CORE Blog

He kōrerorero, he whakaaro

CORE Blog

He kōrerorero, he whakaaro
CORE Blog
He kōrerorero, he whakaaro
  • HomeKāinga
  • About usMātou nei
  • CORE WebsitePAENGA CORE

Maria Tibble

Home
/
Maria Tibble
waitangi-feature-2

178 years of Treaty — What has been the intergenerational impact on your local iwi?

Posted on February 5, 2018 by Maria Tibble

With the dawning of 2021, the approach of Waitangi day, and the wero (challenge) of 2020 fresh in my mind, I wondered what 2021 would hold. As I reflected, I remembered this letter that Maria Tibble penned to kaiako in her 2018 blog. For me, the blog is not only a reminder of the innate resilience of iwi Māori in times of incredible difficulty but also how these powerful histories are repeated in localised ways.The way kaiako and kura chose to retell local histories through marau ā-kura is a powerful tool to add meaning, significance and contemporary relevance for ākonga. In her letter Maria reminds kaiako that we have the opportunity to teach and learn how Te Tiriti o Waitangi may have shaped and still shapes the identity of ākonga and their whānau, hapū, and iwi.

Maria challenges kaiako to not just share about the generic Tiriti o Waitangi story but to dig into the local stories and intergenerational impact on iwi, whānau and how it plays out for their ākonga. There are many stories of breaches, loss and trauma and equally as many stories of fortitude, strength, determination in the face of adversity. How these histories are shared matters.

She implores kaiako to:

  • tell the Tiriti story of where they locally reside
  • tell these story to heal
  • tell these story to unleash greatness

Maria reminds us that, “as the leader of learning in the class, you determine the stories that will be heard, the voices that will be listened to, and the careful selection of resources that will be viewed. These will all have a huge influence on how students view themselves as Māori, as iwi, as Treaty partners, and as tangata whenua of Aotearoa.”

– Nichole Gully, Kairangi Ngaio Māori and Kaihautū Māori, February 2021

Dear Teacherswaitangi-marae

I encourage you to localise the Treaty of Waitangi to where you currently reside so the day has even more meaning for the Māori students in your class and adds real contemporary texts for all students.

As Waitangi Day approaches and the media hype is sensationalised by the latest prejudices, divided opinions, and historic events of past Treaty of Waitangi protestations, I ask that you spare a thought for the student in your class who is Māori, whose descent claims an ancestry that reaches back to the beginning of time. To this student whose character continues to be shaped and influenced by the impact of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 to 2018, 178 years later.

As a teacher, you have the opportunity to teach and LEARN how the Treaty of Waitangi may have shaped the identity of students’ whānau, their hapū, their iwi. You could extend an invitation to local people to talk about the Treaty story of their iwi and how this important partnership document has impacted and continues to affect their rights as hapū/iwi to this day. Here lies an opportunity to privilege cultural knowledge and perhaps learn about hapū and iwi approaches to maintaining their customary rights and sovereignty over their lands, water rights, and fisheries.

As the leader of learning in the class, you determine the stories that will be heard, the voices that will be listened to, and the careful selection of resources that will be viewed. These will all have a huge influence on how students view themselves as Māori, as iwi, as Treaty partners, and as tangata whenua of Aotearoa.

My mokopuna has ancestral descent lines from Te Arawa, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Porou, Ngāi Te Rangi, Tūhoe, Te Whānau a Apanui, and Tainui. The Treaty of Waitangi has had a huge impact on each of these iwi and Treaty stories may echo similar themes, but the experiences are raw, distinctive, and unique to each tribal area.They cannot be hybridised to the Māori and the Treaty of Waitangi story, but rather, the Treaty and its impact on the iwi of Te Arawa. The Tūhoe story of the Treaty. Do not be seduced to thinking that the story ends there, as these may be individualised further to hapū or sub tribes within this iwi grouping. Not one story is the same, nor the approach as you will see in the Ngāti Porou example.

Te Arawa’s involvement with the Treaty of Waitangi

In 1840, Thomas Chapman, a well known missionary for the Church Missionary Society (CMS), was asked to seek signatures for the Treaty of Waitangi in the Rotorua and Taupō districts. The Treaty of Waitangi was first signed on the 6th February 1840. It established a British Governor in New Zealand. It recognised Māori ownership of their lands and gave Māori the rights of British subjects. It subsequently opened the door to colonisation, which had a devastating impact on tribes all over Aotearoa, including Te Arawa.

Te Arawa did not sign the Treaty in 1840, as they were confident they did not need the protection of the Queen. However, they agreed to its terms in 1860 with a group of Te Arawa leaders signing a covenant in Kohimarama, Auckland, recognising the Treaty as a binding document of partnership with the Crown. Why? Because they had suffered the negative effects of colonisation. Sadly, signing the covenant would prove meaningless as Claudia Orange comments:

The Kohimarama resolution was similar to a formal ratification of the treaty. The government promised to hold further conferences to discuss sharing power, but no more were held. The chiefs who attended the conference expected to play a greater part in decision-making, but they were to be disappointed.

In 2009, Prime Minister John Key formally apologised to Te Arawa for historical Treaty breaches against Te Arawa. “The Crown profoundly regrets and unreservedly apologises for the breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi and its principles.” Historical Treaty breaches noted in the Crown Apology included the Crown’s aggressive purchasing techniques for land opened to Pākehā settlement in the central North Island. Te Arawa suffered losses, in the main, through consolidation schemes and public works takings. The Crown officially handed over to Te Arawa $85 million in cash and assets that year.

Eru George commented then,

“It marks a conclusion in a process that has spanned generations of our tupuna [ancestors] who committed their lives to righting the wrongs and seeking resolutions for injustices on our people.”

Two important points I’d like to make here. First, George’s comment, “spanning generations of our tūpuna”. At what cost were the negotiations to families, hapū, and iwi? How were they able to fight the might of the Crown with limited resources? What drove them to continue the struggle that spanned generations? What stories of resilience, of struggle, of protest, of courage come from these times and the deeds of the ancestors of these mokopuna?

The wording of the “Crown’s aggressive purchasing techniques for land” is interesting as well. Of the hapū and iwi whose lands were seized, illegally taken or stolen, what impacts were suffered on the lives of Te Arawa people? What price in land and economic loss did Te Arawa pay for British citizenship? The effects are still felt today and are a part of our history as Te Arawa. If you were to ask, what the Treaty means to me, previously my answer would have been the legalised theft of our land and the economic decline of our tribe. Now, it is about the future and how Treaty settlements can contribute to the economic prosperity of our tribe. However the colonial residue of land loss is still an unforgotten and very real mamae (hurt).

As part of the healing process, in 2005, Te Arawa were able to express the suffering they had endured to Crown Ministers during the “Telling the Story” hui (George, 2005). This enabled Te Arawa to tell their stories of grievance, of suffering, of hurts that have had intergenerational impact. Do these stories have a place in the telling of the story of the Treaty of Waitangi in your class if you live in the tribal boundaries of Te Arawa, in Rotorua?

Moving in to 2018, however, what might the current Treaty story say? My telling would not only involve the retelling of this history and disruptive influence of colonisation but also the exciting future that lies ahead for our mokopuna. What does a Te Arawa mokopuna future look like? How have Te Arawa used Treaty settlement money so Te Arawa can thrive and prosper?

Let’s look at one example, the Ngāti Whakaue Assets Trust. Ngāti Whakaue is a sub tribe of Te Arawa. “Iwi Asset Trust doubles its asset base in 10 years to 18.3 million” — NZ Herald

In 2009 the trust was given a 9.2 million Kaingaroa Forest settlement fund to invest for the collective benefit of Ngāti Whakaue.  Thanks to “astute and strategic investment plays”, Ms Paul confirmed the asset base had since doubled and was on track to surpass $20m by 2020.

In 2016, the Trust distributed $707,975 in grants to Whakaue marae and supported various community events like Whakaue Whakanuia, which is an amazing one-day celebration of what makes a person “quintessentially Whakaue”. It is a day where Ngāti Whakaue marae congregate, including Te Papaiōuru, Tumahaurangi, Te Kuirau, and Waikuta who perform a series of items reinforcing tribal whakapapa and waiata. It is a day that privileges Whakaue tikanga and reo.

What iwi stories will you invite into the classroom?

waitangi protests

What stories will you tell my moko, or the mokopuna who sits in your class in the lead up to Waitangi Day whether you are at the top of the North Island or the bottom of the South Island? Are you aware of the Treaty of Waitangi claims local iwi have made to the Waitangi Tribunal? (a commission of inquiry, that inquires into claims brought by Māori relating to Crown actions that breach the promises made in the Treaty of Waitangi)?

The Foreshore and Seabed controversy, which concerns the ownership of the country’s foreshore and seabed, has many iwi claiming they have a rightful claim to the title under the Treaty of Waitangi. In November 2004, New Zealand Parliament passed a law deeming the title to be held by the Crown — in other words, public ownership. This law, the Foreshore and Seabed Act 2004, was enacted on 24 November 2004. Some sections of the Act came into force on 17 January 2005. Widespread protest arose. Māori anger at this legislation resulted in the formation of the Māori Party. The Act was repealed and replaced by the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011. If you return to the purpose of the Treaty of Waitangi and what was signed in 1840 and 1860, iwi do have rightful claims, and honouring the partnership agreement made 178 years ago still has an enduring impact to this day.

Let’s return to my mokopuna and her whakapapa.

Ngā Puhi — If you are from the North, could your Waitangi unit be about the recent Northland Inquiry or Wai 1040 which is examining Ngā Puhi’s 600 plus Treaty claims? Some of the stories uncovered in the hearings talk of the confiscation of land for unpaid rates. Families who were trying to maintain ahi kā (keep the home fires burning) on their land were forced to give up land to pay rates arrears. An example of aggressive land purchasing techniques?

Ngāti Porou — The Takutai Moana ratification process for the iwi is huge. In October 2008 Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Porou Foreshore and Seabed Deed of Agreement was ratified and signed by 48 hapū and the Crown at Parliament. However, the repeal and replacement of the Foreshore and Seabed Act, with the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 has provided the basis for these hapū and the Crown to negotiate a range of improvements to the Deed. At Te Runanganui o Ngāti Porou Annual General Meeting held 25 November 2017, 47 hapū had ratified amendments to the 2008 Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Porou Foreshore and Seabed Deed of Agreement and 8 groups had yet to decide (slide 9). The work that goes in to ensuring each hapū has the opportunity to engage with their iwi organisation and have a voice in exercising their rights as mana whenua is significant. 47 hapū having a voice in the running of their iwi affairs and a unified approach to negotiating with the Crown is no mean feat. Legislation for the iwi is a major priority in 2018 and ensuring partnerships with the Crown are honoured.

Whāia ko te mātauranga hai whitiki te iwi, kia toa ai.
Seek ye from the fountain of knowledge so the people may be uplifted, thrive, and prosper.
– Kepa Ehau (Esteemed Te Arawa orator)

 

Maria Tibble

Te Marau ā-Kura kia Tina!
Visit our dedicated page for more resources with strong connections to marau ā-kura.

 

Bibliography

Philip Andrews. External links and sources for ‘Chapman, Anne Maria’, Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 1990, updated November, 2001. Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/1c13/chapman-anne-maria/sources (accessed 23 January 2018)Pumautanga News.  Retrieved from Pumautanga Newsletter. http://tpota.org.nz/resources/PumautangaKorero/TP_Korero%20Oct%202009.pdf (accessed January 2018)
Rotorua Public Library Te Whare o te Matauranga.  Retrieved from Te Tiriti o Waitangi/Treaty of Waitangi http://www.rotorualibrary.govt.nz/maori/TeTiritioWaitangi/Pages/default.aspx (accessed 23 January 2018)
Rotorua Daily Post.  Retrieved from Te Arawa face greatest challenge” http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rotorua-daily-post/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503438&objectid=10983683 (accessed 23 January 2018)
Claudia Orange, ‘Treaty of Waitangi’, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/treaty-of-waitangi/print (accessed 23 January 2018).  Story by Claudia Orange, published 20 Jun 2012
Rotorua Daily Post.  Retrieved from “Iwi Asset Trust doubles its asset base in 10 years to 18.3 million” http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rotorua-daily-post/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503434&objectid=11938803
Whakaue Whakanuia.  Retrieved from http://www.maoritelevision.com/tv/shows/nga-pari-karangaranga/S08E009/ngati-whakaue-whakanuia-series-8-episode-9
Legislative violations of the Treaty of Waitangi 1840-1990 the first 150 years
Retrieved from http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~sai/Tr_violn.html
Waitangi Tribunal – Te Rōpu Whakamana i te Tiriti o Waitangi – https://www.waitangitribunal.govt.nz/claims-process/
New Zealand foreshore and seabed controversy. (2017, September 23). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 20:35, January 23, 2018, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=New_Zealand_foreshore_and_seabed_controversy&oldid=802067148
Te Runanganui o Ngāti Porou Annual General Meeting.  Retrieved from http://www.ngatiporou.com/sites/default/files/uploads/20171123%202017%20AGM%20slides%20consolidated.pdf Accessed January 24th 2018.

read more
Posted in

Uia mai koia whakahuatiake ko wai te tupuna e?

Posted on August 24, 2015 by Maria Tibble

Making iwi visible

PūkākīYou may ask, who is this ancestral figure standing before me? You may have recognised his face on the twenty-cent coin. Did you ever stop to think of the story behind this carved figure? Did you know he has a living whakapapa that flourishes today and was once revered for his fighting prowess and leadership? That his charisma is still as influential now as when he once walked the land?

Uia mai koia whakahuatiake ko wai te tupuna e?

Ko Pūkākī! His name is PŪKĀKĪ!

I gaze at him and I see my Nan. I look at him and I see my children. I touch him and I feel my mokopuna — those that are here now and those still to come. How can this be? Because he is one in a long line of tupuna I can exalt and lay claim to in my whakapapa. If there should be a hint of self-importance in proclaiming this, I confess it with undenied arrogance, and hope that all children of Māori descent can do the same with their tupuna. Why? Because not so long ago I was asked who was one of my heroes when I was at primary school, and sadly, all I could say was Christopher Columbus? Marco Polo? Auē!

They were some of the greatest explorers of all time when I was at school. We were told stories about their exploits, discoveries, and personal challenges. I did not know then that there were as many explorers and heroes in my Māori world of Te Arawa who could equal their heroism and self sacrifice. Navigators, architects, scientists, horticulturalists, builders, artists, and many charismatic leaders. Not surprisingly, there were just as many women as there were men. We had our own Queen Victorias, Queen Elizabeths, and Henry the Eighths!

As my tupuna were not exalted in the schoolbooks that I read, nor illuminated in the curriculum that served us, I did not realise my line of descent or its magnificence. We might have sung about some of our tupuna, but their stories were largely marginalised and invisible to us in class. A clear example: the Hauhau rebellion. I read, or maybe heard, that they were a band of armed rebels fighting against the government. In my head, Hauhau’s were rebels on the run. Hauhau’s were Māori. I was Māori. Being Māori was bad. I remember a sense of shame, but did not really know why. What I came to learn much later in life was the true reason for their rebellious actions.

read more
Posted in

Hūmārie – an authentic response to cultural location

Posted on July 9, 2015 by Maria Tibble

As facilitators of marau ā-kura design, we are often asked “How might kura approach designing effective culturally-located marau ā-kura?”

This captivating kōrero in our esteemed, late Maria Tibble’s blog post serves as an invaluable resource in our support of kura. In it she shares the actions she took in her role as a facilitator and interweaves this with the essence of her Ngāti Whakaue whakapapa, reo, tikanga and wairua. Maria guides us through how to craft a curriculum where voice is given to mana whenua and their whānau, and where the stories connected to their location are heard, acknowledged and honoured.

Maria’s approach to the building of a culturally-located curriculum is through the act of Hūmārie. She tells us that knowing the significant kōrero, words and songs unique to tribal locations means that models of teaching and learning can shift in ways that support tamariki to be connected, confident and comfortable in their various learning environments.

I agree with Maria that this is vital for our mahi as facilitators. It ensures the authenticity of the voices at the table without misconstruing the messages, the contexts and the heart of what is shared. Following on from Hūmārie are Ūkaipō, Mōhio, Aroha, Reo, Iwi, Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, he toa takitini kē. These are all considerations that I believe can be a guide for either getting started on local curriculum or affirming what you have done already.

I leave you with the wisdom of Maria’s words below that capture beautifully her messaging around what counts for culture and what it can mean when one’s culture meets another.

“Your openness to my voice laden with legacy and tradition is the one response that my heart will recognise, that my soul will rise to, that my being will open to as a mokopuna of iwi.”

– Reflection by Alicia Ngaropo-Tuia, Kaihuawaere Ngaio Māori, February 2021

 

Kuirau Park, Rotorua
Fig. 1 Te Moana a Taokahu, Kuirau Park, Rotorua

To craft a curriculum

For the last five years I have had the privilege of working as a curriculum designer, armed with Te Marautanga o Aotearoa (partnership document to the New Zealand Curriculum) in one hand, and the voices of whānau in the other. Together with the school, we work to craft a curriculum that resonates with the voice and aspiration of whānau (including students, parents or caregivers, hapu, and iwi). At each school I enter bearing my personalised kākahu woven together with whakapapa (genealogical ties), reo (Māori and English), tikanga (my values and ways of doing things), and wairua (my sense of belonging and knowing). It is a humbling position. The role requires dancing between expert and amateur, worker and/or observer, and reflective practitioner or assertive advisor. At the heart of the work is the child, a future leader of the iwi. To design, craft, and shape a curriculum that leaves whānau in no doubt about what it means to achieve as Māori, feel success as Māori, and to know, do, and be as Māori in their eyes, is my role. Easy to roll off the tongue, and a challenge to create, but it is rewarding to give voice to mana whenua and the whānau.

The act of humbling oneself

Hikoi to see Makawe
Fig.2 Hikoi at Makawe

Hūmārie – the act of humbling oneself so that your importance is minimised and the status of another elevated.

As a facilitator, to be hūmārie is crucial. It is an unselfish act of invitation to view the world through a lens not of my own making or interpretation, but to experience it through whānau eyes. Hūmārie allows openness to the known and unknown, the seen and unseen, the visible context and the invisible message – I see you, I hear you, I know you. At the heart of all teaching and learning decisions is the child – ko te pūtake o te ako, ko te tamaiti. My act of ‘hūmārie, to mingle with the presence of their tupuna is the ultimate recognition that I can pay deference to a cultural lens other than my own.

read more
Posted in

The art of sabotage — Tactical presenting

Posted on May 22, 2014 by Maria Tibble

Superhero to rescue

As teachers, educators, leaders or facilitators who have been asked to present to an audience, this can be a daunting task. 

I remember being asked two days before the end of term to present to a staff of 80 resistant secondary school teachers.  Reports were due and the topic was one the teachers had voiced their opposition to all term. How do you find a way to distract them long enough so that it confronts their opposition head on, breaks the ice, offers a bit of humour, and then allows you to address the business at hand?

Here’s an idea you might consider next time, and have a bit of fun with at the same time! As long as you know your audience well, and feel that they’d enjoy something like this, go for it!

Sabotage by Subterfuge

Rules of engagement:

  1. Know your audience well.
  2. Timing is everything
  3. Arm yourself with a hit list
  4. Stand your ground at the frontline
  5. Confront the behaviours head on

Game Plan

  1. Share the sabotage list
  2. Teachers to tick off their areas of expertise
  3. Add any areas that may have been missed
  4. Keep it for reflection at the end of the session

The Sabotage list:

Sabotage List

[media-downloader media_id=”5783″ texts=”Download a copy”] (PDF, 79.6KB)

Notes:

  1. you may modify the list to illustrate behaviours that are already thriving well.
  2. the strategy can be adapted to a range of audiences e.g. Primary, Intermediate, Tertiary
  3. a brave teacher might set the next classroom assignment – how to sabotage a classroom lesson?

Success or death by self-sabotage

You may be wondering if this strategy worked or was I shot down where I stood?  Thankfully there were lots of laughs, lots of ticking and additions I had never even thought of e.g. reading the best bet!

read more
Posted in

“Naumai ki tō Parihakatanga”

Posted on June 13, 2013 by Maria Tibble

Photo of Parihaka pah entrance

How can 21st century tools enhance the weave of the cultural lens? What impact can these tools have on 21st century indigenous classrooms whose culture is sourced in oral tradition, whakapapa (genealogical ties and kinship), tikanga (process and protocols for living), reo (language of body, tinana and environment), and wairua (spiritual well-being)? How can the gifts, talents, and strengths you bring enrich the lives and experiences of Māori students, whānau, hapū, and iwi in their respective rohe? Are you making a difference in the cultural presence of the classroom, school, or educational setting you work in?

Take some time to consider my thoughts…

Never will I forget Wharehoka Wano entering Tamatekapua to help me mourn the loss of my dad. How my tears fell on my dad’s face as I reminded him of Whare’s loss just two weeks before. “Tukua mai kia piri, tukua mai kia tata, e hoa so that our tears may mingle together. Returning to Parihaka so I could be cleansed by the winds that sweep down from the summit of Taranaki, I knew I was ready to do this and pay homage to the people of Parihaka.

When the opportunity arose to have our next CORE Māori whanau hui at Parihaka I was already there. Parihaka—the name as majestic in my mind as Taranaki himself—had always captured my imagination, and I wanted to hear their story, not from a book, a DVD, or a digital device, but in the collective voices of the land, the sea, and the ever-present spirit of the people both present and beyond.

“Naumai ki tō Parihakatanga…”

Photo of Whare speaking to the group

These four words of greeting from Whare haunted my second visit to Parihaka. Literally the words translate as ‘Welcome to your Parihakatanga (or your Parihaka-ness)”. I wondered if these words meant that lying dormant within me was a genetic memory of having been here before, which I could now reclaim. Or, was this an invitation to share my whakapapa (genealogical links) and ancestral histories, leaving me with my own understanding of how, too, I am a descendant of Parihaka’s legacy?

Parihaka!  My mind swam in a wave of words and images. Scratch the surface of this peaceful settlement and the scars of land-loss, exile, and settler-greed are still present. The mark of any colonizing force—military, masses, and missionaries had forever cornered this niche of prized real estate in the annals of New Zealand’s history. To look upon the hill where the colonial forces rode down with their preordained agenda on the peaceful inhabitants below, I couldn’t help but feel the warrior DNA rise in me. Yet the people of Parihaka stood staunch and true. Not one hand raised in aggression, the resistance passive, unlike the ancestral ‘utu’ gene that surged within me.

Entering Te Niho o Te Atiawa I was captivated by the tupuna lining the walls. Pride radiates from within the picture frames revealing faces resolute of spirit, resilient in will, and loyal to the descendant obligations to whenua. To know the people of Parihaka and its origins is to understand the impact of mass confiscation, and the dispossession of a people from their land. Like a phoenix that rises from the ashes, so, too, did Parihaka and its people. Our group wove our way through the village, stopping momentarily to bathe in tribal memory and be moved by stories both tragic and heroic.

tohu-house

Te Whiti o Rongomai and his uncle Tohu Kākahi are two Parihaka leaders revered in this corner of the world. Two prophetic visionaries whose peace-loving leadership, influenced by Christian teachings, prohibited the use of arms. They condemned violence and challenged the colonial government over the wars, land confiscations, and punitive policies ratified by the settler government. Their call to arms in the face of injustice was a call to civil disobedience with the use of the plough.

“Go, put your hands to the plough. Look not back. If any come with guns and swords, be not afraid. If they smite you, smite not in return. If they rend you, be not discouraged. Another will take up the good work.” (Te Whiti to his ploughmen, June 1879).

It is said that Mahatma Gandhi was inspired by the teachings of Te Whiti and Te Tohu—just saying!

The first of the Parihaka ploughmen sent to Dunedin in 1879 were part of an attempt, which began at Opunake, to resist the unjust confiscations of land through civil disobedience. This act of rebellion legislated in law saw them become land owning prisoners to landless survivors. It is not surprising that the stone masonry skills they learnt during their enforced labour were brought back to Parihaka. Evidence can be seen in the stone structures and walls still standing today. Taking it all in was personally disquieting—attack, rape, incarceration, enforced labour, condoned legislative Treaty violations.

Photo of Mt Taranaki

I turned to address Taranaki. My words were inaudible punctured only by solemn tears as I cried to Papatuanuku, listened to Tawhirimatea’s stories, and mingled with the spirits whose voices were whispers everywhere.

How the people have overcome this adversity and continue the legacy of peaceful compromise today is awe-inspiring. The 18th day of every month is celebrated every year, and is a forum where the iwi meet to maintain the traditions and teachings associated with Parihaka. As related to us, the 18th marked the first day arms were used against the people of Taranaki at Waitara. The legacy of living in harmony with the land and people from other nations continues today. The annual Peace Festival is an example.

Inevitably, any journey to Parihaka begins and ends farewelling those who lie peacefully in the urupa. It is with this in mind that my thoughts turn to Maata Wharehoka, and one of the most poignant and moving discussions I have ever been privileged to be a part of. She talked of the dying legacy of her husband Te Ru Wharehoka. While very sick he disclosed his wishes for his tangihanga to draw on ancient customs and traditional methods only. Committing to their fruition, they had six months. What moved me to tears was how important it was for the wairua of Te Ru to be at peace and spoken to both before and after his passing. He was at peace and present right through to the time of his spiritual return to Hawaiiki. To prepare, preserve, and prime everyone for his burial has now resulted in these teachings being shared with whanau, hapū, and iwi across Aotearoa. How special it was to allow Te Ru the dignity of designing his own passing in his remaining days. How visionary of Te Ru that now these practices are being maintained and taught today.

As my thoughts return to this korero I can only think of my colleagues in CORE who have suffered losses recently. As I watched a colleague walk down the aisle behind her husband, the white feathers adorning her hat were reminiscent of the symbol of peace at Parihaka. My silent wish that her husband’s wairua was able to depart cloaked in a korowai of unconditional love feathered by the plumes of an albatross. E te rau o titapu okioki atu nei…

…so, how would you share in the world of your Māori students?

And so these meanderings in to my mind inevitably turn to our core business as professionals and practitioners in education. The Parihaka I came to know had its own stories and songs born of the land. The mountain’s distinctiveness is manifest in its people, in the birds that wander in from off the sea breezes, and the snow-kissed breath of Taranaki. How would you respond to the Māori student who invites you to share in their world, and commune in such a way that your culture is embraced and welcomed to its own Parihakatanga-ness.

We are challenged in our educational settings to realise the potential of Māori learners, to nurture their inherent capabilities, and accept the cultural advantage they bring to our classrooms just by being Maori. Would your relationship or approach change if you found out that the cultural location of one of your students was from Taranaki, or they were a descendant of Te Whiti or Te Tohu? How might stories from localised settings you work in influence the curriculum design of a school? What of the stories in the areas you work in? Is cultural distinctiveness present or acknowledged in the work you do?

In your field of expertise in curriculum design, art of facilitation, blended e-learning, UDL, IT innovation, thought leadership, or where the craft of teaching and/or transforming 21st century classrooms falls upon you to lead, how do you see yourself enhancing the cultural distinctiveness of Parihaka to make a difference to the intergenerational experiences of your clientele?

My invitation has been to invite you to share my Parihakatanga, in my voice, and see how the work you do might offer a way to connect and share in the intricacies of cultural intellect, knowledge and epistemology from whichever New Zealand setting you work within.

Nō reira, e te rangatira, e Whare, nei rā te mihi maioha o Ngongotahā ki Taranaki maunga. Tū tonu, tū tonu, Te Atiawa e!  Whare, with utmost humility I thank you for inviting us in to your world, and sharing the significance of your ancestral home. To know you is to know whom you represent. To appreciate your cultural lens is to pause for a moment, and step on to your surfboard and ride the waves of prophetic wisdom, pacifism, and martyrdom.

“Just as night is the bringer of day, so too is death and struggle the bringer of life”
– Te Whiti o Rongomai and Tohu Kakahi

Photo of walking to Parihaka

References:

  • TATARAKIHI – THE CHILDREN OF PARIHAKA "A True Story of War, Passive Resistance, and The Children who will never forget"
  • http://vimeo.com/35821787
  • http://parihaka.com/
  • http://www.maata.co.nz/
  • http://www.odt.co.nz/opinion/opinion/221295/truths-far-greater-myths
read more
Posted in
Subscribe to our emails
Make an Enquiry
Subscribe to our emails
Make an Enquiry

© 2021 CORE Education Policies
0800 267 301
© 2021 CORE Education
0800 267 301
CORE Blog
  • Home
  • About us
  • CORE Website
  • Policies