"Pasifika learners, along with Maori, continue to experience high disparities in New Zealand’s education system. Furthermore, it is predicted that over the next few decades, the majority of students in New Zealand primary schools will be Maori and Pasifika. The implications for classroom teachers are enormous." - Tute Porter-Samuels
There has been much research published about the benefits of using the students' cultural capital in the classroom, yet many teachers are reluctant to try/ implement it in their classrooms.
Here were some of the reasons teachers gave (from the 16 April Manaiakalani TOD) for not using culturally inclusive pedagogy:
- It takes time to be inclusive. Easier to teach the way we know and were taught.
- It's scary - We feel embarrassed and inadequate, bad experience with our own schooling. Being English - it's engrained that other people speak English.
- It's not important to achievement.
- Do not have the knowledge.
- Uncomfortable
- Confrontational
- Do not want to be disrespectful - want to be culturally respectful (lots of information available but we want to ensure that we have all the right information e.g. centre pepeha which area do we serve do we have the right maunga, awa)
- Persistent ideologies, thoughts, ideas and opinions
- Fear of getting something wrong.
It's probably time that we take a long, hard look at the most direct and significant influence on student achievement – the classroom teacher, us.
We need to be honest with ourselves, encourage ourselves, challenge ourselves; do all the things we encourage our students to do in order to achieve a better educational outcome for our students.
References:
- Alton-Lee, A. (2003). Quality teaching for diverse students in schooling: Best evidence synthesis. Wellington: Ministry of Education.
- Tute Porter-Samuels. Raising Pasifika Achievement: Teacher Cultural Responsiveness. retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1025674.pdf
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