Week 28 APC – Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Responsiveness
Week 28 APC – Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Responsiveness What is Indigenous Knowledge? Knowing, understanding and respecting the tikanga (protocols and beliefs) of ones culture. What is Cultural Responsiveness? How others (non-indigenous) respond to the protocols and beliefs (tikanga) of the indigenous people of that country. How does it fit within my schooling context? Students and whānau at Homai school have always felt they are part of what we call the “Homai Whanau”. Parents and whānau feel welcomed, our open-door policy is inviting and parents pretty much attend most of our schools activity nights, conference evenings, informal and formal gatherings. There are cultural groups that perform at a drop of a hat – kapa haka, Samoan Siva, Indian, etc, and our environment is loaded with cultural icons, statutes, and cultural artwork. So does this mean as a school we are being culturally responsive to our learners and their whānau? Are we embedding practices that a