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November 01, 2017
Inside view valued in indigenous research
Waatea Team
Posted On November 1, 2017
A commitment to doing things in a Maori way has won Whakatane-based Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi the support of Native American tribes looking to upskill the next generation of leaders and managers.
The wananga has just hosted eight students who are doing its Professional Doctorate in Indigenous Development which is run in partnership with the University of Washington, Tacoma.
Professor Nathan Matthews, the head of the School of Indigenous Graduate Studies, says the wananga did not market its course overseas but it was identified by the tribes of the Pacific northwest as meeting their aspirations.
He says the students all came through the mainstream United States education system for their undergraduate and masters degrees but wanted a place that allowed them to do research in a manner more closely aligned with their cultural values.
"Western research methods tell us we need to be objective and removed from the research we are doing whereas indigenous research wholly accepts insider research, doing research with your own communities, using your own lens which is subjective and we think there is nothing wrong with that," Professor Matthews says.
The site visit was a chance for the students to get a feel for the institution they are studying remotely with and make connections with the academics they may be working with.
PROFESSOR NATHAN MATTHEWS FULL INTERVIEW
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