A majority of secondary school teachers use te reo Māori in the classroom and feel Te Tiriti o Waitangi is enacted in their school, according to the 2025 National Survey of Secondary Schools.
The latest edition of the survey, run by our team at the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER), shows that Māori words or phrases (such as greetings and farewells) are used in most secondary classrooms, with only 12% of teachers saying they don't feel confident enough to use te reo Māori.
Kaiako Māori, as well as kaiako in schools with more socioeconomic barriers, were more likely to use te reo Māori in their classroom and at higher proficiency levels.
"Most teachers think Te Tiriti o Waitangi is enacted in their school's values and daily activities," notes report author Jo MacDonald. "Growing use of reo Māori in classrooms is one aspect of this. More teachers say they incorporate tikanga Māori and te reo Māori in their teaching now, than in 2018 and 2021 surveys."
"However, there are some differences in teachers’ confidence and capability. It would be great to see continued support to build wider teacher capability in using te reo Māori."
Teachers also reported high use of many practices that support inclusive and culturally responsive learning environments. Two-thirds of teachers reported that professional learning and development (PLD) in the past 3 years had provided practical support in understanding tikanga Māori. Over half of teachers said PLD had helped them teach ākonga Māori and build connections with whānau Māori. Looking ahead, Mātauranga Māori was one of the top four topics that teachers would like future PLD on.
The 2025 National Survey of Secondary Schools is part of NZCER's long-standing project tracking trends in the education system. The 2025 survey gathered responses from 830 teachers from 126 schools that teach secondary students. Responses were gathered between October 2025 and March 2026. The full report is now available at nzcer.org.nz