When we asked our young people what they look forward to in a school day, or what they love about school,  for many the answer was ‘time with friends’ or ‘hanging out with my mates’ and then some of the key words like ‘sports’ and ‘house activities’ and ‘music’ or ‘kapa’s’. There is no doubt that as we choose our subjects for 2025, we know that ‘school’ is much more than what we study in the classroom. I encourage you to talk to your children about their subject choices. There is evidence that choosing subjects you enjoy can be a useful way to approach decisions as we tend to do well in subjects we enjoy. Encourage them to talk to a range of people about the variety of options as there is no wrong choice. 

I have been fortunate to go out and watch quite a few sporting events over the last few weeks and a highlight for me was the recent rugby semi-final where our team played St Bernard’s in a key match. The players have all worked hard to progress their rugby skills and there were plenty of supporters on the sideline. We were up on points when the referee ruled a penalty kick. The kick went towards the sideline and the referee ruled that it had gone over the dead-ball line and he then called the game - time was up and we had won. Alas, not quite. Our players and the linesman went back to the referee to say that the kick had in fact gone over the sideline so a lineout right at the tryline was the call.  The other team got the ball and scored a try, taking out the game. It all happened quite quickly and came as a bit of a shock to everyone. 

That moment was a wonderful one for me as Tumuaki or Principal of our young people. It was wonderful not because we had lost but because we played with heart and we were honest and upfront about the calls. Sport is a great thing for so many reasons. Importantly, our values were upheld as a school in that moment when the referee ruled the game should continue. The players could have made a fuss or protested but instead, they were honest, played out the point without question and that is much more important than the outcome of the game. Too often now we question the referee or umpire when they are frequently volunteers and often doing a difficult job in some of the key games. I and many other adults walked away from that game knowing that our young people had upheld manaakitanga. They were respectful and responsible at an important moment in time. Ka Rawe.