Kaitiaki Hauora: We have seen how words can harm our Taha Hinengaro. But what do we do when we see it happening? It can be scary. Often, the safest and most powerful thing we can do is not to fight, but to support. To stand up for someone, not just against someone else.
Kaitiaki Toi: Exactly! Being an 'Upstander' is an art form. It requires creativity, courage, and skill. It's about changing the atmosphere, painting over the negativity with something better. Today, we will fill your toolkit with creative strategies to protect the mana of others and strengthen our community's well-being.
Knowledge (Māramatanga)
- Define the difference between a bystander (someone who watches) and an upstander (someone who acts).
- Identify at least three different strategies for being an upstander online.
- Understand that being an upstander is about supporting the target, not confronting the aggressor.
Skills (Pūkenga)
- Analyse a scenario to determine the safest and most effective upstander strategy.
- Apply different upstander tools to a variety of online situations.
- Creatively design a positive intervention (a 'mana shield').
Values (Wairuatanga)
- Develop a sense of collective responsibility for the well-being of the online community.
- Value courage and empathy as key strengths.
- Feel empowered to make a positive difference in a difficult online situation.
Media Anchor | Watch & Discuss (10 minutes)
Video Anchor: Gender Shades: Algorithmic Bias
Use this clip to move from bystander awareness to upstander action with concrete intervention moves.
- What is one low-risk upstander action students can take immediately when harm appears online?
- When should upstander action escalate to adult or platform-level reporting?
Whakatūwhera | To Act or Not to Act (10 minutes)
Main Activity: Anonymous Poll
- Setup (5 mins): The teacher sets up a simple, anonymous poll (e.g., using a digital tool or folded paper in a box). The question is: "Have you ever seen someone being targeted by mean comments online?"
- The Follow-up (5 mins): After revealing the (likely high) number of 'yes' answers, the teacher asks for a show of hands: "Without talking about any specific event, who has ever felt unsure of what to do in that situation?" This normalises the feeling of uncertainty and sets the stage for the lesson.
Main Learning | The Upstander Toolkit (35 minutes)
Main Activity: Choosing Your Tools
- Introducing the Toolkit (10 mins): The teacher introduces the 'Upstander Toolkit' handout. They explain the difference between a bystander and an upstander, and then walk through the four key tools: The Supporter, The Distractor, The Reporter, and The Questioner.
- Scenario Workshop (20 mins): In small groups, students work through the scenarios on the handout. For each one, they must choose the best tool from the toolkit and justify their choice. "Why is distracting better than questioning here? Why is a private message the safest option?"
- Group Discussion (5 mins): The teacher brings the class back together to discuss one of the scenarios. Which tools did groups choose? Why might different tools be appropriate?
Consolidation | The Mana Shield Challenge (25 minutes)
Main Activity: Creative Intervention
- The Challenge (20 mins): Kaitiaki Toi issues a creative challenge: "Sometimes the best way to be an upstander is to flood the space with positivity. Your task is to design a 'mana shield'—a digital artifact you could post to support someone. This could be a GIF, a meme, a sticker, or just a positive comment." Students can sketch their ideas on paper.
- Gallery Walk (5 mins): Students do a quick gallery walk to see each other's creative and supportive ideas.
Whakakapi | The Power of the Collective (5 minutes)
Main Activity: Final Thought
- Kaitiaki Hauora concludes: "Remember the whakataukī. One person standing up can feel small, but a community of upstanders creates a powerful force for well-being. You don't have to be a hero. You just have to be a friend. By choosing to be an upstander, you are strengthening the Taha Hinengaro of our entire digital whānau."
📋 Teacher Planning Snapshot
Ngā Whāinga Ako — Learning Intentions
Students will engage with this resource to explore digital kaitiakitanga — applying tikanga Māori principles of guardianship, manaakitanga, and whanaungatanga to their digital lives, spaces, and technologies.
Ngā Paearu Angitū — Success Criteria
- ✅ Students can explain how kaitiakitanga applies to digital environments and online communities.
- ✅ Students can connect tikanga Māori values to ethical decision-making in digital contexts.
Differentiation & Inclusion
Scaffold support: Provide sentence starters and visual frameworks to scaffold access at the entry level. Offer extension tasks that deepen ethical analysis — for example, comparing digital tikanga principles to international AI ethics frameworks.
ELL / ESOL: Pre-teach key kupu (kaitiakitanga, manaakitanga, whanaungatanga, tikanga) with bilingual glossaries. Allow students to express ideas in their home language first before translating to English.
Inclusion: Chunk tasks and provide clear visual instructions. Neurodiverse learners benefit from structured choice in how they demonstrate understanding (e.g., verbal, written, or visual). Affirm diverse digital experiences as valid starting points.
Mātauranga Māori lens: Digital kaitiakitanga frames technology through Te Ao Māori — our digital spaces are extensions of our marae, our data is part of our whakapapa, and our online behaviour reflects our mana. Tikanga Māori provides a powerful ethical compass for navigating the digital world.
Prior knowledge: No specialist digital technology knowledge required for entry-level engagement. Best used after introductory lessons on tikanga Māori or as part of a digital technologies unit.
Curriculum alignment
- Te Mātaiaho (2025) · Technology · Phase 4 (Years 9–10) · Design, Make, and Innovate (Knowledge): “Legal and ethical frameworks (privacy, licensing, attribution, consent) guide responsible and safe digital outcomes in local contexts.”
- NZC (2007) · Technology · Level 5: “Understand how people’s perceptions and acceptance of technology impact on technological developments and how and why technological knowledge becomes codified.”