Activity 4 : Indigenous knowledge and cultural responsiveness in my practice

My  Indigenous knowledge and understanding comes from personal experiences, living in the Māori world, being connected to the hāpori Māori and the hapu and iwi of which I reside. I have a relationship with my Māori community and the tangata whenua. I practice Māori customs and I teach in Māori education. Therefore I am confident with my ability, knowledge and the cultural responsiveness within my teaching practice. My cultural responsiveness is not just specific to Māori but to Polynesians and all ethnicities.

The core values that we follow at kura have be discussed by kaiako, akonga and whānau. These have been agreed upon and fleshed out at hui to give more understanding. Our Whānau Uara have also been aligned with the Key Competencies and Atua Māori.

Our Whānau Uara are :

He tangata pūmahara

Whakaute - respectful, reflective, thoughtful

Thinking

Thoughtful and wise person, perceptive, astute

inquisitive

He tangata pūkenga

Manawanui - commitment, perseverance, resilience, innovative, hīkaka (eager)

Uses language/symbols/text

Skilled, knowledgeable, considered a learned person, reading signs/situations, study skills

perseverance, determination, persistence, dedication

He tangata māhaki

Ngākau Tapatahi - integrity

Managing Self

Self-possessed, calm, quiet, mild mannered, humble

He tangata atawhai

Manaakitanga - inspiring, motivating, empowering

Relating to others

Helpful, considers the welfare of others besides themselves

Listens to others, shares ideas, co-operates, empathy, aroha

He tangata whai tikanga

Kawenga - responsibility, of good morals, able to be trusted, to others and to the environment, handy, important, meaningful, have an interest,have a right, pivotal

Participating and contributing

Wants to help wherever possible, helping those in need, always present at events, empowers others, inclusive

Actively involved in communities, whānau, school,

Contribute appropriately as a group member, make connections with others,

Balancing rights, roles and responsibilities


So, We have taken attributes that we follow in a Māori realm and related these to one of our School Wide Values. This is also then related to a Key Competency. We have also identified further attributes under each Whānau Uara or School Wide Core Value that gives kaiako, akonga or whānau more ideas of what that value might look like.


This was developed by Gaynor Hakaria, the kaiako of Te Waka Unua, with consultation from Te Whānau Ruru 2016.