Students in Years 9 and 10 have been completing their end of year examinations this week.

This is often the first taste students have of what it is like to sit formal examinations. The purpose of these exams is to provide a snapshot of some of the knowledge and skills students know and can do at this point in their schooling, provide feedback to students and their teachers on the effectiveness of the programmes of learning they have been undertaking and to prepare students for the external NCEA examinations they will sit in Year 11. Information from the examinations can be also be used to inform programmes of learning for next year. I have been impressed by the serious and responsible approach our students have been taking in these examinations and am confident that they will reflect a solid year’s learning and provide useful feedback to them.

NCEA examinations continue for students in Years 11 to 13 this week. Level 1 English was held on Monday with both digital and paper based versions being run. The digital exam was affected by a computer issue at the NZQA end of things which interrupted the examination for approximately 20 minutes. Students were provided with additional time to make up for this. We were all really pleased at the resilience shown by the girls who did not seem to be majorly upset by the interruption and who came out of the exam unfazed by the experience.

Earlier this week Otago Girls’ hosted the 2018 Otago Confucius Institute Prize-giving ceremony. Based at Canterbury University, the Confucius Institutes provides Mandarin Language Assistants and resources that enable schools from throughout the country to offer Chinese to their students. Students ranged in age from primary school through intermediate and secondary school to tertiary and adult. The awards served as an opportunity to recognise the students who have been learning the language and about the culture of China as well as their teachers.

Year 10 students have been meeting with their camp groups in preparation for the camps that take place the week of November 26 to 30. These camps are a wonderful opportunity for staff and students to interact in a completely different learning environment to that which they normally experience at school. For many girls these camps are the highlight of their time at Otago Girls’, due to the challenge, the camaraderie and the fun.

Today we have hosted the girls who will make up our new intake of Year 9 students next year. They have been involved in a range of activities and have been supported by a number of our Year 12 students, who showed wonderful leadership skills which bodes well for next year.