An authority on Māori and indigenous knowledge especially in the fields of education and psychology has been elected to the academy of the Royal Society Te Apā-Rangi.
Associate Professor Sonja Macfarlane nō Ngāti Waewae, Ngāi Tahu joins 22 new fellows to be honoured for their distinction in research and advancement of mātauranga Māori humanities technology and science.
Macfarlane, from Massey University's Te Kura o Te Mātauranga Institute of Education, joined Te Ao Tapatahi to talk about better Māori research outcomes.
Macfarlane said she felt “overwhelmingly humble and grateful” for being elected.
She said she was given the opportunity to work with great people and wanted to acknowledge that she had help from the people who helped open doors along her journey in academia, allowing her to get to where she is now.
Macfarlane said that she came from a background in teaching and helping people with disabilities and that she’s “always had this passion for wanting to make a difference in their lives.
"And, as a mother, you see the uniqueness of your child and I just want the same for all children.”
“We all know the stats say that Maori experience inequity and education and I felt there was an obligation to my tipuna and the generations going to stand in that space to make that contribution a positive difference for future leaders.”
Macfarlane said reducing inequities was going to be the best solution for Māori in the long run, giv them a better chance to succeed in education to build their self-confidence and wellbeing “so that when they leave school they have greater opportunities to succeed and flourish”
Macfarlane said it was up to the education providers to reach out to families that have had bad experiences with education systems so that they can see these establishments can be a positive place.
“Schools can be a place where children see themselves in the curriculum, It’s about the cultural narrative of our community and hearing Te Reo Maori being spoken and seeing teachers that aren’t Māori speaking Māori.”
“A lot of schools are doing amazing things for our tamariki. I think that opening their doorways for whanau so they can see that there is hope for their kids and not just waiting for whanau to come.”