Pasifika Early Literacy Program - PELP workshop 1

The workshop was an introduction to The Pasifika  Early Literacy Project (PELP) a Ministry of Education  funded research programme led by Dr Rae Silata.  PELP aims to raise the literacy achievement of Pasfika learners.   The workshop last week was the first in the PELP programme after being delayed due to covid-19 lockdown.   It was an opportunity for Kaiako involved in the programme to meet, to talanoa, and to share of experiences of teaching literacy in classrooms and ECE centres to Pasifika learners.

The background to this initiative is an understanding that the Government has an inherent obligation to support languages of nations within the New Zealand Realm.  Eg the languages of the Cook Islands, Nieu and Tokelau.  Given the reality of pacific migration to Aotearoa New Zealand often, more speakers of these languages reside within NZ boarders than in home countries.  

The Ministry of Education document Tapasa, which outlines the cultural competencies frameworks for teachers to support Pasifika success is grounded in the notion that effective teachers will seek honest and respectful relationships with their learners and they families.  The will get to know them, who they are and what is important to them.  By making space for the language of their homes and hearts within the classroom we invite understanding and respect on a deeper level.  The PELP project supports the links between school and home languages by providing dual language texts in 5 Pasifika languages.

Reflecting on this workshop I have taken away two big ideas which will impact my teaching in the future.

1. Bilingualism is a cognitive advantage for literacy learning,  cognitive concept development, eg field independence, and metalinguistic intelligence.  I learnt that many parents are still of the outdated view that by speaking English only to their tamariki they are improving their chances of doing well at school -This is not the case!

2. Personally I learnt that being an English only speaker did not prevent me from being an ally for Pasifika fanau in the support of Pasifika languages and in fact by me seeking their help to learn and to use their languages is a way for me to privilege their aiga in the classroom.  A way to honour the traditional and familial knowledge that they have and by doing so scaffold the learning of my students in a way that is rooted in their own world view and understandings.  This in turn must lead to enriched learning.