Ō Rangaranga - Te Takinga Marae
Published: 05/05/26
The second four-day Ō Rangaranga wānanga has taken place at Te Takinga marae in Rotorua, with around 60 kaimahi in attendance.
Ō Rangaranga is part of Te Hāpai Ō which aligns to the public sector’s cultural capability framework, Whainga Amorangi.
Te Hāpai Ō is how we build Māori cultural capability at Oranga Tamariki. The focus is to grow staff and grow the organisation, as we step into our Future Direction.
Ō Rangaranga helps kaimahi to build confidence by strengthening cultural identity and providing a supportive, safe space for bilingual and total immersion of te reo Māori. Kaimahi stay at the marae for the full duration – learning, eating and socialising together.
Tauira (student) Selina Taniora says, “for those of us that are on a reo journey, the environment is safe for us to be vulnerable.”
Ō Rangaranga has helped kaimahi understand and appreciate their own cultural heritage and that of others. Seeking out a supportive learning environment, whether through peers or instructors, can also provide the encouragement needed for staff to persevere through challenging moments.
Tauira (student) Kirsty Lawrence admits the experience was challenging but also rewarding.
“As a pākeha, coming to Ō Rangaranga felt daunting. This is my first time ever staying at a marae. I’ve been made to feel really comfortable; there’s an awesome group of people here and I think more people at Oranga Tamariki, if given the opportunity, should jump at something like this,” Kirsty says.
Te Hāpai Ō Principal Advisor Louis Armstrong says Ō Rangaranga is a safe space where learners can experiment with the language without fear of judgement.
“Ō Rangaranga offers a positive sense of cultural identity and a supportive, low-stress learning environment where individuals feel empowered to take risks in the māori language.”
Attendees reflected that Ō Rangaranga was a supportive, whānau environment where they felt part of a community and engaged in te reo Māori and tikanga (customs).
“Te Reo me ōna tikanga is a massive uniting thread for us all. Connecting with other people on the haerenga has a huge impact on cultural capability and confidence for us,” says tauira Liam O’Shanassy.
Louis says the wānanga was also about breaking down cultural barriers and fostering greater empathy, respect and a more inclusive environment amongst kaimahi and the tamariki and whānau we work with.
You can hear from more kaimahi about their experience at Ō Rangaranga in the video below.
Mahi Parata: Rotoiti is te great expanse of water found by Ihenga. Ohau is the river that flows therein. We, the locals are sustained by these sacred waters and land features.
Tangimangaone Pewhairangi: Ō Rangaranga can support staff to be culturally aware. The Māori language and customary protocols have equal status.
Kirsty Lawrence: Ō Rangaranga’s contribution to building cultural capability within Oranga Tamariki is getting us to have discussions amongst staff that are hard and the things that we wouldn’t necessarily have in our day to day life. It’s getting us all to step back and think about what our role is in the workplace and how we can support our Māori and non-Māori colleagues into feeling like this is a space they can step into and they can feel comfortable.
Jazz Wynyard: Here right now is building my confidence up. That’s what I needed. This is the platform that’s helped me.
Billy Sauer: It is extremely difficult to develop and maintain the language I had previously learned in that line of work. This is an opportunity given to me, allowing me to retain the language and all it’s aspects, which I will hold within.
Olivia Scott Dahrouge: Teaching staff how to connect with people just really supporting the growth of those relationships.
Selina Taniora: For those of us that are on a reo journey, the environmentis safe for us to be vulnerable.
Tangimangaone Pewhairangi: Let Māori think Māori and not turn your back on your Māori culture. So this circumstance is exemplified within our songs and oral narratives handed down from generation to generation.
Kirsty Lawrence: As a pākeha coming to Ō Rangaranga it was really daunting this is my first time ever staying at a marae. I’ve been made to feel really comfortable. There’s a awesome group of people here and I think more people at Oranga Tamariki if given the opportunity should jump at something like this.
Mahi Parata: We can perhaps take the initiative in the office to develop ourselves, along with colleagues here to strengthen our language fluency daily, in all our conversations and establish groups in each office to help boost morale and wellbeing within a language revitalisation context.
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