Funding kickstart needed from Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori to boost te reo in education, says union

Ko te ngakau titikaha hei whakatipu i te reo Māori kei roto i Aotearoa, ko te whakangako i te putea kia tupu ake te reo Māori me te kaha o ngā kaiako, kaiāwhina, e ai ki a Te Akatea me NZEI Te Riu Roa.

The commitment to growing te reo Māori in Aotearoa needs a major boost of funding to build more te reo Māori capability in educators (kaiako/teachers and kaiawhina/teacher aides), according to Te Akatea and NZEI Te Riu Roa.

I huitahi te Aka Haumi Tumuaki Māori me te uniana mātauranga i ngā ra whakatā. E ai ki a rātou kia kaha te Kawanatanga ki te tautoko ngā tamariki Māori kia āhei ratou ki te whai mātauranga hiranga ki roto i te reo Māori ahakoa tēhea te horopaki.  

Meeting together over the weekend, the National Māori Principals Association and education union say the Government needs to do much more to ensure tamariki Māori can access excellent education in and through te reo Māori in whatever context they are being educated.

 “Kei te haere mai mātou ki roto i Te Wiki o te Reo Māori kei te mohiotia tatou kaore he kōpaka me te ngākaunui ki te kitea te reo Māori e tipu ake ana. Engari ahakoa kei ro Whare Kohungahunga, Kohanga Reo, Puna Reo, Kura Auraki, Kura Kaupapa me Kura-a-Iwi, ko te tikanga kia tipu ake te kaha o ngā kaiako kia kimi ngā rauemi mana whenua, hapū, me te iwi, ā, me te āhei mātou he ‘te reo Māori i te tuatahi’ whiringa mō ngā tamariki Māori katoa,”  nā Liam Rutherford Te Manukura o NZEI Te Riu Roa.

“As we go into Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, we know there is no shortage of desire to see te reo Māori grow and prosper.  But whether in ECE, kōhanga reo, puna reo, kura Auraki (English Medium), kura Kaupapa or kura-ā-iwi, our tamariki, we need to prioritise building the capability of teachers, resourcing Mana whenua, hapū and iwi and ensuring we have a ‘te reo Māori first’ choice for all tamariki Māori,” NZEI Te Riu Roa president Liam Rutherford said.

E ai ki a Liam Rutherford, Te Manukura o NZEI Te Riu Roa, he kereme mana taurite e haere ake nei mo ngā kaiārahi i te reo Māori, a, i kitea ko te utu o ngā kaiārahi i piki ake ki te 82% (waru tekau mamā rua pai heneti) i tenei tau, he pikinga e whakamihi me te āhukahuka o ngā pukenga o ngā kaihāpai o te Reo Māori.  Ko te karanga a NZEI Te Riu Roa, kia whakamihi i ngā mātanga reo mē ōna tikanga, me tipu ngā rauemi kia whakapiki ake i ngā pukenga o ngā kaiako Māori kei ngā kura tōnu.

NZEI Te Riu Roa President Liam Rutherford said its pay equity claim for kaiārahi i te reo Māori, which saw kaiārahi win pay rises of up to 82% this year, was just one step towards recognition of the value of skilled proponents of te reo. NZEI is also calling for greater recognition of teachers with te reo Māori me ngā tikanga expertise, and for increases in resourcing for upskilling the reo of Māori teachers already in schools.

Anei he whakatauki na Bruce Jepsen, Te Manukura o Te Akatea (Ngati Tūwharetoa/Ngāti Raukawa) i tohaina: 

Te Akatea President Bruce Jepsen (Ngāti Tūwharetoa/Ngāti Raukawa) shared the whakatauki:

Tōku reo, tōku oho oho,

tōku reo, tōku māpihi maurea, tōku reo, tōku whakakai marihi!

My language is my awakening 

My language is the window to my soul