Educators welcome proposal for Te Reo Māori in schools
10 September 2018
He tahuti mai ngā kaiako i te tūtohi mo Te Reo Māori ki roto i ngā kura.
NZEI Te Riu Roa has welcomed a renewed call from the Green Party for universal te reo Maori, and want to take it one
step further starting te reo Māori in early childhood education.
He tahuti mai a NZEI Te Riu Roa hoki i te karanga o te pāti kakariki, kia whakahoungia te reo Maori hei whakapuakitanga
mō te katoa, ā, me te whakaaro kia timata ai te reo Māori ki roto i ngā whare kohungahunga i te tuatahi.
NZEI Te Riu Roa Matua Takawaenga Laures Park said all children should have the opportunity to learn te reo Māori and
that having universal provision would make the biggest difference in the well-being of tamariki Māori.
Hei tā te Matua Takawaenga o Te Riu Roa, a, Laures Park, kia whai kowhiringa ngā tamariki katoa, ki te ako i te reo
Māori, ā, mehemea he whakaritenga kowhiringa, he painga nui mo te oranga o ngā tamariki Māori.
“NZEI Te Riu Roa has been calling for te reo Māori to be a core curriculum subject for a number of years now. There is
strong public support for this, and it is time for the Government to act.”
Mai rāno a NZEI Te riu Roa e karanga ana, kia noho te reo Māori hei marau motuhake ki roto i te marautanga. He kaha hoki
te marea ki te tautoko te kaupapa nei, me te tono ki te kawanatanga, kia whakamanahia tēnei tono inaianei!
We would like to see te reo Māori begin in early childhood education as it is in kōhanga reo, she said.
“There would need to be support for educators to enact the proposal.”
“Ko tō mātou hiahia, kia timata te reo Māori ki roto i ngā whare kohungahunga, pērā ki ngā kohanga reo e ai ki a Park.
Engari me whai kaitautoko mō ngā kaiako, kia āhei rātou ki te whakamanahia i te tūtohi nei.”
Last year Te Taura Whiri I Te Reo Māori (Maori Language Commission) released a report that proposed raising the status
and increasing the use of Te Reo by making it a core curriculum subject beginning in Year 1 in 2020 until it is included
in all levels up to Year 13 by 2037.
I tērā tau, i tuku mai Te Taura Whiri I Te Reo Māori, he ripoata hei hikingia te mana me te whakapiki mahi o te reo
Māori, kia whakamahia tēnei kaupapa he kaupapa marau e timata ana i te tau 1 a te rua tekau mano rua tekau, tae ana ki
ngā taumata ake ki te tau 13 a te rua tekau mano, toru tekau ma whitu.
NZEI President Lynda Stuart said teachers understood the importance of nurturing Te Reo for all New Zealanders but often
didn’t feel equipped or confident enough to teach it effectively.
E ai ki te Manukura o NZEI TE Riu Roa, a Lynda Stuart, kua mōhio kētia ngā kaiako me pēhea te whāngai i te reo Māori ki
ngā tangata katoa whānui atu ki Aotearoa, engari āhua ki wētehi kaiako, kāre rātou e whai rauemi, e maia ana ki te
whakaako tēnei kaupapa.
“We encourage the government to embrace this proposal and resource it to become a reality.
“Ka akiaki te kawanatanga kia awhi tēnei kaupapa, me te whakatinanatia tēnei rauemi kia whai oranga te reo Māori.”
“Learning languages is already part of the curriculum and Te Reo is the language of Aotearoa. Normalising Te Reo makes
learning more inclusive for Maori children and must be part of our commitment to the Treaty of Waitangi.”
“Ko te reo Māori te reo tūturu o Aotearoa. Ina kei te whakamāoritia te reo Māori, ka ngāwari te ako, ā, ko te
whakawhāiti mai mō ngā tamariki Māori, me tō tātou manawanui ki te Tiriti o Waitangi.”
“With the current teacher shortages, overall capacity would also need to be addressed.”
“Hei whakakapi, he tokoiti ngā kaiako kei ngā kura. Koina tētahi mahi hei whakarahia, hei whakamanahia hoki. Me tiro
whānui te kawanatanga ki tēnei kaupapa.”
ENDS