Act tertiary education spokeswoman Dr Parmjeet Parmar called it a \u201cvictory for student choice\u201d. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe compulsory nature of this course was always about pushing Treaty ideology on to students, with no regard for their interests.\u201d<\/p>\n
Act tertiary education spokeswoman Parmjeet Parmar called on the University of Auckland to scrap its compulsory Waipapa Taumata Rau. Photo \/ NZ National Party<\/p>\n
Parmar has suggested that the 8000 students who took the course should be compensated.<\/p>\n
The courses are designed to provide foundational skills and knowledge, including an understanding of the Treaty of Waitangi and other elements of te ao M\u0101ori (the M\u0101ori world).<\/p>\n
The changes come after the course was taught for just one semester to all first-year students this year. <\/p>\n
University of Auckland vice-chancellor Dawn Freshwater recommended that the course be made optional<\/a> following a university senate meeting in September.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile students have found the courses valuable, they have also indicated where improvements could be made and told us they would like greater flexibility in how WTR fits within their programme of study,\u201d Freshwater wrote.<\/p>\n The senate\u2019s suggestion was a U-turn from the university\u2019s previous stance. <\/p>\n In March, a university spokesperson defended the courses, saying they were faculty-specific and relevant to the students\u2019 studies.<\/p>\n \u201cThe WTR courses offer core knowledge and essential skills to help transition new students into university, helping them adjust to university life and setting them up for success in their future studies.\u201d<\/p>\n The course content \u201cwill be relevant to wherever in the world they end up working\u201d, the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the Faculty of Business and Economics, WTRBUS 100 uses a M\u0101ori-owned business as a case study to demonstrate knowledge systems relevant to business.\u201d<\/p>\nThe ACT Party posted memes using the Tui ‘Yeah right’ tagline about the course. Tui later hit back.<\/p>\n