Recognising the importance of pronouncing students’ names correctly has seen Sacred Heart College teachers head back to the classroom.

The initiative, coordinated by Deputy Principal (Teaching & Learning) Rachel Read, with the help of Year 13 Cultural Leaders Aroha Tawhiri (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Porou and Ngāti Whātua) and Jacqueline Matauli has been very successful.

“As a school, we are always aware of how important it is to pronounce the names of our ākonga correctly and have been working on our culturally responsive and relational pedagogies (CRRP) for a number of years now.

“At the end of last year, the staff were surveyed on their priorities for PLD (professional learning and development) for 2022 and furthering their knowledge and understanding of Te Reo Māori was top of the list.

“We have some teachers who are learning Te Reo in their own time through EIT, but a large majority of staff were keen for us to run PLD sessions here, and one of the first steps was to focus on the pronunciation of student names.”

Ms Read says this coincided with their planning with student leaders at the start of this year where Aroha and Jacqueline identified correct pronunciation of all student names as a priority for staff in 2022.

Aroha and Jacqueline recorded themselves saying the names of all Māori and Pasifika students, as part of the first teacher workshops in term two.

“The response to this from staff was incredibly positive. All teachers want to pronounce their students' names correctly, and this resource has been helpful,” Ms Read says.

They are now planning to have every student do an audio recording of their name, which will then get uploaded to the school’s student management system Kamar, “so any staff member at any time can hear the recording to make sure they are pronouncing each student's name correctly”.

“The response from some of our students who are now hearing their name being said correctly has been truly heartwarming and we wish we had done this earlier!” Ms Read says.

Jacqueline says it means a lot to students to know that their teachers acknowledge the importance of pronouncing their names and are actively working to improve.

“I feel like it gains students’ confidence more because they don’t have to tell the teachers, which I think they sometimes struggle with.”

Principal Maria Neville-Foster says correctly pronouncing someone’s name can often be the difference between them feeling seen and unseen.

“When you actually pronounce a student's name correctly, it can change their perception of how the school sees them, and how they see themselves. That's what we want to do for our young people," Mrs Neville-Foster says.

She says the recording has been powerful as teachers can replay it as many times as they need. 

In one example, Mrs Neville-Foster says upon hearing the recording, teachers found they had not been correctly pronouncing a new student’s name.  

“The following day I went up to her and I called her by her correct name and it completely changed her body language towards me. Her face lit up, she smiled, and for the first time, I realised she now knew I could see her.”

“As a school, we want to be open to understanding the needs of our learners. This is an example of how we respond to the students' needs, to ensure that they are feeling comfortable and confident in their environment, and therefore can learn to the best of their abilities.”