Greetings to all - Kia ora, Moira mae, bonjour,
When researching and reading articles and papers for my research question - which I still haven't really finalised yet...! I stumbled across this CORE Education article and found myself reading to the very end. This is probably why I am so behind in my weekly Mindlab required readings, but there is some good stuff out there even if it is hard to find it sometimes.
I am now in the dubious position of having way too many references to look at - this is the usual reason why I always get my assignments in late as I am too engrossed in reading articles and sub-articles and not getting on with the task at hand... but here I again - going off at a tangent...
Anyway, what struck me was hearing that a native Maori speaker was actually caned for talking in his mother tongue, the language of his ancestors and whanau; as a native speaker what must he have felt receiving such treatment for just saying the words and phrases he heard at home?
A past colleague of mine also told me, as a teacher it was frowned upon to want to talk in te reo or think that children should be taught how to learn about the history and culture of Aoteroa. As an immigrant myself, I find this incredulous and cannot believe this was happening so recently and probably is still happening despite all the positive discrimination in our education system.
So thinking about my research and informing my teaching practice - I too am definitely crawling in Maori - I need to be reminded how to count up to 4 to get the children's attention and have to read our karakira from a sheet each morning. My only excuse is it has no bearing to any European language I have ever encountered before. I cannot find mnemonics to help me remember the most basic words.
Reading this article has driven home our need for inclusivity and to honour our native speakers.
The article was a tribute to adversity - the gentleman in question rose to high levels in the education system and was instrumental in making the changes we see today. All I can say is Ka pai.
And MANY apologies for any miss- spellings as my spell checker doesn't recognise Maori - shame on you Microsoft!
Reference :-
http://blog.core-ed.org/blog/category/kaupapa-maori
Kia ora Toni - this is part 1 of 2 - I had more than 4,096 characters apparently lol
ReplyDeleteko tōku reo, tōku ohooho, tōku reo tōku mapihi maurea, tōku reo tōku whakakai mārihi. My language, my awakening, my precious adornment.
This is the whakataukī or proverb that always comes to mind when I am reminded about my passion for te reo Māori and all that comes with it (me ōna tikanga). I highly recommend you find a proverb that resonates with you and adopt it for yourself. I have many friends who have like you come from ngā whenua tuārangi (far away lands) and when they find more about the history of our indigenous peoples, they are very surprised that what they see playing out in our society is not the impression they get back home.
Thank you for sharing the core article it was really interesting to read the writer's perspective on how she engaged in te ao Māori and what she had to say about 'have a debate with Māori with the intent to seek common ground'. This resonates with me because I do struggle with debating possibly because I find it confrontational and I lack understanding of the intent of the debating process or overthink responses. This has given me food for thought to look into how I could improve my own skills and take on a different understanding of the intent - that is to seek common ground and ensure everyone is heard.
..... to be continued
part 2 ...
ReplyDeleteI also wanted to share a wonderfully inspirational TED talk by Tame Iti that talks about his journey through life - The Power of knowing who you are. What I really like about this is his honesty and his tūturu beliefs about identity plus the historical context around Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Perhaps you have heard of Tame Iti? he had a controversial visit to England and was all over the news - people were upset that he was on an overseas trip talking to media when he had not long been in prison. He is known for his activism, I hope you enjoy learning the power of his identity.' I learnt so much and watch it often :) If you own your identity then you can own others too or embrace others. Often we get lost in who we actually are. This is where our understanding of kaupapa Māori is at varying degrees in our classrooms around te motu, I believe, because we haven't looked at identity and our own place in the world. It also really comes down to manaaki tangatat ahakoa ko wai koe? - belief in all no matter who you are.
Wow, feel like I am well onto writing a book here lol - so as a teacher, applying kaupapa Māori (according to Graham Smith (cited in Katoa Ltd, n.d.) is literally ‘a Māori way’ or ‘to be Māori’) principles and identifying principles as they are unfolding is something that can become second nature over time. Embracing identity language and culture is the first part. When you are learning another language and culture if you open your mind to it and in Nichole Gully's words (Core Education) "owning your dickness" - or being proud to make mistakes you are on your way to 100% success in mastering this. I love how she puts it. Anyway, getting back to the topic of kaupapa Māori ...
... to be continued
part 3
ReplyDeleteKaupapa Māori fits so well with my philosophy of teaching of being student centred and that students need to be equal partners in the learning process. So, when reflecting on kaupapa Māori principles, for me it’s about not only about identity but its also about being responsive to Māori worldviews and keeping those at the forefront of my thinking. According to Macfarlane et al (2008) and I am a huge fan of Angus and Sonia Macfarlane and their kaupapa Māori research - Kaupapa Māori follows a constructivist approach involving a holistic collaboration between teachers and students where important parallels are made between education and Māori worldviews. I agree with Macfarlane and other's statement that "within such a worldview, education is understood as holistic, collective, experiential and dependent upon a free exchanging of teaching and learning roles. This is not always being demonstrated in our classrooms, perhaps through a lack of understanding of what things look like through the cultural lens of our Māori student’s. The principle of taonga tuku iho (the inherent knowledge passed down through whakapapa links) is about embracing the knowledge and identity of our learners, valuing and respecting Inter-generational knowledge in the learning environment.
Macfarlane and other's article (2008) argues that the worldviews of Māori people in New Zealand provide an extensive and coherent framework for theorizing about human development and education, and are able to contribute strongly and positively to the development of a national school curriculum for the benefit all students. I would argue that whilst the intent is to contribute positively and strongly to the NZ curriculum, has it actually happened?- ten years later in the education circles I walk in, it is taking a while to catch on, its fragmented and the same questions are being asked 'what does it look like in the classroom'? why should Māori be treated any differently? Perhaps adopting a curriculum that reflects a holistic worldview such as Te Whāriki may be in order then progress will be more visible.
So, getting back to you Toni, ka pai you for willingness to get on board te waka reo.
Here is a link to Tame Iti's TED talk - do let me know your thoughts on this.
ngā manakitanga, Marie :)
Tame Iti - The power in knowing who you are
https://www.google.co.nz/search?q=tame+iti+ted+talks&rlz=1C5CHFA_enNZ771NZ771&oq=tame+iti+ted+talks&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i59l2j69i60j69i61j69i60.2235j0j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
Marie - what can I say? I REALLY am appreciative of your time and passion in passing on this knowledge to me. As an English immigrant I am struggling a great deal with Maori language and find it totally different to any European language I have ever read - and that includes Manx which has 3 roots in Norse, Gallic and Gaelic! Your students are lucky to be taught by such an impassioned teacher. You are sure to score 100% for your kaupapa maori section of the assignment.I have signed up for a Maori course but they are oversubscribed for which I guess is a good thing as people must be wanting to understand more and extend their knowledge of Maori language and culture.
DeleteKia ora toni - thank you and awesome you . I wish you all the best in your journey. Open heart, open mind :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Marie. I have just found out I am able to join the Level 1 Maori Course in August, but I am thinking of deferring as I am due to go full-time into the classroom from Sept-April and think I might be overdoing it again - a bit like with the Mindlab course whilst settling into a new life in New Zealand!
DeleteBeing in the same position as you Toni, I was also surprised by the lack of maori prominent in school when I arrived to NZ. In Canada, french is our second language and it was taught in schools from years 0-10. I expected the same to be true of Te Reo. I also attended the level 1 course shortly after attending and it certainly game me a basic grasp on the language, though I still struggle with pronunciation at times. I would definitely recommend it, and if it is similar to 17 year ago (EEEKK!!) it wasn't a burden, or nearly the commitment that Mindlab is! Then again, if you are in class full time, you will have Whaiea Kate to watch and learn from. She is a fantastic resource and I'm sure she would gladly sit with you and work through some of the basics.
ReplyDeleteI do query the need for teaching primary children spanish, german etc... when they aren't familiar with the languages present in their homeland.
Funnily enough my registration has come through for my enrollment on the stage 1 Maori course starting in August. If it isn't too demanding I might still accept the place even though I'm going to be teaching full-time from September and you know what a headache that is when studying at the same time.
DeleteI realise from reading the literature relating to Kaupapa Maori how little we integrate other cultures into our classrooms... really. The daily use of Maori and the lessons from Kate are great, but I am now querying the amount of understanding of the Maori culture we really include? I felt quite embarrassed to be British when I read some of the articles - typical imperialism! I feel a little of an affinity however, being Pagan... most people think we are devil worshipers!
Hi Toni
ReplyDeleteI found your blog really insightful. Thanks to you, Angela and Marie for sharing. Not all schools have been negative about speaking and teaching Te Reo. In the early 1970s I went to Rotorua Lakes High School for my secondary education. It was a brand new school and I was in the second year intake. The school was significant in that there was a 50:50 split of Pakeha and Maori students. In Year 9 learning the Māori language was compulsory for all Year 9s once a week. We had a wonderful teacher called Mrs Aratema, she was caring, kind and compassionate. I still remember being in her class. We also learnt French and Japanese, but these were options. I am really glad that I went to this school because although I haven't learnt to speak Maori, I learnt to pronounce the words reasonably well (but am far from being fully correct). I now use a few phrases and greetings most times. I had plans of regularly learning a new word and using it lots but that hasn't happened in a while. Foremost in my mind when speaking to all students is to pronounce their names correctly, this goes for all cultures of course. It was interesting that Marie mentioned Te Whāriki. I teach Child Development at school and have learnt something about this wonderful curriculum that embraces all cultures. The cover of the syllabus represents part of the underside of a whāriki or woven mat. The green symbolises new life, growth and potential and references harakeke and pandanus, which are used throughout Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa as materials for weaving. The curriculum recognises the importance of providing mokopuna with culturally responsive environments that support their learning and ensuring that they are provided with equitable opportunities to learn. The fact that we are a multicultural society is also strongly iterated. Looking through the cultural lens (Marie Donaldson)is vital if we want to support our Māori learners. Thanks for giving people the opportunity to think about and continue to discuss this important issue.
Reference - https://education.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Early-Childhood/ELS-Te-Whariki-Early-Childhood-Curriculum-ENG-Web.pdf
This is a lovely comment to read Sue and I only wish I had seen it a few hours ago as I have submitted my assignment 3 today as I want to give 100% to the last section of the course as it deals with a different activity each week relating to the Practice 2 assignment.
DeleteI find it delightful that you remember the name of your inspirational teacher. We all have people in our past who have touched our lives in some way. Mine was an English teacher called Mrs Farmer who was all floaty hippy clothes and adored Marc Bolan's cheekbones! She inspired me and I love English to this day. I hope I inspire my students the way she did. When I start my Maori course soon, I know who to come to for help with my pronunciation!
Good luck with your research assignment and hope to catch up soon.
Good luck with your level 1 Maori Course. Who are you doing this with?
ReplyDelete