The language of the mottos of New Zealand secondary schools : a study ... for the degree of Master of Philosophy, of Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

(1)

Copyright is owned by the Author of the thesis. Permission is given for

a copy to be downloaded by an individual for the purpose of research and

private study only. The thesis may not be reproduced elsewhere without

the permission of the Author.

(2)

T HE L A !T GU A G E

0 F T J-: E EC' TTOS

0 F ^N:S ^·nt _ZE J, L A N D

S E CO N DL R Y S C H O 0 L S

o study submitted by

in fulfilment of requirements for

of

Lincoln Ashton Gribble

The Degree of !'aster of F11iloso~: -,--,

!'.assey University, Palmerston North, Wew Zea.land.

June,

1979 .

(3)

S Y I'J O P S I S

I:ecc.use of the ereet interest in ana response to the :·otto Survey J have been able to compile comprehensive listings of the mottos in current use by I·;e·,7 "ea lend secondory and Intcrmerl iate schools.

~:-ro:-:-: fou:-:c~2tjon dates s ·pplied i t has been possjble to trr:ce so:r.,e- t hin5 of t'1e c)·1anging themes of the !:lottos from colonid days '.ll1til the prescr_t.

::,e

various r!lOtto preferences of ;:orth and South Isle.mi sc· oe>ls heve bee'.'" incic9tcc c.s '.'!ell es those of the four secondary sc:·.ool

!'isfa·icts c.nd the ten Intermediete school I ducetion BoDrd !,re's .

81 ·; of e.11 rre,·1 .Zeal cnd secondery o.nd Interoec3iate sc}·,oc.ils c1•:Tc:: -::,1_ ..

er.::_:iloy ^1:. notto. Principals of priv::it e secondary schools conc11.r in c-i'fi~:-,- in5 t~·.e usefulness ana relevrmce of t~~eir school r::ottos, but c!1l:; 71 ' of Stc.te sc~1ool }rincipals do li:ze•;:isc.

:. gree.t mDLy of t}-;e mottos i;1 current '.J.Se cerive directly fro-, J3ri t ~csh family mottos in Latin, or from the mottos of relj gious .. rders. Other le.rge numbers of mottos have classical or Biblic&l origin. ~~early all hzve been selected by senior mnle school administrators.

: ·ottos ,:r.ich, before 1900, Tiere alr.ios t e1,tirely in LB ti::-:, 2.re st~ll 50~ of all seco1,d2..ry and Intermecio.te school mottos in current use, r-lt}-ough L2tin is t -day teught in only a small percer.trgC: of our sc>ools. T!ie :: r.troc. uction of !7lottos in ? nglish and in f"aori hrs been tr2..cc:", "'S clso the trend, bei::::i::cnine in the 1950s, Dv,ey' frOi:: school r.iottos.

Some 368 different mottos specify over fifty variant abstract behavioural goc.ls for this country's young people. Secondary school

mottos tend to be addressed to students in more impersonal nn(- ~11t··ori- t2.rien manner than do the mottos of Intermediate schools.

(4)

;·ost ;;1ottos, i7!-'cthcr expressed in Latin, Fr ench, ""f nglish or :·Pori, are c.crived from tl,e value system of ··,w .., et'l .'.'!'!d' s -:- uropeE'n cul t·T:::-1 hcrita[:;e. ::-rivflte school mottos mcke -,ublic c.cknowledgement of ::ts Christien charecter.

rhere :s a r.orel earnestness about most of tre mottos, suc~estins that there is litt]c e!'"!joyrent in leernjni:;. !ny val ues wPich oi c)--it, trc.di tionPlly, be t)--oufht of ns "femjnine" r>re restr jctea to the mo-:tos of Dr ivete 5irls' secondc.ry schools.

:rt is the r::ottos in ¹·r,ori wl~jch c.rc U.'1:ir.uely new ~eal rnc1' s, but t!'c>rc r-r~ 6-ifficulties in reletjn1 - uro:prnn and ~·r,ori valu<::-systeos to c:-c·, o-:-· :r. It is urF,cd that further s-::.uay of trese rnEi-'-tcrs be

-~his :·otto 2tudy be5an for me nith tre r oot ouestions in r·y ~inc.:

11 If ['.. sc>ool r..otto

a

êcl2rês ^-..::at â ^schoôlîs ^t^r^ying^to"do"' or -.:.::: ~~·--~ :-:

to hc.vc jts students "be'', might cr~.r:gcs in the educc.hone.l .;,·,o_,. _ _..-_·, trc.dit::o!:s 2-nc policie:s of a scconr~2ry school be assisteci b:/ c -

c. school rotto ? Is ^D school motto itself so~etir.ies a d.e:cis:vr :··c·:c.¹^: inhibi tine prosress or ch1.ge of e:d uc~tionel a tti tud.e ?"

J.t tbe co:,c::!..usion of cy r esccrcl:cs

=

^D^Cknov:lco["e trat SC!'OOl _~~rr

.

_{r., --:-}

.. ..

ion c:1sur es that r.!ottos, 0"1ce cstc.blis:-ca., c.r e either retainer or i-2·:::·

adoptec.. : chool r:iottos chance, if ct ell, only v.hen e scJ--ool i~ rc-/o::.·.·.ed.

or secures fresh stat us. Frincipr>ls of lrr5e, moder!"!, co-ec ucr>t:' o:,al , r.iulti-cclturDl secondriry schools \•:ho find it difficult to selcc~ a mot-::,o Geared to the :1eecs of all treir s-:uaents '~end to ellm-: an ¹¹un~·-·orksble"

notto to l~~se, re~her the~ to alter it.

Jt ~-:oulC: -,1ec..ce me c8r.sirere· ly if the ffori,...gs of tr.is ,·otto

'.'urvc.:· shonlc'l prove r- usef·tl contrfoution to the search ·::-itr.in :Te-.-1 ·:erlrnd for frcsJ, ,nd invjgoretint:; educetionel e:'r.is flna values suited to the

nc·:: ::Hrs of t),c second century of our r.otfon's scJ,oolinc systcns.

Lincoln A. Gribble

(5)

p _R F A C E

The information 8nd dates on ~hich this study ere besei ~0re o"btained by questionn8ire from t!";e ~-rincipels of .. e7/ ,..,er.lcr:cl ·;t~tc 2.nd priv2te secon::12ry schools durj 11[; July-_'· ugust,

1976 ,

2nc! fro:::

the : rjncip8ls of e·w ~eel t'nd Jntermediote schools curing .'pril-'·sy,

197 7.

Inforr'.lotion about second8ry schools has been arranged 1cnd prcsentc~ rccordinc to Inspectoriel Distrjct, whil e information E'.°:)out ::rnt;:r;:;ediate schools hes been arranged end presented according to :-:duc.~tion :So8rd J:.rea.

+ + + + +

(6)

ACKi~O-'Tt"?.DGT!'.:::TTS

I v,ish to express my vi arm thanks to the following people for hel::o, c1:couracement and guiaonce with t \,is stuay:

Dr J . Durnnore, Professor of !'odern Lanr,uages and Dean of the Fac·.1lty of I~urnanities, J.'assey Hniversjty

Dr I'. E. Bray, Senior Lecturer in .,...ducation, 1.'assey -·:~iv.:·.,~_.:,:;

:·rs :ni l.l lcn of tl-;e s-reff of Dannevirke High Scl10ol for assist- ins rr.c t o understand many matters psrtoining to raoridom.

::-rindpals and members of staff of '"e,.' 7.ealand seconocry c-1cd Intcroedic.te schools v1ho so generously r epliea to the "otto "'uestjon- naires.

Off:i.cia.ls of the !'lepa.rtment of :::·ducatj on, ·--ellington, and of t.rie -aucation Boords of New Zealand, for assistance w:i.th access to

seco11'·2ry cna Tntermediete school Principals.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(7)

TABLE OF CONI'ENl'S

page .An explanation of the sample of mottos covered by the Survey 1

,.'hat is a motto ?

5

The origins of some second~ry school mottos 8

The persons selecting the ~ottos 18

The tradition of mottos in L~t~1 25

The mottos in English 35

The mottos in -1:'.aori 44

..tunplii'ying the mottos 59

Schools Tiithout mottos 65

lhe mottos of State single-sex secondary schools

75

'"2he oottos of private secondary schools

~he changing themes of seconcary school mottos

·:be different lnnguages of seconco.ry school mottos

~·he :12jor thenes of seconocr:; sc:⁰001 mottos

?he mottos of Intermedi~tc sc~ools Do mottos change ?

Identicel End similar mottos

:5'e2tures of the langu2ge of seconda.ry school mottos The usefulness 2.na relevance of school mottos

The force of tradition

Conclusions at the end of a search

Appendices

A: The number and location of seconcl2ry schools B: Indices of secondary sc!,ool :-.ottos

C: Indices of private soc·,1y°'..:--r~· school mottos D: Indices of Intermedi2tc sctool mottos E: Duplicnte mottos

F: Explaining the mottos ( s£.r,:·,lc i terns)

G: The }.'.otto-Survey Questionnaire (Seconde.ry) H: The Motto-Survey questionnaire ( Intermediate)

'::',iblio6raphy

82 97 105 108 112 120 128 132 176 186 192

198 205 230 238 249 253

257

261

(8)

LIST OF TABLES

TABLE

I '.~hose who selected mottos for privete secondary schools 23 II ~hose who selected mottos for State secondary school:: 24 III -::'hose who selected. mottos: Hew Zealand surmnary 24 IV :·ottos in Latin ( by Inspectorial District) 30 V "ottos in Latin ( by Forth and South Island) 31 VI -'ord.s frequently occurring in mottos in La tin 33 VII "Mottos in English (by Inspectorial District) 41 VIII :·ottos in I nglish (by Porth and South Jslands) 42

JX Dates of the introduction of mottos in Paori

48

X I.'ottos in raori for different types of secondary school 49 XJ ¹'ottos in }'aori ( by Inspectoria.l District)

51

XII ¹·ottos in J'aori (by Forth and South Islimds) 52 XIII Schools without e motto ( the different VJpes) 68 XIV Schools without a motto ( by Jnspectoriel District) 70 )Y Schools without a motto (by ,North end Sc-.:¹^.;:^. -i:slands) 71

X'/IT A'!IE

XE

XXI XXII XXIII XXIV

XXVI XXVII XXVIII

XXIY.

XXX XXXI XXXII

State single-sex school mottos: !:umber, loc11tion, lo:1guage 75 3tate single-sex schools (by :⁷orth and South Islends) 76 fri vate school mottos: Fumber, location, languege

84

Roman Catholic school mottos: :1umber, location, language 83 Roman Catholic school mottos (by Inspectorial District) 89 Anglican sc~ool mottos (by Inspectorial District) 91 Presbyterian school mottos (by Inspectorial District) 93

Other private (non) denominational school mottos 95 Other privnte school mottos (by Jnspectorial District)

96

.Tumber of decades in which motto themes were restated 104 Dates 2nd languages of newly-selected mottos 107

_4, classification of the themes of school mottos 109 Intermediate schools: '!~umber and locetion 116 Intermediate schools: F ounda ti on date & motto languaee 117 'Oford count of all different mottos 139 llottos acceptable/not acceptable: State secondary

1,.ottos acceptable/not acceptable: Intermediate schools

++++++++++++++++++

183 183