AIS St Helens English language students unite through marae event
AIS St Helens English Language students had the “experience of a lifetime” recently when they participated in the World Indigenous Pageant in Otorohanga.
The event involved twelve students from countries all over the world, including South Korea, Niue, Taiwan, Thailand and Japan, with the goal of celebrating difference and building confidence for young people.
The pageant included speeches, cultural performances and a fashion show of traditional costumes, including swimwear. The students stayed at the local Te Keeti Marae to prepare and practise for the event.
AIS St Helens Deputy Director of Students Services, James Ward says the warm and gracious hospitality students received at the marae was impressive. “They received a real marae experience, which not too many people who come to New Zealand could say that they had.”
For AIS St Helens student Jeranun Jitawatanarat, from Thailand, the opportunity was a once in a lifetime experience. “Although everyone came from different parts of the world, we are a family in this marae. I felt the seven days that we lived together was too short, but it was an unforgettable experience for me,” she says.
Student Park Jung Lye, of Korea, agrees. “I could see different countries' traditional costumes, experience their performance and it was inspirational to understand their culture for me.”
Most of the students, who are studying English language at AIS St Helens in Auckland, also had the chance to visit local tourist attractions, including a choir performance at Waitomo Caves, a river cruise at Kawhia and a visit to a local dairy farm.
Organiser Janice Tuhoro says the young people were fantastic and over the week, their confidence improved enormously. “When they first arrived, they were quite shy but once they got up to do their performances, the difference was amazing,” she says. “We were really impressed by them.”
The World Indigenous Pageant is a yearly event and will return to Otorohanga next year.
See photos and read what students said about the World Indigenous Pageant.
