Wednesday Fortnightly Periods 3 and 4 - Senior Programme Update
This is a first for John Paul II, as a structured timetable time with specialist support for the rest of the year. NZ Scholarship is a prestigious award for academically motivated NCEA students that if achieved, is included on student records of learning (which is highly regarded for University/tertiary applications, University financial scholarships and halls of residence, and future employers) and gives students money for the years of their tertiary study programmes.
This is for students committed to extending their learning beyond their NCEA programmes, and is competitive and challenging to achieve. In the past NZ Scholarship access here at school has been limited, now, we have committed time in the timetable with specialist teachers available during that time. Any senior student can get involved and participate during this time, from Year 11 to Year 13.
As a Year 12 student pointed out after listening to and exploring the information, academically motivated students have nothing to lose and everything to gain by sitting additional Scholarship exams or portfolio assessments over and above their usual course of study, as this increases their ability to achieve highly in their usual NCEA exams and better prepares students for University success, even if they don’t end up succeeding in the Scholarship exams.
We are excited to be able to offer this to our students, which our timetable changes allow for. The programme will be developed throughout the year to meet student needs. Note below that for Year 13 students, we are creating additional opportunities for students to use more Wednesday time to study.
Leadership and Resilience – read about this week’s work at this link: Leadership and Resilience
We also began our Leadership and Resilience programme this week for seniors, investigating ‘mindsets’. Understanding the psychology of leadership and the resilience needed to develop good leadership skills for leading yourself and leading others for a successful life is not often taught at secondary school. We know that in the world that our students are moving into now and in the future, the ability to rise above the crowd and remain strong in personal beliefs and values and lead others to rise as well, in all aspects of life, is critical.
Students will be able explore the resources in year level groups and can choose to complete modules (called ‘Spotlights’) to gain a school developed certificate of recognition of their efforts here at school. This should be useful for applications for roles inside and outside school, including for Year 12 students who apply for school leadership roles later in the year.
Resources for this programme for our senior students will be drawn from a range of sources, including corporate leadership and resilience programmes.
If you are involved in HR (organisational development and professional development for leaders) and are interested in speaking to our seniors about what you do, or contributing to the development of our programme, we’d love to hear from you, contact madeline.cambpell@johnpaul.ac.nz
Wednesday Fortnightly Periods 3 and 4 – Hauora Programme Update for Year 13 students
We understand that for Year 13 especially, the need to prioritize supported study time on a Wednesday during our Hauora Sessions is currently high due in part to interruptions to learning beyond students' control. Therefore, from next week they will have the option of using the Hauora time for this purpose. This will be supported by staff who will be on hand to answer any questions and to guide them with their work. This time is in addition to the study club available each week if seniors have decided to opt for this club. The expectation is that students study quietly and have time to work together on their subjects as needed. Any Year 13 students not using this time effectively will go back to their whanau class for the Hauora programme.