Ta'iala mo le Gagana Sāmoa - Pasifika Education Community

‘Aiseā e A‘oa‘o ai leGagana Sāmoa?Why Learn Gagana Sāmoa?‘O lau gagana, ‘o lou fa‘asinomagaYour language is your identity.New Zealand is an increasingly diverse and multicultural society situated in the South Pacific, and thecountry’s culture is underpinned by the bicultural partnership that is based on the Treaty of Waitangi.Learning gagana ma le aganu‘u fa‘asāmoa helps learners to participate actively in New Zealand’sdiverse society and in the wider South Pacific, providing individual, social, and economic benefits.8Many people from Sāmoa have settled in New Zealand. Many children born in New Zealand are ofSamoan heritage, and this population is steadily increasing. Included in this group are those peoplewho have dual (or multiple) heritages. Learning gagana ma le aganu‘u fa‘asāmoa enables learners whoare of Samoan heritage to affirm their sense of identity and belonging as they use and advance theirknowledge of their language and culture. Opportunities to learn and use gagana Sāmoa will enhancetheir achievement and enable them to make connections to the wider community of speakers of thelanguage. Increasing the cultural and linguistic competence of these new speakers of gagana Sāmoawill enable them to establish and maintain communication across the generations, which will help toensure that the history, culture, and traditions of Sāmoa are retained.Learners without kinship ties can also access gagana ma le aganu‘u fa‘asāmoa in places where teachingand learning programmes are available. Participating in these programmes will increase these learners’knowledge and experience of a language that is spoken in community settings and in workplaces inmany parts of New Zealand. This learning will enable them to build closer relationships with peoplein these communities.Learning another language extends learners’ potential for learning further languages and developsskills that are useful in a range of careers and employment situations. As learners become increasinglybilingual or multilingual, they also develop their cognitive abilities and their understanding of thepower of language.Learning gagana ma le aganu‘u fa‘asāmoa enables students to encounter and explore new ways ofinteracting with others, to value their own language(s), and to think about the world and theirplace in it. The New Zealand Curriculum describes these processes in the following way:Learning a new language extends students’ linguistic and cultural understanding and their ability tointeract appropriately with other speakers. Interaction in a new language … introduces them to newways of thinking about, questioning, and interpreting the world and their place in it. Through suchinteraction, students acquire knowledge, skills, and attitudes that equip them for living in a world ofdiverse peoples, languages, and cultures. As they move between, and respond to, different languagesand different cultural practices, they are challenged to consider their own identities and assumptions.The New Zealand Curriculum, page 24Gagana Sāmoa ma le aganu‘u fa‘asāmoa are precious to those in the community of speakers and atreasure for all who wish to share in this knowledge and sense of belonging.