Opportunities to learn the Māori language

Opportunities for adults

Of the adult Māori population in Te Tairāwhiti/Tākitimu, the HML 2006 Survey found 15% (5,800 people) were learning the Māori language in some form. This is an increase of 3 percentage points since 2001. People were undertaking a wide mix of programmes, from very short programmes of a few hours, to full-time programmes lasting over 12 months.

It is difficult to estimate the number and location of opportunities for adults to learn the Māori language because of the variety in provision available. That is, Māori language learning is provided by a mix of formal and informal learning institutions and people. Formal locally-based providers include the Eastern Institute of Technology, Tūranga Ararau, the Tairāwhiti Polytechnic, Te Kura Motuhake o Te Ātaarangi (ki Te Wairoa) and Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.

In addition to these nationally recognised providers, there are also a number of other organisations and individuals providing Māori language learning opportunities to adults in Te Tairāwhiti/ Tākitimu – for example Te Ātaarangi, and marae-based activities funded through the ‘Mā Te Reo’ fund administered by Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori.

Opportunities for children

Outside of the whānau, children can learn the Māori language through immersion or bilingual education in early childhood education and through schooling.

In Te Tairāwhiti/Tākitimu there are 88 Māori language immersion early childhood services (mainly kōhanga reo) caring for and educating approximately 1,600 infants (aged from zero to five).¹¹ There are nineteen less Māori language immersion early childhood services in 2006 than there were in 2001, but 100 more children participating in this type of education.

There are 60 schools (down from 62 schools in 2001) in Te Tairāwhiti/Tākitimu that provide opportunities for students to undertake some of their education through the Māori language. Schools with students learning through the Māori language range from full immersion kura kaupapa Māori where all teachers and children use the Māori language (12 schools), to bilingual classes in mainstream schools, where a minority of students are taught in Māori (48 schools).¹²

Schools in Te Tairāwhiti/Tākitimu provide for 4,000 Māori students learning through the Māori language, which is 25% of all Māori students these regions. In 2001, 4,451 students were learning though the Māori language which was 27% of all Māori students.

Most school students learning in Māori do so for a minority of their time in school. Ministry of Education data shows only 7% of all Māori students (1,400 students) learn in the Māori language for over 80% of the time during the regular school year. A further 6% (900 students) learn in the Māori language for 51-80% of their time at school during a regular school year. These 2006 figures are only slightly less than the 2001 figures.

Students who learn in Māori are also unlikely to do so for every year of their schooling. Learning in the Māori language is more popular in the younger years of schooling. Of those learning Māori, 81% were enrolled in the school year levels 1 – 8 (approximate age ranges of 5 to 12 years). Anecdotal evidence suggests that a shift to English-medium education is due to increased opportunities at secondary level schooling in subject areas and sports, a lack of quality and accessible Māori-medium education pathways in some communities, and is also dependent on the ability of parents to support the level of Māori language required of secondary school-level schooling.

The shift to English-medium education means that while the Māori language is now used for part of formal schooling, it is not used exclusively by whānau and learners – a significant number of Māori language learners will necessarily need to learn through English as well, meaning they will need to be bilingual to succeed in schooling.