After meeting with Jim, I began to focus in on the prominence of Maori culture education in New Zealand schools. Almost every classroom I visited had some kind of Maori culture displayed somehow, whether it was a chart of words on the wall, a greeting from the instructor in the native Te Reo language, or an announcement for learning Kapa Haka later in the day. My work with the Enviroschools program also made me realize how embedded Maori culture is in the New Zealand school system, or at least that it’s attempting to be. I also attended many different events and meetings in which speakers would introduce themselves both in English and Te Reo, and in a few cases, someone would perform a Maori prayer to bless the space before proceeding — a testament to how bicultural the country is. Maori culture seems to be a growing part of what it means to be Kiwi.
The integration of Maori culture didn’t happen until fairly recently, though, so there is a split between the older and younger generations’ knowledge of Maori culture. Below is a graph of the amount of students learning Te Reo. I thought it was interesting that included in the “no Maori language” numbers were students who were familiar with simple words, greetings, and songs, since in my opinion that seems like a very basic understanding of parts of the language.
Note: Māori medium: students are taught all or some curriculum subjects in the Māori language for at least 51 percent of the time.
Māori language in English medium: students are learning te reo Māori as a language subject, or taught curriculum subjects in the Māori language for up to 50 percent of the time.
No Māori language: Students are either involved in Taha Māori (simple words, greetings, or songs in Māori) or not recorded as receiving Māori language immersion at any level. Students deemed ‘not applicable’ (such as international fee-paying students) are also counted within this category.
Data as at 1 July.
A few preliminary questions I have about learning Maori culture in schools:
There are many different tribes in Aotearoa New Zealand. Who should decide what types of things are learned, and to what extent? Is a basic, superficial understanding of the culture enough? How can we ensure that a superficial understanding doesn’t lead to the essentialization of Maori people and culture? What do Maori people think about making their culture part of the bicultural national identity?