This year's Vaiaso o le Gangana Samoa (Samoan Language Week) has a theme based around the concept of service: Tautua i le alofa, manuia le lumana’i - Serve in love for a blessed future. The Ministry for Pacific Peoples says this year’s theme was chosen by the community and acknowledges that the maintenance of gagana (language) is achieved with consistent tautua (service) and particularly through the values of alofa (love), fa’aaloalo (respect) and vā fealoa’i (respectful relationships). Samoan is the third most spoken language in Niu Sila (New Zealand) following te reo Māori and English.
Understanding more about the culture/language of our ākonga helps us meet our third strategic goal:
Recognising, supporting, and celebrating the diversity of our ākonga.