School rarely have an opportunity to
participate in a design research process, even less so in a way that provides them the
space, time and accessibility needed to explore and reflect ideally.

The title of the cultural probe “All About Me” is intended to set the scene for the
participants, to achieve two things, reaffirming the value of their contribution to the
research process, and setting the scope as an internal, reflective and exploratory
process. The probe itself reinforces the validity of the Māori cultural identity of
participants through the use of Māori visual elements and language, as identified
early, using these elements as visual boundaries to say that “this is a Māori space
and our knowledge is fundamentally valid here”. However, in all instances english
translations are provided in order to both provide for Māori students who may not
know the Māori language, and also to include non-Māori students who wish to
participate in research activities.

30

Fig. 11 Excerpt from cultural probe illustrating
storytelling activity asking students to share stories
of their local environment.

In their paper “How Do User Stories Inspire Design? A Study of Cultural Probes”
(2017), Ozge Celikoglu, Sebnem Ogut and Klaus Krippendorff describe Cultural Probes
as being “particularly helpful in environments where an observer’s presence can
distract from the everyday behavior of participants”. In the case of this research, it
was crucial that every effort was taken to minimize the effects on participants of
being in an active research space. This was achieved by using a cultural probe as the
primary research method, as well as organizing research activities to take place in
the students' normal classroom. While activities were still primarily facilitated by the
classroom teacher, the novel nature of the cultural probe created a fun and exciting
environment for students as they were able to take a break from regular scheduled
lessons.

The Importance of Play
In his article Design and the Play Instinct Rand (1965) compares the nature of gameplaying with that of problem-solving, proposing that being successful in one can
equally imply success in the other. He suggests that games and, more specifically, play
can be useful tools in creating an engaging learning environment.

Rand (1965) discusses the importance of basic rules or disciplines required to
introduce the element of play into an environment stating that "Without specific
formal limitations, without the challenging possibilities of introducing the element
of play, both teacher and student cannot help but be bored". This delimiting of the
experience in order to engage participants is also discussed by Sanders and Stappers
(2012) in their book "Convivial Toolbox: Generative Research for the Front End of
Design". They discuss the generative techniques and dimensions behind building
creative toolkits, emphasizing limiting the selection of toolkit ingredients to
successfully support participants in generative activities.

A journey into the unknown can cause participant anxiety, however, this anxiety can
be mitigated by the power of delimitation and the play instinct (Hester, 2013), allowing
participants to be creative and fully express their thoughts and ideas. Careful curation
of probe activities, delimitation of primary research activities, and the introduction
of elements of play, enabled participants to feel safe to engage openly in research
activities.

31

Inside the Probe
The activities described here formed the content of the cultural probe. While these
activities may at first glance appear disconnected, they have been intentionally
designed in this manner. Using widely varying activities in the cultural probe creates
a consistent sense of novelty and introduces elements of play. Play, as defined by
Paul Rand, has been discussed previously in this thesis. John Dewey, a renowned
educational theorist and scholar, shared similar notions of learning to those of Rand,
that is, introducing elements of play and novelty which require students to engage
critical thinking.

Give the pupils something to do, not something to learn; and the doing is
of such a nature as to demand thinking; learning naturally results. (Dewey,
2005)

The activities created for this cultural probe were designed to provide participants
with a consistent sense of novelty, in that each new activity provides a different
experience from the last. This allows students to engage different senses and modes
of thinking, while contributing to the overall aims of the probe. These separate
activities work together to create a self portrait of cultural and individual identity for
participants. Through completion of activities along with reflective exercises, a space
is created for students to express intuitively what their indigenous ways of knowing
are, and define their personal goals and aspirations.

Activity 1 + 2: My Very Important Place + Say Cheese
These first two activities were designed to work as a sequential pairing as a way
of easing participants into the flow of the cultural probe. The first activity asked
participants to think of a place that was important to them, reflecting on why
it was important as well as drawing that place. This introduced students to the
direction of the probe as well as the multiple method approach designed to facilitate
multiple learning styles, giving participants more than one way to think through
the questioning. The second activity was an expansion of the first activity, in that
it asked participants to either go out and photograph, draw, or use cut and paste to
visualize a number of different places/activities/things in their daily lives that matched
emotional cue words provided in the probe. This was intended to elicit connections
between the participant's emotional responses and elements of their daily school
lives, the increased difficulty of the task was mitigated by providing more methods of
interaction.

Activity 3: What’s in Your Pocket?
This activity asked students to take an everyday item out of their backpack, desk or
pocket and then draw that object and describe it. The activity included prompts such
as “When I pick it up it’s as heavy as a…”, these prompts were designed to encourage
participants to use a reflective and exploratory thought process as they worked
through different prompts using a single object.

32

Activity 4: Paper Fortune Teller
Paper fortune tellers are a favorite past time of NZ kids, and the responses I received
from the facilitator was that students enjoyed this activity a great deal. This activity
required participants to cut out and fold a paper fortune teller printed with questions
based on the growth mindset, coined by Dr. Dweck, and then use the fortune tellers
on a partner, asking questions of each other. The questions asked students about
goals, challenges, aspirations and opportunities, which can be difficult to answer,
however the game elements and social nature of the activity turned these difficult
questions into a fun activity.

Activity 5: Five Friendly Faces
This next activity asked participants to think of 4 of their closest friends or family,
trace around their hand and then draw the faces of those people, as well as
themselves on the fingers, reminiscent of finger puppets. This painted a picture of the
students’ social support networks and was a chance for them to reflect on the value
of their relationships.

Activity 6: Ko Tongariro Te…
“Ko Tongariro Te... “ (Tongariro is the...) is an activity based on the Māori concept
of whakapapa, in which (as described earlier) whakapapa is recited, this phrase is
familiar to students of Tongariro School and was intended to provide familiarity to
the participants, reinforcement of their identity and also provide an “exclusive” gift
like quality to the probe. The activity asked students to draw a river, mountain or
lake near them and write a story about it, either a myth/legend that had been told to
them, a personal experience or an experience shared with them by someone else.
This was intended to reinforce Māori ways of knowing, that is, the importance of the
environment to identity, and the importance of storytelling to maintaining culture.
The activity also asked students to define where the story came from, their personal
experience of the place and what they enjoy about it, as well as asking them how we
might look after this place so that others may enjoy it too.

Activity 7: Make-a-Robot
The final activity in the cultural probe asked participants to create an imaginary robot
using colored paper, cutting and pasting images from the provided materials book or
drawing. Participants were also asked to name their robot and describe what it does,
it was an open exercise designed to draw out the participants aspirations and needs,
with the making process creating space for exploratory and generative thinking.

Reflective Exercises
At the end of the probe as well as spaced out between activities, were opportunities
for participants to reflect on the research activities and the overall process.
Participants were asked to identify what they liked, disliked and learned from the
activities and provided space for self-reflection on how what they had learned might
change how they approach identifying and achieving their aspirations.

33

I Haere ai Matou | Where We Landed
Fig. 12 Drawing of Lake Taupo , New Zealand created as part
of the “Ko Tongariro Te...” probe activity asking participants to
draw a local geographical feature and tell a story about it.

I Haere ai Matou
Where We Landed

This final section draws together the feedback received, insights gained and lessons
learned over the course of these research activities and lays out possible paths for
further exploration. It also provides qualitative analysis and discussion of cultural
probe results which according to Boehner, Gavner and Boucher (2012), provide a richly
textured but fragmented understanding of a setting or situation. They suggest that
the purpose of a probe is "not to capture what is so much as to inspire what might be"
(Boehner, Gavner, Boucher, 2012).

Practice-led outcomes
“I hope that you are able to do this activity again”
Out of a classroom of 30 students 12 students participated in the research with 11 of
the probes returned fully completed. Feedback received from participants indicated
that the probe was well received and they were highly engaged in the activities and
invested in the outcomes.

While there were a diverse range of responses, there were a number of
commonalities that emerged. Participants responded that their favorite activities
were the “make-a-robot” and the “paper fortune teller”, both of which placed a
greater emphasis on social interaction. The fortune teller activity directly required
students to engage with their peers and feedback from the facilitator indicated
that students spent a large amount of time discussing their robots and comparing
with their peers. The “Ko Tongariro Te...” activity also elicited substantial writing
from participants who were excited to retell and share stories about their local
environment. Participants were also pleased to have this opportunity to explore and
share their own feelings, as well as reflecting on and engaging with aspects of their
identity, culture and aspirations for the future.

Feedback received from the facilitator included that students were excited to be
participating in this research, one of the reasons they gave being that it allowed them
a break from regular scheduled lessons as seen in Fig. 14. She also noted that it was
an excellent activity in terms of students practicing their writing skills, and that it
provided a more holistic learning experience for students. On the following page are
a number of examples of participant responses to the make-a-robot activity, which
give an insight into participants needs and aspirations.

Fig. 13 Participant feedback from cultural
probe research activities at Tongariro School

Name: Wonder-Botia

Name: Tiwila Ngatai

Name: Bama Heartmind

She can look at other people’s

Whakamautahi Brown

My robot would help me with the

test by going invisible. Her

My robot gives huge hugs and

hard parts in my homework and

stomach is an oven and can make

gives out love hearts. She has

would help me study. She would

any food I want. She knows how

a blue love heart she wants to

also remind me on what I have

to fight and get smart and defend

give hugs and she is very sad and

to do. She would also be able to

me. She does whatever I tell her

always thinks about dollar signs

motivate me to do more studying

to do. She knows how to comfort

and coins.

and to try my hardest. She won’t

people.

answer the questions on test she
will only give me a hint. She also
cares for people.

Cultural Probe Responses
Overall, the responses to this research were overwhelmingly positive and suggest
that activities such as this probe which was designed to create open spaces outside
of everyday curriculum, and reinforce a more open and diverse approach to identity
development, could add to the learning experience of both Māori and non-Māori
students in grades 5-6 in the NZ public school system. The results suggest that this
probe was successful in instilling a sense of hope towards students’ aspirations.
It also suggests that there is a need for further place-based longitudinal study
grounded a reciprocal relationship between facilitator and participants, using a flat
power structure.

From the positive responses to the cultural probe it is clear that this activity could
be a template for development of curriculum around cultural identity to be included
in regular classroom pedagogy. The playful nature of the probe was successful in
creating a space outside of regular classroom programming. The success of play in
contributing to the creation of alternative spaces for learning and dialogue to take
place has been further developed in the second major component of this thesis - Nga
Kemu Mo Te Korero (Board Games for Inclusive Conversations).

36

To make new
connections and
reframe ideas requires
freedom to muse about
ideas in alternative
ways, to look past
curent limitations,
practice different
modes of throught,
and gain insights from
every means a student
has at their disposal.
(Majumadar, 2015)

Nga Kemu mo te Korero

Fig. 14 Annotated Board Game piece, part of a series of

Board Games for Inclusive Conversations

into the elements of Board Games.

annotated images created during a reflective investigation

Nga Kemu mo te Korero
Board Games for Inclusive Conversations

This section contains reflections and insights resulting from research into the
potential of board games, as guided activities in a design process involving play
and negotiation, to facilitate discourse, specifically, indigenous concerns involving
stakeholders with varying degrees of familiarity and engagement with a particular
topic. In this study, design games are to be seen as distinct from regular games in that
they are used as tools in a design process, particularly as “a way of understanding
and/or organizing participation” (Brandt, 2006).

Play: Setting out the Board
This study came about as the result of early secondary research into the theory of
play, manifested as an attempt to generate methodologies that foster a greater sense
of play and exploration in design research. As Rand states:

A problem with defined limits, with an implied or stated discipline (system of
rules) that in turn is conducive to the instinct of play, will most likely yield an
interested student and, very often, a meaningful and novel solution. (Rand,
1965)

In other words, play is conducive to engaged participants and generative, exploratory
insights and outcomes. Rand (1965) suggests that the exploratory nature of play
allows participants to put aside preconceived expectations, conventions and
understandings. In order to foster these desired qualities in a design research
methodology I chose to work with board games, as these are inherently conducive to
fostering play. This research was conducted primarily through a qualitative analysis of
elements of popular board games, in an attempt to draw out some of the tacit, formal
and symbolic meanings embedded within.

Symbols: Drawing out the Tacit
Modern board games, many of which have their roots in indigenous and non-western
cultures and were subsequently naturalized by modernity/coloniality (see Side Note
4), are loaded with symbols and cultural expectations rooted in universalist notions
and interpretations of the world.

Decolonizing design, then, requires problematizing the affective and
conceptual operations that form the basis of our relations with the world, and
questioning the essentialist or instrumentalist approaches that have been
naturalized previously. (Tlostanova, 2017)

38

Side note 4. The colonization of board games.
The recorded histories of popular board games
are fragmented and largely anecdotal however
there are a few whose histories are more
widely known. According to Wikipedio, the
popular game 'Snakes and Ladders' originated
in India and was known as 'Moksha Patam' and
associated with traditionl Hindu philosophy
contrasting destiny and desire. When the game
was introduced to England it was interpreted to
better reflect Victorian doctrines of morality.
Snakes and Ladders. Retrieved from: https://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snakes_and_Ladders

Unpacking some of the symbolic language of board games was the key focus of this
study. I hoped that by teasing out some of these tacit meanings and expectations
embedded in the elements of board games, I would gain insights into how they
might be carefully used to support development of a board game as a decolonised
conversation organizing design tool. To do this I needed to uncover some of the
colonial, universalist interpretations embedded within the board games, so that
they might be provincialized, allowing them to exist only "in the form of relation"
(Tlostanova, 2017). The influence of these symbolic elements on the players who
participate in play cannot be overstated, as discovered by researcher Mary Flanagan
(2009) in her study on the effects of board games on players. Her research found that
when playing a gender bias board game, players were better at seeing things from
someone else's perspective but only if the game used "embedded" design, rather
than relying on overt messaging.

Emergent, Reflective Practice
The extent of the research methodology used to carry out this activity, consisted of
building a photographic inventory of commonly available board game pieces. The
images in this photographic inventory were then digitally annotated over (see. Fig.
13, 14) using a tablet and stylus. This was originally derived from the "Picture Cards"
design research method described in "Universal Methods of Design" by Martin &
Hanington (2012):

Picture Cards stem from activity theory, which holds that, "the human mind
is the product of our interaction with people and artifacts in the context of
everyday activity." (Martin, Hanington, 2012)

The Picture Card method consists of using images to encourage participants to recall
stories and evoke conversations, and it was this aspect which became the inspiration
for the method which emerged from this study. This method involved applying
annotations to identify and articulate symbolic meanings associated with board game
pieces, a starting point from which pathways to eliciting further understanding may
emerge.

Insights and content generated through this activity were intended to serve primarily
as inspirational reference material for the construction of design games. However,
as this was structured as an exploratory process, it created space for unexpected
outcomes to emerge. I will discuss the key takeaways from this process in the
remainder of this section.

Fig. 15 Annotation Process

39

As the annotation process was completed digitally, using hardware and software that
compiled all strokes of the stylus into a video which could be played back at any time,
it becomes possible to leave the annotation work, and the thoughts that drive it in
an incomplete state, for hours, days or sometimes weeks and then return to retrace
the prior annotation process, simultaneously potentiating and then continuing the
annotation and the thoughts that drive it from where they were left. However, each
new annotation session creates its own driving thought process, necessitated by
the passage of time between sessions, nesting, stacking, surrounding the previous
thoughts and annotation works in a recursive pattern.

Annotation as Recursive Reflection
The annotation method described in the previous section, could be applied to any
exploratory process involved in drawing out tacit knowledge.. This section describes

Emergent Reflective Synthesis

in more detail the ways in which this annotation methodology works to synthesise
intuitions, preconceptions, reactions and interpretations of knowledge, emotions and
world-views. It is based on an understanding of learning as experiential and design
as an ontological process. This process synthesizes the past, present, inner and outer,
and works to draw out that which emerges when we allow these the space and time
to intersect.

Intuition

Preconception

Interpretation

Reaction

The process described here arose as an unexpected consequence of engaging
in exploratory studio design research. The diagram in Fig. 17 visualizes how the
annotation methodology which emerged from this study works to create a generative
space for reflective synthesis in a design process. The elements of this methodology
are described in greater detail below:

Reaction
What you see
- Responding instinctively to different interacting elements of the images

Preconception
Past knowledge
- Drawing upon your own preconceived notions and lived experiences

Interpretation
Future knowledge
- Interpreting external input and experiences into the annotation process

Intuition
What you feel
- Drawing out ill-defined feelings and emotional responses to the images

40

Fig. 16 Emergent Reflective Synthesis diagram

Board Games: Decolonizing Tools for Organizing
Conversations
This study, through a reflective, generative design research process, explored
the symbolic language of board games. The research process necessitated the
development of the Emergent Reflective Synthesis annotation methodology which
can be used to draw out tacit knowledge, synthesising the past, present, inner and
outer. I suggest that this methodology may be successful as a starting point for
creating options for design research, outside the frame of modernity/coloniality. As
Tlostanova (2017) states “In Amerindian tempo local model the past is in front of us,
rather than behind…It is a temporality that we know, in contrast with the unknown
future”, it is in this contrasting and comparing of the old with the unknown, neither
less important than the other, that alternative patterns emerge.
Decolonial design, then, would not be a mere tool of modelling the
environment so that it can model the human being. Rather, it would be a
creative and dynamic reflection and realization of the people's needs wishes
and longings, which would be inevitably linked to the local cosmologies, ethics
and systems of knowledge seen not as the dead and museumized past.. ..but
as a living and breathing present and a promise for the future. (Tlostanova,
2017)
Tlostanova speaks to a a discourse of relationality, reciprocity and ethics in design,
an important anchor of most indigenous communities, including Māori. The
methodology developed here echoes this sentiment and strives to create space for
marginalized world-views to re-emerge and take hold in design research processes
involving indigenous peoples.
Board games, with their rich and varied lexicons of symbolic language, provided a
fertile exploratory space for this research Further study, building on what has been
learned here, is vital to developing open play spaces for the important conversations
still to be had. Understanding the elements of board games through the four modes
described here, past, present, inner and outer, is a crucial prerequisite if we are to
create decolonial creative spaces.
In her paper 'Decolonization as Care', Uzma Rizvi (2016) discusses examples of how
simple changes in the classroom can have large impacts on changing the dynamics

Change can be quite
simple. In the world of
right-handed desks in
schools, a decolonized
pedagogy and are
would mean that as
an educator, you might
think about a lefthanded person and
request left-handed
desks to be brought into
your classroom. (Rizvi,
2016)

imposed by modernity/coloniality. Her example of the left-handed desks is one
example of what may arise out of the conversations undertaken in these decolonial
creative spaces. Decolonization as an approach can be taken both externally by the
designer, or as in this example, internally by the students and teachers themselves.
The propositions of this thesis aim to provide starting points for both the designer
as facilitator, through the use of board games, and also the educator as facilitator,
through the cultural probes and board games.

41

Conclusion
This thesis explored the role of including indigenous ways of knowing in guiding
the design of decolonial learning experiences and design research methodologies.
A series of exploratory, generative, reflective activities were conducted in order to
facilitate a deep and broad research process. Grades 5-6 students contributed to
a design research process through participatory design methods, supported and
extended by generative studio research. This research generated insights which may
play a role in designing future classroom pedagogy and curriculum. It has identified
a need for curriculum to place more emphasis on identity development and social
learning, through the use of tools which promote a reflective, participatory, space
open for playful knowledge production. From this research, it is clear that there is a
need for further research to be done, from an outside perspective, on how to better
include voices from the margins in design research processes. This thesis suggests a
methodology for design research, grounded in indigenous principles and sensibilities,
which may support in furthering this initiative.

This research suggests that there is a need for pedagogical changes in the NZ public
school system. There is space for development of a more holistic learning experience
for students, which places them as active participants in their own learning. It also
resulted in design research tools and methods which are designed to intervene in
the ways in which we interact within time and space, to create more time for deeper
reflective practice and to create spaces were participants can feel safe to step outside
their conventions and engage in meaningful conversations.

I hope that this research is able to have a positive impact on both the participants
and those who follow them through the education system in NZ. Hopefully it may
also provide a starting point for future development of inclusive, alternative options
grounded in reciprocity, for design practitioners and researchers. This research is a
small contribution to improving the lives of Maori, other indigenous peoples, and all
people. The work started here will be carried forward, inspiring and driving my future
design work.
Ngā mihi,
Jordache MacKenzie

42

Despite the size of the task
before us, tino rangatiratanga
(self-determination) will only
be achieved by our collective
contributions. We must have
the courage to remember the
taonga of tūpuna (gifts of our
ancestors) and the legacy of
those who have gone before to
reclaim and create spaces for
self-belief as people.
			
			(Lee-Morgan, 2015)

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List of Figures
Figure 1. River in the Central North Island of New Zealand. Oceans, lakes, rivers, mountains and other natural
landmarks are fundamental to our identity as Māori - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2017
Figure 2. Theoretical Framework diagram - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2017
Figure 3. Research Process diagram “Te Ara o te Rangahau” - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2018
Figure 4. Whakapapa prototyping for participatory design activity- Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2017
Figure 5. Participant using participatory design research tool - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2017
Figure 6. Whakapapa research activity participant outcomes - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2017
Figure 7. Studio based research exploring intuitive responses to physical boundaries - Source: Shruti 		
Gupta, 2017
Figure 8. Students working on cultural probe activities during participatory research sessions at Tongariro 		
School. Turangi, NZ - Source: Angela Devonshire, 2017
Figure 9. Action Research Cycle - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2018
Figure 10. Students at Tongariro School completing cultural probe activities - Source: Angela Devonshire, 2017
Figure 11. Excerpt from cultural probe illustrating storytelling activity asking students to share stories of their
local environment - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2018
Figure 12. Drawing of Lake Taupo , New Zealand created as part of the “Ko Tongariro Te...” probe activity asking
participants to draw a local geographical feature and tell a story about it - Source: Jordache 		
Mackenzie, 2018
Figure 13. Participant feedback from cultural probe research activities at Tongariro School - Source: Jordache
Mackenzie, 2018
Figure 14. Annotated Board Game piece, part of a series of annotated images created during a reflective 		
investigation into the elements of board games - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2017
Figure 15. Annotation Process - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2017
Figure 16. Emergent Reflective Synthesis diagram - Source: Jordache Mackenzie, 2018

46

Appendix
Appendix A - Cultural Probe Booklet

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Appendix B- Annotated Board Games

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Appendix C - TCPS2 Ethics Certification

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Appendix D - Tongariro School Framework for Learning

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