It will leave Māori language money and effort where I think it belongs, to those that actually want it.
OPINION: I attended Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ruamata, a school that embraced te reo Māori and celebrated being Māori. When I moved to an English medium school, Māori was an option, and I continued with Māori as a subject until I left in year 13. Reo Māori featured in my University study, alongside Kura Reo and Te Panekiretanga o te Reo (The Institute of Excellence in Te Reo Māori) which consumed significant chunks of holidays and weekends. I currently work in the te reo Māori space. I have a passion and a love for my language, and it's for that reason I have formed the opinion that I don't want te reo Māori as a compulsory subject in schools.
I understand the arguments for making Māori a compulsory subject. I realise that some reo advocates that have spent their lives fighting for the language are for it, and I am by no means, discrediting them, or anyone that has that opinion. The Green Party made making Māori compulsory in schools one of their election year policies in 2017, to the applause of many in our Māori communities. It is said compulsion will raise the collective understanding of non-Māori with things Māori, leading them to having a deeper understanding of our culture. It is also said that it will bring the country together, it will lift the status of the Māori language in this country. These are all positives. But there is a flipside.
Link to article: https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/national/opinion-why-i-don-t-want-compulsory-te-reo-m%C4%81ori-in-schools/ar-BB165bqo?ocid=msedgdhp
