🪶 Mātauranga Māori — handoff required (te reo accuracy). This page previously used Whakatōhea as a general term; that false usage has been removed rather than replaced, and the correct kupu remains a kaiako Māori / kaumātua decision. Te Whakatōhea is an iwi of Ōpōtiki, not a word for a concept, and across this estate the name has been used to stand for at least eight different ideas — listening deeply, belonging, unity, navigation, holistic thinking. The correct kupu for each is a question for kaiako Māori or kaumātua; substituting a guessed word would repeat the original error with better spelling. Ask: what kupu was intended here, and does anything on this page imply a connection to Te Whakatōhea that is not real?

Whakataukī | Proverb

This case study shows how young people can create positive change by understanding systems and taking action.

🛹 The Skate Park Campaign

Y8 Systems Case Study: How Understanding Systems Creates Change

🎯 Learning Objectives

Systems Thinking: Identify how systems can be influenced

Civic Engagement: Understand democratic participation

Problem-Solving: Learn structured approach to change

Youth Agency: Recognise young people's power to create change

📖 Case Study: Resource 3.2A

⚠️ This is a composite scenario written for this lesson. Mia, Leo and Sarah are not real people and this campaign did not happen — it is built from the steps real community campaigns do take, so you can practise reading a system. Do not cite it as a real case. For real Aotearoa campaigns, use Protest Case Studies.

For years, the old, empty lot at the end of High Street was an eyesore. For a group of friends—Mia, Leo, and Sarah—it was also a source of frustration. They loved to skateboard, but the closest skate park was a 30-minute bus ride away.

They decided to do something. Their first step was to see if anyone else agreed. They created a petition and collected over 200 signatures. Their next step was to contact the people with power: the local council. Mia wrote a formal letter, and they were invited to speak at the next council meeting.

The friends were nervous, but they explained how a skate park would provide a safe and healthy activity for young people. The council members were impressed. They voted to approve the project and fund the skate park. Six months later, the friends were the first to ride on the smooth concrete. They had learned that by understanding the system, they could make a real difference.

🧠 Systems Analysis Questions

1. Identifying the System

What system were Mia, Leo, and Sarah trying to influence? Who had the power to make decisions?

2. Strategic Approach

What steps did the friends take to create change? Why do you think they were successful?

3. Applying the Learning

Think of a problem in your school or community. How could you use the same approach to create positive change?

📋 NZ Curriculum Alignment

Social Sciences Level 4

Understand how people participate: in groups and communities
Understand how systems operate: in groups and communities
Social action: identify and address issues

Key Competencies

Participating & Contributing: Active citizenship
Thinking: Systems thinking and problem-solving
Relating to Others: Collaborative action

📋 Teacher Planning Snapshot

Ngā Whāinga Ako — Learning Intentions

Students will engage with this resource to apply systems thinking to real-world civic and community challenges — analysing feedback loops, leverage points, and emergent properties within social, environmental, and governance systems in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Ngā Paearu Angitū — Success Criteria

✅ Students can identify system components and their interactions within a real-world context.
✅ Students can apply indigenous systems thinking principles to analyse and propose community action.

Differentiation & Inclusion

Scaffold support: Provide systems mapping templates and sentence starters for entry-level access. Offer extension tasks asking students to identify a second-order effect or design an intervention at a leverage point within their chosen system.

ELL / ESOL: Pre-teach systems thinking vocabulary (feedback loop, leverage point, emergence, interdependence) using visual diagrams. Allow students to annotate systems maps in their home language first.

Inclusion: Use visual, spatial, and collaborative formats wherever possible — systems maps are inherently accessible for diverse learners. Neurodiverse learners benefit from structured inquiry steps and chunked analysis tasks. Ensure group roles are clearly defined.

Mātauranga Māori lens: Systems thinking has deep resonance with Te Ao Māori. Whakapapa is a relational map of systems — tracing connections between people, place, and time. Kaitiakitanga frames our responsibility within systems. Mauri provides a measure of system health. These indigenous concepts enrich Western systems thinking frameworks.

Prior knowledge: Students should have completed foundational systems thinking lessons (phases 1–2) before engaging with phase 3 inquiry tasks. No specialist prior knowledge required for standalone resources.

Curriculum alignment

Te Mātaiaho (2025) · Social Sciences · Phase 3 (Years 7–8) · Civics and Society (Knowledge): “Pressure groups influence decision-makers outside of elections.”
NZC (2007) · Social Studies · Level 4: “Understand how people participate individually and collectively in response to community challenges.”