Wānanga as a research methodology

Abstract

Wānanga is a traditional method of Māori knowledge transmission, and has been described as a place, a school, an act, and a form of governance, practice, and pedagogy. Much of the writing on wānanga focuses on the ancient “lore” of Whare Wānanga (Houses of Learning), but more recent work has explored how that pedagogical tradition is relevant to Māori education today, particularly at tertiary level. There is, however, a growing body of writing on wānanga as a research methodology relevant to Māori and iwi (tribal) communities. This paper discusses the increasingly popular use of wānanga in Māori research practice, examining the definitions, roots, and evolution of wānanga as a concept, place, and indigenous method of knowledge construction and transmission. Drawing on wānanga experiences in two different tribal contexts, this paper explores how wānanga works as a practice embedded in, and shaped by, local knowledge, language, place, people and tikanga.

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