DoctorTufulasi Taleni

My teaching, research and service are guided, influenced and inspired by the metaphorical notion in Samoan  – ‘ole talatalaina ole upega lavelave, the untangling of the tangled net’.  This notion contextualizes the reality of my role as an educator, a researcher and a community leader in seeking solutions that can help resolve matters that impact on the lives of students, families and communities.  Such expression captures the real essence of why I serve my community, why I am fully engaged in research and why I am passionate about teaching.  My interest in Pasifika education as a whole and educational leadership completely capture my aspiration to engage in research to improve outcomes for Pacific learners.  My passion in these areas inspires me to develop a new research methodology known as the Soalaupulega Samoa Research Theoretical Framework (SSRTF).  Such methodology captures the relationship between people and the research matter.  It opens doors to deep thinking in seeking solutions to resolve issues impacting on the lives of the community. Soalaupulega theoretical framework is a taonga I offer to the research community, locally, nationally and globally.

In my personal life, I  am a father of 4 children.  My wife is an Early Childhood teacher.  I have a leadership role in my church as Bishop, a role that gives me the opportunity to work with people of all ages, genders, cultures and so on.  As a leader in this capacity, I enjoy working with young people supporting them in all they do in life.  In my role in education at UC, I have the opportunity to develop, coordinate and lead the Pasifika Education Initiative - known as the Samoa Malaga. I developed this initiative as a strategy to help non Pasifika teachers, school leaders, academics, initial teacher educators etc to increase their knowledge of Pacific cultures and contexts to support this whole kaupapa on raising the achievement and engagement of Pacific learners.  The completion of my PhD in 2023 has been the highlight of my last 4 years in my role in education.  The fulfilment of this achievement motivates me to carry on and continue to give something back to my Pasifika families and communities in lifting the engagement and achievement of Pacific students.