Scrapping kupu Māori causes sector outrage
The Ministry decision to discontinue a reading resource over kupu Māori has angered the sector and caused public backlash.
In a move that has angered the education sector, the Ministry of Education has discontinued reading resource ‘At the Marae’ in its small-book form, stating that its inclusion of six Māori words (kupu Māori) would confuse learners.
The book remains available as a “big book”, designed for shared group reading with a teacher.
In a statement the Ministry said: “The decision was guided by phonics sequencing and decoding suitability, rather than a defined word-count threshold.
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“Unlike other titles in the series, which typically include no more than three kupu Māori (excluding character names), At the Marae featured six different kupu Māori. While these words reflect everyday language used in classrooms and communities, the higher number presented decoding challenges within the phonics sequence used in the series.”
The Ministry stated that the decision was made in collaboration with literacy experts, educators and cultural advisors.
However, some literacy experts have refuted this reasoning, saying that there is no evidence the inclusion of kupu Māori would interfere with English literacy acquisition, and sector leaders have called the decision racist.
‘At the Marae’ is one of 75 books supplied by a Ministry approved structured literacy provider. Founder Gail Gillion said “there’s absolutely no evidence to suggest children are finding this reader confusing. And in fact, our data would suggest the opposite.”
Bruce Jepsen, President of Te Akatea, the Māori Principals Association said “our members see this move as an act of white supremacy. It’s an act of racism. It’s a determined act to recolonize our education system, and it sends a very dangerous message and is immensely harmful and it’s utterly shameful.
“Our members view this as a blatant attack on our language, dismissal of our culture, and an assault on our identity as Māori.”
Te Manukura of NZEI Te Riu Roa, Ripeka Lessels, said “This is just the latest decision by the Government that tells us English comes first and Māori language and culture is dispensable.
“The excuse is it’s too confusing or challenging for kids to decode reo Māori words but this is to justify the real goal of downgrading te reo Māori and Te Tiriti from education.”
Lessels said their members contine to be committed to upholding Te Tiriti, in part by continuing to honour te reo Māori in their classrooms.
