Sixth International Conference on Immersion and Dual Language Education: Connecting Research and Practice Across Contexts

Paper/Best Practice Session (1 hour)

Maori language

Indigenous Language Immersion

Post-Secondary

At the University of Waikato, New Zealand we are celebrating the 25^th anniversary of Te Tohu Paetahi (First Bachelor’s Degree) program, a Maori language immersion program within a mainstream university. Some of the important aspects of a successful program involve having a sustainable curriculum, quality teachers, and a supportive institution.  

At the University of Waikato, New Zealand we are proud to celebrate the 25^th anniversary of the Te Tohu Paetahi (First Bachelor’s Degree) program, a Maori language immersion program within a mainstream university. This program represented a response to concerns about the future of te reo M?ori/the Maori language in a context where inter-generational transmission was severely limited and the number of fluent or native speakers seemed inadequate to ensure a viable future for the Maori language.  With more than a thousand students experiencing the Te Tohu Paetahi program and its successes, and since its inception in 1991 it’s hard to believe it has gone through very minimal change.  However, still in practice is the rigorous interview process of each student to ascertain eligibility for the establishment of a supportive whanau (family)-based learning environment, bearing in mind they will be together for up ten months.  In the first year of study, Te Tohu Paetahi students focus exclusively on te reo Maori in an intensive fast track immersion context which provides them with more exposure to the language than would be possible in the case of mainstream students, the aim being to provide that “quantity and quality of involvement” that Johnson and Swain (1997, p. xiii) associate with immersion programmes.   

This presentation will discuss some of the aspects that have made this program successful, attractive, and sustainable and still in high demand throughout the country.  I would argue that some of the most important aspects of a successful program would involve having a sustainable curriculum that is well resourced, teachers of the highest teaching quality, and capabilities, and having the full academic and administrative support of the institution.