We’ve had another creative and rewarding year in English and Media Studies classes and in all the related extra-curricular areas.

We welcomed Andrew Spittle as our new Head of Department at the end of Term Four.  Andrew comes with an impressive resume which has seen him teaching and leading a department in a variety of schools including Queenstown, Nelson and Hamilton.  He also has extensive experience designing effective programmes for the most gifted as well as the most challenged English students and everyone in between.  Andrew is an ex-student and was Head Boy of Logan Park in his final year. 

We continue to be very proud of students’ achievements in NCEA and were especially pleased with the 6 national NCEA scholarships awarded in the 2014 exams. Charlie Hilton, Alexander Woolrych and Tuhin Baucus (from Year 12) were awarded Scholarships in English, with Charlie Hilton, Kairangi Ratapu-Moss and Connor Seddon awarded Scholarships in Media Studies.

Over 96% of our Year 11 students achieved their essential Literacy credits at Level 1, and we were thrilled with the numbers of Merit and Excellence endorsed NCEA English certificates at all levels.  

Other highlights include writing successes in competitions and being published in a range of forums from Re-Draft to Extra to the ODT's Secondary Scene.  Year 9 student Beth Lynch won the Dunedin Secondary Schools Poetry Competition and wonderful examples of student writing are featured in this magazine.   Our enthusiastic writers enjoyed our weekly Writers’ Group organised by Mrs MacTaggart and other literary events and writers' workshops encouraged by English teachers.  

On the Public Speaking front, Jacobi Kohu-Morris dominated in Dunedin, Otago and national events.  He won the Otago finals for the Lions, RSA,  and Race Unity competitions, winning himself a trip to Gallipoli as well as Best Speaker in New Zealand for the Lions with his prize a 6 week trip to America and Canada.  Grant McNaughton is also an exciting speaker placing second in Otago in the Race Unity and impressing in the Rotary and Lions competitions.  George Sabonadiere won Best Junior Speaker in our school competition.  

Lots of juniors and seniors appreciated regularly competing in the Dunedin Interschool Debating competition again this year, tirelessly coached and supported by Ms Robins. Three senior teams and two junior teams competed all year with Connor Seddon and Meran Campbell Hood running weekly lunchtime sessions.  Jake Kohu-Morris, Grant McNagaughton and Meran Campbell Hood won the Otago Southland Russell McVeagh competition and Logan Park speakers won 5 of the top 12 awards with several in the Otago team.  

Four teams competed in the ODT Spelling Quiz and Annie Kennedy Atchison, Rosa Miller and Hugh Gibson qualified for the regional semi-finals of the NZ Spelling Bee event.  Ms Liesbeth was awarded a New Zealand Spelling Bee Teacher Award recognising her love of language and learning and encouragement of enthusiastic spellers. 

Our Library programme with Mrs Millar continues to breed success.  Students always enjoy the Fiction Presentations, Biography Parties, and the University Book Shop sponsored Reading Challenge, as well as the focus on personal reading. Our Peer Reading Programme matching up juniors with seniors was again a worthwhile experience for all concerned and we all appreciated Mrs Cameron’s and Ms MacTaggart's positivity about reading with a buddy.  We have fondly farewelled Liz Cameron our RTLB teacher who is now working as a Counsellor at Kavanagh College and welcomed Arran Wilkinson as our new RTLB. 

In the ICAS (International Competitions and Assessments for Schools) students continue to achieve great results.  This year 20 students entered the ICAS English examination. 10 students gained Distinction and High Distinction grades.   High Distinction: Casper McGuire, Mary Locker.   Distinction: Oscar McGuire, Hugh Gibson, Annie Kennedy Atchison, Rosa Miller, Bella Sefo, Olivia Bradfield, George Sabonadiere  and Danny Barton.

In the Media and Film area, our Film Club run by film-maker Craig Storey continues to be a source of inspiration and is always well attended. Several crews entered the 48 Hour Film Competition and one of our senior film teams, "Woof Bloody Woof" won national attention by winning the Rialto Channel Rising Talent award for their short film, Survivor Guilt, at the national finals of the 48hour film-making competitions announced in Auckland in July.

The team was Jimmy Robinson, Oliver Robson, Ella Yiannetts, Tia Hibbert, Jasper Holloway and Ruari Griffin.   In the regional competition, the team won City Runner-Up as well as regional Rising Talent Award. Other Logan Park teams won the following in the regional competition: Best School Team Otago, The Dandy Lions. Best Male Actor overall, Ruari Warren. Best soundtrack, Abe Baillie, Quinn Hardie, Henry Ruan (Year 10). Best Atmospheric Soundtrack, Jasper Holloway.

Our Media Studies Film night featured over 20 short films, trailers, claymations, a lightbox stopmotion, and mockumentaries, and was appreciated by a packed out auditorium of supportive friends, parents and whanau. Thanks to Ms Hazelwood who spent many weekends and week nights helping students edit their films. The Animation and 3-D Modelling Club continues to be popular with regular Sunday afternoon workshops with animator Greg Wyatt.

Our The Edge Radio Interns, Tash Gosling and Brendan Kearns gained valuable industry experience with their regular scripting, voicing and presenting the radio ads for Logan Park as well as organising a number of events including the successful Octacan collection for Food Banks. 

And there are lots of other happenings and events covered elsewhere in this year's mag. English and Media classrooms continue to allow all of our students to imagine, create, learn and explore language and communication in all its forms. Thanks to the inspirational and committed teaching team this year of Suzanne Robins, Morag MacTaggart, Jennifer Ashby, Lara Liesbeth, Arnika Hazelwood, Marcelle Nader-Turner and Chrisine Bennet for all their efforts both in the classroom and supporting students outside the classroom. Thanks also to our amazing students and whanau who continue to inspire, delight and challenge us all.