Kōrero / Speaking
Kōrero / Speaking
This domain assesses spoken interaction and production: pronunciation, fluency, grammar range, vocabulary, and coherence. Tasks may include a mihimihi, describing a process, giving an opinion, or a role-play. Examiners reward clear communication in Māori, not translated English sentences.
Core rules and concepts
- Pronunciation first. Hold long vowels, distinguish ng/n and wh/w, and keep syllable timing even. Whānau is not wanau.
- Build with particles. Use i (past), e ... ana (progressive), kua (perfect), ka (sequential), kei te (present locative). These carry tense and aspect more than verb endings.
- Vary sentence types. Mix ko identification, he classification, active and passive clauses, and ki te ... ka ... conditionals.
- Use discourse markers. Ki a au nei (in my view), nā te mea (because), hei tauira (for example), engari (but), nō reira (therefore). They signal structure and give you natural thinking time.
Worked example
Prompt: Whakamāramatia tō whakaaro mō te mahi kai ā-whānau. Model: “Ki a au nei, he mea nui te mahi kai ā-whānau. Nā te mea, ka ako te tamaiti ki te mahi tahi, ā, ka mau te reo i a ia. Hei tauira, i te mutunga wiki ka kōrero mātou i te reo Māori i te wā e tunu ana.” Reasoning: the opinion frame answers the task; nā te mea gives a reason; hei tauira supplies evidence; e tunu ana shows a progressive clause. That combination scores on content, grammar, and coherence.
Traps that cost marks
- Filling pauses with āe instead of a planned connector.
- Speaking too fast and swallowing particles such as i and e.
- Using English word order inside Māori sentences.
- Giving a memorised mihimihi that does not answer the actual prompt.