In the Land of the Long White Cloud

Top photo: Waldorf School in Motueka
Left photo: the Alvarez family

«Kia ora», these two words from the Maori language, with their deep meaning, were unknown to me before I arrived in New Zealand. They are often used as an informal greeting, but can also express gratitude, agreement, connection, respect, appreciation, and wishes for a speedy recovery. I had long wanted to live here for a while. Over the past ten years, I kept finding reasons not to do so. But after reading The Resilient Child and The Dancing Principal, I could no longer put it off any longer. I finally wanted to see for myself how schools in New Zealand work and what makes them so successful. Two more years passed between taking the first concrete step and my departure—years spent saving, researching, and organizing.

Now I’m living temporarily with my family on the north coast of the South Island—the Top of the South. With its many sandy beaches, apple orchards, wineries, hop fields, and three national parks, the area is very popular even among New Zealanders. The town of Motueka has a population of 8,300 and is home to one of the country’s ten Waldorf schools. Since our arrival in January, our two sons, aged nine and eleven, have been students at the Motueka Steiner School, founded in 2002. The school’s spacious grounds are located on the outskirts of the small town, with an unobstructed view of the mountains. Currently, 75 children in grades one through seven attend the school, and 42 children attend the Waldorf kindergarten. A much larger student body would be needed to support a separate upper school. Classes are taught in three combined-grade classes and one single-grade class.

After summer break, we received a warm and welcoming reception from the entire school community. The ceremony was conducted primarily in English, and many songs, recitations, and blessings were also presented in Te Reo Māori, the language of the Māori people.

Amid rites and traditions

Thanks to the caring coordinator for International Families, settling in was easy for us. The language barriers our children had feared were minimal, as many families with German roots live here. Currently, there are three other international families here with us, each supported by a buddy family. School days begin at 9 a.m. and end at 3 p.m. for all classes; there are also afternoon activities such as sports and outdoor education. I was very surprised by how deeply the Māori traditions, customs, and language are upheld in public life. There are bilingual traffic signs, and the signage on the school grounds is also consistently bilingual. Suggestions for incorporating these elements into lessons can be found in the Te Reo Māori curriculum and the guidelines for Rudolf Steiner Schools—or Waldorf Schools—in Aotearoa, as the Māori call New Zealand. For example, after Rudolf Steiner’s morning verse, a verse is recited in Te Reo Māori. Traditional songs, known as waiata, are sung, and before meals, a karakia mot e kai—a prayer for the food—is recited. In form drawing, students draw kāwhaiwhai, traditional patterns in red, black, and white, and they rehearse ritual dances called haka. During after-school sports, students have the opportunity to learn ki-o-rahi, a popular traditional Māori team sport. The children’s reading books include simple Te Reo Māori vocabulary, and fifth-grade social studies begins with the Polynesian settlement of Aotearoa. Christian traditions are also lived and cherished, yet the Māori cultural heritage enriches Waldorf education with a valuable and broad spectrum. I experience the sense of belonging within the local cultural context as absolutely authentic. Parent involvement is also shaped by this. For example, at the parents’ evening, we rehearsed a short waiata from class. We were greeted that evening with a heartfelt Kia ora. As we said our goodbyes, we heard Mā te wā.

Hoping for a new government

Currently, approximately 25 percent of all students in public schools are members of New Zealand’s indigenous population of Polynesian descent. At Waldorf schools across the country, the average is only 15 percent. The Motueka Steiner School is attended by a handful of children with Māori parents. A major reason for this imbalance is the fact that, although New Zealand’s Waldorf schools receive government subsidies, they are required to charge tuition fees that are not income-based. The amount of these fees is set by the Ministry of Education. Since the socioeconomic situation of many Māori is still worse than that of the general population, the lower enrollment numbers come as no surprise. Efforts over the past 20 years to reduce historically rooted disadvantages among Māori in the areas of education, health, income, and housing have had a positive impact. Nevertheless, this population group continues to fall below the national average in all these areas. At the moment, the outlook is bleak, as the conservative coalition government in office since 2023 has scaled back numerous support programs. It is therefore to be feared that the progress made so far toward integration will be lost. A new parliament will be elected in November 2026. I hope that the pendulum will swing back and that the future will once again be shaped by a more open society.

Until December, we’ll continue to enjoy our time on the other side of the world, and then return home with recharged batteries, spectacular experiences, and great ideas. With that in mind: Māte wā!