Last Day of School!

It's hard to believe especially since it's only the end of January but our classes are officially over as of Wednesday! It's super nice because now that means we'll be getting into the schools really soon and I can't wait! We have a few papers and a portfolio that we still have to put together before our trip to the south island next week. I'm glad that we are done with our long days at the chapel. Not that I didn't like the classes or the professors but it is a long time to be in the same room... even if you have breaks it can still get long.

Thursday was really neat because we had a woman from the University of Auckland who is in charge of the Maori immersion program throughout the country. She talked to us about how the program came about. The Maori language/culture was treated very similarly to the way the US government treated our native populations. When the English arrived the people were eventually forced into English only schools and made to be transformed/converted into "civilized" people. It was only in recent years (as recent as the 70s/80s) that parents/grandparents began to realize how important cultural preservation is and they began to fight for their children to learn the Maori language. The parents themselves organized schools: mothers would give the lessons and fathers would donate a day of pay to provide the materials and such for their children to learn. This began at the kindergarden (which is their preschool) level. As the children got older a program would be created for them at the primary level (elementary school) and then at the college level (high school). Now there are programs even through the university level. The program is complete immersion into the Maori language. Obviously there are pros and cons to this approach. Pro being the preservation of native language and culture. A con being that these students struggle with learning how to read in English. They are still working out the kinks but it is amazing what what they have made happen!

This specific professor was one of the leading parents behind the cause. Her approach about bilingualism is different from most. Some believe that it is like two separate wheels of a bike spinning together, leading in the same direction but remaining separate as two distinct parts. Instead she believe that it is like a tree with different branches. These branches should grow together as the tree grows and eventually the tree will be able to reach its true potential.  It was really awesome!

We spent the rest of the day doing homework and getting ready for our weekend trip to the temple and Rotorua. Yeah, I know it sounds boring but even in paradise you still have to get work done. Both Wednesday and Thursday night Jean and Jayceen invited us to dinner (some of Julie's friends). We had the best time! Jean is an excellent cook! After dinner we played the wii version of the DDR game. Jayceen really loves puzzles too so naturally we had to put together a Hannah Montana puzzle (her favorite one). It was an awesome week and the weekend trip is just going to make it better!