Epistemological voyaging: thinking about a Māori-centric curriculum

Abstract

Abstract Many Maori (1) are rethinking curriculum development, delivery, and assessment as part of an agenda of ethnovisioning, and a resistance to educational philosophies that legitimate dominant paradigms for knowing and, as a consequence, subjugate Maori epistemologies. This new agenda advances Maori ways of knowing as legitimate and as a positive contribution to Maori wellbeing. The following discussion contributes to this agenda by examining a number of successful elements of Maori-centric education that are receiving wider attention. We draw on an analysis of programme review and student evaluation data, combined with the authors' personal experiences and studies, which have identified important considerations for educationalists to consider in the development, delivery, and assessment of a Maori-centric curriculum in the context of a Maori majority student population at a wananga. (2) Three elements of Maori-centric marau (curriculum) are examined: it is real, meaningful, contextual, and relevant to students in different contexts; it has Maori values as the pillars and bedrock for teaching and learning; and noho marae are part of tacit thought and practice. Three components of a Maoricentric delivery agenda for operationalising these elements are then suggested via the ideas of whanaungatanga, mana tangata, and tautoko. These ideas are presented as lived and tested theory and practice. Relevant success factors are highlighted as evidence in support of the elements discussed for educationalists across cultures to consider when engaging with Maori. Whakataki--Introduction The colonial history of education for many indigenous communities such as those in Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, and North America, along with the corresponding curriculum development in these countries, is grounded in the field of anthropology (Nakata, 2007) and its more contemporary home within mainstream universities. Drawing on the experiences of the indigenous communities of Australia and North America, as we do here, offers a way of examining the globalising effect of Eurocentric thought in curriculum development, delivery, and assessment at a macro level, and then brings the ideas and responses into a local environment for a contextual and focused examination. The contrasting and supporting evidence from indigenous communities outside Aotearoa New Zealand also supports collective indigenous aspirations for wider acceptance and acknowledgment of indigenous ways of knowing and being. This view acknowledges that for these communities, the dominant educational philosophy has come from a single tradition--the European tradition. This is certainly the case in Aotearoa New Zealand. A review of this context and its relationship to Maori leadership and involvement as constructors of educational tradition reveals some interesting insights as a basis for the discussions set out later. The commonly acknowledged first generation of modern Maori scholars, which included Buck, Ngata, Papakura, and Pomare, whose work and focus mirrored that of their colleagues of the same generation elsewhere in the world, were largely concerned with accurately recording accounts of the theories and practices of our Maori people within an anthropological mindset. However, these first modern Maori scholars were also concerned with counter-hegemonic correcting of the work of early European writers such as Best, Smith, and White, recognising that Maori historical journeys of education primarily span two distinct value systems and world views (Deloria & Wildcat, 2001). The Second World War delayed Maori penetration into academia until Maharaia Winiata was appointed a tutor in Maori adult education at Auckland University in 1949 as part of the first generation of Maori academics, followed by Bruce Biggs as lecturer in Maori language in 1951 and Matiu Te Hau in 1952. Others followed shortly after, many of whom are still living today but reaching advanced stages of life and active duty (Deloria, 2004, p. …