Minister meets with Māori immersion educators

Education Minister Hekia Parata visited Te Uru Maraurau School of Māori Education on Friday to gain an insight into its Māori medium teaching.

Ms Parata met with staff and students at Te Kupenga o te Mātauranga marae at Massey’s Manawatū campus.

The minister was briefed on the Te Aho Tātairangi programme, which was established in February and is New Zealand’s first University degree for teachers in Māori immersion schools.

Twenty-four students are in their first-year of the four-year total immersion programme, which is delivered in partnership with Te Rūnanganui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori. The programme was developed to address a critical shortage of expert te reo teachers and aims to supply 200 Māori immersion teacher graduates by 2020.

Massey University associate professor Huia Tomlins Janke, who redesigned and developed the course, said the minister’s visit was important as she has a commitment to Māori medium teaching.

“We felt it was important to speak to her in person, and give her an insight into why we’ve come together in this partnership, what Massey can offer, and what Te Rūnanganui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori offers Massey.”

“It was an excellent frank discussion,” she said.

Toni Waho from Te Rūnanganui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa agrees, “I really wanted the minister to understand how innovative the university’s been in establishing a relationship with our organisation, and how it aligns with her goals to raise Māori achievement.”

Ms Parata said the relationship between the University and kura kaupapa organisation was a “very smart one”. “I think the growth in Māori medium education represents a huge development market.”

She said Massey’s strength in distance education positioned it well to appeal to a geographical disperse population. “It’s been very valuable for me to come and hear what their plans are and strategic outlook is.”