Feature 30 Sep 2019
Teaching – and reaching – online from Ohura
From her tiny school on the appropriately named Forgotten Highway, Anna Fourie teaches students across the country, using the internet.
Feature 10 Sep 2019
The community of kapa haka
For nearly a decade, Kapanui School in Waikanae has been using kapa haka as a way of building community in and around the school – and the benefits have been extraordinary for both Māori and non-Māori students.
Feature 25 Jul 2019
People power
School principals from around the country explain how strong communities of staff bring crucial benefits for children and whānau, from South Auckland to Southland.
Feature 25 Jul 2019
Building bridges: from community to ECE to primary
The importance of whānau and community doesn’t lessen just because a child starts school, but it can be hard for educators to maintain these strong connections once a child leaves early childhood education. Jane Blaikie and Jane Arthur talk to educators across the country about the challenges they face when trying to build bridges between the child and their community.Book Reviews
Teaching in a community new to you
A new teacher gives some advice to others starting work in a new community.
Home has been my classroom
Ko Manawaru, Matiti, Maungahaumia, Ahititi, Hikurangi me Rangipoua ngā maunga. Ko Te Ārai, Maraetaha, Waipaoa, Waihirere, Waiapu me Hāparapara ngā awa. Ko Horouta, Tākitimu me Mātaatua ngā waka. Ko Manutuke, Muriwai, Mangatu, Parihimanihi, Whareponga, Tū Auau me Otuwhare ngā marae. Ko Ngāti Kaipoho, ko Rangi i Waho Matua, ko Ngāti Taua, ko Ngāti Kohuru, ko Te Aitanga-a-Mate, ko Ngāti Rangi, ko Te Whānau-a-Rutaia ngā hapu. Ko Rongowhakaata, ko Ngāi Tamanuhiri, ko Te Aitanga a Mahaki, ko Ngāti Porou, ko Te Whānau-a-Apanui ngā iwi. Ko Kiana Ria Renata-Kokiri toku ingoa. 17 oku tau. Ko Manutuke taku tūrangawaewae. Child of the mist, Tame Iti, says that “history has woven us together. We are the basket, the kete, that holds the future!” As a young Māori woman, I have experienced both mainstream and kura kaupapa education. School is often a difficult and confusing time for me. I often question its purpose. Referring to our country’s curriculum, Dr Muriel Newman states that “the vision statement affirms that young people will work to create an Aotearoa New Zealand, in which Māori and Pākeha recognise each other as full Treaty partners.” I don’t believe this statement has any truth. Even in the kura kaupapa setting in
Virtually connected
More than a quarter of New Zealand schools have fewer than 100 students. They are often rural and remote, with minimal infrastructure and fragile economies. For teachers in these places, the challenges are high. How can they provide a rich, varied curriculum with only one or two teachers? How can their students gain meaningful connections with the wider world and overcome their isolation? Ako spoke with teachers who are grappling with these questions and finding solutions through online communities.