KĀʻEO History
Education in traditional Hawaiian society was practical, socially useful and family-based. These characteristics were perpetuated through families and solidified through more formal instruction as children got older. Observing, listening and doing were paramount and oratory was the primary vehicle for the preservation of language and culture. (Charlot, 2010; Chun, 2006; Goodyear-Kaopua, 2009; Kelly, 1982; Pukui, Haertig, & Lee, 1980).
1840
Under King Kauikeaouliʻs rule, Hawaiʻi's first written constitution was adopted. The constitution established the first compulsory education system for children between the ages of six and fifteen.
Kauikeaouli urged people to learn to read and write, and he pronounced that his rule would be characterized by literacy.
1850
Hawaiian literacy was said to be universal.
“Historically, Hawaiian was the language spoken by the vast majority of the people living in Hawaiʻi, at least until the mid- to late 1800s… Hawaiians had the highest literacy rate in the world, and the Hawaiian-language newspapers had the largest circulation per capita of any newspapers in the world.”
For many years, the kingdom’s public schools also served as spaces where Hawaiian educators could transmit older stories in new ways, strengthening a sense of peoplehood among their mostly Native students, until the resources were gradually diverted in the 1870s and then decisively cut off after the 1893 illegal coup against the Hawaiian Kingdom’s government. (Goodyear-Kaopua, 2013)
1893
The Kingdom of Hawaiʻi was illegally overthrown by the United States, forming the Republic of Hawaiʻi.
1896
Act 57 was passed, an English-only law for Hawaiʻi’s public schools, prohibiting the use of Hawaiian as a medium of instruction.
1978
An amendment to the Hawaiʻi constitution states that "English and Hawaiian shall be the official languages of Hawaiʻi". The constitution also allows for the study of "Hawaiiana" (all things Hawaiian and the essence of aloha).
1986
Native Hawaiian parents and educators successfully lobby for HRS 298-2, which allows for Hawaiian to be a medium of instruction in public schools.
*** 1987 ***
The Hawaiʻi State Board of Education approves the piloting of the Hawaiian Language Immersion Program (Ka Papahana Kaiapuni Hawaiʻi). In these schools, Hawaiian is the sole language of instruction. English is introduced as a subject in grade 5 (Office of Hawaiian Education). The vision of the program is He oia mau nō ka pono o ka lāhui kanaka i ka naʻauao Hawaiʻi.
1990
ʻAha Kauleo is formed as an advisory group for Kaiapuni schools. ʻAha Kauleo meets quarterly to address emerging needs in the Kaiapuni schools and provides advocacy to lawmakers. The group consists of various Native Hawaiian stakeholder groups (e.g. parents, educators, community leaders, and the Office of Hawaiian Education).
2002
The State of Hawaiʻi adopts the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) assessment requirements and develops the English-based Hawaiʻi State Assessment (HSA).
2003-2005
Kaiapuni students in grades 3 and 4 take a Hawaiian-translated version of the HSA. Students in grades 5-8 take the English-based HSA.
2005-2011
The Hawaiʻi Aligned Portfolio Assessment (HAPA) is developed and administered to Kaiapuni students in grades 3 and 4. The HAPA is a culturally and linguistically appropriate assessment grounded in Hawaiian priorities. However, the technical qualities of the assessment are a challenge to meeting the United States Department of Education requirements for NCLB. Students in grades 5-8 continue to take the English language-based HSA.
2011-2014
Kaiapuni students in grades 3 and 4 revert to taking a translated version of the HSA. Kaiapuni students in grades 5-8 continue to take the English-based HSA.
The Hawaiʻi Board of Education redrafts two policies, 2104 and 2105 (currently 105.7 and 105.8), which reconfirm the State's commitment to Hawaiian Language and culture in the education system. This includes the assessments being used for federal purposes.
"If we measure what matters, I think our collective learning can be reflected back to us by how many generations-long our knowledge transmission system is, how many kupuna-keiki learning exchanges and caring touchpoints with ‘āina happen, how many observations of readiness are captured, and how many teachers come from the families they teach. All of these measures are place-based, quantifiable, and come from Hawai‘i as our foundation for learning."
2015
The Office of Hawaiian Education (OHE) is established to plan and implement the Nā Hopena Aʻo (HĀ) policy. HĀ is a framework that outlines six outcomes (Belonging, Responsibility, Excellence, Aloha, Total Well-being, and Hawai‘i) that should be strengthened in every student during their K-12 experience.
2014-Present
The Kaiapuni Assessment of Educational Outcomes (KĀʻEO) is established, developed, and administered in Kaiapuni Schools. The Hawaiian language community works to develop a set of standards and items to assess the uniquely Hawaiian context of the Hawaiian Language Immersion Schools. The annual assessments are developed in partnership with measurement experts to meet the federal accountability assessment requirements.
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