Te piko o te māhuri, tērā te tupu o te rākau: language and literacy in marae-based programmes

Overall, foundation learning is both explicit and implicit in all the levels of learning undertaken by participants on the marae. In this section, discussion centres on the need to consider four relevant themes that hold pivotal comment on the basis, relevance and future of marae-based learning opportunities for Māori learners. Bringing out…takes learners back to admissions of fundamental needs and expectations of language acquisition. Bringing back…relates to the resolve that learners adopt, no matter the difficulty of the journey, to continue the work of tipuna and kaumatua. Bringing up …presents the ongoing accent on the cultural relevancy of language, not as an exclusive device, but an inclusive one, to demonstrate the living context of Māori. Bringing about…responds to the engagement of learners in social collaboration with relevant others such as whānau, hapū and iwi, to foster expansive foundation learning practice that is ongoing.

5.1 Bringing out…

…the language and tikanga of learners and making explicit the tacit knowledge(s) that exist at the heart of Māori connected to the marae. When learners talked of their improvements in regard to developing their expertise in te reo, this was a difficult admission to make, because this idea came from people who, for a major part of their lives, lived and worked around their marae but who really knew very little of the legacy they should be protecting. For example, it appeared that the expectation for many was that they would continue to contribute to manuhiri (visitors) occasions, through working and staying ‘at the back’, even long after they had every right to be ‘at the front’. Some of these marae are isolated, and ‘town’ is easily a couple of hours away. Despite their humility, the participants of the research recognised that the language was still ‘there’, deep inside them, because it had been all around them from when they were born, and even before, inside their mother’s puku.

Language acquisition theory points to the latent power of language to be sustained tacitly; the form and sounds remain from birth and triggers throughout life, including positive attitudes about one’s language (Saville-Troike, 2003, p. 198), make acquisition and improvement possible with just one year of semi-immersion strategies (Francis & Reyhner, 2002, pp. 32-39; May et al., 2004). However, positive attitudes are not enough to revitalise a language, but a change in behaviour brings more restorative results for intergenerational continuity (Brandt & Ayoungman, 1989, p. 58). In the right context, improvement is profound. Just like other cultures, foundation and language learning is acquired in responsive social contexts (Glynn, 1987) that reflect the cultural values and practices of the families in the community. There is an interconnectedness between whānau and the kura of the marae which is stronger for most Māori learners who experience marae-based education than the more traditional relationships that exist in other teaching and learning environments. Within this responsive social context, the learning communities that comprise lecturers and learners together provide language contexts that are embedded in the experiences, protocols and values of the marae community. The lives of the learners are directly connected with the lives of people in the community: whānau, hapū and iwi. Looking to kaumatua participation and guidance in all aspects of the learning reinforces the appropriateness of the marae-based cultural context.

The above ideas are also not unlike the findings reported in Te kāwai ora (Māori Adult Literacy Working Party, 2001, p. 10) about Māori literacy – reading the world, reading the word, being the world – that “literacy is tribally located and that whānau, hapū and iwi were literacy providers”. Furthermore, “literacy gives people the power to function fully as citizens who are critically literate in their history and in their world” (ibid., p. 3). Embedding literacy and foundation education provision within the context of learning about tupuna, whakapapa, wairua, tikanga and te reo Māori through marae-based learning provides one of the fundamental keys to success for Māori.

5.2 Bringing back…

…learners to the marae to engage in dynamic learning succession for the younger generation, and to carry on the work started by tupuna and kaumatua. When Durie (2001) set out three broad goals for Māori in education, he epitomised the kind of kōrero that has become prevalent among Māori learners who are engaged in marae-based learning opportunities: to live as Māori, to participate successfully in the wider community and to enjoy a healthy and spiritual lifestyle. The goals of individual learners are consistent with the goals and aspirations of their whānau and their relationship appears to promote a collaborative model of nurturing leadership for the benefit of the community around the marae. The Māori language and cultural practices (tikanga) are modelled on the strength of the kaumatua and kuia, but it is now becoming critical for younger ones to step forward and take their place on the marae. The idea is that by standing confidently in their own language and the cultural safety of the marae, their strength is then manifested in an ability to learn new skills and knowledge with greater confidence. Bringing confidence back through practising their own language and ways of learning rekindles the acceptance Māori learners may have had in the past, that a successful education will provide the useful pathways needed for engagement in further learning opportunities plus benefits in responding to and gaining employment. These factors will in turn lead to their future health and well-being, as well as motivation for the younger generation coming behind.

There are some fundamental changes happening regarding the engagement of Māori learners to define and promote their own desired learning platform, and this push comes through a deepening awareness of the efficacy and validity of being Māori. Penetito (2002, p. 17, cited in Ministry of Education, 2007, p. 11) captures the burgeoning mood in the following way: “If there is an emerging educational vision among Māori, it is the desire for an education that enhances what it means to be Māori: so simple and yet so profound.”

5.3 Bringing up…

…issues of historical connections to past learning experiences and putting these in the context that is removed from the cultural relevancy of marae-based education. The evidence of successful foundation learning programmes for adult Māori learners is minimal. Mlcek (2006) suggests that “it is never just about ‘literacy’ and ‘oracy’”, and different ways of communicating is the key to ‘making meaning’. Furthermore, in the practice of literacy and oracy, the isolation of one over the other serves as minimalist terrain that overshadows the multiple ways of communicating to demonstrate literate capabilities. Māori learners have evolved from the dominant discourse of the traditional schooling curriculum to a structure of learning on the marae that is no less formal, and is highly contextualised through the protocols and rules of the marae, but is more culturally relevant because individual acts of communication heighten the preciousness of te reo and Māori experience as being of paramount importance for the ongoing engagement in foundation learning.

The foundation learning opportunities that are embedded in the marae-based programmes enhance the capacity and capabilities of Māori learners to link the idea of learning on the marae to legitimate knowledge for effective communication purposes on both specific and broader levels. Māori have historical and contemporary links to how this is done through oracy that relates to the nature of oral practice, accompanying behaviours and activity in a given situation – in encounters. Privileging oral modes of communication in order to perpetuate language, culture and traditions is a means of maintaining mātauranga (Māori knowledge) (Mlcek, ibid.). In addition, running like a continuous piece of woven whāriki is the presence of a special kind of wairuathat comes from being connected to the marae, in order to stand tall in the community and the world. That is, “The goal is to be in the world as Māori, to be a Māori world citizen not just any homogenised cultureless citizen” (Smith, 2006, cited in Ministry of Education, 2007, p. 10).

5.4 Bringing about…

…understanding and validating the incredible diversity and flexibility afforded by marae-based learning to deal with both the subtle and explicit challenges of developing literacy particularly through the development of oracy. Part of successful community member development is the ability of individuals to learn how to express themselves in te reo Māori; this challenge has been taken up with the wānanga programmes. For Māori learners, being literate in their own language is a further reaffirmation and expression of their identity and their place in the world. For many, this direction of affirmation has not been an easy journey. That is, literacy development on the marae cannot be disconnected from the language and culture of tupuna and kaumatua because it is through this tool that Māori can be proactive in asserting their place alongside the Pākehā world. Speaking and learning in te reo Māori provides a foundational platform that acknowledges how precious the language is as a fundamental medium of culture and education for Māori learners.

Bringing about engagement with marae-based learning has the potential to take people out of their comfort zones and yet creates places of safety and confidence building. The extent and level to which using te reo to build confidence in learners is mirrored by the understanding of learners that speaking the language makes them want to be confident and, as Cummins (1989) indicates, intellectual benefits come from the increased ability and control learners have in being able to manipulate language development in reading, writing and oral expression. For example, clusters of learners from each of the marae groups ‘pull’ others into the wānanga settings and onto the programmes so that not only are numbers increased, but the capacity of individuals from their rohe is strengthened. Issues that pertain to individual marae are explored with fellow learners and lecturers, who in turn use the readily available curriculum offered by the environment to enhance their programmes. The programmes are learner-centred certainly but cannot exclusively be codified as such because, while they also enjoy learner-directed energy as indicated above, they are formally directed by lecturer input and the impact of environment. Because learners have a high regard and gratitude for their lecturers’ knowledge and expertise, they have a positive response to their learning.

Ka Hikitia (Ministry of Education, 2008) is the Māori education strategy for 2008 to 2012, and it resonates the same values held by the participants of the research project that spaces should be created for Māori voices to give input to their educational future. The document directly supports the transmission and development of te reo, ngā tikanga me ngā mātauranga Māori as valuable outcomes in their own right. Ka Hikitia’s outcome for Māori learners is for Māori enjoying education success as Māori in te ao Māori, New Zealand and the world. However, what the document advocates is a “personalised learning” strategy that ought to be delivered in a “range of settings”, and a “range of contexts”, which appears to be “at odds” with the findings of the research into marae-based learning opportunities. This research project clearly identifies that Māori learners are best supported through the collective mode of whānau, hapū and iwi, as well as individual student collaboration that is part of the marae-based education model.

Foundation learning opportunities are not just discrete units of learning; that is, they are not only as a result of ‘deliberate acts of teaching’, and neither are they episodic. This research shows that foundations of learning are built on a continuous and dynamic amalgamation of precious historical knowledge, future aspirations, and current pragmatic engagement. For Māori learners, foundational learning is embedded tacitly before they are born, and is manifested through individual achievement that starts and ends with the collective support of whānau, hapū and iwi.

At different levels, the above latter relational triad can be monitored through the myriad ways that people enjoy encounters of learning on the marae. Some of these ways may appear ‘informal’ or spontaneous, such as who gets what job to perform, but they invariably lead to upholding more formal structures that actually serve to create places of safety for Māori, as well as a space for success. Foundation learning opportunities on the marae reinforce the notion that learning happens not in a vacuum, but is an extension of social and purposeful activity that cannot be isolated from everyday life (Elish-Piper, 2000). When foundation learning evolves out of more ‘formal’ engagement, these opportunities serve to indicate to Māori learners the seriousness of the legacy they hold. One such formal encounter of learning is realised through wānanga teaching that protects and perpetuates te reo Māori, ngā tikanga me ngā mātauranga. Participants in the research project know that the journey is not easy, but the most precious legacy of all is the privileging of oracy so that proficiency in te reo remains the main vehicle of foundation learning. How can, for example, the concept of wairua being woven through the whole purpose of life be articulated more clearly than through te reo? Marae-based education provides the unique and valid environment for Māori learners to flourish in their language.