Te Tohu Tiaki Taonga

• Classroom and/or online sessions

• Up to 4 x one-day wānanga

• Up to 8 x noho

Dates of your noho delivery schedule will be confirmed by your kaiako.

Learn more about noho learning. 

Plan for around 22 hours per week.

Tasks and activities you’ll complete outside of class include: 

• Working through programme resources (such as workbooks, audio, video, or online activities) 

• Completing aromatawai (assessments) and required reading 

• Practising your new skills

• Doing research, reflection, or group study 

Keen to know how study fits around work and home?
Our Enrolment Support and Study Experience section can help.

You’ll need to have access to a: 

• Computer or laptop 

• Reliable internet connection

You’ll explore raranga as an art form passed down from tūpuna that connects people and place through practice. You’ll cultivate knowledge of the characteristics of taonga and determine the tikanga practices applied to taonga tuku iho.

You’ll examine whakairo as a visual art form that carries whakapapa, stories and te ao Māori belief systems. You’ll look at how whakapapa connects to taonga tuku iho, and why provenance and narratives matter to whānau, marae, hapū and iwi.

You’ll work with whatu, weaving horizontal (aho) and vertical (whenu) threads to connect ideas, iwi and entities for the wellbeing of whānau, marae, hapū and iwi. You’ll demonstrate the practical expression of mana motuhake, and identify processes, legislation and stakeholders that enable whānau, marae, hapū and/or iwi to exercise mana motuhake in managing taonga finds.

You’ll practice whiri—plaiting cord or rope used for handles, girdles or kupenga—to strengthen understanding of managing taonga through critical, peripheral considerations. You’ll examine legislation, policy and guidelines for taonga, including positions in indigenous sovereignty and data sovereignty, alongside intellectual property, ownership and copyright.

You’ll consider artistic expressions that portray the mana of marae, hapū, iwi, ancestors and their people, connecting to iwi- and Māori-specific practices for managing taonga. You’ll study practices for protecting, archiving and/or preserving taonga using traditional mātauranga Māori science, and consider how applying kaitiakitanga of taonga tuku iho supports whānau, hapū and iwi.

You’ll use tāniko as an ornamental border that weaves together narratives, linking contemporary processes for managing taonga. You’ll examine practices for protecting, archiving and/or preserving taonga using contemporary science, and consider how applying manaakitanga of taonga tuku iho supports whānau, hapū and iwi.

You’ll engage with whāriki as a taonga valued for artistry and essence, intrinsic to marae across Aotearoa. You’ll analyse the marae complex and surrounding environment to select and apply mātauranga Māori and science knowledge for protection, archiving and/or preservation.

You’ll explore binding practices that hold the materials of a whare or waka together and apply this idea to weaving strategies for leadership and management of taonga tuku iho. You’ll identify requirements to lead and manage protection, preservation and/or archiving, including relationships, communication, and physical and spiritual considerations.