A successful blend of Mātauranga Māori and sports

Dr Phil Borell is a Senior Lecturer, School of Māori and Indigenous Studies at the University of Canterbury

Ngāti Ranginui

Philip Borell makes an outstanding contribution to the emerging dialogue and teaching pedagogy that blends Mātauranga Māori with sporting pursuits within Aotearoa New Zealand. He provides an exemplar of how Kaupapa-Māori led approaches to teaching, learning and mentoring can be applied for student success in the fields of sports and health. 

He values building strong rapport with ākonga with the principles of manaakitanga and kaitiakitanga (guardianship) influencing his teaching practice. As one student testifies, “He provided insights to Māori culture and history that I had never learnt about either in school or my 3rd year in law degree.” Another student comments, “There is a lot of respect for him as a lecturer as we feel respected and valued as students.”

He provides critical and new learning opportunities thar contribute to expand knowledge and teaching of mātauranga and tikanga Māori across the university campus. Recognising the need for a study pathway for Māori students pursuing sporting careers in Māori communities, Phil combined his subjects of sport, whakaaro Māori, and te ao Māori to develop ‘Te Ao Hākinakina’, a new major focused on Māori sport in the Faculty of Health.

A colleague comments: “Phil uses his own work with Polynesian experiences within professional Rugby League as a platform to interact with students and interweaves this with his cultural knowledge... .a prime example of a successful, inspirational, and modern educator.”

Kei te paiheretia te mātauranga Māori me te ao hākinakina

Tākuta Philip Borell – Pūkenga Matua, Aotahi: School of Maori and Indigenous Studies, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha

Ngāti Ranginui

Kei te whāngaia ngā whiriwhiringa kōrero me ngā ariā whakaako e pā ana ki te mātauranga Māori me te ao hākinakina ki Aotearoa e ngā pūkenga whakahirahira o Philip Borell. Kua whakatauira mai ia i te whakatinanatanga o ngā kaupapa Māori i roto i ngā mahi whakaako kia eke te ākonga ki ngā taumata teitei i te ao hākinakina me te hauora.

He mea nui ki a ia kia mārō ngā taura here tangata i waenganui i a ia me ngā ākonga, ā, kei te whakaawea āna mahi whakaako e ngā ariā o te manaakitanga me te kaitiakitanga. Hei tā tētahi o ngā ākonga, “Hei matapihi āna kōrero ki te ao me te hītori o te Māori, kāore au i ako i aua kōrero i te kura, i taku tau tuatoru e whai ana i te tohu ture hoki.” Hei tā tētahi anō, “He nui tōna mana hei kaiwhakaako i te mea kei te whakamanahia, kei te manaakihia hoki mātou ngā ākonga e ia.”

Kua para ia i ngā ara whakaako hou ki te whakawhānui i te mōhiotanga me ngā whakaakoranga e pā ana ki te mātauranga me ngā tikanga Māori huri noa i te whare wānanga. Nō tōna kitenga atu i te hiahia o ngā ākonga Māori e whai ana i ngā mahi hākinakina ki roto i ngā hapori Māori ki te takahi i te ara mātauranga, ka paiheretia e Phil ngā kaupapa hākinakina, ngā whakaaro Māori me te ao Māori, kia puta mai te kaupapa o ‘Te Ao Hākinakina’, arā, he kaupapa ako hou tērā ki te kura hauora e hāngai ana ki te hākinakina Māori. 

Hei tā tētahi hoamahi: “Kei te tīkina atu e Phil ngā wheako o ngā iwi o Te Moananui-a-Kiwa i te ao Whutupōro Rīki hei tūāpapa mō āna whakawhitinga ki ngā ākonga, kei te paiheretia aua kōrero ki ōna mātauranga e pā ana ki te ao Māori .... ko ia tonu te tino tauira o te kaiwhakaako pai, he pou whakaaweawe nō te ao hou.”