Tribute to Anaru Paenga

E koe Anaru, haere hoki wairua atu ra ki a ratau ma, ki o tatau tipuna, a, ki era kapa haka rangatira e tatari mai ra mohou i tua o te arai.

Kei konei matau e noho mokemoke ana. Otira, ratau ki a ratau, tatau te hunga ora ki a tatau.

Anaru Paenga chairing the National Standards Body Māori with his Deputy, Evelyn Solomon, in Wellington 2001.

The unexpected death of Anaru Paenga (Ngati Porou) on the 21st November 2002 is a huge loss to his whanau, Māori education and the many organisations he worked with over the years.

Anaru Paenga was one of the most passionate advocates of Māori qualifications. Over the last five years, he chaired the national standards setting body Māori who are responsible for the development of Māori qualifications. He was also instrumental in driving a number of initiatives to support the implementation of Māori qualifications within secondary schools and tertiary institutions. His particular love was Māori Performing Arts, both the traditional and the more modern forms of Māori music and dance.

Anaru was farewelled at Whangara just north of Gisborne. Project Leader Titia Graham wrote this about his tangihanga:

"He had a beautiful send-off on his last night - lots of laughter, jokes and plenty of beautiful waiata and heart-wrenching haka! His final resting place is a beautiful spot, sheltered by the largest pohutukawa tree in the urupa and overlooking the beautiful moana."

E te rangatira, moe mai ra i te moenga roa.

More than 400 people attended the special graduation ceremony in Rotorua on the 5th December. Busloads of students from Whangarei, Gisborne, Hawkes Bay, Waikato and the Bay of Plenty were presented with their certificates. It was a wonderful occasion and a rare treat to watch some of the top rangatahi performers in the country demonstrate their skills in Māori Performing Arts.

Whangarei Girls High graduates with their tutor Natasha Pitman (far left) in full song after receiving their Te Waharoa certificates in Rotorua.

Te Waharoa offers some exciting opportunities for providers who offer any kind of Māori programmes whether they are wananga, private training establishments or secondary schools. NZQA hope providers use "Te Waharoa" as a gateway to other national qualifications including NCEA - the National Certificate of Educational Achievement and other specialist qualifications in field Māori .

Many providers can simply use their existing programmes as a basis for assessing their students against Te Waharoa. Most of this year's graduates have earned their national certificates in a combination of Māori language, Māori Performing Arts, Pangarau and Whakairo.

You can find out more about Te Waharoa by looking at the Te Waharoa booklet - Adobe PDF special Ao Kawe Kupu issue field Māori part of the Framework.

1,000 students gain credits towards national qualifications on stage

As part of the Te Waharoa pilot, all secondary schools, wharekura and kura students who competed in the national Māori Performing Arts Secondary School Festival this year were assessed against unit standards in Māori Performing Arts.

The initiative was a huge success. Students enjoyed achieving credits for all their hard work and teachers were pleased that such a major event could also be used as an assessment opportunity.

The credits earned at the national festival in Christchurch counted towards a range of national certificates including NCEA, Māori Performing Arts and Te Waharoa.

The national secondary school champions, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Hoani Waititi performers, at the National Secondary Festival in Christchurch.

A new set of video assessment resources to help teachers of Māori Performing Arts was released the same week as the festival.

You can read more about this initiative by reading the latest copy of QA News.

Wharekura seek higher accreditation for Māori Performing Arts

The three biggest wharekura in the country and the top performing schools at the national secondary school Māori Performing Arts Festival 2002 are seeking an extension to their accreditation so they can assess their students against level 4 unit standards in Māori Performing Arts.

All accredited secondary schools, kura kaupapa Māori and wharekura can assess students against standards at level 1-3 only. These are the only Māori Performing Arts standards to be classified as a Conventional School Subject.

If their accreditation bid is successful, Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Hoani Waititi, Te Wharekura o Ruatoki and Te Wharekura o Rakaumangamanga will also be able to award their students a National Certificate in Māori Performing Arts (level 4).

They also agree that a special case should be made for all kura and wharekura to have automatic accreditation for Māori Performing Arts to level 4 and Māori Performing Arts should be recognised as a canon subject.

Turahira Hare (Ngai Tuhoe) at an NZQA hui in Wellington

Turahira Hare from Te Wharekura o Ruatoki says her students have been learning Māori Performing Arts since infancy and they have a depth of knowledge and understanding in te reo Māori that extends well beyond levels 1-3. “At Ruatoki, learning a waiata can involve all the essential learning areas including Tikanga a iwi, Māori geography and Hauora. Māori Performing Arts is a core part of our learning.

For more information on Māori Performing Arts check out a special Ao Kawe Kupu edition on Māori Performing Arts and go to the field Māori section of the Framework.

Māori media experts develop two new qualifications

Like all national qualifications that are industry specific-experts working in this area have led their development including Tini Molyneux (One Network News), Wena Tait (Māori Television Board) and Rereata Makiha (Ruia Mai).

Māori experts have developed a foundation certificate called the National Certificate in Reo Māori Media (level 4) that recognises general media and Māori language skills required to enter the burgeoning Māori language media industry. The National Certificate is likely to be registered on the National Qualifications Framework by early next year.

Experts in Māori language radio, television and journalism are also developing a level 4 national certificate that will see a student specialise in one of these three key areas.

Project leader Titia Graham says those already in the industry who have no qualifications are keen to see some work place assessment take place so veteran Māori language broadcasters and new staff can have their skill levels assessed and recognised.

Māori language media gurus - Ral Makiha, Tina Wickcliffe, Te Anga Nathan and Whare Akuhata with MQS Project Leader Titia Graham at an advisory hui in Auckland.

New National Diploma in Public Sector Māori launched

The Māori Qualifications Services (MQS) is proud to be associated with the new National Diploma in Public Sector Māori that was developed by the Public Sector Training Organisation (PSTO). This qualification recognises the unique mix of skills required by Māori working within the public sector including tikanga, reo Māori , management, service delivery and policy analysis.

The qualification has already generated huge interest from Māori public servants who have attended implementation hui in Auckland, Wellington and Hamilton.

PSTO spokesperson Donna Turuwhenua says people are keen to be trained and assessed for the qualification because it’s based on the work they are already doing. “It’s the key reason why people see it is a good option. A lot of long-standing Māori public servants have no formal qualifications that recognise their abilities.”

For more information on the National Diploma in Public Sector Māori, check out the requirements for this national diploma on the NZQA website or contact PSTO - Sonya Low, email: sonya.low@ssc.govt.nz DDI: (04) 494 8394

Peter Hollis (Ngati Porou) from the Ministry of Social Development in Taumaranui was presented with the first National Diploma in Public Sector Māori at the launch of this new qualification in Wellington.