Kia ora Koutou.
Welcome to a new year and a particular welcome to our new students and whanau. It has been wonderful to be able to meet many of you at a variety of events already including our Powhiri, the Year 9 parents' evening and the Filipino parents' evening.
We also welcomed a number of new staff to the Riccarton family at the beginning of the year. They are referred to elsewhere in our newsletter. I am sure that their time with us will be both professionally satisfying and rewarding.
As we head into week 6 of the term, it is pleasing to see that a majority of our students have well-and-truly settled into a routine and that they are embracing our Riccarton Way values both inside and outside the classroom.
This was particularly evident at our recent Gala day; a colorful and fun-filled day where our students showed a positive spirit and committed themselves to the events on offer in rather warm conditions! Many thanks to our staff for their hard work and to the parents who turned up to support on the day.
Our provisional results from NCEA in 2018 give cause for celebration, particularly when we add the fact that we had six scholarship winners. When looking at the results overall, a change in the way that the New Zealand Qualifications Authority reports these needs to be interpreted carefully. Their reporting is now based on ALL Year 11-13 students who are enrolled with us throughout the year for at least 70 days whether they sat NCEA or not.
Riccarton High School has significant numbers of students who do not enter a full 60 or 80 credit course, for example, our English Language Learners, those who are on job search or have gained apprenticeships and those in our Kohanga Ako programme. In addition, a level 3 student who has entered for a full level 2 course is now recorded as not achieving level 3.
In this context therefore when reading the pass rates below it is important that a distinction is made between the total roll based figure and those who actually participated in a full 60 or 80 credit programme:
Level 1: 71.7% NZQA - all students 84.1% - RHS - participation
Level 2: 69.6% NZQA - all students 92.3% - RHS - participation
Level 3: 64.9% NZQA - all students 82.3% - RHS - participation
The key thing to note is that our success rate with those students who participate in a full NCEA course remains very high.
It is also important to note that as a school Riccarton High School celebrates ‘success’ in many different ways besides academic performance. This is the essence of our graduate profile - this is who we are!
Looking forward to catching up with you soon.
Neil Haywood
Principal
After five years of trying the First XI Cricket team recorded a maiden win at The Willows. Wins out there are hard to come by for the school teams, the Willows teams typical field senior Premier and first-class cricketers.
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A warm welcome to the staff joining us this year, (and the one or two familiar faces rejoining the team!)
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Six Scholarship awards were earned by the following as a result of the 2018 NZQA Scholarship examinations:
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FRIDAY 8th MARCH, 4.30 - 8.00 PM IN THE RICCARTON HIGH SCHOOL HALL.
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Instagram and Netsafe have partnered on the 2019 NZ edition of the Parents' Guide to Instagram.
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We specifically ask that parents do not use the Main South Road driveway and the library carpark as a drop-off or pick-up point, or drive onto the school grounds through the main gate (entered from Vicki Street).
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The Riccarton High School PTA will be holding their AGM on Tuesday 19 March, at 7:15 pm, in the staff room.
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Congratulations to our students who have been successful in their chosen sport:
Visit this articleMarch is a massive month for our senior Volleyball teams. With three of our teams building up to Nationals at the end of the month, the next two competitions have significant importance.
Visit this articleMekhi Tauakume has just had a poem published in Toitoi (a journal for young writers and artists). He wrote and submitted the poem at the end of last year when he was in Year 8 at Russley School.
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Usually, your child's whanau teacher is the first contact for most matters as they see your child regularly.
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The school has a clear set of evacuation procedures to follow in the event of an emergency e.g. fire or earthquake. These are practised at least once a term.
Visit this articleOn March 8, Year 13 student, Jack Harwood, will be travelling to Kurashiki, Japan, as a part of a bi-annual Youth and Disabilities exchange. He will go with his big sister Victoria, plus the other participant, Liam, and his mother, Debbie.
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This year we are BYOD at Year 9, Year 10 and Year 11 levels, and all new students are expected to bring a suitable device to school. An internet capable device is now an important part of a student’s toolkit, giving them access to unlimited resources and enabling them to support, extend, collaborate and share their learning in a way that prepares them for the future.
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If your son/daughter is aged between 13-17 and they register with Pathway Dental, they will get a FREE custom-made sports mouthguard.
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The Riccarton High School PTA will be hosting an evening for parents and other adults interested in learning more about anxiety and depression and how it affects the youth in our society.
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