The two Inspiring the Future workshops were delivered in full te reo Māori. They were aimed to broaden the career horizons of about 50 kura kaupapa students from Kaikohe and Hokianga.
The workshops were hosted by Far North District Council in conjunction with the Ministers Taskforce for Jobs and Tertiary Education Commission, with support from the Ministry of Education and Local Government New Zealand.
Far North Mayor Moko Tepania told students the day provided an opportunity for them to think about what careers were available.
Tepania, the hui MC, said there would hopefully be a career that appealed to them - so they in turn could inspire the generations that followed.
“Ko te manu kai i te mātauranga nōna te ao - the bird that eats knowledge, his is the world,” Tepania said.
More than 22,000 students nationally have been through the 300-plus Tertiary Education Commission’s Inspiring the Future Aotearoa careers workshops since they started in 2019.
But the events at Ngāhwa Innovation Park’s Mahinga centre were a national first among these - the workshops were conducted fully in te reo Māori.
Far North Mayor Moko Tepania explains his mayoral chains to students at Inspiring the Future Aotearoa hui near Kaikohe. Photo / Susan Botting
Inspiring the Future Aotearoa challenges stereotypes that can limit young people’s potential by introducing them to role models from the world of work.
Tepania said Friday’s hui was about providing education for students while at school, rather than the later-stage Mayors Taskforce for Jobs approach which was more at the bottom of the cliff for students, effectively after they had left school.
He is one of a dozen mayors on the governing group of the Mayors Taskforce for Jobs nationally.
Tepania said it was great that the country’s first full immersion te reo Māori Inspiring the Future workshops were in the Far North.
He told students it was important to work towards getting a great well-paid job, as this would have benefits that included being able to support their family.
Tepania is a former te reo Māori teacher at Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Kaikohe, which was one of two schools to attend the hui along with Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Hokianga from near Ōpononi.
He currently still does some work at the Kaikohe kura.
Tepania said the full te reo Māori immersion model would have applications in other parts of New Zealand too.
Other regions were already watching Friday’s events with a view to setting up a workshop locally.
Eastern Bay of Plenty Te Kura o te Pāroa tumuaki (principal) Eryn Te Pou attended the workshop near Kaikohe ahead of wanting to take the workshops to her local kura.
Pou drove more than 500km north from Whakatāne to attend the first te reo Māori hui of its type.
The Far North hui was aimed at high school students.
Waka Kotahi NZTA national senior manager Māori Lou Mutu was among Māori professional role models who students focused on at the te reo Māori immersion careers hui. Photo / Susan Botting
However Pou, who is tumuaki at a primary level kura, said she wanted to introduce the concept earlier for her local students.
She said there were three local eastern Bay of Plenty kura she hoped would be part of a follow-up hui in Whakatāne.
Inspiring the Future Aotearoa workshops for school students cater for all teaching levels from primary to secondary.
Te Pou said it was good to be able to see the hui near Kaikohe unfold and she liked the presence of cultural career role models.
Half a dozen Māori professionals from a wide range of careers sat on a panel. The career role models came from around Northland and as far away as Wellington to participate.
Among the panel was a community mental health nurse, a gymnasium manager, a Māori relationships adviser and a former New Zealand Army peacekeeper.
Panel members were questioned by students whose task it was to attempt to guess their occupations.
Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Hokianga student Isaiah Ngawharau from Ōpononi said the hui he attended had been worthwhile to highlight job opportunities after leaving school.
The workshop provided an opportunity to learn about various career options, rather than simply becoming a person who stayed home glued to devices, Ngawharau said.
About 8000 students have been through the Inspiring the Future programme nationally to date this year.
