Dr Kane Meissel
MSc(Psych, 1st class hons); PhD(Education)
Biography
Dr Kane Meissel is a Senior Lecturer in Educational Psychology in the School of Learning, Development and Professional Practice, in the Faculty of Education and Social Work. Kane’s research focuses on the use of advanced quantitative methodologies to identify and reduce educational disparities, as well as promote equity and social justice for traditionally marginalised learners. A particular focus of Kane's research is the identification of specific factors that relate to resilience among under-served learner groups.
Research | Current
In addition to Kane's wider research platform, Kane is the Education Domain lead investigator for Growing Up in New Zealand, a major, multi-disciplinary longitudinal study following almost 7000 New Zealand children from before birth through to adulthood. The study participants reflect the contemporary diversity of Aotearoa New Zealand, and is designed to provide unique, detailed information about what shapes children and young people's early development, and aims to improve the lives of all New Zealand’s children by providing insight into how interventions can be targeted at the earliest opportunity to give every child the best start in life.
Teaching | Current
EDUC 323: Contemporary topics in Educational Psychology
This course helps students learn to:
- Engage and think critically about contemporary research in educational psychology
- Recognise faulty reasoning and fallacious logic (i.e. fake news!)
- Evaluate credibility and bias within published research
- Compare and contrast differing points of view within research in educational psychology
EDUC 741: Educational Psychology
This course facilitates critical engagement with current research in educational psychology. Students will develop a deeper understanding of how cognitive, motivational and social factors relate to student learning and outcomes. Students are encouraged to discuss and draw connections with implications for classroom practice, as well as wider social implications (no teaching experience is required).
The assessments are designed to provide a highly scaffolded taste of the process of conducting research in educational psychology, helping to prepare you for independent study.
Teaching | Previous
- PSYCH 109 Mind, Brain and Behaviour
- PSYCH 204 Social Psychology
- PSYCH 208 Producing Psychological Knowledge
- PSYCH 319 Psychology and Gender
- PSYCH 322 Industrial, Work and Organisational Psychology
- PSYCH 326 Lifespan Development
- EDUC 117 Teaching and Learning: An Educational Psychological Perspective
- EDUC 342 Educational Psychology: A behavioural approach
- EDUC 352 Adolescence
- EDUC 747 Issues in Adolescent Development
Postgraduate supervision
I supervise in a range of areas across Educational Psychology, with a particular interest in supervising students utilising advanced quantitative methodologies to address equity-related questions within the Educational sector. I am especially interested in hearing from prospective doctoral students interested in working with the Growing Up in New Zealand data, but please note that I am not accepting new students until February 2021.
Students are currently around 9 years old, so the focus is currently mainly on measures of early childhood outcomes and the transition to primary school through to age 8. Possible topics include:
- How does language exposure (e.g. bilingualism) relate to socio-emotional and cognitive development as well as school readiness?
- How satisfied are parents with the skills developed by ECE providers and how does this relate to perceived school readiness?
In Progress
Degree |
Enrolled |
Projected Completion |
Name of Student |
Thesis title |
PhD |
2013 |
2017 |
Rajshree Krishnan |
Teacher expectations and student perceptions of mature-aged students in three faculties |
PhD |
2014 |
2018 |
Shengnan Wang |
A longitudinal study on teacher expectation: its stability and impact on student achievement |
PhD |
2016 |
2019 |
Esther Yao |
Variability in the perceptions and manifestations of adolescent depression. |
PhD |
2017 |
2020 |
Katy Perry |
Introducing digital assessment into New Zealand secondary schools – an exploration of its use and impact. |
PhD |
2017 |
2020 |
Anran Zhao |
What made PISA outcomes different? A comparison of socioeconomic status, curriculum and students' motivation between New Zealand and China (Shanghai). |
PhD |
2017 |
2020 |
Kirsten Sharman |
The role of infant-directing singing in language acquisition of New Zealand children. |
MEd |
2018 |
2019 |
Shaheena Sulaiman |
Parent-child interactions and early language and literacy development in bilingual children growing up in New Zealand. |
PhD |
2018 |
2021 |
Idoya Munn |
Identification of Twice-Exceptional Students in NZ: Finding our Way. |
Completed
Degree |
Enrolled |
Completed |
Name of Student |
Thesis title |
MEd |
2014 |
2014 |
Jennifer Supeck |
Measuring levels of student engagement in the New Zealand intermediate school mathematics classroom and the implications for raising student achievement. |
MEd |
2014 |
2015 |
Chao Zheng |
A Comparative Study of Foreign Language Anxiety of Chinese First Year College Students in China and Those Learning in New Zealand |
MEd |
2015 |
2015 |
Sinead Wilson |
Parent and teacher interactional styles and children’s relationships with peers. |
MA |
2015 |
2016 |
Sukriti Bhatnagar |
Defining 'evidence-based' programmes in New Zealand educational and youth mentoring sectors. |
MPSt |
2016 |
2016 |
Idoya Munn |
Teachers and Twice-exceptional Students in New Zealand: The Search for a Teacher Who “Gets It” . |
PhD |
2009 |
2016 |
Nane Rio |
Teacher expectations and ethnicity: Student and teacher perspectives |
MA |
2016 |
2016 |
Zoe Klomp |
The influence of NCEA testing on teacher creativity and lesson planning. |
MEd |
2017 |
2018 |
Jonghyun Jun |
Parental decision-making about early childhood education. |
Distinctions/Honours
Faculty of Education and Social Work Early Career Teaching Excellence Award 2017
UKLA Wiley Research in Literacy Education award for Best Paper 2018
Responsibilities
- School of Learning, Development and Professional Practice Postgraduate Committee
- Postgraduate Research Approvals and Examinations Subcommittee
- Affiliate of Quant-DARE
- Faculty Staff-Student Consultative Committee
Selected publications and creative works (Research Outputs)
- Meissel, K., Peterson, E., Thomas, S., & Murray, S. (2019). Intentions and decisions about early childhood education: Understanding the determinants and dynamics of households’ early intentions and decisions about ECE and childcare from birth to age two. Wellington, NZ: Ministry of Social Development. Related URL.
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2292/46500
Other University of Auckland co-authors: Elizabeth Peterson - Wang, S., Rubie-Davies, C., & Meissel, K. (2019). Instructional practices and classroom interactions of high and low expectation teachers in China. Social Psychology of Education10.1007/s11218-019-09507-4
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2292/48463
Other University of Auckland co-authors: Christine Rubie-Davies, Shengnan Wang - Bullen, P., Deane, K. L., Meissel, K., & Bhatnagar, S. (2019). What constitutes globalised evidence? Cultural tensions and critical reflections of the evidence-based movement in New Zealand. International Journal of Psychology10.1002/ijop.12574
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2292/47117
Other University of Auckland co-authors: Kelsey Deane, Pat Bullen - Davies, M. J., & Meissel, K. (2018). Secondary Students Use of Dialogical Discussion Practices to Foster Greater Interaction. New Zealand Journal of Educational Studies, 53 (2), 209-225. 10.1007/s40841-018-0119-2
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2292/46255
Other University of Auckland co-authors: Maree Davies - Morton, S. M. B., Grant, C. C., Walker, C. G., Berry, S. D., Meissel, K., Ly, K., ... Wilson, S. (2018). Growing up in New Zealand: A longitudinal study of New Zealand children and their families. Transition to school. Auckland, New Zealand: Growing Up in New Zealand. Related URL.
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2292/43140
Other University of Auckland co-authors: Susan Morton, Cameron Grant, Caroline Walker, Emma Marks, Lisa Underwood, Jacinta Fa'alili-Fidow, Avinesh Pillai - Wang, S., Rubie-Davies, C. M., & Meissel, K. (2018). A systematic review of the teacher expectation literature over the past 30 years. EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH AND EVALUATION, 24 (3-5), 124-179. 10.1080/13803611.2018.1548798
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2292/46095
Other University of Auckland co-authors: Christine Rubie-Davies, Shengnan Wang - Davies, M., Kiemer, K., & Meissel, K. (2017). Quality Talk and dialogic teaching: An examination of a professional development programme on secondary teachers' facilitation of student talk. British Educational Research Journal, 43 (5), 968-987. 10.1002/berj.3293
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2292/44473
Other University of Auckland co-authors: Maree Davies - Meissel, K., Meyer, F., Yao, E. S., & Rubie-Davies, C. M. (2017). Subjectivity of teacher judgments: Exploring student characteristics that influence teacher judgments of student ability. Teaching and Teacher Education, 65, 48-60. 10.1016/j.tate.2017.02.021
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2292/33824
Other University of Auckland co-authors: Esther Yao, Frauke Meyer, Christine Rubie-Davies
Identifiers
Contact details
Primary office location
H - BLOCK. EPSOM - Bldg 6EH
Level 4, Room 405
EPSOM CAMPUS 74 EPSOM AVE
EPSOM
AUCKLAND 1023
New Zealand