Whanau Involvement

Engaged families, whānau and communities are critical because they help shape the aspirations and expectations of the learner.  A person’s learning and development depends not only on how they experience schooling, but also what happens at home and in their wider social environment.

The Government funds a number of programmes to enhance parenting skills and to support parents.  Those programmes focus on parents who need the help the most.

Atawhaingia Te Pa Harakeke (ATPH), a whānau community development training programme is one such example.  It has two strands, the first is hakui/hakorotanga, a Māori parenting programme, which weaves traditional child-rearing practices with contemporary practices and theory.  The second strand is the children’s programme called He Taonga Te Mokopuna, which again draws on traditional approaches to supporting Māori children, weaving these with the most recent theory and best practice, particularly for children in difficult and at risk situations.

Early childhood education also provides a means of support parenting.  The Strategic Plan for Early Childhood Education will strengthen the capacity of early childhood providers to support parents and parenting skills.

The Ministry of Social Development are reviewing the effectiveness of Strengthening Families.  That review should provide the information needed to answer this question as well as provide the means to increase the effectiveness of the strategy.