The students who contested last week's Te Tai Tokerau Nga Manu Korero regional finals at Forum North in Whangarei lifted the bar with their oratory skills, according to an organiser who has been part of the speech competition for 10 years.
And one of them, Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Kaikohe's Rehia Nikora-Rameka, was accorded a formal welcome on to his school grounds yesterday in recognition of the return to the school of the senior Maori trophy, after an absence of four years.
Students from 26 Northland schools, from Awanui to Warkworth, contested the finals, choosing subjects ranging from Maori health to how past Nga Manu Korero winners had influenced Maori leadership.
Co-ordinator Robert Diamond, who has been involved with Nga Manu Korero for 10 years as a competitor and an organiser, said the standard had risen over the years, but he hoped to see more schools taking part in years to come.
The full results were:
