Deanne Thomas
Deanne is the Te Marautanga o Aotearoa (TMoA) Team Leader and the Kaihautū Māori at CORE Education. She shares these roles with Wharehoka Wano.
Deanne has much experience and leadership in indigenous education issues. She has developed a number of projects and programmes for teachers of Māori immersion, dual immersion and te reo Māori. She was a member of Te Ohu Matua, the reference group for the Ministry of Education in the development of Te Marautanga o Aotearoa, and is presently in the National Curriculum Advisory Group.
Professional writing is also a skill of Deanne’s and she has been a part of the continued development of the learning area Hangarau, since its first draft in 1995. Through writing resources for both teachers and students, to the development of professional learning programmes and exemplars for teachers, Deanne has been at the forefront of hangarau for Māori medium schools.
Following fifteen years in the classroom, and eight years as Māori Adviser and Curriculum Facilitator for Massey University, in 1999 Deanne established Tihi Ltd - an award winning education and arts management company. In 2008 she also established Kōtaretū, another small education focused company.
As Kaihautū Māori for CORE, Deanne will help develop the capacity and professional capability of the CORE Māori medium facilitators. She will also support other Māori facilitators within CORE projects by providing a cultural base/network where people can celebrate and increase their personal understanding of te reo Māori, tikanga and mātauranga.
- Māori education: Māori medium, dual medium, Māori in English medium
- Programme design and development
- Writing for teachers and students
- Curriculum review and development
- Hangarau, ngā toi
- Creating digital stories for web, DVD’s for schools
- Networking
- Te Ohu Matua
- National Curriculum Advisory group
- Snowchange International
- Thomas, D. (2000) Ngā Tauaromahi Hangarau. Exemplars. Ministry of Education.
- Thomas, D. (2005) Hangarau Wai. Teacher handbook, Huia Publishers.
- Thomas, D. and others (2007) Hangarau i Roto i te Marautanga o Aotearoa. Ministry of Education.
- Thomas, D. (2008) Hei Tautoko i te Hangarau. Teacher handbook, Ministry of Education.
- Thomas, D. Waiti, P. (2008) He Kōpaki Hangarau. Series of 5 journals with DVD and teacher handbook for secondary students, Learning Media.
- Thomas, D. (2008) He Rāweke Ira. Genetic Engineering a resource for teachers. Huia Publishers.
- Thomas, D. (2010) Tūhuratia te Ao Hangarau. Series of 5 student books with DVDs and teacher handbook. Tihi Ltd.
- 2011 TRCC. Te Reo o Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. Project Director.
- 2010 TRCC. Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. Project Director. Presenter.
- 2010 National RTLB Māori Conference Wellington. Te Marautanga o Aotearoa.
- 2010 TRCC. Te Ao Hangarau. 4 days. Project Director. Presenter.
- 2010 Learning@School. Rotorua. (1) Engaging Whānau. (2) A Māori View of de Bono’s Hats.
- 2009 He Waka Eke Noa. Rotorua. Spotlight speaker. A Māori View of de Bono’s Hats.
- 2008 Snowchange International Conference. Taranaki. Addressing Climate Change through Hangarau programmes.
- 2002-2006 WIPCE (3)
"Ko Ngāwhakatatare te matamata ki Whangarā, ko Ngārangiwhakaūpoko te matamata ki Te Poroporo, ā, ko Puruaute ki waenga. Ko Ngāti Kahungunu te iwi, ko Ngāti Kere te hapū. Mai Te Awapūtahi rere ana ai te awa ko Taurekaitai ki takutai, ki Te Paerahi, ki te pou whakarunga o Te Kupenga a Te Huki.
My personal professional interests are in the areas of hangarau, and Māori pedagogies for learning and teaching. Learning the historical practices of my tūpuna, as well as those of other indigenous cultures, is a key personal and professional interest. Hangarau (technology) as our tūpuna knew it motivates me hugely and particularly as it applies to Papatūānuku, the whenua. My interest in climate change is both personal and professional.
As mother of two and nanny of 3, my personal space and time is filled with whānau. My mokopuna provide many, many hours of fun and laughter. Nui rawa te aroha ki te whānau."
