The Kōhanga Reo movement has celebrated its 40th anniversary in Hamilton.
The Government has had a long-held goal of getting 30 percent of Māori children to cross over from mainstream education to Māori immersion schools where they perform better - but there's been a hold-up.
Kōhanga Reo, the breeding ground for Te Reo Māori and tikanga, is a pioneering grass-roots movement recognised worldwide for its language revitalisation.
One kuia is a part of the very first marae-based Kōhanga Reo that opened its door back in 1982.
"It's a bit sad because when you go through the exhibitions you see the people, our pakeke, those kuia that was committed to the revival of our reo," said Waiwhetū Marae Kohanga Reo manager Peggy Luke-Ngaheke
And the success of Māori immersion schools like Kōhanga Reo has led to Māori children achieving higher levels of educational success than they have in mainstream schools.
This is why the Kōhanga Reo National Trust is supporting a claim before the Waitangi Tribunal. One of four Māori immersion school systems are calling for an autonomous Māori Education Authority in a bid to address the inequities for Māori in education.
Kōhanga Reo National Trust co-chair Raniera Procter said with more Māori in parliament there's an opportunity "to get in behind this kaupapa and the future of our country to be brighter and brighter".
And while the Government has ruled out a Māori Education Authority, it is keen to see 30 percent of Māori children transfer to Māori immersion schools by 2040.
"The reality is there is a heck of a lot of work that's going on to bring those taitamariki across from mainstream education," said Associate Education Minister Kelvin Davis.
Since the Government came into power it has spent more than $700 million on Māori education and acknowledges it is still playing catch-up.
To keep protecting this taonga for four more decades and beyond.
