It was a Friday afternoon and in celebration of the end of the week, we went out for a catch-up. He was nearing the end of his placement at a school in South Auckland and was gleefully telling me all these beautiful stories recounting the tamariki's earnest hearts to learn, the art they'd created, their fascination grow in subjects like maths and science, and how they were learning to powhiri manuhiri onto the schools marae.
However, there is a darker reality that is sparking this passion. Many families around the country undergo a lot of struggles in their day to day lives for these kids to attend school. Whether that be putting bread on the table, paying the bills, dealing with domestic violence, transportation issues - all of these things come into direct effect to the children who are in those homes. Now before I go on, I don't want to point out individuals or anything like that, but rather highlight the systemic issues that are often swept under the rug and overlooked.
One anomaly that he found was one student who every day had to get a uniform pass for wearing the incorrect uniform. He inquired with some of the teachers about what was going on and it turned out that this student, along with his tuakana and mother had been kicked out of home by his father. This is the short of the story but it really tugged at my heartstrings. To hear that their 'home' was outside a McDs left me feeling extremely raw and with a large array of questions.
This sort of situation isn't something new nor is it unheard of, but I wonder if we have become desensitised to it. Or have we become desensitised to the idea of it so that coming up with a solution is what we're numb to?
Firstly, where is the root of this stemming from? Clearly, the main issue presented is that this family is living on the streets while still going to school and likely without adequate food and shelter.
Secondly, the deeper issue is with the father and why he's acting in this way. What has been deeply instilled and rooted in him that this has been his reaction and action towards his family?
For a tree to grow well, it's root system is one of the important parts of being healthy and fruitful. The same principle applies to the human psyche. If the heart is hurt or bruised, then the actions that follow through will unlikely be that of love and consideration. If this is then planted in another, like the sons, then this system statistically repeats itself.
However, we all know this analogy but when the rubber hits the road, or the kids hit the street - that's the kōrero we need to involved in. What prevention can be used for future cases instead of this cycle running around and becoming engrained and normalised as these precious tamariki come to school? What's gone on in the past in the individual's life, or the history of the family, iwi, region, etc? How can we work as a collective to restore what's been so broken for so long?
As the saying goes, learning starts in the home but there is learning in the schools in that process too. Knowing that singlehandedly one cannot break this oppressive chain that is wrapped around so many, but if a mindset grows within passionate people who band together, that kotahitanga and whanaungatanga can surpass the walls and hurdles that pain and misunderstandings have put in place.
If you are a teacher, I'd love to know how you feel on this topic and if this is a familiar story.
Let's talk about changing leadership on twitter and start with whakawhanaungatanga today.
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*Note: The above story is being seen to by the best people given the situation.
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