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Indigenous-based inclusive pedagogy: The art of Kapa Haka to improve educational outcomes for Māori students in mainstream secondary schools in Aotearoa, New Zealand

2010; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 6; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.5172/ijpl.6.1.3

2204-0552

Paul Whitinui,

Art Education and Development

Kapa (in rows) haka (dance) is a contemporary performing art that mainstream secondary schools (i.e., High Schools Yr. 9-13) in Aotearoa, New Zealand are obligated to provide as a means of supporting the social and cultural wellbeing of Māori (i.e., Indigenous people of Aotearoa, New Zealand) students who attend. Considered a culturally responsive activity, kapa haka provides many opportunities for Māori students to engage in learning more about their own language, culture and customs. With over 54 thousand Māori students (18%) attending mainstream secondary schools in Aotearoa, New Zealand finding ways to improve educational outcomes for these students is of importance to many educators nationwide (Ministry of Education, 2006). This paper is based on doctoral research completed in 2007 which explored the 'voices' of 20 Māori students and 27 secondary schools teachers about the educational benefits associated with participating in kapa haka and implications for improving schooling and teacher practice. The study was informed by a Kaupapa Māori theoretical framework that seeks to reject notions of 'deficit' theorising by reinforcing the right for Māori to meaningfully participate in determining their own destiny in all areas of society (Smith, 1997). The findings concluded that the most effective way to improve levels of Māori student participation (i.e., interest, attendance, engagement, association and success) is for schools, teachers and Māori communities to work together to seek a deeper understanding of ways to include Māori language, culture and customs as a valid part of the curriculum. The need to include culturally responsive learning environments that enable Māori students to move, perform and share what they have learnt either as a whole group or class (i.e., collectively) was a consistent finding to emerge. This paper will highlight kapa haka as a culturally-preferred pedagogy and include a number of key social and cultural practices that secondary schools (i.e., public State-funded high schools) and teachers may find useful working with culturally-connected learners who are Indigenous.