MAORI IN SCHOOLS Factors to be assessed

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33047, 14 October 1972, Page 11

MAORI IN SCHOOLS Factors to be assessed

(By

J. W. TAYLOR)

There is little doubt that, for New Zealanders, the teaching of Maori in schools is an emotionally-charged subject, and as such attracts uninformed and partly-informed opinion. It would appear that Robin Mitchell’s article in “The Press” last Saturday, and some subsequent correspondence, would fit into this category.

Several basic factors are overlooked; whether or not Maori is the language of the home; the degree of fluency of Maori in the home; the extent to which English is spoken and used in the home as a first or second language; the extent to which Maori is used in the community; and whether or not the teaching of Maori is to be practical or cultural. Additionally, it should be emphasised that there are not enough teachers fluent in the Maori language to teach the language properly to even limited numbers of secondary school pupils, much less to make it a universally com-

pulsory subject in the school curriculum. I would express the hope that if the teaching of Maori is to be undertaken at all, that it is taught to better standards than those achieved by New Zealanders teaching French at secondary level. Distinct worlds However, not withstanding the above issues, another factor of paramount importance has been overlooked by the great majority of those who have become involved, and this is in the field of conceptualism. The learning of another language is not just as simple as making a word-for-word or phrase-for-phrase translation. Sapir has pointed out that different language societies live in distinct worlds, not the same world with different labels. Padma Rerera writes of “the different languages I inhabit . . .” The present King of Tonga has stated that “we must at all costs retain the Tongan language, as there are thoughts and ideas in our language that cannot readily be translated into English.”

A Cook Islander remarked to me, “I am half Maori and half European. I speak Maori and English fluently. Sir, if you lived in the Cook Islands for the rest of your life you would never understand how a Maori here thinks, reasons and makes decisions.” For these reasons there may be justification in teaching Maori to Maoris by Maori-speaking Maoris. Mental confusion In the Pacific Islands, where English is taught as a second (or third or fourth) language, we found we were imposing on the population not only a new language, but also a new way of thought. The same applies to school children in those areas of New Zealand where Maori is the language of the home. That English must be the language of education here is axiomatic, even if only on the economic impracticality of translating our texts and literature into Maori. In the case of the education of children whose mother tongue is Maori, there is considerable difficulty in conceptualism at school, and it is on this rock that much of our education founders. The result of the bilingual situation is, for the child, mental confusion. We have amongst us now a not inconsiderable group of children who cannot speak English or Maori with any degree of fluency or accuracy. What hope, then, have such children of thinking to any depth or of expressing themselves adequately. Surely it is a basic human right that every person should be able to communicate readily; and an indictment of our education system when we have school leavers deficient in this respect. Changed significance The size of this semibilingual, semi - inarticulate group is too large for complacency, and constitutes a major, yet only partly recognised, problem. In these areas, the teaching of Maori has a different significance from the place of that language in other contexts. Among this group of children, the learning of English is made more difficult by the transfer of language habits and patterns of thought from the mother tongue. Failure to teach English as a second language by proven methods and by specially trained and skilled teachers can lead to the failure of the whole education system, as there is a considerable and growing body of evidence that suggests that mental development is considerably retarded when the language of instruction is imperfectly understood. The failure becomes particularly evident at the point

of entry into secondary schools. In our education system there is a steep rise at post-primary level in the demands made on students to analyse, sequentially process information, conceptualise, generalise, and to think abstractly. Some children whose mother tongue is English have difficulty in coping with the intellectual tasks expected of them, even though they are not confronted with problems of language or cultural transition; and these demands place an impossible burden on some Maori children. Problems created The result is manifested not only in educational difficulties. Emotional and social problems are also created, arising from linguistic confusion and deficient school performance. Because of the magnitude of the problem, many children abandon the struggle and progressively lose interest. Eventually they are cast out of the school into a society in which they cannot find an adequate place. It would seem logical to suggest that at this stage it is more important to train teachers to teach English to Maoris than to teach Maori, if priorities must be exercised. With limited resources for the training of personnel, where should our priorities lie? Should they emphasise the adequate teaching of English throughout the system for all children, or should they be in the superficial teaching of the Maori language that, because of the conceptualism problem, is destined from the outset to only limited success? If the teaching profession generally is against the widespread introduction of Maori in schools, it may be because teachers see a greater need for trained and skilled personnel to teach English to Maori children. As it is, through lack of adequate training, many teachers simply ignore the needs of Maori children and slavishly follow accepted methods of language instruction devised to teach English to English speakers. Teaching lack In how many of our teachers’ colleges is there a lecturer skilled in teaching English as a second language — and where such exist, how much of the students’ time is devoted to the problem? Yet this is a major educational burden in parts of the North Island. The extent of the Education Department’s interest may be gauged by the fact that each year we have, returning to New Zealand, teachers from the Pacific who have become skilled in teaching English as a second language, yet these skills are not reeognised as special qualifications, and almost all of these teachers end up in an ordinary classroom situation where they may not need to use. the knowledge and experience acquired. Surely the department should capitalise on this expertise by finding use for these skilled teachers. As our resources are limited, it would appear that the teaching of Maori in schools is less important than the teaching of English to Maori children.

In the society that we have developed, a Maori child must have adequate English to cope. Once this problem has been solved, then perhaps we can devote additional resources to the cultural value of teaching Maori language and Maori culture as a subject to those who wish to learn it.

By that time, we may also have developed a sufficient cadre of teachers capable of handling the subject. Nga Tamatoa would be well advised to address their efforts to the primary problem of competence in English in the meantime. Without this, our society may become further divided on the racial issue.

Mr Taylor, the writer of this article, has been principal of the Teachers’ College, Tonga, Director of Education in the Cook Islands, and for the 10 years ended September, 1971, was education specialist in the South Pacific commission.