Te Kura o Otangarei principal Myles Ferris says some schools need to lift their game when it comes to teaching te reo Maori. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Te Kura o Otangarei principal Myles Ferris says some schools need to lift their game when it comes to teaching te reo Maori. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Myles Ferris says learning te reo Maori is more than just learning a language.
For Maori children it can boost confidence and improve results in other areas of school, for non-Maori it can give a better understanding of the culture.
The comments from Ferris, who is principal of decile 1school Te Kura o Otangarei and president of Te Akatea Maori Principals Association, come after recently published results of a 2016 study found children from low-decile schools scored higher in te reo Maori than those from high-decile schools.
"I think often lower-decile schools attract Maori teachers and teachers of te reo Maori - both in English medium and Maori medium schools. It didn't surprise me much at all."
The study, The National Monitoring Study of Student Achievement, is a collaboration between the University of Otago, the New Zealand Council for Educational Research and the Ministry of Education, which assesses the achievement of primary school students across the curriculum.
The 2016 study assessed student achievement at Year 4 and Year 8 in learning languages, including te reo Maori.
At both year levels, the average score for students from high-decile schools was lower than the average scores for students from mid- and low-decile schools.
Ferris said higher-decile schools needed to lift their game when it came to teaching te reo Maori.
"Principals should find when they show that level of respect towards Maori culture they will raise the aspirations and the sense of value those students have - and that's going to improve in all areas.
"I think it's essential for all students in this country. I think our non-Maori students we are doing a disservice ...by not teaching it. The way the world is going is we're getting to a point [where it is] is a huge part of our life in New Zealand. Moving forward Pakeha and Maori are going to benefit from that understanding of te reo. It's good for our unity moving forward."
