SYMBOLIC POLICY AND THE EDUCATIONAL MYTH OF BICULTURALISM

Abstract

Using the concept of symbolic policy and drawing from an anthropology \nof policy approach, this paper explores the ways that bicultural education \npolicy creates and sustains a myth of partnership between Māori and Pākehā/European \nsettler-descendants. Drawing from doctoral research undertaken in mainstream \nAuckland secondary schools, the paper illustrates the ways that the educational myth \nof biculturalism is sustained through auditing systems and institutional practices, \nand discusses one particular effect of this process. For the research participants in \nthe study (a group of non-Māori students learning Māori language), bicultural policy, \nas it tends to be enacted in schools, appears to contribute to an idealized conception \nof Māori people. In this idealized conception, Māori people are believed to be \nspeakers of the Māori language and consequently the Māori language is perceived to \nbe healthy and thriving. Whether this perception is widely held is unknown, but it \nhas the potential to impact negatively on future Māori language revitalization efforts.

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