No matter how good, accessible and fit for purpose the qualifications are, there are many other factors that contribute to how well ākonga learn.

This includes:

  • the programme they are learning through,
  • how ready they are to learn,
  • valuing the skills and knowledge they bring to the workforce, and
  • the wellbeing of their whānau and homelife.

Some work that Muka Tangata has started includes:

  • Supporting the success of ākonga Māori, mātauranga Māori, and te ao Māori through our quality assurance and moderation functions.
  • Developing the Food and Fibre Skills Framework to identify how life skills and attributes can be brought into the workforce informally.

A holistic approach to supporting ākonga and kaimahi is consistently raised as an important kaupapa in our conversations with industry. This is often referred to as pastoral care and supports individuals with their physical and mental wellbeing, as well as their social connections with their whānau and community.

While Muka Tangata cannot directly influence how pastoral care can be adopted in the workplace, we want to work with industry organisations and government to promote and support ways in which workplaces can take up the challenge for their workforce.

 
 
Food and Fibre Skills Framework

In 2023, Muka Tangata, in partnership with the Food and Fibre Centre of Vocational Excellence began the development of a Food and Fibre Skills Framework. It is a way of thinking about skills, knowledge and attributes that are important and useful, before we think of qualifications.

It acknowledges:

  • fundamental skills and knowledge that are vital across all industries,
  • broader skills and technical knowledge that are relevant across one or more sectors, and
  • highly technical knowledge and skills that emerge within specific industries and specialised roles within those industries.

The framework has been developed to support the wide diversity of kaimahi and ākonga in the food and fibre sector. Muka Tangata will use the framework to help guide our work including qualifications development and quality assurance. We will encourage its use by providers to build quality programmes, and industries to inform training development and career pathways.

It means that kaupapa that are important to Māori culture, lifestyle and wellbeing can be recognised for the value they add to how Māori learn and the skills they bring to the workforce.

For example, think about the amazing range of skills that Māori use to run a successful marae – the understanding of tikanga, whakapapa and history; the logistical and management skills to organise a tangihanga; running a kitchen in a way to feed lots of people on a tight budget, sometimes with little notice; the people skills to keep whānau united. They are skills which could
add value to any workplace. The Food and Fibre Skills Framework will increase understanding of how knowledge and skills
gained in many places and ways can be recognised in different jobs.

Ongoing actions

4. Use the Food and Fibre Skills Framework to guide Muka Tangata kaupapa Māori work to support ākonga Māori to succeed.

5. Develop a user-friendly guide for industries on how to use the Food and Fibre Skills Framework by June 2025.

 
 
Te Whakatōnga

One of the main ways that Muka Tangata can contribute to high quality teaching and learning for Māori is through our quality assurance work.

In the education system, quality assurance ensures consistent improvements in programmes and qualifications. Good quality assurance contributes to a positive experience for ākonga.

Te Whakatōnga, released in 2023, marked the beginning of our commitment to produce meaningful work that will grow, enhance and support mātauranga Māori and te ao Māori values within the vocational education system. The journey to a rich experience starts with the simple step of planting a seed - a seed that has the potential to provide abundance for whānau, hapū and iwi.

Te Whakatōnga and its recommendations have enabled the Quality Assurance and Enhancement team to embed mātauranga Māori and te ao Māori into their ways of working, both internally and with providers.

We:

  • actively build relationships with providers, including kaupapa-Māori providers and iwi providers, by meeting kanohi ki te kanohi. Whanaungatanga like this is at the heart of success for Māori – but we believe many others gain value from it too. 
  • work alongside Kura Kaupapa Māori to moderate learner samples in te reo Māori, and encourage te reo Māori as ‘best practice’ for ākonga Māori who have been immersed in te ao Māori.
  • collaborate with providers and education partners to establish a te ao Māori resource repository to support awareness and capabilities in te ao Māori: mukatangata.nz/successful-maoricentric-practices-and-models
  • share ways of incorporating mātauranga Māori into ways of working through seminars that support the success of ākonga Māori in non-kaupapa Māori provider settings: mukatangata.nz/recordings-and-seminars
Ongoing actions

We continue to strengthen our efforts for the advancement of Māori in the food and fibre sector. We aim to accomplish the following by the end of 2024:

6. Provide mātauranga Māori seminars to support the capabilities and understanding of providers.

7. Establish a regular hui with our qualifications and quality assurance kaimahi and kaupapa Māori providers to formalise communications between the organisations.

8. Support kaupapa Māori providers in developing and delivering quality programmes and broker solutions to their challenges.

 
 
Māori wellbeing in the food and fibre sector

Our industry engagement indicates a strong interest in ways to attract and retain kaimahi Māori, and how to support them through training and skill development. We also get a strong sense that quality pastoral care contributes to success in training and skill development.

We see that the two are related and that, within work-based training, good pastoral care is largely determined by the culture of the workplace. There are many examples of pastoral care in the workplace that naturally work for Māori, but these are often built on the intrinsic understanding of te ao Māori by that workplace’s leadership.

For employers who do not have a strong personal connection to te ao Māori, the challenge is how to build a culture within their workplaces that empowers them to be places where Māori wellbeing is understood and where Māori feel valued want to contribute as part of a high-performing workforce.

In the last two decades, understanding of Māori wellbeing has been well researched and written about. Models such as Te Whare Tapa Whā, developed by Sir Mason Durie in the 1980s as a way of understanding Māori health and wellbeing, has been adopted in many health and social services. More recently, the New Zealand Treasury has built on that (and other) work as it led He Ara Waiora a framework designed for government to outline a Māori conception of wellbeing with the ultimate aim of lifting the wellbeing of all New Zealanders.

However, tools and ways to use these frameworks are not always user-friendly for those working in the food and fibre sector.

Ongoing actions

9. Work with industry representatives and government agencies to develop practical tools and guidelines for Māori wellbeing in workplaces based on existing models.

10. Actively seek and promote examples workplaces that have employed Māori wellbeing concepts and how they have been successful. Encourage industry bodies to do the same.