Kōhanga Reo, Samoan kindergartens and schools across New Zealand now have access to a beneficial online audio teaching resource put together by staff of Victoria University of Wellington's Language Learning Centre.
The centre just recently released on its website digital recordings of about 20 Māori and Samoan language learning readers. These stories had initially been published non-commercially on tape in the 80s and 90s by the Ministry of Education.
Part of the works is a collection of Samoan music composed over a period of 100 years.
Language Learning Centre Senior Administrator, Balint Koller says, the Rays of Sound project was born out of a determination to save recordings of culturally valuable stories and songs, and to make them easily accessible for everyone.
Koller says, “The result is a digital audio bookshelf which breathes new life into precious and long-underused resources.
“They will be useful not only for children but also for adults learning Māori or Sāmoan.”
These recordings can be listened to via the internet, however, they can't be copied.