September 19, 2013
Competent rangatahi is the aim of Kura Hourua
The director of a proposed charter school in Whangarei says it’s aimed at Maori students who aren’t making it in the city’s mainstream secondary schools.
He Puna Marama Charitable Trust, which already runs early childhood centres and a military-style hostel programme for secondary school students, has been picked to run one of the first five partnership model schools.
Te Kura Hourua o Whangarei Terenga Paraoa will be a co-educational secondary school for years 7 to 13 located in Whangarei.
Raewyn Tipene says too many Maori kids are not engaging with mainstream schooling and end up dropping out early.
"The schools, they’re fine. We’re going to continue working with the high schools. We’ll be sending many of our seniors up to do different programmes in all of those high schools. But what we want to offer is a much more rounded programme which is about making sure they know who they are, where they come from and building their confidence and competence as a Maori," she says.
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