Māori and education

I am passionate about continually looking for ways to improve outcomes for students. I believe in the importance of being a connected educator, and in the responsibility we have to share our stories and learnings with one another. My involvement in the Sport in Education project has meant that I have been extremely fortunate to work alongside colleagues in my own school with whom I would not normally work. I have also been able to work with colleagues from other schools around New Zealand, and a fantastic team of researchers at NZCER. I am pleased to share this story in the hope that it may spark an interest, and provide a platform for others to explore similar approaches in their own teaching and learning environment.

Policy, research, and literature provide insights into pedagogies effective for Māori students. He Kākano, a professional learning and development project, aimed to empower Māori students to achieve educational success as Māori. This article focuses on the contribution of curriculum leaders to ensuring effective pedagogies for these students in their schools. It presents results from lesson observations, focus-group interviews, and survey responses collected in an evaluation of He Kākano that show student experiences varied across schools. Many curriculum leaders felt that culturally responsive practice was in place, but reported insecure knowledge of co-construction, discursive practices, and the Māori world. Discussed in relation to the “effective teaching profile”, findings show that for Māori in English-medium schools to enjoy educational success as Māori, curriculum leaders want and need further resources, opportunities to engage in targeted professional learning, support and commitment.

This article is written for primary teachers who are not fluent in the Māori language (te reo Māori), about how and why te reo Māori can and should be used in the classroom. This article aims to help teachers understand the relevance of current policy documents, and to present useful guidelines on ways classroom practice can support the larger goals of the Ministry of Education, the government, and the nation as a whole, for ensuring a bright future for this beautiful indigenous language with which we have been entrusted.