Kay-Lee Jones' dedication to sharing her love of te reo M膩ori with student teachers who are earning the language and culture, has been rewarded with an Ako Aotearoa Tertiary Teaching Excellence Award.
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Kay-Lee Jones听has helped nurture a love for te ao M膩ori in over 2000 student teachers in the University of mini传媒鈥檚 (UC)听School of Teacher Education. As graduates, they are now putting their understanding into practice in schools throughout Aotearoa, normalising M膩ori language and culture in everyday education.听
The UC lecturer鈥檚 dedication and accomplishment has been recognised with a prestigious听听(Kaupapa M膩ori) announced today, as one of nine recipients nationally.
鈥淭o me as an educator teaching the next generation of kaiako (teachers), excellence means preparing our teachers to empower tamariki (children) to walk confidently in both M膩ori and P膩keh膩 worlds,鈥 she says.
Learning te reo M膩ori
Jones has always been very proud of her whakapapa M膩ori and has pursued opportunities to learn her ancestral language. In her upbringing M膩ori songs were sung and the odd M膩ori phrase or word usually pertaining to kai (food) were spoken, but te reo M膩ori wasn鈥檛 an everyday language of the home.听
Jones acknowledges her parents as her first teachers; her father teaching her the importance of wh膩nau (family), and her mother teaching her aroha ki te tangata (love and respect for people). Her father comes from the East Coast of the North Island, (Te Aitanga a M膩haki and Ng膩ti Porou), the first M膩ori firefighter in Christchurch, and her mother鈥檚 whakapapa links to the southern South Island and Rakiura (Stewart Island).
鈥淚 made the choice to learn te reo M膩ori. I love it and will always be a learner. I love teaching the history of our land and seeing a spark in those I teach from connecting with our indigenous language, culture and identity,鈥 Jones says.听
Nurture the seed
Guided by the whakatauk墨 (proverb) 鈥淧oipoia te k膩kano kia pu膩wai, nurture the seed and it will blossom,鈥 Jones lectures UC education students in person, online and via flexible learning opportunities including night classes, noho marae (marae stay) and w膩nanga (block workshops in which to deliberate or discuss). Jones acknowledges that she is part of a talented and dedicated wh膩nau within UC鈥檚 School of Teacher Education and emphasises the importance of ako (reciprocal teaching and learning), in that she learns from her 膩konga (students) as much as they learn from her.听听
鈥淔or our non- M膩ori teacher trainees, I want them to consider how to create culturally rich spaces for the tamariki they will teach. This may mean that our non-M膩ori wh膩nau begin opening their hearts, heads and hands wider to the M膩ori world, and I will be there to tautoko (support),鈥 she says.
鈥淢any of our New Zealand-born, non-M膩ori students may not have experienced the M膩ori world and may have little knowledge of M膩ori language and culture. For some this can be daunting. We need to understand the whakapapa (genealogy) and history of the whenua (land) in which we teach. This starts with knowing the stories and connecting with mana whenua (custodians that hold authority over the land).鈥
Jones taught in primary M膩ori medium education after graduating, then taught in the School of M膩ori and Indigenous Studies at UC. She returned to primary school education as a teacher and deputy principal, and in 2015 completed a Master of Education degree at UC and returned to tertiary teaching. She is now pursuing doctoral study.
Our greatest treasure
Her greatest influences are: 鈥渕y three beautiful tamariki, leaders of tomorrow, they are my 鈥榳hy鈥.鈥澨 Jones鈥 tamariki attend Te P膩 o R膩kaihaut奴, a 21st听century p膩 village which focuses on culture and identity as the foundation of success, and which aligns with her own teaching philosophies.
鈥淚 better understood the responsibility of teachers when my first child started within our New Zealand education system. We entrust our teachers with our most precious taonga (treasure), our children.鈥
UC听Professor Angus Macfarlane听has worked with Jones for five years. 鈥淜ay-Lee sets herself apart by way of her passion for, and her competence in, M膩ori-language teaching,鈥 he says.
He commended her gentle, but effective, style of advocacy. 鈥淜ay-Lee has the potential to shift people鈥檚 ideas and philosophies nationally and locally, while maintaining calm and acceptable relationships at the learning and teaching level.鈥
The importance of normalising M膩ori language in education cannot be underestimated, Jones says.
鈥淭he percentage of M膩ori teachers in Aotearoa is extremely low and even less are the number of principals with whakapapa M膩ori.鈥
鈥淭here is a great disparity and a need to equip teachers in the New Zealand education system to embed aspects of te ao M膩ori including language, culture and traditions in the curriculum.鈥
Ako Aotearoa Tertiary Teaching Excellence awards
Every year, up to 10 of New Zealand鈥檚 top teachers are celebrated at the national Tertiary Teaching Excellence Awards, hosted by the Minister of Education. Since 2001, the awards have recognised more than 200 of this country鈥檚 top tertiary teachers.
Ako Aotearoa is a government-funded organisation committed to supporting the country鈥檚 tertiary sector teachers, trainers and educators be the best they can be for the learners' success.
UC鈥檚 2019 winners were听Glaciologist听Dr Heather Purdie听and Japanese lecturer听Dr Masayoshi Ogino听听won Ako Aotearoa Teaching Excellence Awards in 2019.
