Ko Te Rautaki Reo a Kāhui Ako ki Orewa:
Creating a community of shared understanding
Rārangi Upoko/ Table of Contents
Mēhua haere/Measuring progress 9
Take/ Purpose
The Orewa Kāhui Ako has as one of its four focus goals the following:
The te reo Māori curriculum progressions are embedded into practice from ECE onwards. All kaiako/teacher are supported within the Kāhui Ako to build confidence and competence to achieve this. Tataiako and Ka Hikitia are documents that underpin kaiako/teacher and ākonga/student progress.
Whakarāpopototanga/Synopsis
On Thursday, April 4, 2019/Rāpare, te 4 o Paengawhāwhā 2019, leaders from across our Kāhui Ako Orewa gathered for a hui at our local marae, Te Herenga Waka o Orewa. The positive attendance showed a collective commitment towards achieving improved outcomes for our tamariki in the area of te reo me tikanga Māori.
Under the guidance of the Te Herenga Waka Kaumātua, Kereama Nathan, we have developed four key areas; Acquisition, Domains, Normalisation and Sustainability. These four areas provide the framework on which we develop our expectations for transformative and deliberate change across our Kāhui Ako.
Whiwhinga/Acquisition
- Share our curriculum frameworks across Orewa Kāhui Ako kura.
- Use a set of common waiata and karakia.
- Maintain strong links to Te Herenga Waka o Orewa marae.
- Develop kaimahi/staff (kaiako/teachers and non teachers) basic knowledge and skills.
- Establish common kupu that can be used across our kura.
- Kupu o te wiki, word of the week introduced at weekly staff meetings.
- Teachers in homerooms expected to teach te ao, te reo and tikanga Māori for at least an hour each week.
- All teaching staff write a pepeha to be used with confidence.
- Consider the ALLiS model to develop an across school program to fund an itinerant teacher to support kura with professional development and mentoring.
- Responsibility for delivering te reo Māori to remain with classroom teachers.
Ngā Whaitua/Domains
- Kura are encouraged to support local events such as Te kotahitanga day, Tū Māia Festival and the Kaipara festival.
- Tiriti o Waitangi to be acknowledged by our kura and presented to our ākonga/students in a meaningful way.
- Kapa haka to be accessible to all akonga/students across the Kāhui Ako.
- Te reo Māori is visible/audible in communications across the Kāhui Ako including but not restricted to:
- Websites
- Signage around kura/schools
- Mottos/slogans
- Newsletters
- Noticeboards
- Greetings from office staff
- Loudspeaker announcements
- Answering phones
- Greetings from staff to staff and staff to students
- Develop Māori heroes for our ākonga/students (Tuakana), particularly at Orewa College for year 9 upwards.
- Tataiako Cultural Competencies and Ka Hikitia to be used by our kura.
- Values are translated to te reo Māori and used with equal frequency as English.
- Matariki and Te Wiki o te reo Māori are celebrated in our kura.
- Te reo Māori is included in certificates/awards presented within our kura.
- During all gatherings within our kura, te reo Māori will be used in some way that is meaningful these include, but are not restricted to, hui such as:
- Assemblies
- Meet the teacher evenings
- Parent/teacher meetings
- Staff meetings
- Team meetings
Whakauka/Sustainability
- Links to ECE centres to be strengthened and the knowledge ECE hold in using te reo Māori built on at kura tuatahi/primary school entry level.
- Access to professional development for kaiako through channels such as Te Herenga waka, Orewa Kāhui Ako, VLNs study grants, Digital resources developed for future kaiako (future proofing).
- Develop expertise and confidence in te reo Māori, kapa haka and tikanga Māori.
- Take small deliberate steps and reinforce them so that staff are not overwhelmed.
- Ākonga/Students and kaiako are educated around the bicultural nature of Aotearoa and how this shapes who we are here.
- Collective/interconnected – Foster relationships between kura, marae, leaders and students to model whanaungatanga, kotahitanga and manaakitanga.
- Teachers model a growth mindset when using te reo Māori thus creating a safe environment for all members of our kura to step out and take risks when using te reo Māori.
- Allocate PD resourcing in schools to study te reo Māori
- Seek out experts/tohunga who are able to pass on matauranga Māori/knowledge of te ao Māori such as: raranga/weaving, whakairo/carving, rongoā Māori/Māori medicine, poi, mau rakau etc.
- Commitment/accountability – Māori kaiarahi/leaders to meet termly to gauge our progress and to support one another.
- Smooth transitions pursued in learning te reo Māori from ECE to kura tuatahi/primary school to kura tuarua/college.
- Whānau given opportunities to learn the curriculum content in our kura so that it can be used/reinforced at home.
- Te reo Māori me tikanga Māori becomes, ‘What we do’.
Ritenga/Normalisation
- Karanga and haka used in each kura
- Certificates include te reo Māori.
- Whakataukī frequently used to teach life lessons.
- Correct pronunciation pursued.
- Tikanga Māori taught and lived by in our kura.
- Tumuaki/principals and leaders to lead the way through increased usage of and expected use of te reo Māori by themselves and staff such as:
- “Tēnā koutou”/hello to a group
- “Ahiahi mārie”/good afternoon
- “Ata mārie”/good morning
- “Kia ora”
- “Mōrena”
- “Kei te pehea koe?” “Kei te _____ ahau.” “E pehea ana koe?”
- Start of year pōwhiri for new staff and students.
- Te reo Māori to be visible and displayed within and around our kura
- Over time, te reo Māori will be heard and seen in meaningful and authentic way across all kura.
- Learning shared and pathways offered to our community/whānau so that te reo Māori can be continued at home and in domains beyond our kura.
- Karakia regularly used in akomanga/classrooms, rūma kaimahi/staff rooms and hui.
- Māori karakia used for shared kai.
- All kura to have their own unique school haka.
- Waiata being sung/played in akomanga/classrooms.
- Kaiako/teachers are given the option to be called by the title matua or whaea rather than Mr. or Mrs.
Mēhua haere/Measuring progress
Leaders will self evaluate where they are at the outset by highlighting protocols and systems that are already consolidated in their own kura. Leaders from across our Kāhui Ako will meet each term to check progress against the 4 areas of the strategy document, ‘Ko Te Rautaki Reo 2019 a Te Kāhui Ako ki Orewa 2019’. These hui will be used to measure the success of this strategy in transforming the culture of our kura and importantly, the quality and consistency of learning experiences for our ākonga/students whilst moving through our Kāhui Ako. Honest reflection will provide an element of accountability as we work to collectively to solve problems.
Kāhui Ako ki Orewa 
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