Tivaevae as a Conceptual Model for Integrating Traditional Sports and Games Into Formal Education in the Pacific: The Case of the Cook Islands

Abstract

This chapter establishes the case for the integration of traditional sports and games (TSGs) into formal education in the Pacific and uses the Cook Islands cultural art of tivaevae as a conceptual model for setting out how this integration can take place. This chapter explains some of the features of TSGs and suggests the educational and social benefits that can accrue from including these activities in formal education in Pacific Island countries. The discussion outlines some TSGs played in the Pacific outside the formal physical education (PE) curriculum, such as coconut climbing and husking, canoe paddling and stilt walking. Activities like these are shown to be a vital way of connecting Pacific Islanders with their cultural history, knowledge, values and a medium to affirm their cultural identity. The potential of TSGs in this respect has become especially important at a time when it can be challenging for many in the Pacific to access their cultural inheritance. The introduction of the tivaevae model into Cook Islands health and PE curriculum in 2004 is noted, followed by an exploration of the value of this model as a guiding framework for the integration of TSGs into formal education in the Pacific.

Citation

Ava, A.T. (2024), " Tivaevae as a Conceptual Model for Integrating Traditional Sports and Games Into Formal Education in the Pacific: The Case of the Cook Islands", Kanemasu, Y. (Ed.) Towards a Pacific Island Sociology of Sport (Research in the Sociology of Sport, Vol. 22), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 65-77. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1476-285420240000022004