Episode 8: Tips for building relationships with mana whenua

In this episode, we continue the conversation about building relationships with iwi, hapū and mana whenua, discussing common mistakes and how to avoid them, the importance of growing your knowledge of te ao Māori and Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and what good relationships with mana whenua can mean for a kura.

 

My guests are:

• Robin Fabish, former tumuaki of Tamatea High School in Napier, currently working as a leadership advisor for Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga, the Ministry of Education
• Melanie Taite-Pitama, former tumuaki and currently acting director of the Greater Wellington region for Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga.
• Regan Orr, Regan, principal of Central Normal School in Palmerston North, currently seconded to Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga as a leadership advisor for Taranaki, Whanganui and Manawatu.

 

This podcast was produced for the Ministry of Education as part of Te Ara Tīmatanga mō ngā Tumuaki - The Beginning Pathway for Principals.

 

You can learn more about this topic by accessing Te Ara Tīmatanga mō ngā Tumuaki - The Beginning Pathway for Principals e-learning modules on the Education LMS: https://training.education.govt.nz

 

Show notes

Episode themes:

• The importance of understanding Te Titiri and what happened in the past
• Level of te reo needed – bare minimum is making sure all of your kaiako and kaimahi can pronounce the school name and kids’ names correctly
• Common mistakes tumuaki make when engaging with mana whenua:
  • Expecting iwi to give without reciprocation – relationships need to work both ways
  • Expecting iwi to work the way you do – they work very differently
  • Overestimating the capacity of marae and iwi – it might not be what you think it is
  • Not renumerating iwi expertise appropriately or at all – if you compensate other experts for coming to your school, compensate iwi too
  • Not inviting local iwi to important events at the school – make sure you, as tumuaki, go down to the marae and invite them in person
  • Not communicating properly with iwi – send them your pānui and ask if they want to contribute to those newsletters
  • Not including iwi in important decisions for the kura – they want more than to do the blessing for the building when it opens, they want to be involved in the design and the flora and fauna too
  • Think about how you make the relationship reciprocal. Robin offered hapu the use of school workshops to build a new wharenui, or if there’s a tangi, offer the use of the school’s kitchen. Think about how the school’s resources can be used to support the whānau.
• If you have their back, they’ll have yours.
• Remember you don’t just enrol a child, you enrol their whole whānau and their tūpuna.

 

To learn more about this topic, see Section 2 of Te Ara Tīmatanga mō ngā Tumuaki - The Beginning Pathway for Principals e-learning modules [link].

 

Additional information

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa https://www.twoa.ac.nz
• Pīnakitanga https://www.twoa.ac.nz/nga-akoranga-our-programmes/te-reo-maori-maori-language/te-pinakitanga-ki-te-reo-kairangi
• Tuakaka-teina relationships https://tereomaori.tki.org.nz/Curriculum-guidelines/Teaching-and-learning-te-reo-Maori/Aspects-of-planning/The-concept-of-a-tuakana-teina-relationship
• Te Ahu o te Reo https://www.education.govt.nz/our-work/overall-strategies-and-policies/te-ahu-o-te-reo-maori-fostering-education-in-te-reo-maori/

 

Questions

1:00 [to Robin] Is there a particular level of understanding of te ao Māori and Te Tiriti that tumuaki should have before they start trying to build a relationship? I mean, many of them will have a basic understanding, but do they need more than that?

 

2:58 [to Robin] Is there a certain level of reo that’s useful to have?

 

4:47 [to Melanie] What are some common mistakes people make when engaging with mana whenua?

 

11:20 [to Regan] How can tumuaki get rangatahi involved to make sure that relationship is meaningful and reciprocal and that it contributes to learning as well?

 

14:07 [to Melanie] What do solid relationships with iwi and hapu mean for a kura?

 

16:26 [to all] Is there anything that any of you want to add that we haven’t covered yet?