Tikanga and te reo training offered for senior managers

21 June, 2013

Tikanga and te reo training offered for senior managers

A new course aimed at giving senior managers the skills and confidence to take a meaningful part in Māori functions, ceremonies or rituals has been launched at the University of Waikato.

Irikura, Suspended Treasures, runs over six evenings from the end of July and is being led by one of New Zealand’s foremost tikanga and te reo Māori experts, Professor Pou Temara, from the University’s School of Māori and Pacific Development.

Professor Temara says the course will enable senior managers to engage with Māori ritual and ceremony in a meaningful way and allow them to “do the right thing” when the situation arises, both in the workplace and the community.

“They will feel some empowerment and we will give them the tools to improve their cultural engagement,” he says.

“It will allow them to work more productively with Māori communities and it will be part of a process, it will have a flow through effect.”

The course will teach participants to be proficient enough in the use of te reo Māori and tikanga to competently take part in occasions such as marae visits, tangi, powhiri and other situations where Māori protocol is adhered to.

By the end of the course they will have learned improved cultural competencies through understanding tikanga Māori rituals and the relationship with te reo Māori.

Professor Temara says the ability to negotiate the requirements of Māori and bicultural settings is part of responsible citizenship.

“However, it is not always possible for busy professionals to find the time required to fully master Māori language and culture.  This course is designed to equip those who need to be able to operate in professional settings that require some level of bilingual and bicultural competence to do so with confidence, even though they have little or no background in Māori language and culture.”

While there are no academic prerequisites for the course, Prof Temara says participants should be “self motivated and aware”.

Among other things, participants will learn about the cultural underpinnings of tikanga practices undertaken in the workplace, the relationship between te reo Māori and tikanga rituals, understand the purpose and meaning of waiata used on particular occasions and understand what is expected when Māori tradition is inter-mingled with other traditions, including in workplaces.

The Irikura course will be followed by a similar offering for Pacific culture beginning in September.

Irikura, Suspended Treasures runs from 4-7pm on Mondays from 29 July until 2 September.

Caption: Professor Pou Temara

ENDS

© Scoop Media