{"id":1130,"date":"2020-11-23T02:40:28","date_gmt":"2020-11-23T02:40:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.educationperfect.com\/?post_type=article&p=1130"},"modified":"2023-11-27T13:54:11","modified_gmt":"2023-11-27T02:54:11","slug":"te-reo-maori-usage-tokenism-or-cultural-inclusion","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.educationperfect.com\/article\/te-reo-maori-usage-tokenism-or-cultural-inclusion\/","title":{"rendered":"Te Reo M\u0101ori usage: tokenism, or cultural inclusion?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I am a\u00a0P\u0101keh\u0101\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0– a white skinned New Zealander of European ancestry. My native language is English.\u00a0I also speak Japanese, have studied German and Spanish, work with Languages teachers – and am an advocate for the usage, celebration and revitalization of Te Reo M\u0101ori. It\u2019s not what people expect me to say I\u2019m passionate about – but it should be. We should all be passionate about language.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been in the position, living in Japan, where I\u00a0needed\u00a0<\/em>to hear English sometimes.\u00a0I was living in a culture that wasn\u2019t mine, speaking a language I wasn\u2019t born to, and some days, the simple act of someone saying a few words in English- making an effort to cross that barrier – meant the world.\u00a0It\u2019s no different for those from other cultures and other language backgrounds living anywhere. It\u2019s incredibly isolating to have a whole part of who you are that you have to close off. It\u2019s incredibly simple to open that door for those in your wider community – just by making language choices.<\/p>\n

2019 is the\u00a0International Year of Indigenous Languages<\/a>\u00a0(IYIL 2019) – a United Nations initiative developed to prompt action towards the preservation, revitalization, celebration and promotion of these languages.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0official website for IYIL 2019\u00a0<\/a>talks about the role of language as a vehicle for culture, freedom of thought, access to information, and so much more.<\/p>\n

Language is more than just words. Language is identity. Language has power.<\/strong><\/p>\n

New Zealand, where I live, has dedicated movements towards the revitalization of Te Reo M\u0101ori, the M\u0101ori language.\u00a0As a nation, we have recognised that this\u00a0taonga\u00a0<\/em>(treasure) is at risk, and we are doing something about saving it.<\/p>\n

This hasn\u2019t happened overnight.\u00a0I was born in the very early 80s, into a different era for language.\u00a0There has been a shift in the culture, in the thinking, and in the recognition around Te Reo M\u0101ori in my lifetime. Sometimes it\u2019s hard to see, but we\u2019ve come a long way already.\u00a0We still have a long way to go – and teachers are (as with most societal change) going to play a key role in what happens next.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

At the heart of this, for me, is the reality that by using M\u0101ori words in my English language communications, and normalising the code-switching that is so prevalent in multilingual speakers who share mutually intelligible languages, I am not just making a \u2018token effort\u2019 to speak M\u0101ori. In fact, let\u2019s lose the term \u2018token effort\u2019 entirely when it comes to this conversation. There\u2019s simply no such thing.\u00a0Start with the few words you do know. Learn a few more. Use them.<\/p>\n

As a teacher, think of the ripple effect. If you use the vocabulary, your students will become used to it, adopt it, use it, and thereby influence those outside your classroom as well. Students hear these words in the community, on TV, and on the radio – but the impact is greater if people they know are the ones making the effort.<\/p>\n

Every single one of us has had the experience of learning a language – and we all started the same way, as small children adding in words or phrases periodically until we were comfortable expressing what we needed to.<\/p>\n

We all, therefore,\u00a0can\u00a0<\/em>learn words in another language, and we can use them.\u00a0We\u00a0should\u00a0<\/strong>use them.<\/p>\n

By making the choice to use vocabulary from another language, you are:<\/p>\n

\u2714\ufe0ftelling a person that you value their culture and language, and the person themselves<\/p>\n

\u2714\ufe0fopening your own brain to language – the more you try to use, the more you will acquire<\/p>\n

\u2714\ufe0factively showing your support for diversity and inclusivity of language and culture<\/p>\n

\u2714\ufe0fgenerating thinking, conversation, and imitation of this with those around you<\/p>\n

You are making a difference.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

As a teacher of any subject, simply making an effort to learn and use words in the language of students in your classes helps them to feel like you genuinely want to help\u00a0them\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0to learn, and to feel respected.\u00a0Using an indigenous language – even when there is no-one of that background present – helps to raise the standing of that community, to acknowledge the importance of a culture, and to normalise the use of a language. Usage could be verbal, or written on the board and incorporated into tasks and assessments, feedback, corrections and displayed on walls and online.<\/p>\n

In New Zealand, we have gradually incorporated more and more M\u0101ori into our specific dialect of English. Most New Zealanders recognise greetings, numbers, and other simple vocabulary in M\u0101ori.\u00a0We know that we can get our\u00a0kai\u00a0<\/em>from the\u00a0moana\u00a0<\/em>and it\u2019s therefore\u00a0kaimoana<\/em>.\u00a0We can\u2019t talk of the All Blacks without mentioning their\u00a0mana<\/em>, or their\u00a0haka\u00a0<\/em>skills.\u00a0We know that our\u00a0pounamu\u00a0<\/em>is a\u00a0taonga<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Until we become a truly bilingual nation, this code switching and vocabulary inclusion is what we have. It matters, and it\u2019s so simple to do.<\/p>\n

Ahakoa he iti, he pounamu- though it is small, it is greenstone<\/em>\u00a0(ie a treasure).<\/p>\n

Every effort helps.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I am a\u00a0P\u0101keh\u0101\u00a0\u00a0– a white skinned New Zealander of European ancestry. My native language is English.\u00a0I also speak Japanese, have studied German and Spanish, work with Languages teachers – and am an advocate for the usage, celebration and revitalization of Te Reo M\u0101ori. It\u2019s not what people expect me to say I\u2019m passionate about –…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1972,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"content-type":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"default","_kad_post_title":"default","_kad_post_layout":"default","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"default","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"default","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false},"tags":[],"ep-category":[137],"region":[155],"ep-focus-area":[],"yoast_head":"\nTe Reo M\u0101ori usage: tokenism, or cultural inclusion? | Education Perfect<\/title>\n <!-- Mirrored from www.educationperfect.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/1130 by HTTrack Website Copier/3.x [XR/YP'2000] --> <!-- Added by HTTrack --><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" /><!-- /Added by HTTrack --> <meta name=\"description\" content=\"Read our article: Te Reo M\u0101ori usage: tokenism, or cultural inclusion? by Education Perfect. 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