Māori Medical students gather at Wānanga for Kura Reo event

Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi hosted around 70 Māori medical students and doctors this weekend for the second annual Kura Reo event.

Organised by Te Oranga, the Māori Medical Students Association Aotearoa, the learning weekend featured a full schedule of reo lessons and a range of speakers sharing their reo journey with the attendees.

Te Oranga tumuaki (president) Helaman Luki said that the opportunity to come to Whakatāne from around the country and focus on reo in a Wānanga setting has become a highlight in the Te Oranga calendar. “It’s all about giving medical students and Māori doctors the matauranga (knowledge) and confidence they need to integrate tikanga and te reo Māori into their clinical spaces.”

 The first Kura Reo event was held at Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi in September 2022 for Māori medical students and practitioners, and the intent is that it remains an annual event.

Chief Executive of Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, Professor Wiremu Doherty, says: “As a tertiary education provider with a strong focus on both higher learning and the health care sector, it’s a privilege for us to be able to share our values of āhuatanga Māori according to tikanga Māori with these tauira (students) and tākuta (doctors). We hope to see this relationship continue for years to come.”