Nau mai haere mai!

On Monday the 15th of March we celebrated the successes of our students that sat NCEA qualifications in 2020 at our annual A W Familton awards.

It was great to have Alex and Heather at this occasion as well as the parents of these students. These students demonstrated, in a difficult  year, the ability to knuckle down under adversity and produce great results in their chosen subjects.

Students receiving certificate endorsements were:

NCEA Level One certificate endorsed with Merit.

Rylie Keach, Lily Roach and Joshua Walker.

NCEA Level One certificate endorsed with Excellence

Kari Croucher.

NCEA Level Two certificate endorsed with Excellence.

Dylan Parsons and Luke Paton.

NCEA Level Three certificate endorsed with Merit.

Sydney McCaw, Melissa McLeod, Ella Sheat and Katelyn Toomey.

Students receiving course endorsements were:

NCEA Level One 

Abigail Paton (Mathematics), Blake Cameron (Humanities)

On March the 17th we had our first Whanau Hui held at 6pm in the Whare. This event had a relaxed Marae feel with students coming and going eating the food provided and playing sport in the gym. The parents shared some kai in the Whare and discussed how we could support each other to promote Maori language and culture at the school. The Whanau Hui is not just for Maori students and their families. All families are welcome and indeed encouraged to come along and share their thoughts and experiences.

On the 24th of March we had our 'Calling Ceremony' for the Year 9/10 students who are participating in the Rite Journey. The Rite Journey is a programme that assists students to develop from children into young adults. The students had to walk to the top of Puketapu to perform a simple ceremony. This ceremony consisted of students  writing down on a piece of paper a habit or behaviour that they wanted to let go of, that was part of their childhood. At the top of Puketapu they placed this habit into a container where it was burnt to symbolise their willingness to grow and develop into responsible,positively contributing young adults. On their return to the school we had a BBQ and meeting with the parents to explain the programme and answer any questions they might have. Thank you to all the parents that turned up. This programme relies on a partnership between the staff, students and parents working together and your support is appreciated.

Currently the Form Teachers are preparing the students in their form classes for 'Student Led Interviews'. These will take place on the 15th of April where we will close the school for instruction so that parents can come in and meet with their form teachers where the students will lead discussions about their goals for the year, the plan they have in place to reach these goals, and their progress within their subjects. This is a change from previous years which has been made to improve the agency of our students. Through this process students will demonstrate their ability to articulate competently their thoughts about their learning. With all new initiatives we need all people involved to have an open mind and a positive attitude. It is our hope that we will have meetings with every student and their parent/s. This approach has been very successful at a number of other schools across New Zealand and in other countries. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact me at any point to discuss.

The link to the Interview site is here.

The code is b43tu

Nga mihi nui.

Marcus Cooper