HE PI KA RERE 'An Early Childhood Approach to a Cultural Milieu'
Karu, J. H. (2015). HE PI KA RERE ‘An Early Childhood Approach to a Cultural Milieu’ (Thesis, Master of Arts (MA)). University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10289/9510
Permanent Research Commons link: https://hdl.handle.net/10289/9510
This study explores the issues surrounding the inculcation of te reo me ngā tikanga Māori, Māori language customs and values among early childhood teacher educators in a tertiary setting and how these academics go about preparing students with limited or sufficient knowledge of te reo Māori (Māori language) me ngā tikanga Māori (Māori cultural practices) to meet expectations. Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum is a curriculum commonly referred to as a bicultural curriculum that contains two expressions of the curriculum, one for general early childhood centres and another for kōhanga reo, neither of which are translations of one another and further asserts the importance of Te Tiriti o Waitangi/ the Treaty of Waitangi and the responsibility of teachers for bicultural development in the education of all children. Equally important, Te Whāriki acknowledges the dual heritage existent within Aotearoa/ New Zealand and further encourages teachers in early childhood settings to have knowledge of te reo and tikanga Māori. Policy imperatives reflected within the New Zealand Graduating Teaching Standards (New Zealand Teachers Council, 2010) and the Ministry of Education’s document Tātaiako/ Cultural Competencies (2011) place further emphasis on the need for those in initial teacher education to demonstrate their conversancy with te reo me ngā tikanga Māori. The purpose of this study is to provide a narrative of the ways in which the early childhood initial teacher education programme prepares students to use te reo and tikanga Māori. It offers a premise to engage in further discussion of the continued effectiveness of early childhood teacher educators in the maintenance and delivery of te reo me ngā tikanga Māori and sets in motion a cyclical platform for further research from a traditional worldview which reflects and embodies the Māori language, culture and identity through a Kaupapa Māori philosophy and praxis.
University of Waikato
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