Abstract:
With the increasing massification of content delivery in tertiary education, students who fail to ‘catch the tide’ in the ‘one size fits all’ teaching programmes are often left exposed and dispirited. In Aotearoa New Zealand, indigenous Māori students and those of Polynesian heritage are over represented in this category of under achievement or failure where language difficulties or cultural expectations are not an easy fit with mainstream practice. However, some of these issues can be addressed if disciplined-centred teaching structures are put in place to provide these students with a culturally welcoming alternative which supports them in the mainstream. Backed by longitudinal analysis, this paper aims to offer a blueprint from which others can adapt equity initiatives designed to meet the needs of ethnic groups who may be struggling to find a learning space within a first year tertiary environment. “Feed a man with fish, he will live from day to day, teach him how to fish, he will live forever” (Māori Proverb)
