Kei te pai
The Māori language is a taonga and has been an official language of Aotearoa New Zealand since 1987. In his role at Otago Polytechnic, Shaun Tahau was aware that in order to meet the goals of our Māori Strategic Framework, it was important to provide an inclusive environment for Māori. Revitalising the use of te reo Māori at Otago Polytechnic would align with all the priorities in the Māori Strategic Framework and contribute to the success of Māori.
Shaun set about developing a Māori language strategy for Otago Polytechnic. He was unable to find any other tertiary institution in New Zealand with such a strategy. Working within the framework provided by national and regional language strategies, Shaun liaised with Kotahi Mano Kāika, a Kai Tahu organisation established to promote the use of te reo Māori. The final result, signed off by our Executive Leadership Team / Te Kāhui Manukura and by Komiti Kāwanataka, has three objectives:
- Increasing the status of Māori language at Otago Polytechnic;
- Increasing critical awareness and proficiency of Māori language at Otago Polytechnic; and
- Supporting the quality and the appropriate use of Māori language among staff, learners and visitors to Otago Polytechnic across all domains.
The goal is to empower both Pākehā and Māori to use te reo Māori at Otago Polytechnic, by building confidence and providing encouragement. Leading by example, Shaun wrote his Master's thesis entirely in te reo Māori. He is empowering future ākonga to use te reo Māori throughout their studies and assessments, and in the process has created a legacy for his own tamariki and mokopuna.
He taonga te reo Māori, ā, i te tau 1987 i whakamanahia ā-ture ai ki Aotearoa. I tana tūranga ki Te Kura Matatini ki Otago, i mōhio a Shaun Tahau, ki te whakatutuki i ngā whāinga o Te Rautaki Māori, he mea whakahirahira kia whakarato i tētahi wāhi tika ā-ahurea mō ngāi Māori. Mā te whakaoranga i te reo Māori ki Te Kura Matatini ki Otago e whakarite i ngā whakaarotau o Te Rautaki Māori, e whakarato ana ki te whakatutukinga o ngāi Māori.
E tīmata ana a Shaun ki te whakawhanake i tētahi rautaki reo Māori mō Te Kura Matatini ki Otago. Kāore ia i kite i tētahi rautaki pēnei ki tētahi atu kuratini, ki tētahi atu whare wānanga rānei i Aotearoa. Nā te pou tarāwaho i whakaritea ai e ētahi rautaki ā-rohe, ā-motu hoki, i whakawhiti whakaaro a Shaun ki Kotahi Mano Kāika, he umanga Kāi Tahu i whakatūria kia kōkiri i te whakamahinga a te reo Māori. E toru ngā hoaketanga o te mea whakamutunga, i whakaaetia e Te Kāhui Manukura me te Kōmiti Kāwanataka:
- Kia whakapiki i te mana o te reo Māori ki Te Kura Matatini ki Otago;
- Kia whakapiki i te mārama pū ki ngā āhuatanga o te whakaora i te reo Māori ki Te Kura Matatini ki Otago; ā,
- Kia tautoko i te kounga o te reo, kia tika i te whakamahinga o te reo Māori i waenganui i ngā kaimahi, i ngā ākonga, i ngā manuhiri ki Te Kura Matatini ki Otago i ngā wāhi katoa.
Ko te whāinga, kia whakamanahia a ngāi Pākehā me ngāi Māori ki te whakamahi i te reo Māori ki Te Kura Matatini ki Otago, mā te whakapiki māia, mā te akiaki hoki. Hei tauira ki te katoa, i tuhi katoatia e Shaun te tuhinga roa nei i te reo Māori. Ka whakamana ia i ngā ākonga kia whakamahi i te reo Māori mō ā rātou mahi kura me ngā aromatawai, ka mutu, kua hanga ia i tētahi whakarerenga mō āna tamariki me āna mokopuna kei te haere mai.