Renae Maxwell

Ngāti Porou, Ngāi Tai

"The support for us as teachers from parents is awesome," she says. "They are fully involved in the activities of the Kura and we all share the same goals and aspirations for our tamariki."

Like all the teachers in the Southern Cross Campus, Te Kura Maori o Nga Tapuwae, Renae is an ex-student of the school. The Māori teachers Renae experienced during her own school years were powerful role models for her and played a large part in her decision to become a teacher.

Renae has a B.Ed in teaching from Auckland College of Education (ACE). "I was one of the foundation students in their Huarahi Māori course," she says. "Five of our staff here at TKM are grads also of that course. It’s a very successful initiative and its graduates of the Huarahi Māori course are well sought after." Renae explains that their training encouraged the use of the Māori curriculum documents in all areas of learning allowing room for Māori beliefs and values to be incorporated into the daily teaching of Māori students.

Now, Renae is teaching five and six year olds at Te Kura Māori o Nga Tapuwae. "We have lots of contact with Kura students at all levels – helping senior students with study and extra curricular activities. Whanaungatanga is the basis of our school," Renae explains. "Having been through the system here myself, it is exciting to watch the Kura expand and develop. It all helps towards achieving our common goal, success for our tamariki," Renae says.

"My goal is to create an environment where children feel safe, motivated to learn, proud of who they are and comfortable and happy to be."

"Literacy is my number one objective with these little children. I’ve undertaken lots of professional development so I can implement exciting new ideas to motivate the children to grasp the concepts of reading and writing. Without these skills there are so many other things the students cannot do," Renae explains.

"The support for us as teachers from parents is awesome," she says. "They are fully involved in the activities of the Kura and we all share the same goals and aspirations for our tamariki."