Equity in education is key to the journey for rangatahi
“Rangatahi Māori represent the fastest growing sector of New Zealand’s population and as such will be key drivers of our future. The opportunity is significant; making the right choices now could eliminate the current income gap of $2.6 billion per year for Māori and move us closer to a future where we all share the benefits of living a good life with whānau determining their own futures.”
As we reset and rebuild our economy, the above quote is a potent call to action to drive equitable outcomes for rangatahi (young people) Māori through supporting their economic success. It is part of the introduction for the new report He Awa Ara Rau: A Journey Of Many Paths, an insight into the journey of rangatahi Māori through our current education system. It also echoes another recent TSI report: Know me. Believe in me - Kia mārama mai, kia whakapono mai. Both reports shine a light on possible solutions for changing the economic outcomes for rangatahi Māori.
The reports
He Awa Ara Rau: A Journey Of Many Paths
The project is a collaboration between Business and Economic Research Ltd (BERL), Waikato-Tainui, The Southern Initiative and Tokona te Raki: Māori Futures Collective of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu.
Research (BERL, 2019) was originally undertaken to map and understand the journey of more than 70,000 rangatahi through education into employment. This report summarises that research to tell the story of 100 rangatahi Māori starting their journey. It begins to identify what the key levers of change are and possible solutions, as presented below.
Know me. Believe in me - Kia mārama mai, kia whakapono mai
This report combines rangatahi, whānau and school perspectives on supporting attendance, engagement and wellbeing. It is the outcome of a collaboration between the Ministry of Education, The Southern Initiative, The Auckland Co-design Lab, The Middlemore Foundation and rangatahi, schools, whānau and educators in Manurewa. It includes a series of Rangatahi Stories, Insights booklet and graphical Experience Map.
The solutions
Below is our summary of the solutions and opportunities for change presented in the above reports.
Solution: end streaming
Unfair streaming of Māori high school students into low-ability classes was examined in this media story with Stuff. Waikato-Tainui maatauranga (education) general manager Raewyn Mahara said streaming was “old-fashioned and damaging” and was dividing communities.
“We see it all the time in schools across Aotearoa where our Māori and Pasifika tamariki are being told ‘you can’t do it’, as teachers stream them into low-expectation classes with no emphasis on achievement.”
And in an interview with Radio New Zealand, executive director of Tokona te Raki, Dr Eruera Tarena, said the impact of streaming on students' future choices was a shock.
“The 20 percent pay gap for Māori, it's not by accident - those pathways are very much set at a very young age at 14, 15 or even earlier.”
Eruera said interviews with 100 Māori students showed streaming had a negative impact on their lives.
“When a rangatahi gets put in a foundation maths or science class they read that as a signal that the teacher thinks I'm dumb therefore I am dumb... so you start to have a domino effect that, when Māori are streamed, that often results in increases in behavioural issues and then also has a flow-on effect where you have higher numbers of Māori that are expelled or stood down from school. So just this one simple practice which largely is acknowledged as a racist, archaic, damaging practice is still deeply embedded in the structure and culture of our education system.”
Solution: address low value tertiary courses
Radio New Zealand talked to Tania Pouwhare, social intrapreneur for TSI about the finding of low-value tertiary courses that are indebting rangatahi and whānau financially.
"They're coming out and they're no better off in the labour market than if they had just stayed at school, finished Year 13 and then gone straight into a job from there, but what they have done, on average, is rack up $17,000 of student loan debt.”
Tania said that debt was essentially worthless because it had not helped the students get ahead in life.
"The qualifications that they are gaining tend to be for industries which are low-paying as well, so it's a bit of a double-bind, they've racked up debt for qualifications that aren't really going to help them earn enough money to even pay off that debt, let alone to thrive and have a really good career."
Tania said the problem was long-standing and it needed to be resolved quickly, because increasing numbers of people were expected to be unemployed in south Auckland.
Solution: addressing the root cause - systemic racial bias
HE AWA ARA RAU: A JOURNEY OF MANY PATHS, shows the increased rates of Māori students being stood-down, expelled or streamed into lower level classes and the low expectations of Māori to achieve:
“Systemic bias needs to be identified and addressed across the education sector. Deficit thinking amongst educators is hugely damaging – it needs to be brought to the fore and challenged. All educators must be proactively culturally responsive and passionate champions of Māori success. Rapid technological change and a fast-growing Māori population mean we need to be addressing inequalities now – we need to re-wire our education systems so all rangatahi are inspired, equipped and prepared for the future.”
The identification of systemic racial bias also echoes finding in the recent report: Know me. Believe in me - Kia mārama mai, kia whakapono mai.
Solution: ground learning in culture and connect learning to the real world
When teachers believe in their students, show empathy and understanding, make an effort to incorporate Māori and Pacific culture into subjects like maths and science e.g. Māori astronomy - the science of navigation, and help rangatahi to connect the dots to future careers – we know it makes a huge difference. Know me. Believe in me - Kia mārama mai, kia whakapono mai programme lead, Anne-Marie Mujica notes:
We interviewed as many as 70 rangatahi. While some schools in south Auckland are making significant strides in celebrating Māori and Pasifika cultures in school, there is too much variability in the classroom particularly with some core subject teachers. How can we expect young people to pursue those future proof pathways if core subject teachers do not have sufficient empathy for their Māori and Pasifika students? They need to make subjects like maths and science relevant for them by integrating culture and really connecting the subject to their reality and real-world career opportunities. This should be happening in mainstream schools – not just kura Kaupapa.
Let’s get talking
Aotearoa has a great opportunity. We have a young, growing Māori population that has the potential to provide a rich pool of talent and to be the backbone of our nation’s future. However, as these publications show, at each stage of the journey we are currently placing barriers to Māori potential, and this impacts everyone. It is time for each of us to first examine our own place in the education and employment journey of rangatahi, and then think of how we as a collective can inspire, equip and connect our rangatahi to future opportunities. Alongside the He Awa Ara Rau report, there is also a useful discussion guide to deepen all of our understandings of the issues it presents and how we might take action to change the course of these issues. The questions are only suggestions. You may decide to ignore some or add others more relevant to your situation.
Download the discussion guide.
Download the He Awa Ara Rau: A Journey of Many Paths report.
Download the Know me. Believe in me - Kia mārama mai, kia whakapono mai.