What Maori thought of learning English

It seems that on a daily basis, the Dominion Post takes up the cudgels on behalf disadvantaged Maori.

One recent article contained this section:

'The Native Schools Act was introduced in 1867, aiming to assimilate Māori into Pākehā society.

“The 1867 Native Schools Act established a system of secular village primary schools under the control of the Department of Native Affairs".

My question is, that if the Native Schools Act was about assimilating Maori into the by now dominant Pakeha culture and this was a questionable colonial inisitative, why just 11 years after the Act was implemented did Maori want MORE English not less, tauught to their children?

The link below takes us to the archive of a submission from Wi Takaro and several hundred other Maori to bolster English tuition and make it compulsory for children as young as two.

How could Takaro and his supporters be so foolhardy as to try and eradicate Maori language useage?

Well of course he wasn't doing any such thing. Takaro was confident that Maori was so strong at hapu and marae level that is would never be in danger.

It flows from that confidence that responsiblity for the health of Te Reo clearly rested with Maori themselves. Have they lived up to that?

As long as newspapers give Maori an 'out' on this the situation will not improve.

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/parliamentary/AJHR1876-I.2.2.6.4