supporting tiriti-based curriculum delivery in mainstream early ...

feature of the ideal bicultural curriculum for teachers. It was also the area about
which there was the most data from cross-case analysis and from both the
quantitative and qualitative responses to the questionnaire. It was not surprising,
therefore, that it featured strongly for teachers implementing Tiriti-based
curriculum.
Much te reo Māori involved singing waiata. This occurred with growing
confidence because those involved moved from one or two songs being sung in the
early part of the research to many more waiata being performed during the latter
stages of the study. In each case study, waiata were often played on the tape
recorder and both staff and children joined in. It is worth noting that almost three
quarters of the respondents to the questionnaire indicated that waiata were being
sung daily (73%, n=51). One in six indicated that they were being sung weekly
(16%, n=11) and approximately one in ten reported that they were only being sung
sometimes (11% n=8). Nobody, however, reported never singing waiata. For
Margaret from Case Study Three, singing waiata was one of the strategies she used
in order to learn the pronunciation of te reo Māori:
Yeah, because I struggled with the pronunciation myself but after I learnt
to sing and a lot of my pronunciation comes through the songs (Tr: M,
7/11/08).
D also found waiata were helpful for learning elements of te reo Māori:
And waiata is a good way of teaching language. Pakipaki. The words to
the songs. Action songs, they all do actions. For me it works well. I
would learn the language through song (Tr: D, 28/10/04).
Second language learning can be challenging and using music and singing
to learn a foreign language is a practical strategy, because as well as creating a
good atmosphere in the classroom, it is useful for teaching the rhythm of language
(Shtakser, 2001). Teachers reported additional strategies which enabled them to
build their skills and confidence:
We have a weekly phrase of te reo Māori which we use, and teach not
only ourselves, but also the children and their families (R. 101).
While these strategies may have assisted teachers to learn aspects of te reo
Māori, the support of team members was also valuable. As a beginning speaker of
te reo Māori and relatively new to Māori culture, Chris H from Case Study Three
reported in her journal, some strategies that aided her development:
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