Te Ataarangi language and tikanga students reflect on a year of learning
Tutors Moana Solly, back right, and Glynn Rogers, third from left, during one of the classes. Photo: Neil Wilson.
Last week another dozen or so Bay people celebrated the completion of their introductory Te Ataarangi Maori language and tikanga (customs) course.
Tutored by Glynn Rogers and Moana Solly, the kura hapori (community class) ran fortnightly throughout the year. Glynn and Moana, who have been learning to speak Te Reo in Te Ataarangi classes for a few years, were supported in their teaching by a fellow student Anne Harvey.
Te Ataarangi employs a specially devised method to teach Te Reo. It is almost exclusively oral and involves immersion, repetition, and the gradual build-up of sentence structures using coloured rakau (sticks) as learning aids. The rakau work on a literal level to teach the names of numbers and colours and some verbs like “take”, “give”, and “return”. They are also used to construct simple representations of common objects like chairs, tables and houses.
“He aha te tae o tenei whare?” the students were asking when The GB Weekly visited. “What is the colour of this house?” “He karaka te tae o tena whare.” “That house is orange,” came the reply.
The kaupapa or principles on which Te Ataarangi is based include a strict acceptance of individually paced learning. No member of the group has to worry whether her or his learning is happening more quickly or more slowly than someone else’s . No one corrects anyone else, no one answers for anyone else and everyone’s attempt is accepted.
Members of the class were enthusiastic about the process and the way it was delivered.
“We were told over and over to ‘trust the process’,” said Claire Webster. “It seemed strange at first that we weren’t corrected when we made a mistake but it makes sense. I really admire the people who originally created this approach to learning – it has really worked. In the last few weeks we’ve all had moments when we realised that we’d just strung quite a few words together and someone has responded as though they’ve understood. It’s exciting.”
Most of the class members said that they had enrolled in the class to make themselves more bicultural.
“Maori hold a treasure that Pakeha New Zealanders often undervalue,” said Franca Morani. “I think Pakeha should be much more involved in the growth and spread of the Maori language. The class has been fun, too. It has been great to hang out with this group. We’ve all had our share of laughing and blushing when things get hard. I’m just beginning to get a sense of being able to understand and say the odd sentence. I’m signing up for next year’s course.”
“I wanted to test myself and to learn something that I can use in my job,” said Karen Burnett. “The way you learn in Te Ataarangi has made me reflect on my own teaching.”
Natalie Bright, who has Ngapuhi in her ancestry, said that learning some language and tikanga through Te Ataarangi had given her some insight into aspects of her own identity.
“It’s about where New Zealanders come from and why we are who we are,” she said. “It adds richness to our connection with this land.”
Natalie said that the “fully supported” approach to learning had resonated with her. “We were told that we couldn’t fail and that really helped. Being allowed to make mistakes meant that it was easy to have the courage to try. The process is challenging, but comfortable at the same time. You have to connect with your fellow learners and the learning incorporates nearly all your senses.”
Another kura hapori course will start early in 2010 as well as the next level of course that most of last week’s graduates will be doing. Watch The GB Weekly for information on how to enrol.
Neil Wilson
