<P><FONT color=#33711E><STRONG>Konai Helu Thaman</STRONG></FONT></P>
Professor of Pacific Education
University of the South Pacific, Fiji
Konai Thaman holds a Personal Chair in Pacific Education and Culture from the University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji. She is a Tongan national and has worked at USP since 1974. She has a BA in Geography from the University of Auckland, New Zealand; an M.A. in International Education from the University of California at Santa Barbara, USA; and a PhD in Education from USP. Her doctoral thesis, titled “Ako and Faiako: Cultural Values, Educational Ideas and Teachers’ Role Perceptions in Tonga” was based on studies of the relationships between cultural values and educational ideas and how these were reflected in teachers’ perceptions of their professional role.
Konai has conducted research, consultancies and published widely in the areas of teacher education, curriculum development and culture and education and has held senior administrative positions at USP, including Director of the Institute of Education, Pro Vice Chancellor and Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor. Konai is a member of several international and professional organizations. She is also a widely published poet – five collections of her poetry have been published.