20th Century Māori Rights Companion
20th Century Māori Rights Companion · Years 7–10
Ngā Whāinga Akoranga · Learning Intentions
- Investigate a social, historical, economic, or political question using evidence
- Analyse multiple perspectives on complex social issues
- Understand how historical and contemporary forces shape society and identity
- Evaluate the relevance of Māori concepts and frameworks to understanding social issues
Paearu Angitu · Success Criteria
- I use at least two different sources or perspectives in my investigation
- I can explain how historical events or processes connect to present-day conditions
- I can present a clear position supported by specific evidence
- I connect at least one Māori concept or value to the social issue I am investigating
Video Companion · 20th Century Māori Rights Companion
Use this handout before, during, and after viewing.
Before You Watch
Consider: both the Māori Battalion (WWII) and the Polynesian Panthers (1970s) were groups who fought for the rights of their communities — in very different contexts. What do these movements have in common?
While Watching
Track: (1) What specific rights or injustices were each group responding to? (2) What strategies did they use? (3) What sacrifices were made? (4) What was achieved?
After Watching
Compare: Complete a T-chart comparing the Māori Battalion and the Polynesian Panthers — their context, strategies, and impact.
Critical Thinking Questions
1. Service and sacrifice
The Māori Battalion served overseas while facing discrimination at home. What does this tell us about the complex relationship between Māori and the New Zealand state in the 20th century?
2. Polynesian Panthers
What specific issues did the Polynesian Panthers organise around in the 1970s? How did their approach differ from earlier forms of Māori and Pasifika advocacy?
3. Continuity of struggle
Identify one issue that both the Māori Battalion era and the Polynesian Panthers era were responding to. How has this issue changed (or not) since then?
Hononga Marautanga · Curriculum Alignment
Level 3–4: Investigate how historical, political, and economic processes shape societies; understand how people participate in communities to create change; analyse different perspectives on social, cultural, and environmental issues.
Level 3–4: Gather, evaluate, and synthesise information from multiple sources; construct well-reasoned arguments using evidence; communicate social science understanding clearly in written, oral, and visual forms.
Tuhia ōu whakaaro · Write Your Thoughts
Reflect on your learning. What was the most important idea? What question do you still have?
Aronga Mātauranga Māori
Social Sciences taught well in Aotearoa should be uncomfortable — because the history of this land is one in which Māori and other communities have faced injustice, and in which those injustices are not yet fully addressed. Mātauranga Māori offers frameworks for thinking about social change that go beyond Western political theory: the concept of tino rangatiratanga (self-determination), of kotahitanga (unity in purpose), of utu (reciprocity across time) — these are not abstract ideas but working tools for analysing how power has been distributed and how it might be redistributed more justly.
Ngā Rauemi Tautoko · Resources already provided
- Source analysis framework — for evaluating primary and secondary sources
- Perspective mapping template — for identifying multiple viewpoints on an issue
- NZ timeline reference — key events in Aotearoa social and political history
Curriculum alignment
- Identity, Culture, and Organisation: Understand how cultural identity shapes participation in society — whakapapa, tikanga, and mana as foundations of Māori identity in Aotearoa New Zealand.