LETTERS TO THE EDITOR HOW TO PRESERVE THE MAORI LANGUAGE Sir, Language and traditions are the basic principles of a nationality and it is regrettable that if there is not an immediate revival, both will be forgotten. Many of our Maori children are growing up with no knowledge of their language and much of the blame rests with the parent. In many cases however, it can be traced to the days when I was a pupil and the Maori language was banned in the school playground. The children of yesterday are the parents of our present generation with the result that Maori is spoken less and less in the home. Remits have been forwarded by many organisations to have Maori taught in the schools, but in my opinion such teaching should begin with the parent. With the adult all that is needed is a refresher course as many are already familiar with Maori but find it difficult to speak without much hesitation. Lack of knowledge however is a small obstacle as we have many organizations and ways of learning. 1. Maori Women's Welfare Leagues. Women are the teachers in the home and by familiarizing their childen with the language the school is left then to cope with the grammar and the better usage of words. Cooking in the modern style at Shelly Beach hostel, Auckland. Tati Hohaia, on the left, ana Kiri Hoimana. (Photo Peter Blanc) 2. Adult Education Classes supervised by Welfare Officers or registered Interpreters. These classes to take more of a social aspect where members are encouraged to speak and try to gain fluency and confidence. Grammar need not enter greatly into the programme. 3. Radio Talks by Competent Speakers. The best place for these recordings to be made is on the marae. Here the Maori speaker is a poet, realist, warrior and a humorist. His speech is alive and given greater beauty and variety by the introduction of a suitable waiata. Many of the talks on the radio are monotonous, the subject may be important but the speaker lacks vocal interest. Maoris are natural speechmakers and once possessed long memories, but the use of a script has robbed us of our abilities. In my short experience with our elders, before any event, much time, was spent in contemplation and committing each word to memory. When the time came, all that he needed was the much appreciated taiaha to give greater weight to his words. His recital was lengthy but he never lacked for words and because of his occasional “tihes” he was able to hold the interest of his audience. 4. The Maori News could be broadcast at an earlier hour and the time extended. 5. The Hiring or Lending of record discs on the Maori Language. These are of great value to the learner as it can be played repeatedly to correct pronunciation and acquire the correct accent. The Maori Language to me is not only a fluent flow of words, it is my history. With it I can recall my youthful pleasures, such as eeling in the swamps, fashioning tops from the willow branch and plaiting whips from the harakeke. In our language is our wealth; lose it and we become just an echo of our pakeha counterparts. With the introduction of education our small Maori community is becoming Europeanized in ways of thinking, speaking and living; so let us not lose our individuality altogether; cultivate and tend what we have, our “Reo Maori” with all its beauty and music, for it is our history, culture and more important still our “Rightful Heritage” Maria W. Reeder. EDUCATION IN THE NORTH Ki Te Etita, Kua puta i roto i te “Ao Hou” nga korero a Hoterene Keretene mo te matauranga i roto i Ngapuhi. I timatangia mai e ia ana korero ki a Ruatara, a ka kawea e ia tana whakarite i nga wa o Ruatara ki nga kai-whakamaori o naianei. Na kua puta ana korero, rarangi rawa i nga tangata o roto i a Ngapuhi kua whiwhi ki nga tohu o te matauranga. Kanui te whakama: me te mea nei, no Ngapuhi anake te iwi e whiwhi nei ki enei tohu Tokomaha ke atu o etahi atu takiwa. I roto i te rarangi ingoa i tuhia e Keretene. he tokoiti nei no Ngapuh. No Te Aupouri, no Te
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