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The Aim of Te Kohitanga

To improve the educational achievement of Māori students in mainstream New Zealand education through effective teaching practice.

Research initiated by:
Professor Russell Bishop, (Māori Education Research Institute, University of Waikato)
Mere Berryman, (MOE SE Poutama Pounamu Research and Development Centre, Tauranga)

How:
Researchers sought to understand more about what was behind the ongoing discrepancies in Māori students’ educational achievement compared with their non-Māori peers.

In order to do this they:
Interviewed a selection of Māori students and some of their educators from a range of secondary schools using a Kaupapa Māori research approach

What they found:
Teacher student relationships and interactions, together with structural issues, impeded and limited the progress of Māori students.

Phase 1:

Researchers sought to:

• Understand more about what was behind the ongoing discrepancies in Māori students’ educational achievement compared with their non-Māori peers.
• Identify how to raise Māori student achievement.

Research in 5 secondary schools by talking:

• Year 9 and 10 Māori students (engaged and non-engaged)
• Their whānau
• Principals
• Teachers

Phase 2:

Trained more of the teachers in three schools in order to maximise the effects of the intervention across each school.
The intervention worked well for many of the trained teachers, and learning opportunities for Māori students in these settings undoubtedly improved.

Phase 3:

In-school facilitators in 12 schools were trained to work with cohorts of teachers to implement the professional development cycle in their schools. Teachers were trained by in-school facilitators. Greater emphasis on the effective use of student learning outcomes to monitor and inform new learning. Review of Practice and Development in observations, feedback and co-construction for both formative and summative purposes. 

Phase 4:

Facilitation teams from 21 new schools began training in October 2006. Since 2006 ongoing professional development for facilitation teams: In November 2009 – 17 more schools were accepted into the programme, including four Super 8 Schools;  Hastings, Napier, Gisborne and Rotorua Boys’ High Schools.