This week we talk to Danish-born acting head of science and science and biology teacher Gerd Banke.

How long have you been teaching and how long have you been at Nayland College?

I came to Nayland as a student teacher at the end of 2003 and I never left. At that time Nayland was considered one of the best schools in New Zealand and in my opinion it still is.

What are your passions and areas of expertise?

I teach general science and senior biology. I am also a trained dance teacher. I am a passionate tea drinker and reader of (gruesome) Scandinavian crime novels.

Who has inspired you on your own learning journey?

My mother who was a fabulous teacher both inside and outside of the classroom. Sadly, she passed away when I was a teenager. She taught me about equity: providing varying levels of support, depending on needs to enable people to achieve personal excellence.

What is your favourite thing about the school?

He tangata, he tangata, he tangata.

What are your ambitions for the future?

To be the best version of myself or, as Tiaki Sharp so nicely puts it, "always be the first me".

One day I would like to take my family on a trip back to Greenland where I grew up as a little girl, speaking Greenlandic, surrounded by snow and 24 hours of darkness (during the winter).