Helping extraordinary teachers

Grow extraordinary people

Me mahi tātou kia kaha te iwi

WHO WE ARE

We provide professional learning and development in a wide range of subjects, using Kagan Cooperative Learning Structures to: create safe and inclusive learning environments; utilise dialogic, relational, multi-modal learning; ensure full student engagement with high levels of equity; increase student achievement; and teach & apply interpersonal & communication skills.

Helping teachers achieve extraordinary outcomes to produce extraordinary future citizens is our fundamental driving force.

OUR WHAKATAUKI

Me mahi tātou kia kaha te iwi

When we work together, everyone benefits. Together we grow stronger and improve far beyond what we would achieve on our own. As you explore this site, you will see that Kagan Cooperative Learning, Ako Mahi Tahi, is much more than standard cooperative learning.

Our Vision

Our vision at Kagan NZ is that every learner leaves school with key academic and interpersonal skills, core values, self-confidence, and resilience, enabling them to be connected and valued members of their communities.

Our Mission

Our mission is to grow extraordinary future citizens of New Zealand through supporting schools to achieve extraordinary student outcomes.

What exactly is Kagan?

Kagan is a comprehensive term that includes a diverse array of educational aspects, all connected to the ground-breaking concept formulated by Dr. Spencer Kagan (right - with Jennie Moore, Kagan NZ).

This multi-faceted concept comprises pedagogy, methodology, classroom practices, resources and professional development, all aimed at fostering an interactive and engaging learning environment.

Through the implementation of Kagan Cooperative Learning, educators can unlock the full potential of their students, facilitating meaningful interactions, and the acquisition of essential life skills, in a safe and inclusive environment.

“I’m interviewing teachers, and they say Kagan has changed their lives.”

— Principal, Intermediate School, Manawatu

Quick Links

  • “The power of Kagan Structures is that they distil the best of educational theory and research into very specific, easy-to-use teaching strategies.”

    Dr. Spencer Kagan (Kagan Cooperative Learning)

  • "Cooperative Learning is an educator's dream: It gives us an incredible amount of leverage....it is the properly placed lever in any classroom."

    Dr. Spencer Kagan

  • "Of all classroom grouping strategies, cooperative learning may be the most flexible and powerful."

    Marzano, Pickering & Pollock (Classroom Instruction that Works)

  • "...culturally responsive, relationship based pedagogy...methods include...co-operative learning, student-generated questions, and narrative pedagogy."

    Russell Bishop (Teaching to the North-East)

  • "Of all the educational innovations we have reviewed for this book, cooperative learning has the best, largest empirical base."

    Ellis & Fouts (Research on Educational Interventions)

  • "Perhaps the most important psychological outcome of cooperative learning methods is their effect on student self-esteem."

    Robert Slavin (Learning to Cooperate, Cooperating to Learn)

As teachers we need to stop talking on a regular basis and let our students talk, because research says they will retain a lot more of what they say and do, than what they hear.

It is through student discourse and the interaction of different ideas that students construct meaning. Kagan facilitates and regulates student interactions to ensure every student shares, with high levels of accountability, but also with high levels of support.

Let them talk…

Resources and Tools

Kagan offers a wide range of resources and tools to support teachers after training.

What People Are Saying

“Many teachers believe they are doing cooperative learning, when in fact it’s group work, where students can hide and opt out.”

— T. Mackay, DP

“Kagan teaches practical classroom management skills that are missing in teacher training programmes.”

— W. Leighton, Principal