Building school around people, place and possibility

In this conversation, Derek Wenmoth talks with Bianca Elkington and Kathleen about the establishment of Kura Toa, a new school in Porirua being developed within the wider education ecosystem of Ngāti Toa. But this is much more than a conversation about starting a new school. Bianca and Kathleen share the journey that has led to Kura Toa, including more than a decade of work alongside whānau and young people, and the thinking behind creating a school where learners, their identities, aspirations and communities are at the centre. We explore what it means to build a school around learners rather than expecting learners to fit an existing system, the importance of whānau voice and community connection, and how the Mauri Ora framework is being used to understand each learner’s aspirations and help shape curriculum and learning. We also talk about the challenge of keeping those founding aspirations alive as a school grows — and what success might look like five or ten years from now. For anyone interested in future-focused education, learner agency, community-connected schooling, culturally grounded curriculum, or simply what might be possible when we have the opportunity to rethink school from the ground up, this is a conversation worth listening to. Kura Toa is not presented as a finished model, but as a journey — one that invites us to think differently about what a school can be.