Acknowledgements
‘Oku ‘i ai ‘a e hounga`ia pea mo e koloa`ia `i he faingamalie ne mau ma`u ke fakahoko ai ha poupou ki he langa fonua pea mo e langa fale ako ma`ae fanau, ka ko e tofi`a pea mo e kaha`u `o Tonga.
Mifa hapi tumas fo duim waka fo sapotim skul blo oketa pikinini wea oketa na bae fiusa blo Solomon Aelan.
Awi bzkr mz lr Nendr, mz naodqngr, naokangr x naeglrngr nzklakrdr dwake nztopquan.
The opportunity we have been given through these programs to serve and support education in Tonga and in Solomon Islands, has been an honor. Through these programs, we have learned about learning, about context, about relationships, about ourselves and most importantly about the strengths of Pacific children. This learning was made possible due to the generosity of many people who have shared their knowledge and experiences with our team.
We wish to thank the school leaders and the teachers of the schools for trusting us to be part of their community and to enter their classrooms. The learnings that we have gained from these schools are evident in this book. We also thank the Education Officers and Provincial Education Authorities who have guided us and shared with us their rich experiences and knowledge. We wish to thank the Ministry of Education and Training in Tonga and the Ministry of Education, Human Resources and Development in the Solomon Islands for the support and the willingness to participate in the learning.
We particularly wish to acknowledge and thank the hard working and wise members of the in-country Temotu Literacy Support and Literacy and Leadership Initiative teams for their commitment, their courage and sheer determination to see shifts in children’s learning. Specifically: Hellen Marau, Roselyn Maneipuri, and Godfrey Toli from the Temotu Literacy Support team, and ‘Ana Maui Taufe’ulungaki, Siaosi Lau’i Kale, Miki Aleamotu’a, and Emalile Latu from the Literacy and Leadership Initiative team. Our teams were truly the heroes of the interventions. We thank those from the University of Auckland who provided support to our teams throughout implementation: Linda Bendikson, Emilie Sila’ila’i, Gary Pearce, and Selena Meiklejohn-Whiu.
We also acknowledge and appreciate the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) for instigating these programs and for their willingness to support an approach to program design and implementation that differed from the norm.
The learnings provided in this book have been the product of partnerships between research-practitioners drawn from: the Institute of Education and Pacific Languages Unit at the University of the South Pacific; the Solomon Islands National University; and the Woolf Fisher Research Centre, the Research Unit for Pacific Islands Education and the Centre for Education Leadership at the University of Auckland. We also acknowledge Lift Education, as our key partner in the development of the beautiful and unique books produced under the programs, and Auckland UniServices specifically Jeff Nikoia, for the program management support and guidance. We are particularly grateful for the tireless support and conscientiousness of Elaine Umali during both the program implementation and the production of this book, and to the energy of the Institute of Education project team: Lupe Afuafu Kautoke, Maria Mafi and Lausi’i Siale. We appreciate all those involved, and the support provided by our respective organizations to engage in, and learn from, this work.