View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Research Commons@Waikato http://waikato.researchgateway.ac.nz/ Research Commons at the University of Waikato Copyright Statement: The digital copy of this thesis is protected by the Copyright Act 1994 (New Zealand). The thesis may be consulted by you, provided you comply with the provisions of the Act and the following conditions of use: Any use you make of these documents or images must be for research or private study purposes only, and you may not make them available to any other person. Authors control the copyright of their thesis. You will recognise the author’s right to be identified as the author of the thesis, and due acknowledgement will be made to the author where appropriate. You will obtain the author’s permission before publishing any material from the thesis. CULT ON THE RISE? STUDENTS’ PERSPECTIVES ON CULT ISSUES IN SECONDARY AND NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOLS IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Of Master of Education By Judy Tatu Drawii Hamilton New Zealand 2008 i ABSTRACT In the last five years there has been a dramatic increase in perceived levels of antisocial behaviour amongst students in Secondary and National High schools in Papua New Guinea. Certain events have caught the public’s attention, such as the burning down of school buildings and reports of Satanic worship. Despite widespread concern, there seems to be little understanding of why such problems are occurring and no systematic studies to estimate the exact extent of such behaviours or their underlying cause. The main objective of this study was to collect information about the students’ perspectives on the nature and extent of these perceived problems. For ethical reasons, and with regard to ease of access to participants within the time frame of the study, data were collected from the first year student teachers at Madang Teachers’ College, Papua New Guinea, who had been Secondary/National High school students only a few months previously. As this was an exploratory investigation, and it was not known whether participants would feel more at ease talking one-on-one with the researcher or in groups, two methodologies were used: focus group discussions and individual interviews. The research was conducted over a period of three weeks in June 2007, and involved a total of 21 participants (three focus groups of five, five and six people respectively, and six individual interviewees, one of whom also joined a group). The main findings to emerge from these discussions were as follows. First, the participants explained their own and other students' behaviour in terms of exploring old and new traditions of school life. Second, although several participants reported knowledge of supernatural practices, many of the group activities described in the discussions were normal activities among peer cliques that provided a sense of belonging and positive support for school achievement. There were no major differences in the stories told by male and female participants, and no obvious differences in the type of information provided under different research conditions. ii There was some disagreement among participants as to whether or not school authorities should take strong action to eliminate the possibility of cult practices. The findings are interpreted with reference to both Western psychological ideas about the nature of adolescence, and to local traditions, practices, and understandings of lifespan development. In particular, the notion of "searching for identity" stands out in these accounts of student behaviour. This was an exploratory study and not designed to yield results that provide an overall picture of the situation in the Secondary/National High schools of Papua New Guinea. Nevertheless, participants’ reports did relate to events experienced in the majority of PNG Secondary and National High schools, and some recommendations are tentatively offered. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are many people to whom I owe thanks. First and foremost, very special and heartfelt thank you to Associate Professor Dr. Monica Payne for her invaluable help, advice and endless support throughout the course of this study up to the very end. Without her this thesis would never be completed. I would like to extend my special thanks to Vin Glynn for her generous assistance in helping with the language and editing. I would like to thank the Provincial Education Advisor (Mr Chris. Bulu) for allowing me to carry out my study in Madang Province. I would like to thank the Principal of Madang Teachers College for allowing me to use the first year student teachers and the college facilities for collecting my data. Thank you to Mrs Borah Elias for doing the initial arrangement of participants. My big thank you goes to all the first year student teachers who willingly participated in the interviews. I would like to thank NZAID Scholarship for providing this great opportunity for my children and me to study in New Zealand. We would not be here with out this support. I would also like to thank Bev Price for her administrative assistance and personal support throughout this period of study. Thank you to Doug Tennent for his encouragement, unlimited help and support and for taking my children and me around to see some of the beautiful scenery in NZ. I would like to thank the following people for taking extra responsibility of looking after my daughters while I was in PNG collecting my data: Martha Enderwick and Marian Panettiere, for checking, taking them out on weekends and making sure all is well; Sue Malcolm for making sure there was an extra fund to help pay for the hostel fees. I would like to thank my husband Raphael for making me come to NZ that I was able to stay on to study. Finally I would like to thank my three daughters Hazel, Joylyn, and Charlotte for having faith in me and for the patience and love they showed throughout this difficult journey. I dedicate this thesis to my three daughters. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................. iv CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Background to the Study ..................................................................................... 1 The Purpose of the Research ............................................................................... 3 Research Questions ............................................................................................. 3 Significance of the Research ............................................................................... 4 The Format of the Report .................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW The Western Story of Adolescence ..................................................................... 5 Adolescents in Non-Western Societies ............................................................. 29 CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY Research Objectives and Choice of Target Population ..................................... 42 Research Design ................................................................................................ 43 The Research Setting and Conduct of the Study............................................... 46 Preliminary Data Analysis ................................................................................ 51 CHAPTER 4 RESULTS Format for Presentation of Results.................................................................... 52 Encountering Cult ............................................................................................. 53 The Nature of Cult ............................................................................................ 57 The Function of Cult ......................................................................................... 62 v Adult Perspectives on Cult ................................................................................ 66 Involvement in Cult and Helping Others in the Future ..................................... 76 CHAPTER 5 DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS “Cult” in Secondary and National High Schools: The students’ Perspective ... 77 “Cult” in Secondary and National High Schools: Adult Perspectives .............. 84 Conclusions and Recommendations ................................................................. 87 REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………….91 APPENDIX A LETTER TO THE PROVINCIAL EDUCATION ADVISOR ........................ 98 APPENDIX B LETTER TO THE COLLEGE PRINCIPAL .................................................... 99 APPENDIX C INFORMATION SHEET ............................................................................... 100 APPENDIX D PARTICIPANTS CONSENT FORM ............................................................. 101 APPENDIX E FOCUS GROUP INTERVIEW QUESTIONS ............................................... 102 APPENDIX F vi INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS .................................................. 104 APPENDIX G PARTICIPANTS DETAILS…………………….…………………………...106 vii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Background to the Study In Papua New Guinea in 1994 a major reform in education took place, making significant changes to the structure of the education system and to the curriculum. The reforms were intended to encourage students who did very well in the internal and