Structured learning communities are one response to the new demographic of students that pour into the post-compulsory education sector. The learning community, using collaborative learning strategies allows students to have a voice, to feel safe articulating fears and ideas and to learn collectively, critically and in consultation with tutors who are there to facilitate, challenge and guide students to take an active role in constructing knowledge. Furthermore, the learning community concept sits comfortably alongside the notion of whakawhanaungatanga1 and offers the opportunity to create a learning space that embraces Maori culture and other minority cultures. This paper explores and evaluates the success of Maor2i and Pasifika3 learning communities established in a bridging programme within a polytechnic environment. The implications extend much wider into the tertiary environment than for simply the most ‘at risk’.

Keywords: learning community, collaborative learning strategies, culture