Hui Taumata Progress Report No 6

Issue No. 6 - December 2002

Kia ora koutou katoa

It has been a while since the last pänui. Activities slowed down mid-year during the election period, but we have since been back on the road participating in regional meetings and preparing for the third Hui Taumata Mätauranga.

This pänui provides an opportunity to give a short recap on the year that has been and to look forward to next year.

We remain committed to the development of the relationship and process established by Hui Taumata Mätauranga to improve Mäori education achievement. Over the past year the key feature of the process has been the continued direct dialogue between ourselves and Mäori focused on education achievement as undertaken previously at the regional level. We have and will continue to work and report on progress to address the key themes raised at the first Hui Taumata Mätauranga. We are also committed to being part of this process as a way of developing a more shared sense of direction, priorities, roles and contributions to Mäori education success.

To us the Hui Taumata Mätauranga is about hearing the diversity of voice of Maoridom and the many different issues, concerns and ideas. It is also about talking about our thoughts and what we are focussing on, in a way that leads to the best of both worlds. It is about a wider engagement leading to different pathways and views, and facilitating a wide range of relationships.

Continuing the discussion at regional hui in 2002

Alongside Paramount Chief of Ngäti Tüwharetoa, Te Tumu te Heuheu we began a new series of regional Hui Taumata meetings as follow-up to the November 2001 Hui. We have been supported in this by Mahlon Nepia, Archie Taiaroa and Timi te Heuheu from Tüwharetoa and the Secretary for Education, Howard Fancy.

In this pänui we wanted to capture some of the things we've been sharing but also some of the key messages and thoughts we heard from Mäori through-out the year at these meetings.

What we've been sharing and talking about

Over the course of the year as we have meet with people around the country, we kept returning to the five themes and the 107 recommendations put to us at the first Hui in February 2001. While there is still plenty to do we have also been pleased to be able to share some stories about progress. In this we acknowledge the many hours, the energy and the ongoing commitment of so many Mäori in education generally, but also to specific areas of work and projects.

Some of the key things we have shared during the regional hui over the last year have been:

• the launch of "Pathways to the Future: Ngä Huarahi Arataki, a 10-year Strategic Plan for Early Childhood Education". The Government's broad early childhood education aims and the aspirations and recommendations put to us at the Hui Taumata Mätauranga in the "The Family: The Education Cornerstone" theme are strongly aligned. Knowledge gained from Hui Taumata Mätauranga and the Review of Te Köhanga Reo National Trust informed the development of the plan;
• sharing some of the promising research like "Picking up the Pace" which through concentrated professional development in literacy instruction of early childhood and new entrant teachers in Mängere and Otara resulted in a substantial lift in the reading and writing achievement of new entrants;
• the development of the tertiary reforms and the launch of the "Tertiary Education Strategy". In the reforms and strategy we are seeking a "paradigm shift", a new shared understanding of what we are doing in education and research. The influence of Mäori on the thinking and design of the strategy has come through many avenues, including through the recommendations and thoughts from the Hui Taumata to the work of the Mäori Tertiary Reference Group chaired by Linda Tuhiwai Smith. The Mäori Tertiary Reference Group facilitated nation-wide hui in February to obtain Mäori input into the Tertiary Education Strategy.

At a more practical level we have been pleased to see practical things happening and changing on the ground. This includes:

• the signing of education focused partnerships with Hauraki Mäori Trust Board and Te Rünanga o Te Awa Tupua o Whanganui;
• the uptake of the 65 Mäori early childhood education teacher trainee scholarships;
• equity funding being delivered to early childhood education centres;
• stories of progress from the providers and communities involved in the Early Childhood Education Promoting Participation Project;
• the allocation of 19 grants to the value of $2.4 million from the Mäori pool of the Discretionary Grants Scheme, creating approximately 407 new places for Mäori children in köhanga, immersion and bilingual early childhood education services;
• the strong uptake of the Secondary Subject Trainee Allowance for teacher trainees and the growth of the programme to cover two new subjects - English and chemistry;
• the first ever Tertiary Teaching Excellence Awards have been presented;
• seven Centres of Research Excellence have been selected, involving researchers from a range of institutions;
• significant work is being done on developing assessment tools for teaching. The assessment development programme allows teachers, whänau, and learners to know what is happening with students' learning;
• changes to School Planning and Reporting are well underway and will require schools to focus on student outcomes and to discuss openly their improvement plans and progress;
• the continuing development of Kaupapa Ara Whakawhiti Mätauranga project. This project involves wharekura, Mäori boarding schools and East Coast secondary schools. It uses information and communication technologies to help overcome isolation and teacher skill shortages; and
• one of the most significant and exciting changes happening in tertiary learning - the growth in participation at wänanga. Over the past 2 years the number of students attending wänanga has increased by 500 percent.

While there are many things underway there are also many opportunities in the next few years at all stages of learning to make further progress. We are committed for the long haul.

Where we've been and what we've been hearing

Auckland - Mängere Saturday 23rd March 2002

The hui in Auckland involved about forty people from different parts of the community and the education sector. The overall feeling from the hui was that we are on the right track in terms of engaging and working more with the people on the ground.

Issues were raised about this process and how important it was that Ministers and Mäori through Paramount Chief of Ngäti Tüwharetoa, Tumu Te Heuheu, "continue the dialogue" and continue to be "face-to-face with the people". Concerns were raised about the future and how this process can be maintained.

Rotorua Thursday 4th April 2002

Our second hui for this year was in Rotorua at the Aotearoa wänanga campus. About thirty people attended this hui, from Rotorua, Taupö, Whakatäne and Tauranga. A wide range of issues came from the floor including questions and comments about:

• the tertiary education reforms and how these are going to effect Mäori;
• the Ngäti Whakaue Education Endowment Fund and how this is providing support for more Mäori to access tertiary education;
• the quality of secondary education and concerns about creating programmes for students which encourage them to go to outside of secondary schools where they have to pay or get student loans;
• that secondary school is the best place for growing future tertiary students;
• concerns about kura kaupapa Mäori and evaluation;
• getting Mäori language resources out to schools;
• speeding up the process for iwi education partnerships;
• professional development for principals was seen as absolutely critical. The new principals' leadership programme is a good start; and
• the need to keep working with whänau, parents and their children.

Dunedin Saturday 6th April 2002

We met with a small group of Mäori community and education leaders on a cool Saturday morning in the heart of Dunedin City. Some of the key issues raised were about:

• valuing Mäori custom and language - in haka, waiata, art and on the marae and creating Mäori knowledge;
• strong foundations in learning through quality early childhood education;
• the importance of iwi being more involved in their own educational developments, and in many cases doing this alongside the Crown; and
• intersectoral collaboration and co-operation - holistic approaches rather than separate and disconnected ones.

Chatham Islands Wednesday 30th October to Friday 1st November 2002

On Wednesday 30 October we, along with Paramount Chief of Ngäti Tüwharetoa, Tumu Te Heuheu and his small team responded to a request from a group of Moriori at the February Hui Taumata Mätauranga to visit the Chatham Islands.

The purpose of the visit was to discuss education issues facing the islands Mäori and Moriori children and adults. A number of issues were raised, these included:

• support for children to attend kura kaupapa Mäori in New Zealand, as this kind of education is not available in local schools;
• the amount of resource available for köhanga - equity funding;
• support for parents to learn te reo Mäori associated with köhanga and generally a growing number of adults (ages 40 - 60) wanting to learn te reo Mäori. High entry costs to travel to New Zealand can inhibit the chance of people doing this presently; and
• Moriori people wanting to find ways to help restore their language and what might be the best way to do this.

Wanganui Saturday 23rd November

We aimed to achieve two things on this day. Signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Te Rünanga o Te Awa Tupua o Whanganui and a regional hui with people from the Whanganui rohe.

We signed the MoU and gave a brief presentation alongside Tüwharetoa about some of the key things taking place. These included:

• reductions in suspensions;
• Mäori workforce planning;
• the use of information technology to help promote te reo Mäori and support better teaching and learning;
• the importance of whänau in the education process;
• the importance of quality teaching as a key part of ensuring good education outcomes for students; and
• new assessment tools for learning.

We also talked about the value of stronger relationships with iwi and how important this process was to not only increase the capacity of the public service to work more effectively with Mäori, but also to improve the quality of services and outcomes in iwi rohe. Giving Mäori more responsibility and influence was also seen as a priority.

Hamilton Thursday 28th November

On this Thursday evening some 100 people gathered together in Hamilton. The following issues were raised:

• concern about the support for an education in te reo Mäori and the need to strengthen professional development and resources. Quality resources can be difficult to come across. There are many difficulties faced in attracting quality kaiako for kura in small towns;
• the message that was heard on the night was a karanga for more teachers. There were a number of queries about recruiting and training enough teachers, but also concerns about workload and teachers leaving teaching. A challenge in terms of providing quality and skilled teachers;
• there were concerns about the level of respect for the profession of teaching, when so many more good teachers are needed. A call was made to change the face of teaching. Communities need to start by respecting the teaching profession. Recruitment teams need to find respectful people with morals and values to train;
• concerns about accessing scholarships for Mäori deaf;
• more teachers are required who can speak te reo Mäori. Students are saying that they don't need a Mäori teacher to make them Mäori. Most students are in non-Mäori speaking classes;
• parents concerns that students capable of high achievement are under achieving due to teachers stereotyping of Mäori students. Constructive relationships are needed between students and teachers. Respect is needed between both parties; and
• the future of education provision and learning at Mökai.

Looking ahead and Hui Mätauranga March 2003

We want to make the most of the momentum created by the Hui over the last two years to make further progress. We look forward to continuing the work and developing the relationships that are critical to making a difference in education.

We want to take the opportunity to note the Hui Taumata Mätauranga is planned for early 2003. We hope that you have all received the pänui from Paramount Chief of Ngäti Tüwharetoa, Tumu Te Heuheu, setting out the dates and details for the next Hui Taumata Mätauranga.

The third Hui is being planned for 7 - 9 March 2003 in Taupö. We will be at the Hui and encourage your participation in that.

We welcome your feedback, thoughts and comments to us before then.

Nga mihi o te wa Kirihimete me te tau hou.

Hon Trevor Mallard - Minister of Education
Fax: 04-495-8448
Email: tmallard@ministers.govt.nz

Hon Parekura Horomia - Assoc Minister of Education
Fax: 04-495-8457
Email: phoromia@ministers.govt.nz