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Title / Identify and apply Māori art conventions, design elements and principles to explore whakairo
Level / 2 / Credits / 5
Purpose / People credited with this unit standard are able to identify and apply design elements and principles in whakairo sketches, and identify specific techniques that are applied in whakairo.
Classification / WhakairoTe Ara Tauira Whakairo
Available grade / Achieved, Merit, and Excellence
Criteria for Merit / Comprehensively identify and apply Māori art conventions, design elements and principles to explore whakairo.
Criteria for Excellence / Extensively identify and apply Māori art conventions, design elements and principles to explore whakairo.
Entry information
Recommended skills and knowledge / It is recommended that people undertaking this standard consider working towards standards at Level 1 or above from the subfield Reo Māori.
Explanatory notes
1Guidelines for Tutors
Conventions – established procedures, in making art works that use particular techniques or processes to represent, organise or interpret ideas.
Design elements –the basic qualities of two and three-dimensional compositions (eg line, point, tone, texture, colour, form or mass, shape, space).
Explore – Learning should be systematic and exploratory across a range of whakairo practices using a range of whakairo media.
Māori art conventions – the established application of design elements and principles employed by Māori in making art works (eg tone is absent from pre-European Māori art practice).
Practice – the carving processes.
2Learning should involve the application of basic operational knowledge using readily available information to generate expressive responses to experiences.
Learning should be teacher guided.
3Comprehensive identification and application of Māori art conventions, design elements and principles to explore whakairowill be evidenced through:
-explaining and exploring specific hapū/iwi design elements and principles;
4Extensive identification and application of Māori art conventions, design elements and principles to explore whakairowill be evidenced through:
-analysing and exploring the whakapapa and kōrero of specific hapū/iwi design elements and principles;
Outcomes and evidence requirements
Outcome 1
Identify and apply design elements and principles in whakairo sketches.
Rangewhakairo may include but are not limited to the following – kōwhaiwhai, whakairo pattern forms, tukutuku, tekoteko.
Evidence requirements
1.1Design elements and principles are identified and applied in two dimensional whakairo sketches.
1.2Design elements and principles are identified in terms of three dimensional whakairo sketches.
Outcome 2
Identify specific techniques that are applied in whakairo.
Evidence requirements
2.1Specific techniques applied in whakairo are identified in terms of tools, materials and processes.
Range3 whakairo tools, 3 materials, 3 processes.
2.2Whakairo design aspects are explored in the extension of skill set.
Rangeskill sets include – figurative, non-figurative, humanistic, abstract; evidence of two of each is required.
Planned review date / 31 December 2020Status information and last date for assessment for superseded versions
Process / Version / Date / Last Date for AssessmentRegistration / 1 / 21 May 2010 / 31 December 2016
Review / 2 / 21 January 2016 / N/A
Consent and Moderation Requirements (CMR) reference / 0082
This CMR can be accessed at
Please note
Providers must be granted consent to assess against standards (accredited) by NZQA, before they can report credits from assessment against unit standards or deliver courses of study leading to that assessment.
Industry Training Organisations must be granted consent to assess against standards by NZQA before they can register credits from assessment against unit standards.
Providers and Industry Training Organisations, which have been granted consent and which are assessing against unit standards must engage with the moderation system that applies to those standards.
Requirements for consent to assess and an outline of the moderation system that applies to this standard are outlined in the Consent and Moderation Requirements (CMR). The CMR also includes useful information about special requirements for organisations wishing to develop education and training programmes, such as minimum qualifications for tutors and assessors, and special resource requirements.
Comments on this unit standard
Please contact the NZQA Māori Qualification Services if you wish to suggest changes to the content of this unit standard.
NZQA Māori Qualifications ServicesSSB Code 194 / New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2018