Tere Ngawai Gilbert is a New Zealand early childhood educator and advocate for the te reo Māori language. In 2024 Gilbert was appointed an Officer of the

New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant (document), royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Monarchy of New Zealand, Queen of New Zealand, "for th ...

for services to early childhood and Māori language education.

Early life and education

Gilbert is Māori, and affiliates to

Te Āti Awa Te Āti Awa or Te Ātiawa is a Māori iwi with traditional bases in the Taranaki and Wellington regions of New Zealand. Approximately 17,000 people registered their affiliation to Te Āti Awa in 2001, with about 10,000 in Taranaki, 2,000 in We ...

Ngāti Hauiti Ngāti Hauiti is a Māori people, Māori iwi of New Zealand. It is centred in the Rangitikei, New Zealand, Rangitikei area of the lower North Island. Awa FM is the radio station of Ngāti Hauiti, Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi and Ngāti Hāua. It ...

Ngāti Raukawa Ngāti Raukawa is a Māori iwi (tribe) with traditional bases in the Waikato, Taupō and Manawatū/ Horowhenua regions of New Zealand. In 2006, 29,418 Māori registered their affiliation with Ngāti Raukawa. History Early history Ngāti ...

and

Ngāti Kahungunu Ngāti Kahungunu is a Māori iwi (tribe) located along the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The iwi is traditionally centred in the Hawke's Bay and Wairārapa regions. The Kahungunu iwi also comprises 86 hapū (sub-tribes ...

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

. Gilbert attended the University of Waikato where she earned a Bachelor and a higher diploma of teaching, a postgraduate diploma in education, and a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

Career

Gilbert has been a part of the Māori language revival movement, Kōhanga Reo, for more than thirty years. Gilbert was the kaiako (teacher) and tumuaki (manager) of the University of Waikato on-campus early childhood education centre from 1994 until 2015. In 2015 she established the first puna reo for Te Kōhao Health in Hamilton, providing kaupapa Māori immersion education for children up to the age of six, that is, education both in the te reo Māori language and within a Māori cultural framework. That puna reo, Te Kōhao Health, was so popular that a second, Te Puna Reo o Te Kōhao, was established two years later. Gilbert founded the collective for puna reo in New Zealand, Ngā Puna Reo o Aotearoa, and chaired it since its inception in 2021. The organisation represents 54 puna reo around the country, and advocates for better resourcing for puna reo and pay parity with kindergarten teachers. Gilbert represents Ngā Puna Reo o Aotearoa on the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

's Early Childhood Advisory Committee.

Honours and awards

In the 2024 Queen's Birthday Honours Gilbert was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to early childhood and Māori language education.

References

External links

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Tere Gilbert receives ONZM for services to Māori education
', Tere Gilbert interviewed on Te Karere TVNZ, 3 June 2024, in te reo Māōri {{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Tere University of Waikato alumni Te Āti Awa people Ngāti Hauiti people Ngāti Raukawa people Ngāti Kahungunu people Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit Year of birth missing (living people) Living people