Te Aitanga a Tiki: Māori resources on sexual and reproductive health launched
Wed 04 Jul 2018
Te Whāriki Takapou has launched an online collection of te reo Māori and English language resources related to sexual and reproductive health. The ...
Te Whāriki Takapou has launched an online collection of te reo Māori and English language resources related to sexual and reproductive health.
The collection, Te Aitanga a Tiki: Māori dimensions of sexuality, contains resources such as pūrākau (stories), waiata and mōteatea (traditional chants). The collection is designed to provide teachers and health promoters in schools, kura and communities with resources on Māori approaches to sexuality education for rangatahi Māori (Māori young people).
The resources address topics such healthy relationships, ārai hapūtanga (contraception), and kia takaroa i te pā kūwhā me te piringa ai (delaying sexual activity and sexual relationships until you feel ready). With each resource there is also a key topic, health promotion messages, suggested uses, background information, a glossary and references.
The resources are sourced from mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) related to sexual and reproductive health. Te Whāriki Takapou identifies Māori knowledge as having three characteristics:
- "Positively expresses Māori understandings of sexual and reproductive health;
- Reflects Māori and iwi-specific worldviews;
- Affirms Māori knowledge as growing from historical and contemporary Māori interactions with the world."
The resources are designed to be easily incorporated into sexual health promotion and school-based sexuality education programmes. They are aligned to key health and education policies, reflecting that a "strong Māori identity through access to Māori knowledge is important for achieving good Māori sexual and reproductive health."
Other resources
Te Whāriki Takapou has also developed the Mana Tangata Whenua: National Guidelines for Sexual and Reproductive Health Promotion with Māori (2016) and Te Ira Tangata: sexuality education programme for Kura Kaupapa Māori (2017). See our previous story about Te Whāriki Takapou's sexuality education programme for Kura Kaupapa Māori.
Related research
Indigenous (Māori) sexual health psychologies in New Zealand: Delivering culturally congruent sexuality education by Jade Le Grice and Virginia Braun (2017) looks at decolonising notions of Māori sexuality, relationships and reproduction. This research utilises an Indigenous feminist (Mana Wāhine) methodology and interviews with Māori participants to "explore how Māori knowledges (mātauranga Māori), responsive to the surrounding colonising context, were interwoven through four themes: relationships, reproductive responsibility, open conversations about sexuality and contraceptive education."
'Hooked up': Te hononga whaiāipo: Reducing and preventing violence in taitamariki Māori intimate partner relationships (Moana Eruera, 2015) reports on an indigenous whānau violence prevention study that explored the supports that taitamariki Māori (Māori young people) identified would assist them to develop healthy intimate partner relationships.
Growing up Takatāpui: Whānau Journeys, by Elizabeth Kerekere, Tīwhanawhana Trust and RainbowYOUTH, is an English language resource that provides support and information for takatāpui rangatahi (sexuality and gender diverse youth) and their whānau.
Related news
Aotearoa New Zealand's first indigenous leadership summit, Te Ara Moana, will be held in Auckland in July. Te Ara Moana is a youth lead initiative, designed, facilitated and evaluated by rangatahi Māori. Workshops will be held during the event to work on impactful solutions in five key areas: youth suicide, diversity, environment, freedom from addiction and cyber bullying.
Related media
BANG! Season 2 Episode 6: Takatāpui, Radio NZ, 02.07.2018
Five minutes with: a Kaupapa Māori researcher, Newsroom, 24.05.2018 (interview with Jade Le Grice)
Image: Pixabay