Drawing From Māori Principles of Well-Being to Enhance Online Teaching and Learning

• In Event: Enhancing Educational Equity Through Digital Learning

Abstract

Māori frameworks of wellbeing are being widely adopted by the education sector in Aotearoa New Zealand to improve and enhance student engagement and their academic outcomes. The holistic nature of these frameworks reminds teachers that engagement is strongly influenced by social, psychological, and spiritual factors. Neglecting one, some, or all these factors can adversely affect student engagement and limit their opportunities to experience academic success. Engagement in online environments can be more challenging for Māori students (Tiakiwai & Tiakiwai, 2010). Thus, it is critical to identify how on-line learning environments can imbue a holistic sense of belonging for students, particularly Māori students who can be more adversely impacted than others.
This study sought a solution to issues of engagement faced by students studying te reo Māori (Māori language) in online environments. It was hypothesized that a solution to learning te reo Māori online possibly lay in the merging of the Community of Inquiry (Garrison, 2006) (COI) online teaching and learning model and Te Whare Tapa Whā model of wellbeing (Durie, 1994). Te Whare Tapa Whā is based on the whare, the Māori concept of house or meeting house. The model recognizes four cornerstones (the four walls of the whare) to create a holistic perspective of health and wellbeing. Similar to the COI model, the whare model includes psychological (te taha hinengaro), physical (te taha tinana), and social (te taha whānau) components. But unlike the COI model, Te Whare Tapa Whā also includes a spiritual (te taha wairua) component. Spiritual, the wairua, refers to the human essence of being and connectedness to the universe. This study explored the apparent synergies between the two models with a view to producing a more holistic model for online learning design founded on Māori principles of wellbeing. This presentation addresses the following questions from the broader study:
1. What are some of the challenges and benefits of embedding the concept of Te Whare Tapa Whā into the fabric of an online teaching and learning environment?
2. How does the concept of wairuatanga (spirituality) differ from the broader concept of ambience (e.g., mood, atmosphere) in an online teaching and learning environment?
The data for this research were gathered using both quantitative and qualitative methods including surveys, focus group, and individual interviews. The participants included both students and teachers who have experience teaching and learning in online environments.
The results strongly suggest that a hybrid model, blending the COI and Te Whare Tapa Whā models, can significantly increase student engagement in online learning environments. This study proposes that Te Taha Wairua is the central part of this model, while the other elements are interdependent and contribute to the element of wairua. Prioritising and infusing wairua into online learning design ensures that the students feel that they belong to the COI. The challenges of implementing this model lies in shifting focus to the spiritual being of the learner and will require a different starting point for learning design.

Author

• Te Hurinui Renata Karaka-Clarke, University of Canterbury
  Presenting Author