Ngā Mātou Mahi | Our Work

Shaping a treasured space of learning

Our work supports partnership with mana whenua and whānau, in order to build long-lasting engagement. Tārai Kura supports the co-creation of an inclusive and future-focused marautanga and curriculum through a collaborative process of learning environment design.

Rapua te mea ngaro

This whakataukī is used to encourage people to seek that which has not been discovered, to seek the hidden key, to seek one’s deepest desire, to seek evidence.

There are two primary components to our mahi, that is led by our Ringa Whao

1) Personalised, in-depth, in-school support over a period of time

Tārai Kura offers the following opportunities for you, kura, schools, and your community:

  • Support for navigating the process for a new school build or redevelopment
  • Support and guidance to engage and grow your relationships with mana whenua
  • Strategies, ideas, and models to guide visioning, curriculum aspirations, and engagement of staff, ākonga, and whānau
  • Access to resources from a wide network of experiences
  • Opportunities to connect and engage with other boards and tumuaki
    • who have been through the build process
    • who are currently going through the build process
  • Opportunities to share your journey for ongoing learning, celebration, and sharing.

2) Networking and sharing of information. We call this ‘Te Pito Mata’ – realising and unlocking the untapped potential

This is how we connect to share our knowledge to support each other, and to stimulate thinking and curiosity. Te Pito Mata is an initiative within Tārai Kura to create authentic shared learning opportunities with other kura and school leaders. The aim is to provide tailored networking opportunities that address emerging school and kura needs.

There are two main parts of Te Pito Mata: Mahi Tahi and Te Puna Kōrero.

1) Mahi Tahi

Mahi Tahi is ‘with schools collaboration’. The central focus of Mahi Tahi is communities of practice where schools and kura work together to learn, support and share practice around the intersection of property with pedagogy. Ringa Whao co-facilitate communities of practices with schools and kura.

Mahi Tahi is where:

  • We tell the stories of our kura to help each other with problem solving, networking and collaboration
  • We encourage sustainable connections in relation to the learning and sharing of practices in and between school, kura and communities across the country
  • This may include: webinars, forums, workshops, communities of practice, roadshows, school visits and/or tours

2) Te Puna Kōrero

Te Puna Kōrero is made up of ‘for schools projects’. Te Puna Kōrero means the spring of knowledge or stories, and involves a range of kete and resources. These are designed to provide support for the mahi, and the opportunity for storytelling of the work of schools and kura toward innovation and change. Examples of Te Puna Kōrero include our monthly pānui, our annual ‘change kete’ resource and across-kura connections.