December 19, 2017
Mainstream dead end for reo learners
The Council for Education Research has confirmed what many Maori whanau have found – that students who start with high proficiency in te reo Maori are unlikely to be supported to further develop their reo skills in English-medium schools.
And while many teachers think it is important students learn te reo Maori, very few are able to use the language at more than a basic level.
Senior researcher Nicola Bright says if te reo Maori is to be made universally available in schools, ways need to be found to increase the number of teachers proficient in te reo Maori.
The National Survey of Primary and Intermediate Schools 2016 found English-medium schools are increasingly aware they can support the wellbeing, identity, and achievement of Maori students by incorporating te reo and tikanga into school-wide practices.
Schools with high levels of akonga Maori were most likely to have practices in place to support these students.
Four in five teachers said they incorporate te reo Maori and tikanga Maori in ways that promote Maori students belonging but while most used te reo for greetings and farewells and instructions, just 39 percent used the language in creative contexts, conversations, or to teach content.
The findings have been released in a series of reports, all of which are available on the NZCER website. The report ‘Akonga Maori in English-medium primary and intermediate schools’ is available at: http://www.nzcer.org.nz/principals_national_survey_2016
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