My journey with te reo Māori: From primary schooling in the mid 20th century to retirement from full-time academic service in the early years of the 21st Century

Abstract

This is not an academic article in the traditional sense. It is a personal account of my experiences, as a first language speaker of te reo Māori, of New Zealand's educational system from the middle of the 20th century to the early years of the 21st century, from the early days of my primary schooling, through my service as a teacher, teacher trainer and academic researcher until my retirement from full-time academic service in 2005. A great deal has been written about the ways in which attitudes and approaches to te reo Māori have changed over that period of time but very little has been written about how it felt to be part of these changes. Our society is based on facts and feelings. If our mokopuna are to understand the fabric of our society, they need to have access to feelings as well as to facts. In this paper, weft and warp, facts and feelings, are woven together. This personal account is dedicated to our mokopuna, to all of our mokopuna, whatever their origin and whatever their colour. The future of our society depends upon their understanding.