Abstract:
This paper reports the views of Indigenous Māori students (aged 5-13 years) regarding the ways they encounter and experience teaching and learning within their schools. The 10 schools that participated in the research are situated in a low socio-economic urban area of the North Island of New Zealand. This paper prioritises the voice and opinions of 923 primary and intermediate school students who self-identified as Indigenous Māori. The study examined whether Māori students perceived teachers helped them to learn, the extent to which they felt motivated and enjoyed school, and who they believed supported them to be successful at school. This project contributes to what Friere (1997) describes as disalienation of students, particularly Māori students, and recognises their role in reclaiming their place within the dialogue of education. While the research was being conducted, the teachers and leaders employed in the schools were engaged in a professional development programme focused on developing culturally relevant teaching and pedagogical practices to support increased student success and achievement. Māori students described the teaching and learning factors they perceived positively and negatively impacted their success and motivation to achieve. The findings highlighted the inconsistent levels of support felt by Māori students, their self-concept and perceptions of being ‘average’. Over the last 20 years there has been an increasing focus on students who succeed educationally against the odds and have been described as academically resilient. The student voice collected in this project supports existing theories about the importance of teachers building culturally responsive relationships with Māori students which support their motivation and resilience at school, but also highlights how inconsistently students experience the effective pedagogies described in the literature and the impact it can have on their academic self-efficacy.