Weaving an identity across two worlds: An educational exploration of growing up Māori-Pākehā in Aotearoa-New Zealand

Abstract

This autoethnographic exploration of Māori-Pākehā identity is located in the field of education. It sought to examine how schools and classrooms shape identities, and how Māori- Pākehā individuals utilise their mixed backgrounds to navigate education. This study was contextualised within Aotearoa-New Zealand, with the intertwined and contested histories of the indigenous Māori (as tangata whenua) and Pākehā colonial settlers serving as an integral consideration. As an autoethnographic study, my experiences of primary, intermediate and secondary school education provided the data for this research. This information was framed through a series of narratives, poems and vignettes, which were then examined through the lens of critical pedagogy. In terms of identity at school, this research revealed two ‘yardsticks’ against which Māori-Pākehā identities are measured. Firstly, that Māori-Pākehā identities are socially constructed, in that we are made ethnic by our peers and colleagues with whom we interact and are positioned. Secondly, Māori-Pākehā identities are politically constructed and measured against the values and beliefs that are privileged in the classroom. In this respect, the monocultural nature of the classroom becomes the silent and invisible yardstick against which Māori-Pākehā identities are constructed. These findings confirmed that Māori-Pākehā identities are diverse, complex and multifaceted. These findings suggest that Māori-Pākehā identities are as much politically located as they are socially, culturally and ethnically. The political tensions and the disparate nature of the Māori-Pākehā relationship is shaped by ongoing inequalities and conflict, is informed by historical racisms and colonisation, and is defined by the ongoing contestation of power and privilege. These tensions provide an additional layer of complexity to the construction of Māori- Pākehā identities that other cultural-ethnic identities may not have to consider. Schools and educators have a role in supporting Māori-Pākehā identities by providing space for multiple cultures and ethnicities to be recognised, validated and flourish through established culturally responsive practices. Additionally, teachers play a key role in confronting, and deconstructing the monocultural nature of the classroom, by recognising how their normalised culture, values and beliefs are reinforced through their own positions of privilege.