Hui-Tanguru 2003

Two tall totara fall

Kua hinga ngā totora i te wao nui o Tane
haere atu k?rua ki a rātau mā, ki ? tātau tīpuna
kei konei mātau e noho mokemoke ana
Otira rātau ki a rātau, tātau te hunga ora ki a tātau.

Hirini Melbourne and Dalvanius Prime both made huge contributions to Māori music including the development of unit standards in new Māori music.

Hirini Melborne (Ngāi Tūhoe) was pivotal to resurrecting the use of traditional Māori instruments and Dalvanius Prime (Taranaki/Ngā Puhi) was an innovative and flamboyant proponent of modern Māori music.

While their passing leaves a big void in Māori music, their work continues to inspire a new generation of Māori musicians. Both men were Whakaruruhau members of the new Māori music group that helped develop theory and performance standards in contemporary Māori music.

You can view these standards via the NZQA website.

Dalvanius Prime and whānau at the Te Waka Toi awards 2002 where he received a special award for his contribution to Māori music.

A new spin on kapa haka

The ten New Māori Dance unit standards that have recently been registered on the National Qualifications Framework celebrate the fusion of traditional Māori performing arts with new dance trends like hip-hop.

The unit standards can be viewed via the NZQA website. They include choreographing and staging a New Māori Dance performance, understanding te reo kori - the language of Māori movement and describing the kawa of the marae.

NZQA hopes secondary schools and kura will use the level 1-3 standards. Credits gained in New Māori Dance can count towards a range of other national qualifications including NCEA (National Certificate of Educational Achievement). Most schools and kura are already automatically accredited to offer these standards, check out the website for a list of accredited providers.

For more information on new Māori music and Māori performing arts, check out a special edition of Ao Kawe Kupu.

Students from Whiti Reia Polytechnic in Wellington demonstrating new Māori dance moves.

Two new qualifications available in Māori Business and Management

A review of the Māori Business and Management unit standards has resulted in some major changes to how providers can package their courses.

The 42 unit standards in the Māori Business and Management subfield have now been transferred from field Business to field Māori. That means providers can draw on other unit standards in field Māori like Reo and Tikanga to complement existing Māori Business and Management courses.

The great news for Māori in business and management is that a National Certificate (level 4) and a National Diploma (level 5) have now been completed. The National Diploma includes an optional strand in iwi management that will undoubtedly appeal to those working directly with tribal groups.

You can view the new qualifications and the unit standards via the NZQA website.

Assessment resources for all these unit standards are also under development.

Check out the first bilingual unit standards

'Ngā K?rero me ngā Reo' unit standards are the first Māori-English unit standards to be registered as part of the National Qualifications Framework. These unit standards explore visual language and include standards to do with graphics, pakiwaitara and pūrākau.

Two Māori educationalists, Pinaka Barsdell and Harata Day translated the standards in to te reo Māori so they are more accessible for immersion units and whare kura. 'Ngā K ?rero me ngā Reo' standards can be incorporated in to school curriculum subjects like drama, kapa haka, computing and information technology.

Most schools and whare kura are automatically accredited to deliver these unit standards. You can check out which providers are already accredited to deliver these unit standards and the bilingual unit standards via the web.

Educationalist, Harata Day (Ngāi Tūhoe) who translated the "Ngā K?rero me ngā Reo" unit standards.

New booklets for the secondary sector explain access to Māori qualifications

NZQA has produced two new publications in English and Māori. You can order hard copies from Communications

Te Waharoa-National Certificate in Māori provides an explanation of the general certificate that recognises a broad range of Māori skill and knowledge. View in English PDF or Māori PDF	National Certificates for secondary school students explains the range of national qualifications that schools and students can do while working towards NCEA. View in English PDF or Māori PDF

Malaysian interest in bilingual examinations system

The Māori Qualifications Service played primary host to a group of Malayasian officials from their Ministry of Education. The delegation wanted to know how New Zealand managed dual language assessments in English and Māori.

At present, secondary schools can access all the achievement standards in English and Māori, some field Māori unit standards in both languages and requests to have their national external assessments conducted in te reo Māori.

In contrast to New Zealand, Malaysia already runs an examination system in their indigenous tongue and they are looking at introducing English language examination papers and assessments. Their government wants to encourage Malay students to become fluent in a language that is widely used internationally.

Delegate, Ainan Samad, says while the philosophy for introducing a bilingual examination system in Malaysia is different, the trip provided some useful insights on how to manage a dual language system.

Ainan Samad from the Malaysian Ministry of Education during her visit to NZQA in Wellington.

Changes within Māori Qualifications Service

Stephen Ihaka from Te Aupouri and Ngāti Porou has been appointed as the inaugural manager of the Māori Qualifications Services (MQS). Stephen has extensive experience dealing with iwi and Māori communities from his work in the public sector and with the Police. More...

Stephen Ihaka (far left) supported at his NZQA pohiri by former work mates and friends.

Former MQS Project Leader, Titia Graham has been appointed as the Tūmuaki of the social services industry training organisation, Te Kaiāwhina Ahumahi.

Titia has made an enormous contribution to the development of field Māori during her nine years at NZQA. She will continue to work with MQS, particularly on the completion of the Reo Māori Media qualifications and other projects that she has been heavily involved in.

Ki a koe, e te tuahine, ka nui te mihi ki a koe m ? ngā mahi whakahirahira, whakahono i ngā pūkenga o Te Ao Māori ki ngā whakaritenga o Te Ao Tūroa.

Former MQS project leader Titia Graham discussing the new Reo Māori Media qualifications with producer, Maaka McGregor, in Wellington, 2002.