Ako Tertiary Teaching Awards nominees – Part 2: Yo Heta-Lensen

Congratulations to Yo Heta-Lensen and Dr Kristie Cameron, who have been selected as Unitec’s nominees for this year’s national Ako Tertiary Teaching Awards. Kristie and Yo were both winners at our Unitec staff Excellence Awards 2019 and have reached an outstanding level of teaching.

In the second of a two-part series we look into what makes Yo an excellent teacher, and a bit about her background and teaching style.

“Whāia te pae tawhiti kia tata. Whāia to pae tata kiā maua.
Pursue the distant pathways of your dreams so they may become your reality.”

Yo supports the development and implementation of mātauranga Māori across all courses in the Bachelor of Teaching (ECE) programme. Yo says it is important that early childhood teachers understand the power they have to make a difference as the critic and conscience of society and how to use it positively.

“Because the early years of a child’s life is where the greatest learning occurs, I reinforce the value of this profession, the view of tamariki as taonga, the impact teachers can have in children’s lives and why that carries with it a duty of care.”

Excellence in Kaupapa Māori teaching

It’s Yo’s belief that excellence in Kaupapa Māori teaching and learning in early childhood education directly addresses the impact of language loss on Māori identity and intervenes to reverse that outcome in education.

“My teaching is about handing a korowai of inclusivity that celebrates diversity and that honours Māori as the indigenous people of this whenua to the next generation of early childhood education (ECE) kaiako. Mātauranga Māori is the vehicle I use to achieve that and I am guided by Kaupapa Māori to ensure that Māori knowledge is respected.”

In the second year course ‘Te Kete Manaaki Whenua’, Ākonga critically consider Māori approaches to the environment. Here, they work with the harakeke on our Mt Albert campus.

Ngā Kete Manaakitanga – kete of care and respect

One of the many significant contributions that Yo has made to Unitec and the Early Childhood Teaching space is the development of kete-based learning.

“Inspired by the great deed of Tāne in retrieving Ngā Kete Wānanga (the three baskets of knowledge), I designed Ngā Kete Manaakitanga to develop student teachers’ competency in te reo Māori me ngā tikanga Māori. These courses demonstrate how to integrate mātauranga Māori across the early childhood curriculum,” said Yo.

The three courses are carefully staged to scaffold ākonga (learners’) knowledge of how to plan, implement, evaluate, and improve on the incorporation of te reo Māori me ngā tikanga Māori in practice

The first year course ‘Te Kete Manaaki Tangata’ provides an introduction to oral skills in te reo Māori and develops understandings of manaaki tangata (supporting others). Ākonga explore their whakapapa (history) and grow their confidence to work in partnership with whānau in their teaching practice through whakawhanaungatanga.

The third year course ‘Te Kete Manaaki Taonga’ provide leadership opportunities for ākonga who are about to graduate as fully qualified teachers. Tuakana welcome the teina at Ngākau Māhaki.

“Through the first course ‘Te Kete Manaaki Tangata’ I gained a more holistic understanding of who I am, and why having this knowledge of my whakapapa can support me in caring for those around us.” EDUC 5905 student, 2016

In the second year course ‘Te Kete Manaaki Whenua’, Ākonga critically consider Māori approaches to the environment. Yo believes that the natural world provides authentic engagement opportunities to connect to Papatūānuku, (the land) which fosters manaaki whenua.

“By learning and researching for this paper I became more aware of the stories and the lives that came before me. Te Kete Manaaki Whenua has also helped me as an early childhood teacher when helping our tamariki in understanding how to care for Papatūānuku and supporting and guiding our next generation of kaitiaki.” – EDUC6905 student and artist, 2019

The third year course ‘Te Kete Manaaki Taonga’ provide leadership opportunities for ākonga who are about to graduate as fully qualified teachers. Tuakana facilitate workshops based on their experiences in Ngā Kete Manaakitanga, sharing their learning and role modelling to teina respect for mātauranga Māori as taonga.

Yo with two of her graduating ākonga

“I have found my experience of the Noho an unforgettable sense of manaakitanga. Welcoming our teina and providing kai, waiata and sharing our own knowledge was a huge learning curve for me. I often see tuakana-teina relationships demonstrated by the tamariki in my early learning centre, so for me to be able to experience this for myself was an incredible feeling.” – EDUC7905 student, 2018

Student-centred learning

Yo identifies that every learner brings with them their whakapapa and the dreams and aspirations of their whānau, hapū, iwi. Through Kaupapa Māori teaching, she ensures that the learner is in the centre of the learning journey.

“Ākonga have knowledge and experiences that position them as leaders in their own learning. I create learning environments to enable that leadership potential to flourish through relational teaching and the principle of ako. Whakawhanaungatanga guides my approach to orientating ākonga, creating an inclusive environment that values their contribution. Manaakitanga is at the heart of my relationships. I support Kaupapa Māori as by Māori, for Māori. But I role-model tikanga Māori as by Māori for everyone,” said Yo.

Last year, Yo drew on the transformative goals of Kaupapa Māori to develop a range of successful academic support systems:

• Tuakana-teina (an older or more expert tuakana guides a younger or less expert teina): 75% of our students are under the age of 25. School leavers in particular have yet to develop confidence in work-place settings. The principle of tuakana-teina helps to scaffold students to develop leadership qualities and confidence as professionals in their field.
• Nau mai: Yo coordinates a 100-day orientation programme to assist new ākonga to settle in to studies and learn how to access support services.
• Manaaki tauira: a course reporting system that identifies how ākonga are tracking at an earlier point in their studies.
• Awhi rito: One on one study times. Ākonga come to Te Whare Tāpere to discuss matters related to their assessments or just use the space as a collaborative study space.
• Personal learning plans: Resourcing for students with specific learning requirements – connecting individual tauira to the appropriate support systems on campus to provide face-to-face support.

Ākonga working with harakeke in Te Whare Tāpere, a culturally relevant teaching and learning space that Yo set up for the delivery of mātauranga Māori in the ECE programme.

Yo also established Te Whare Tāpere, a culturally relevant teaching and learning space, solely for the delivery of mātauranga Māori in the ECE programme.

Katie Bruffy, Head of Community Studies, said the space replicates principles of a marae setting and allows our students to experience mātauranga Māori being taught in authentic ways.

“These unique contributions and innovations demonstrate high level leadership, commitment to the principles of Te Noho Kotahitanga, and to our students’ learning and teaching practice,” said Katie.

In 2018 Yo won a Unitec Excellence Award for Teaching Excellence in Kaupapa Māori. This honoured her innovation and development of the three Kete courses in the Bachelor of Teaching programme and her teaching of Kpa Māori. Helen Wrightson, Programme Coordinator ECE said at the time,

“Feedback from our stakeholders report our students being leaders in their use of te reo Māori me ngā tikanga Māori in their early childhood centres. This is attributed to Yo’s leadership and innovative teaching approach.”

Supporting the development of innovative teaching

Yo has supported Unitec and the wider community to develop new ways of doing things. In 2014 she worked with the late Hazel Owen, a highly regarded expert in digital learning involved in Te Kura Whānui, on a digital learning transformation project at Unitec, conceptualising a Māori digital learning strategy. She also supported the development and delivery of mātauranga Māori across a range of disciplines, including nursing, sports, ECE, health and social development, osteopathy, and medical imaging.

Yo is currently Kaiārahi across the School of Community Studies in addition to her senior lecturer role in ECE. She supports our capability to embed Te Noho Kotahitanga and champions our Māori Success Strategy. Yo acknowledges the leadership of our Pae ārahi, Matua Hare Paniora.

“He has walked alongside me for the last 20 years, supporting the advancement of mātauranga Māori, role modelling tikanga to staff and ākonga,” said Yo.

Matua Hare says that Yo’s lifetime devotion to education is uninterrupted and she is always in humble service to others.

“She is absolutely student-centred and maintains total commitment to providing guidance and support to students as well as colleagues in other departments. She is without question an excellent role model for all staff and students as she is competent and confident in the facilitation of learning opportunities that supports their understanding and implementation of ‘Te Noho Kōtahitanga’. I commend her commitment to completing her doctoral studies, in addition to always seeking to further her own knowledge and understanding of mātauranga Māori to be shared with staff, students and people from all walks of life,” said Matua Hare.

The Ako Tertiary Teaching Awards will be held later this year, where Yo and Kristie will represent Unitec. We wish them both well.