The Ministry of Education says quality reading materials that reflect Fijian children are critical to the success of the Vosa Vaka Viti curriculum.
Acting deputy secretary professional Ministry of Education Salveen Narayan made the remarks at the recent Talanoa BookLab, a three-day workshop aimed at strengthening literacy, encouraging reading and promoting the iTaukei language, identity and culture.
Hosted by the iTaukei Trust Fund Board, the workshop brought together indigenous writers, educators, curriculum advisers, linguists, illustrators and cultural experts to develop 20 new iTaukei stories for Year 7 and 8 students.
Mr Narayan said a curriculum could only be as strong as the resources supporting its implementation – like quality teaching materials, engaging texts, relevant reading resources, and literature that reflects the realities and aspirations of Fijian learners.
He said learning in vosa vaka viti was not simply about vocabulary, grammar or sentence construction, but about connecting children with a living heritage.
Mr Narayan said the new resources must be linguistically accurate, age-appropriate, engaging, culturally relevant and educationally meaningful.
He described the BookLab as the beginning of a stronger reading culture.
