THE MAORI CHILD GROWS UP IN AUCKLAND

Te Ao Hou, June 1959, Page 40

Race Barriers Broken—Auckland is rapidly absorbing many people of non-British stock. It is in the schools that these different population groups are welded together into one whole. Above we see boys of many races together on the same playground. (Hereford Street School) and a typical get-together at a Christmas party (photo Hill Thomas) Retention of Culture—Among the few Auckland schools teaching Maori language, crafts and dances are Queen Victoria and St Stephen's colleges. Below, the two schools have come together for one of the periodical joint practices presided over by Mr John Waititi, who is Maori tutor for both schools.

Hereford Street School, with a roll of 290, has 50 Maoris, 85 Islanders and numerous Chinese and Indians. Here the welding together of the races present a special problem. Mr Miller, the head teacher, is finding special solutions, too. Naturally reading, writing and arithmetic are taught as in every other school, But in addition, dancing, drama, music, camp craft, art and crafts provide ample channels for self-expression, in whatever racial tradition comes naturally to each child. The art and craft lesson pictured above shows the variety of work done and the response of the children. Mr Miller does not believe in emphasising Maori or Samoan dancing; instead, he encourages ‘creative dancing’ in which every child follows his or her innate style. THE MAORI CHILD GROWS UP IN AUCKLAND by TUROA ROYAL Before the advent of Europeans to New Zealand, the Maori system of education was one. One of deliberate adjustment to the environment. The youth was trained in the words of an old training rite: To bear the club, to carry the spear, to fight to overcome To storm the pa, to kill the first foe in the field, To climb mountains, to ride the waves, To grow food for yourself To build a canoe for yourself To make a mat for yourself.” In the case of the girls— “To grow food for yourself To obtain shellfish for yourself To weave garments for yourself To bear the burden for yourself.” In the comparatively simple homogeneous society in which the Maori lived, this very practical training was a through preparation for life, at the same time giving plenty of scope for individual expression and growth. Today, the Maori has to adjust, and to progress in a wholly new and different environment. To a certain extent, the success of his adjustment–on which his whole life as an adult is centred—depends on the education received during his younger years. What are the needs of the Maori child today? The committee on Maori Education, 1955, under the chairmanship of Mr D. G. Ball, resolved that the basic educational needs of Maori and pakeha were identical and that the association of Maori and pakeha should be encouraged to the utmost. The present school syllabus, applied to both races, emphasises the all-round development of children, active ways of learning, democratic values, and character-building.