The student understands the contemporary and traditional views of Te Ao Māori, the wider world and the physical and natural worlds.
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Rationale |
Observable behaviour |
Whānau practices and beliefs |
Research |
The student acknowledges his or her place in the Māori world and in the wider world. |
Māori live at the interface between te ao Māori and the wider global society. |
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Māori worldview lies at the very heart of Māori culture - touching, interacting with and strongly influencing every aspect of the culture. This contributes to the Māori holistic view of the world and the Māori place in it. (Marsden, 2003) An educational context needs to be created where to be Māori is to be normal; where Māori cultural identities are valued, valid and legitimate; in other words where Māori children can be themselves. (Bishop and Glynn, 1999) Tangaere argues that through te reo Māori, children can relate to the spiritual world, the people, the land and the environment. (Webber, 1996) The relationships of people and rangatira with the land are also relationships about power - ultimately spiritual power. Ancestral place names are important signifiers of authority and identity. (Ministry of Justice publication, 2001) Mason Durie states that ‘uniquely relevant to Māori is the way in which the Māori world views and the wider world views of society, impact on each other. (2003 Hui Taumata Mātauranga) |
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Indicator |
Rationale |
Observable behaviour |
Whānau practices and beliefs |
Research |
The student acknowledges the complexity of the natural and physical world. |
The physical world refers to the physical environment that we are exposed to. The natural world includes all nature in the physical environment. |
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Māori regard for the environment is connected to the retention of a cultural identity and the maintenance of Māori ideals, beliefs and way of life. (Durie, 1998) The Kaitiakitanga initiative involves schoolchildren living in the Whirinaki Forest area understanding their role as guardians of the forest and protectors of their environment for the future generations. (http://www.kaitiakitanga.net/) Findings from a Ministry for the Environment report found that people are more likely to develop relevant environmental knowledge, attitudes, skills and behaviour when environmental education activities are action-oriented and focused on their own community. (Ministry for the Environment report, 1998) Bishop et al (2001) provide examples of environmental initiatives undertaken by children and their whānau that provides the opportunity to engage actively with the natural world. |
Indicator |
Rationale |
Observable behaviour |
Whānau practices and beliefs |
Research |
The student actively investigates and explores the Māori world and the wider world. |
Respect for the natural and physical environment is enhanced as students become increasingly familiar with te ao Māori. The concept of te ao Māori encompasses the physical environment and the natural environment. |
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‘Problem-posing education knowledge’ emerges only through invention and re-invention, through the restless impatient, continuing, hopeful inquiry, human beings pursue in the world, with the world and with each other. (Freire, 2003) Inherent in language is a people’s relationship with the world and views on the world. Therefore the context used in science education classrooms without language will wither and petrify both the knowledge and the people it comes from. (McKinley, 2005) Traditional knowledge forms are increasingly being recognised worldwide as a means to help find solutions to complex problems, to enhance understanding of our environment, and to provide a basis for strengthening cultural identity. (Harmsworth, 2002) Researchers show that Māori children can be taught to engage with their people, land and environment through te reo and tikanga Māori. (Te Whaiti, McCarthy and Durie, 1997) |