Tobias McRae
Initial Teacher Education candidate, builder of educational tools, learner of mātauranga Māori
Tēnā koe
Welcome to my professional teaching portfolio. I am a provisional teacher currently completing the Graduate Diploma in Teaching (Secondary) at the University of Auckland. My teaching areas are Social Studies and Digital Technologies.
Across 2024 and 2025 I taught Year 8 homeroom and Social Studies at Mangakōtukutuku College in Kirikiriroa (commuting from Raglan) under a Limited Authority to Teach — taking responsibility for a class at a school facing an acute staffing crisis. In my first year, my students' literacy achievement rose by more than a stanine in approximately half a year. Over that time I built Te Kete Ako — this platform — as a curriculum development and resource-sharing tool for New Zealand educators. That year taught me what it means to show up for students, the depth of mātauranga Māori I am still working to acquire, and my own capacity and limits as a beginning teacher.
In 2026 I am enrolled at Waipapa Taumata Rau (University of Auckland) in the EDPROFST 614A/B course sequence — The Inquiring Professional. I have completed the CIA (Curriculum Inquiry Assignment) and my academic coursework with strong results. My practicum placements remain outstanding — not through any withdrawal or refusal on my part, but because a placement was not arranged. This portfolio documents that journey honestly, and foregrounds the classroom teaching and impact I have gained under an LAT.
Venture & Business
Te Kete Ako — Venture Overview
The business case for Aotearoa's curriculum intelligence platform — pitch, market analysis, financial projections, and grant funding arc.
→ Archived · May 2026 · UoAIdeas Challenge entry
The 1,000-word entry written for the Velocity Ideas Challenge in May — Arts & Education Prize and Kura Roa Award categories. Kept as a record; the current case is at /venture.
→ Business Plan · 2026Full Business Plan
Lean canvas, competitive analysis, 3-year financial projections, and the full grant funding pipeline from Velocity to NZTE.
→Portfolio Sections
Standards for the Teaching Profession
How the evidence in this portfolio maps to all six Standards — drawn from a full year of LAT classroom teaching and my ITE coursework. The honest answer to "does this candidate meet the Standards?"
→PLD Goals
2025 professional learning and development goals — with honest reflections on what worked, what didn't, and what I'm carrying into 2026.
→Professional Learning
Workshops, PD sessions, marae visits, self-study in te reo Māori, and course work at UoA in 2026.
→Observations & Feedback
Mentor teacher observations, associate/professional supervisor feedback, and critical self-reflections from practicum.
→Evidence Collection
Artefacts, documentation, and teaching resources showing curriculum development and classroom practice.
→Student Impact
Student achievement data, work samples, voice, and evidence of learning progression over time.
→Placement — Fraser
Practicum Hub — plans, forms, evidence and reflections
The one page for my associate teacher and visiting lecturer: every lesson plan on the EDPRAC 612 template, the observation and formative sheets, the teaching log, the structured daily reflections (what went well · what went less well · where to next), and Monday's lessons — the Year 9 WW1 perspectives deck and Evidence Bank, and Year 10 "Sing it in English".
→ AS92006 · Digital Technologies 1.3 · Level 1 · 5 credits · ExternalHuman-Computer Interaction — Unit Hub
Teaching CSC1 from Task 6 onward. Anchored against the verified achievement standard, its A/M/E ladder, and its own named usability-principle categories — Nielsen's heuristics, mātāpono Māori, and accessibility.
→ Task 6Confusing Terms — Prevention vs. Recovery, Flexibility vs. Control
Full lesson plan with a reasoned answer key for the two confusable heuristic pairs, plus a modelled Google Classroom evaluation.
→ Year 9 · Social Sciences · 174-slide classroom deckWorld War One & National Identity — Unit Evidence Hub
A six-phase inquiry from Europe in 1914 through contested participation, total war, peace-making, aftermath and memory. The portfolio hub links the complete deck, twelve teaching blocks, student resources, assessment and kaiako guidance.
→ Year 10 · Social Studies · 8 lessonsRights, Resistance & Māori Resurgence in Aotearoa
Human and civil rights in the Aotearoa context, picking up where the American and UN material leaves off: Ngā Tamatoa and the 1972 te reo petition, the 1975 Land March, Takaparawhau, the 1981 Springbok Tour, and the turn from protest into institutions. The US Civil Rights Movement appears only as brief background for comparison — Māori resurgence is not framed as New Zealand’s version of it. The spine keeps human, civil, Indigenous, Te Tiriti and tino rangatiratanga rights distinct.
→Assignments & Academic Work
Class Newsletters — Year 9 Digital Technologies
Three whānau-facing newsletters for three Year 9 Digital Tech classes, one per strand specialisation (computational thinking, DDDO, physical computing). Hand-built print-ready HTML with NZC technological-areas diagrams and Careers NZ QR pathways.
40/45 · 89% · A → EDCURSEC 692 · Assignment 1 · 30%Lesson Design — Rights & Participation in Aotearoa
Three-lesson Social Studies sequence for Year 9. NZC Level 4 Political Literacy. Rangatiratanga as a live analytical lens throughout. Includes designed resource and ~500w justification.
80% · A- → EDCURSEC 692 · Assignment 2Assessment Design: Design Your Own Society
A Years 9–10 Social Studies group presentation assessment where students research real-world governance models, design a functioning society, and justify their choices. Includes task brief, NZC curriculum alignment, society design blueprint, and a standards-based assessment schedule.
28/30 · 93.3% · A+ → EDPROFST 614 · CIA Part 1Student Engagement — Literature Review
How can I engage the learners in my classroom? A scholarly essay drawing on Te Kotahitanga, Alton-Lee's BES, and Webber's identity research. ~1050 words.
19.5/20 · 97.5% · A+ → EDPROFST 614 · CIA Part 2Inquiry Portfolio & Reflections
Reflective inquiry on student engagement strategies at Mangakōtukutuku College, evidenced by peer/mentor observations and pseudonymised student work. ~1030 words.
18.5/20 · 92.5% · A+ → EDPROFST 614 · CIA Part 4 · due 25 OctPresentation of My Inquiry
Working hub for the culminating presentation: rubric-to-plan mapping, Ngā Paerewa scaffold, 16-slide outline, 1,780-word script budget, and the evidence checklist feeding both.
🚧 In preparation · 40 pts → EDCURSEC 691 · A2 · due 27 SepIncorporating Digital Technologies
Design and apply a subject-specific core practice with digital technologies to develop PCK — scaffold, grade schedule, TPACK framing, and the AI-permission gate that comes first.
🚧 In preparation · 45 pts (45%) → EDUC 603 · Course Reflection · due 9 OctEducation & Society — Course Reflection
One piece of educational writing, read reflectively: what it reveals about education and society, and where I stand. Selection scaffold + 800-word budget.
🚧 In preparation · 50 pts → EDCURSEC 691 · A3 · due 18 OctActive Participation & Reflection
Showing active participation across the course — collation hub so the evidence gathers itself as the semester runs.
🚧 Collating · 10 pts → EDPROFM 600 · Critical Essay · due 23 OctEducational Success as Māori
Researched essay (1,500 w) plus reflection (750 w) on enabling Māori learners to achieve success as Māori — topic choice, source register, and the counting rules for scholarly vs grey literature.
🚧 In preparation · 40 pts (40%) → EDCURSEC 692 · A3 · due 23 OctLearning Area Inquiry
A curriculum, assessment or pedagogy challenge in my learning area — theory and practice connected in a 10-minute video. Topic shortlist matched to evidence I already hold.
🚧 In preparation · 40 pts (40%) → EDPROFST 613 · Ecological MapBronfenbrenner Eco-map
Interactive ecological systems map exploring the contextual factors that shape my teaching identity and professional context.
86.5% · A → EDPROFST 613 · Narrative Discussion — 60ptsMotivation & Engagement — Narrative Discussion
A narrative discussion drawing on two adolescent participant interviews, analysed through self-determination theory, expectancy-value theory, and attribution theory. ~1480 words.
50/60 · 83.3% · A- → EDPROFST 613 · Collegial Discussion — 20ptsKōrero Ngaio — Collegial Discussion
Professional collegial kōrero with Vidya Ram (Year 8 LF) exploring ākonga engagement, literacy across the curriculum, and cross-curricular learning at Auckland Zoo.
20/20 · 100% · A+ → EDPROFM 600 · Resource Investigation — 40ptsMāori Resource Investigation — Wayfinding
A Māori resource pack for new teachers: kāpehu whetū, waka hourua and the revival of traditional navigation — five verified authoritative resources and three Year 9–10 learning experiences anchored on Te Kete Ako.
38/40 · 95% · A+ → EDUC 603 · Film Analysis — 50ptsFilm Analysis — Two Cars, One Night
An 800-word analysis of Taika Waititi's 2003 short film as a text for teaching. Examines the film through Dalton's Hollywood Model, Freire's banking education critique, and Bishop & Berryman's Te Kotahitanga framework. ~840 words.
50/50 · 100% · A+ → Posting 1 of 4CALD Learners — Lecture Reflection
A critically reflective response to Constanza Tolosa's materials on culturally and linguistically diverse learners, exploring BICS/CALP and Social Studies strategies. ~460 words.
5/5 · 100% · A+ → Posting 2 of 4Historical Significance & Changed Perceptions
A reflective response to Graeme Ball's presentation on the ANZH curriculum, the "lottery" of historical knowledge in NZ schools, and placing Te Tiriti at the centre of history teaching. ~370 words.
5/5 · 100% · A+ → Posting 3 of 4Literacy Strategies — Lecture Reflection
A critically reflective response to Aaron Wilson's lecture, focusing on disciplinary literacy, cognitive load, and scaffolding in Social Studies. 474 words.
5/5 · 100% · A+ → Posting 4 of 4Pacific Learners — Lecture Reflection
A critically reflective response to Tanya Samu's lecture on supporting Pacific learners — deficit thinking, identity complexity, and Tapasā as a framework for practice. ~480 words.
5/5 · 100% · A+ → Posting 5Assessment — Lecture Reflection
A critically reflective response to Gavin Brown's assessment lectures — validity, verifiable evidence, marker reliability, and the 2026 Year 9–10 assessment changes. ~505 words.
5/5 · 100% · A+ →CV, Profile & Core Documents
ITE Programme Context
University of Auckland ITE
EDPROFST 614A/B — The Inquiring Professional. My current programme context, course structure, and key readings.
→ITE Programmes Compared
Comparative overview of all NZ Initial Teacher Education providers — useful context for my own programme choices.
→Critical Reflection Module
Notes and resources from the pedagogical module on critical reflection — core to the CIA inquiry cycle.
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