This year on Tuesday, the 16th of August, the Year 11 Geography classes had the opportunity to visit Christchurch city centre ahead of their upcoming exam where students must “demonstrate geographic understanding of environments that have been shaped by extreme natural event(s).

On this trip, they compiled information and conducted research on the effects that the earthquakes of 2010 and 2011 had on the city as well as the developments and changes that have occurred since the earthquakes.

After boarding a bus at nine in the morning and travelling to Cashel Street, each class had two guided city centre walks and a trip to the earthquake city museum to complete.

The Christchurch Quake Museum is a gallery entirely devoted to the earthquakes that shook Christchurch. It is a place where visitors can learn about the science of earthquakes, how to prepare for them, the effects they have on the environment and the residents of Canterbury, as well as what the future may hold. Students had the opportunity to spend an hour in the museum gathering information about people's experiences during the earthquake and how it affected them, watching CCTV footage of the event, and viewing earthquake-related artifacts like hydraulic spreaders, heritage building models, and fallen historical pieces from the Christchurch Cathedral.

The exhibition also gave students an insight into what groups responded after the earthquakes and how they responded to the situation which is a vital part of the exams.

Another activity we were able to do is the north walk. This included us walking around the city centre and using an app called City View AR which was an app created by HIT Lab NZ. This app allowed us to see the city before the changes caused by the earthquake in 2011. With this we were able to see the differences in what materials were used back then compared to now and how much damage was done. We had lunch at the Margaret Mahy playground which is also a post earthquake project and an awesome space in the city centre.

The trip was a nice day out of school that provided students with beneficial information and references to use in their exams. It also gave us a chance to connect with our peers and friends who are passionate about Geography.