This teaching tool provides a reliable, easy-to-deliver, easy-to-understand and easy-to-remember learning experience which highlights two main points:
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that people have different kinds of knowledge from different viewpoints and
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that individuals and groups have different realities.
This tool doesn't address issues of power, but we sometimes incorporate it by telling the true story of students who challenge ‘resubmit’ or ‘fail’ assessments on the grounds that their work might not appear acceptable to the tutor but from the student’s viewpoint it is. After acknowledging their good application of the model, we introduce a discussion of power, which, amongst other things, emphasises that there are realities other than the ones being assessed. For students from non-dominant cultural groups, this is very important.
The Wave: A Good Practice Guide provides a more detailed account of the Wave and how to use it. It was written by AWEA with a Good Practice grant from AKO Aotearoa in 2009.