Module 8: Whānau Whanake (Building Stakeholder Relationships): This module explores building positive and collaborative partnerships and networks with parents, teachers, students, and community members to support school improvement.
Due: 11th August
Nau te rourou, naku te rourou, ka ora te manuhiri.
With your food basket and my food basket, the people will thrive.
Module Objectives:
- Understand the importance of strong stakeholder relationships in school improvement.
- Identify your key bicultural stakeholders in the community.
- Develop and implement strategies for effective communication and engagement with stakeholders.
- Build trust and foster collaborative partnerships with parents and whānau.
- Utilise community resources to enhance student learning and well-being.
- Develop and implement a stakeholder engagement plan for the school.
The NZ Education Code of Practice 2021 describes stakeholders as “learners, staff, whānau, local communities, employers, iwi, and others who share a meaningful interest in the wellbeing and safety of learners enrolled with the provider.”(p.10) A key principle for forming stake-holder relationships is mahi tahi and kotahitanga: collective benefits and shared aspirations. This module dives into developing culturally responsive practices and engaging with whanau, hapu and iwi. However, the principles explored can be applied to many stakeholder groups.
We are aware that there is a continuum of experiences and expertise among our delegates so please explore the area(s) most relevant to you below.
Defining Culturally Responsive Leadership
Culturally responsive leadership refers to a leadership approach that recognises, respects, and integrates the diverse cultural backgrounds and identities of students, staff, and the community within the educational environment. This approach prioritises inclusivity, equity, and culturally sensitive practices.
Key Components of Culturally Responsive Leadership:
- Cultural Competence: Culturally responsive leaders demonstrate cultural competence by developing a deep understanding of their own cultural biases and beliefs. They actively seek to learn about the cultures represented in their school community.
- Inclusive Leadership: Inclusive leaders foster an environment where all students and staff feel valued and included, regardless of their cultural background. They promote an atmosphere of respect and acceptance.
- Cultural Awareness: Culturally responsive leaders are attuned to the cultural needs and preferences of their students and staff. They adapt their leadership style to accommodate these differences, making the educational experience more relevant and engaging.
Culture Matters!
Culture significantly shapes our thinking, perception, actions, and communication. Learning is intricately linked to culture, meaning that even when the classroom’s teaching methods, resources, curriculum, and relationships remain the same, students’ experiences may differ due to their cultural perspectives and prior knowledge. Problems arise when educators are unaware of the diverse knowledge and experiences diverse students bring to learning. Even if a teacher shares the same culture as their students, understanding their backgrounds isn’t guaranteed as cultural understandings and behaviours vary within cultural groups, and teachers may miss cultural cues. It’s vital not to ignore these differences or treat all students uniformly, but instead, move from cultural blindness to cultural responsiveness.
Bias, Unconscious Bias and Racism:
Biases in educational leadership can manifest in various ways, often stemming from deep-seated societal prejudices. These biases may result in unequal opportunities, resource allocation, and disciplinary practices for students of different backgrounds. Educational leaders, whether consciously or unconsciously, may favour certain groups while unintentionally disadvantaging others. These biases can hinder the creation of inclusive, equitable learning environments, perpetuating disparities in academic achievement and student well-being. Addressing biases in educational leadership is crucial for fostering fairness and ensuring that every student has an equal opportunity to succeed academically and personally. It requires self-awareness, ongoing education, and a commitment to dismantling discriminatory practices to create a more just and equitable educational system.
In leadership and teaching positions we need to be aware of unconscious biases and how these might affect the way in which we operate in a school setting; towards children, colleagues and whanaū. An unconscious bias is more difficult to overcome and can be defined as such:
“Refers to a bias that we are unaware of and which happens outside of our control. It is a bias that happens automatically and is triggered by our brain making quick judgements and assessments of people and situations, influenced by our background, cultural environment and personal experiences.” – Equality Challenge Unit UK: Unconscious Bias in Higher Education Review 2013.
In New Zealand schools students can also experience outright racism, as explored in this article on Mana College – https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kahu/racism-in-schools-calls-for-cultural-competency-in-the-classroom/JNSGWAYUUQI5RH65F3535A7YII/
Our Responsibility as School Leaders in Aotearoa:
School leaders clearly have a responsibility to ensure schools are safe and equitable places for learners and their whanau. We know that culturally responsive pedagogies have the potential to narrow the disparities in our school communities, concurrently elevating the overall levels of achievement. Extensive research indicates that these culturally responsive pedagogical approaches boost student performance across diverse cultural groups, ensuring every student is motivated and has the assistance required to unlock their educational potential, irrespective of their social, economic, cultural background, or individual requirements.
In this video, Professor Mere Berryman explains the need and the opportunity to use evidence to make a difference in education in Aotearoa, and why a Tiriti o Waitangi partnership approach – Mana Ōrite – is foundational to success for diverse Māori learners and for all learners in English-medium education.
Task:
Research tells us that there are some key aspects of culturally responsive pedagogy:
- Reflect on your cultural knowledge and teaching assumptions related to culture
- Learn about your students
- Use students’ cultural knowledge, perspectives and skills as a resource for teaching
- Create a safe and supportive environment and build strong relationships
- Encourage a discursive curriculum and enable student self-determination
- Connect with families
- Connect with communities
Select one or two aspects from the list above and reflect on what your school does well in this regard and what next steps you would take to further develop your school’s cultural responsiveness.
Comment on a fellow delegate’s response, remembering that every school is at a different place in this journey. You might offer support if there is a next step you can help with, reassurance if you have been on a similar journey, help with a resource you have found useful etc.
Optional Resources:
Explore the resources most relevant to you.
Working effectively with iwi and hapū, Melanie Taite-Pitama: https://vimeo.com/242861287
Puketeraki Kāhui Ako: Culturally responsive practice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQusPg98GcQ
A website with many useful resources and links: https://elearning.tki.org.nz/Leadership/Culturally-responsive-leadership#js-tabcontainer-1-tab-5
Quality Teaching for Diverse Students in Schooling: Best Evidence Synthesis Iteration (BES): https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/publications/series/2515/5959
“The real conspiracy is that education is for the rich” L. O’Connell Rapira – https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/24-08-2020/the-real-conspiracy-is-that-education-is-for-the-rich
“They didn’t care about normal kids like me”: Restructuring a school to fit the kids” A. Milne – https://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/6234
“Colouring in the White Spaces: Reclaiming Cultural Identity in Whitestream Schools” A. Milne – https://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/handle/10289/7868
Assessment:
- Completion of all relevant readings.
- Participation in the online forum discussion.
- Submission of reflection on forum.
8 Responses
Connecting with Families and Communities and Learning About Your Students.
At my school, we use a range of meaningful activities and events to engage and connect with our parent community. At the start of the year, we have an evening to meet all the teachers, SL,T and Board members in a relaxed environment. Throughout the year, Parents and Caregivers are invited to Parent/Teacher/student-led conferences, Aspire assemblies, to support the class on trips, attend Whānau Hui’s and Friends and Family events. We celebrate diverse cultures through our International Food Event and Matariki Breakfast. These events are an opportunity for our school to strengthen reciprocal relationships with whānau further.
A core strategy to further develop our school’s responsiveness would be to implement more school-wide cultural/ sporting events. While language barriers might pose a challenge for our large community of non-English speaking parents, celebrating diverse cultures across the school would significantly enhance cohesiveness and cultural responsiveness.
At the beginning of the year, we have a big focus on Turangawaewae. We learn all about each other through our Inquiry topic and how we display the children’s work in our classroom and through our shared portal HERO, with parents.
Reflection on Cultural Responsiveness
1. Using Students’ Cultural Knowledge, Perspectives and Skills as a Resource for Teaching
What we do well:
Our school actively incorporates students’ cultural backgrounds into classroom learning. Teachers regularly invite students to share their languages, traditions, and personal experiences in learning activities, which enriches discussions and deepens understanding. Celebrations such as Matariki, Samoan/Tongan Language Week, and other cultural events provide opportunities for students to see their identities valued and represented. We also involve whānau/local iwi in sharing stories, history, and cultural practices.
Next steps:
To strengthen this practice, we need to embed cultural knowledge more consistently across the curriculum, rather than relying on events or one-off projects. By continuing to work on developing authentic partnerships with local iwi and Pasifika community leaders this will support us to design learning that reflects local history and cultural perspectives. A next step is to build teacher capability through professional learning focused on culturally sustaining pedagogy, ensuring all staff can confidently integrate diverse student perspectives and skills into everyday teaching.
2. Creating a Safe and Supportive Environment and Building Strong Relationships
What we do well:
Our school places strong emphasis on relationships, with manaakitanga and whanaungatanga guiding our interactions. Staff prioritise knowing students and their whānau personally, which helps create a sense of belonging and safety. Our pastoral care systems are responsive, ensuring students feel supported emotionally and socially as well as academically.
Next steps:
While we are strong in relationship-building, a next step is to ensure that whānau and community voices are not just heard but also used to co-construct solutions and influence school decisions. Establishing a Whānau Advisory Group or Parent Pasifika Fono would give families a stronger role in shaping policies and practices. Additionally, we can further develop staff capacity to identify and respond to unconscious bias, ensuring all interactions truly reflect equity and respect for diverse cultural identities.
Thanks Colleen, we as CPDS should really be proud of our staff and school.
At CPDS, I think that one of the things that we do really well is having regular hui with our whānau, which leads to many positive outcomes. It certainly helps our school build strong relationships, fosters a sense of belonging, and improves our student outcomes for our Māori tamariki. These hui create great opportunities for open communication, collaboration, and shared decision-making between whānau and our school, leading to more effective learning partnerships. We are proud of the strong relationships we’ve built with our Māori and Pasifika whānau.
We have great Kapa Haka teachers at school. Kapa haka gives our tamariki a platform for expression, allowing them to experience success, gain confidence through performance, and step up as leaders and role models. Te Reo Māori is woven into our daily routines, not just taught as a separate subject (e.g., karakia, waiata, mihimihi, reo kupu in classroom instructions). The Maori school specialist works with Māori Whānau and local iwi to identify specific local histories, stories, and knowledge relevant to the school’s unique location. Teachers at CPDS have also been given many opportunities to learn Te Reo Maori, which helps students and teachers grow as learners. For myself, I would like to continue my Te Reo Maori journey by learning to speak Te Reo Maori more fluently. I enjoy listening to our Maori specialist teachers speaking the reo and want to build my confidence by having more fluent conversations with them both.
CPDS now needs to continue to build strong connections with our community. This is crucial for our tamariki, fostering a positive learning environment and enhancing overall well-being. This will help to create a supportive network that benefits our tamariki, families, and the school itself.
Connect with families
At CPDS our school hosts various Parent information evenings, Hui’s, Matariki celebration, Meet the Teacher as well as the teachers attend all Friends of the Family events (Disco, Fiesta, Family Picnic).
This enables us to build trust and foster collaborative partnerships with parents and whānau.
In addition to this we offer parents and whānau to be involved in special festival days (Diwali and Matariki) where their expertise in their culture is shared amongst the school.
Connecting with parents can significantly enhance key aspects of culturally responsive pedagogy by strengthening the relationship between home and school, deepening cultural understanding, and creating more inclusive, affirming learning environments.
By learning directly from parents and whānau, we can incorporate authentic cultural references, examples, and practices into lessons, avoiding stereotypes and making content more relatable.
Strong parent partnerships build a bridge of trust between school and home, showing students their culture is seen, respected, and welcomed. When students feel their identity is validated, they’re more likely to engage and take risks with their learning.
Connecting with Whānau at CPDS
At CPDS, we place a strong emphasis on building meaningful relationships with our students’ whānau. We understand that genuine connections between home and school are key to student success. Our commitment to whakawhanaungatanga (relationship-building) ensures that families feel welcomed, respected, and valued as essential partners in their children’s education.
We are proud of the strong relationships we’ve built, particularly with our Māori and Pasifika whānau. Our dedicated team works closely with these communities to listen deeply, honour their voices, and incorporate their aspirations into our school’s planning and decision-making processes. We actively use the cultural knowledge and strengths of our whānau to enrich our teaching and create a more inclusive learning environment.
Next Steps: As we continue to grow, we recognise the need to move beyond cultural celebrations and towards a more embedded, critical practice of cultural responsiveness. This means reflecting more deeply on our teaching approaches, challenging biases, and ensuring that the values, histories, and identities of all learners are woven throughout the curriculum; not as add-ons, but as integral elements of learning.
Through collaboration, commitment, and continuous learning, we aim to foster a school environment where every student thrives and every whānau voice is heard and honoured.
My school excels in Māori Success and Cultural Integration. This indicates a commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, a recognition of the importance of te ao Māori, and a more inclusive and enriching environment for all students.
Reflection on Current School Practices
Use students’ cultural knowledge, perspectives and skills as a resource for teaching
My school does this very well (in the context of Māori Success and Cultural Integration):Te Reo Māori is woven into daily routines, not just taught as a separate subject (e.g., karakia, waiata, mihimihi, reo kupu in classroom instructions).
The Learning experiences are connected to local iwi narratives, hapū history, significant sites (marae, maunga, awa), and local kaitiakitanga (environmental guardianship). The Maori school specialist works with Māori Whānau and local iwi to identify specific local histories, stories, and knowledge relevant to the school’s unique location that can be authentically integrated into the curriculum.
Teachers find ways to connect Māori concepts, knowledge systems (mātauranga Māori), and perspectives across subjects (e.g., exploring traditional Māori navigation in science, kōwhaiwhai patterns in art and maths, or the Treaty of Waitangi in social studies).
We value Māori student voice and leadership and give many opportunities for Māori students to lead pōwhiri, kapa haka, or contribute their perspectives in classroom discussions are probably common. Having its own unique Pōwhiri and a large, eager Kapa Haka group are powerful ways to celebrate Māori culture and provide students with direct, meaningful experiences. These visible cultural expressions reinforce the school’s commitment to biculturalism.
We Provide professional development for teachers in Tikanga Māori and Te Reo. It is crucial for building staff capability and confidence, ensuring that cultural integration is authentic and well-informed.
My school utilises whānau knowledge by inviting whānau members to share their expertise, stories, and cultural practices as part of the curriculum.
Next steps to further develop this cultural responsiveness:
To further develop CPDS’s cultural responsiveness in this area, we could…
Continue to deepen Te Reo Māori proficiency. While encouraging Te Reo is great, a next step could be to set a school-wide goal for all staff to achieve a basic conversational level of Te Reo Māori within a set timeframe. This could involve:
Structured Te Reo Courses: Offering more intensive, regular Te Reo courses for staff, perhaps bringing in external experts or using the expertise of the teacher leading Māori.
Daily Language Integration: Encouraging staff to use basic Te Reo greetings, commands, and common phrases consistently throughout the school day, beyond just specific unit plans. This could include using Te Reo for daily notices, roll calls, or simple classroom instructions.
While strong in Māori integration, I think a very important next step is to also broaden this strength to embrace the diverse cultural knowledge of all students in the school community, ensuring that the principles applied to Māori success are extended equitably.
Systematic Mapping of All Student Cultural Funds of Knowledge:
Cornwall Park school could implement a more formal and ongoing process for identifying and documenting the cultural knowledge, languages, and skills that all students bring from their diverse backgrounds (e.g., Pasifika, Asian, European, Indian, other Indigenous cultures, etc.). This goes beyond just demographic data.
This can be done in the form of Student surveys/interviews. We can ask students about their family traditions, languages spoken at home, cultural practices, unique skills (e.g., traditional crafts, cooking, music), and significant historical events or figures from their heritage. We can engage with families to understand their cultural strengths and how they might contribute to school learning.
We can work on creating an internal school database of family and community members willing to share their cultural expertise as guest speakers, workshop facilitators, or mentors across various subjects.
Professional Learning focused on “Culture as Pedagogy” for All Cultures:
The school could provide targeted professional development that coaches teachers on how to explicitly connect curriculum content to the diverse cultural backgrounds of all their students, moving beyond a “cultural appreciation” model to a “culture as a lens for learning” approach.
Facilitate workshops where teachers bring current lesson plans and collaboratively brainstorm ways to weave in students’ identified cultural funds of knowledge from the mapping exercise (e.g., “How can we use ‘x’ student’s family’s knowledge of traditional gardening practices in our science unit on plant growth?”).
By sharing best practices, the school can create internal platforms (e.g., staff meetings, online forums) for teachers to share successful examples of lessons that authentically integrate diverse cultural knowledge.
While my school is strong in Māori integration, extending the pedagogical principles of drawing on cultural knowledge to all students ensures equity and deepens the learning experience for everyone. It moves from “what culture are we teaching about?” to “how can students’ cultures help them learn everything?”.
By building on my school’s existing excellence in Māori Success and Cultural Integration, these next steps can help deepen those strengths to encompass the full diversity of our student body, fostering an even more inclusive, empowering, and culturally responsive learning environment for all.
Great work Ronelle, discussing how CPDS excels in Māori Success and Cultural Integration. This certainly indicates our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, a recognition of the importance of te ao Māori, and a more inclusive and enriching environment for all students.