Maximising learning potential and opportunities by embracing the diversity of ākonga
Unlocking the superpowers of neurodiverse learners
Pacific students find their niche through creative expression
Aotearoa-Asia connection prospering in classrooms
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As the chill of winter sets in, so too does the realisation that we are already halfway through the year. With just seven editions of Tukutuku Kōrero to go, there is still plenty of impressive, insightful, and inspiring mahi to share.
Which brings me to the edition you now hold in your hands (or on your screen). Acknowledging, understanding, and responding to the uniqueness and diversity of ākonga – their identities, languages, cultures, and strengths – is key in supporting all ākonga to experience a sense of belonging, feel valued, and recognise there are many paths to success.
As so proudly displayed on the cover, authentically celebrating each other’s cultures is a beautiful way to come together, to bring genuine joy to school and kura environments, and to support engagement with learning. Read more about how Scots College and Queen’s High School are doing just that with Pacific students. You can also read how some schools are embracing cultures abroad and across Asia, including one kura who is heading to Japan to learn more about their indigenous cultures and share theirs as Ngāti Manawa.
Diversity goes beyond culture, and it’s important to recognise the diverse ways that ākonga operate on a neurological level, and the range of ways they find success in learning. You can read about the education experiences of four Young Neurodiversity Champions and understand how you can help unlock the enormous potential of all neurodiverse learners.
There are also some exciting curriculum-based articles in this edition; specifically with links to Te Mātaiaho | the refreshed New Zealand curriculum and the refreshed te ao tangata | social sciences learning area.
Wherever you are in the country, I hope you are staying safe, warm, and dry this winter. I hear this wonderful magazine reads better with a hot drink in hand – for me, it’s a cup of tī while gazing out to Kā Tiritiri o te Moana.
Sarah Wilson Ētita | Editor
A group of 15 Young Neurodiversity Champions are standing up for the rights of all neurodiverse young people in Aotearoa – and calling for a long-term change process across every level of the education system.
Education Gazette caught up with Tom, Riley, Kartini and Katie to understand their experiences in education, and how educators can help unlock the enormous potential of all neurodiverse learners.
“My superpower is my energy and enthusiasm,” says Tom, a Year 13 student at Taradale High School.
When Tom was five, he was diagnosed with ADHD. He remembers always having lots of energy although, he says, this wasn’t always channelled in a positive way in his education journey.
“I remember one situation led to my teacher getting a Vivid marker and drawing an X on the carpet, where I was
confined to sitting and staying.
“This made me feel alienated and different to everyone else, and this is the worst thing for a neurodiverse student.”
However, Tom can speak to better experiences in the classroom, including with a teacher who is helping him unlock his potential and channel his ADHD into something positive.
The Young Neurodiversity Champions at a White Paper Launch Event in Wellington on 7 June 2023. From left: Annabelle, Katie-Rose, Riley, Sankhya, Kartini, Christina, Scarlet and Maria. The other Champions are Tom, Charlotte, Elliot, Jas, Jasper, Maia and Nellie.At Taradale High, Tom is part of the Young Enterprise Scheme (YES), supported by economics teacher and deputy principal Toni Dunstan.
Through YES, Tom founded the Pūkare Cards company alongside fellow students Jasmine, Elizabeth and Liv.
As a young person with ADHD, Tom says he sometimes found it hard to express his feelings or communicate them. Tom and his peers have taken this experience and turned it into an opportunity to create something positive for others.
Pūkare Cards is a pack of 25 different emotion cards in English and te reo Māori with scenarios on the back to help adults have meaningful and fun discussions with rangatahi about their feelings/mental health.
The cards were shared with two psychologists for input and review, and use of te reo Māori was supported by Chad Tareha, chairman of the Ngāti Pārau Hapū Trust.
Made by youth, for youth, the cards are currently selling and in use across the motu by parents, teachers, counsellors, and schools.
The goal, Tom says, is to normalise talking about feelings from a young age.
“We have created a product which we needed when we were growing up and would have benefited from.”
Taking part in YES is how Tom discovered that his energy and enthusiasm are his superpowers – and this has broadened his passions and aspirations beyond school.
“I love business, I love the thinking, the fast pace, and how it’s self-led. I am thinking of going to university next year and doing a commerce degree majoring in accounting and marketing.”
Tom says it’s important for teachers to recognise that neurodiverse students are different, but never less.
“Our brains are different, but they’re not less. It’s just important to help neurodiverse people feel welcomed, included, and supported in a classroom. How do you
Kartini Clarke expect the student to learn when they are constantly in the fight or flight mode or when they don’t feel safe? It’s going to be really tricky,” he says.
Tom says the key lies in helping neurodiverse people find and uncover their strengths.
“Growing up, I saw my burdens or my struggles, but once I saw the things that I was good at, that really helped.”
Tom says things are often going to be tricky for neurodiverse students and their teachers.
“It’s important to understand their learning needs, what’s happened, and to really try and work out how they can be best supported.
“Normal, traditional teaching models aren’t always going to work. So be flexible, be adaptable, and ready.
“Be ready to help your diverse students. Although we’ve had lots of challenges, we’re able to be resilient and through resilience and adversity, we grow stronger.”
“Give us more agency and empowerment with our learning. Let us delve into our special interests, because we can write so much if you allow us to create lesson plans for ourselves and let us explore our special interests within the context of the class, whether it be geography or English.”Scarlet and Tom at a workshop session in March. Photo: Nikki Gibbons.
For 14-year-old Riley, there just aren’t enough resources and supports for teachers to truly know how to best help neurodiverse students.
He says often, all neurodiverse students are lumped in with each other, instead of recognising the diversity and differences between them.
“Teachers aren’t trained enough on how to deal with neurodiverse people. And there are no protocols in place that are suitable, as well as the fact that they’re sort of stereotyped within each thing. So, they just treat all ADHD people the same as autistic people or gifted kids, even though that’s not how they think.”
Riley says despite this, there are many well-meaning teachers who want to help. His advice? Ask students how they would like to learn.
“I think a big thing is recognising when there is a neurodiverse student and realising that they think differently.
“They’re not disadvantaged, they just think differently. So, they need to learn differently. And a great way to start is asking them how they would like to learn.”
Riley says everybody has the potential to be amazing, as long as they are given the support they need.
“A lot of the time, they’re just misunderstood, or their ideas aren’t fully grasped because they just interpret things in such a different way.”
Looking to his future, Riley is currently studying business, and he is aiming to be an entrepreneur.
“As somebody with ADHD, I think self-management is
a big thing. I don’t like having to answer to somebody else. Obviously, I know I’m going to have to do that. But I really would love to be my own boss.”
University student Kartini Clarke agrees about recognition being the first step.
She says educators need to understand what neurodiversity is and how it presents itself in children.
“A lot of the time we can often be seen as lazy, oppositional, defiant, and bored. But with neurodiversity, we do get bored in the classrooms if we are not engaged enough, and a lot of the time we are shoved to the side in favour of students who work in neurotypical way.
“I was also told by teachers that I would really struggle at university because of my differences, and in the way I behaved as well. I was often held back from leadership positions, and I got bored at school.”
However, Kartini says there was this one teacher in particular who was the “best teacher ever”.
“He understood my brain, he could engage with me. That was in Year 13, and I had hope in teachers again after having him as my maths teacher – he was just the best.”
When asked what she would like teachers to know, Kartini says neurodiverse students want to learn and find their interests and strengths.
“We might be different. We might not act the same as other students. But we do want to be there. Let us work at our own pace. Because we can really create beautiful things if you just give us more time.
“Be ready to help your diverse students. Although we’ve had lots of challenges, we’re able to be resilient and through resilience and adversity, we grow stronger.”
Tom, Year 13
“Give us more agency and empowerment with our learning. Let us delve into our special interests, because we can write so much if you allow us to create lesson plans for ourselves and let us explore our special interests within the context of the class, whether it be geography or English.”
A current law student at the University of Auckland, Kartini is passionate about improving experiences for neurodiverse people. She wants to be a lawyer and create a law firm which helps neurodiverse and other disabled lawyers be treated with respect within the profession.
As a Young Neurodiversity Champion, Kartini proudly shares her experiences as a student with ADHD and autism to make education better for all neurodiverse people.
Gifted student Katie, who is 17 years old and currently at Howick College, says the first thing in unlocking the potential of neurodiverse students is acceptance.
“Accept that neurodiversity is going to be a part of children’s lives and in classrooms. It’s everywhere in New Zealand and creating a stable plan to help neurodiverse students is what we need to do. We can’t unlock potential if we don’t understand how they work.”
Katie says it’s important to share her experiences, both negative and positive. She starts by drawing on her memories of primary school and the isolation she felt.
“I didn’t really have that much of a positive experience in primary. When you don’t fit in somewhere, you know you’re different and you know that you don’t quite fit into this puzzle. So, I isolated myself.
“You really look up to teachers; when you’re not at home your teachers are your parents, you learn from them, and you see what they do. And when you’re not up to their expectations, it can be difficult.”
Going back to Riley’s observation, Katie agrees and says often, teachers just don’t understand how to teach neurodiverse students.
As a gifted student, Katie says she struggled learning in the way that worked best for her, and this was on top of trying to find her sense of belonging with her peers and in a social context.
“I was kind of weird, I was a weird kid, I didn’t really fit in. So, I kept myself busy. I’d get all my work done as soon as possible but then I’d be left with nothing for the rest of the four days of the week. I enrolled myself in all these different extracurriculars and filled my time so I wouldn’t have to think about how I’m not fitting in.”
Katie says she did benefit from a programme designed for gifted students and find her love for learning.
“After I got diagnosed as gifted, I was put into this MindPlus programme, a school for gifted kids. One day a week, I would go off to the school with other gifted students, and it was honestly paradise.
“It was my heaven, because in a normal school, you’re ridiculed, and the teachers don’t understand what’s wrong or how you’re working. But then at this school, you’ve got this teacher who’s trained in giftedness and knows how to teach and can find ways and understands.”
Schools and educators are supported with a range of Ministry of Education-led or funded services, tools, resources, and websites to notice, understand and support ākonga who are neurodiverse.
Many are available at inclusive.tki.org.nz, which includes guidance for teachers to design supports across the curriculum, including FASD and Learning, ADHD and Learning, ASD and Learning and Dyslexia and Learning guides. Specific training for autism (eg Tilting the Seesaw) is funded by the Ministry and is provided by Autism NZ.
The Better Start Literacy Approach (BSLA) is a professional development support launched in 2021 to support literacy specialists and teachers with a focus on lifting the development of early literacy. Findings on the approach show statistically significant gains in learner achievement after 10 weeks of BSLA teaching.
The Ministry has developed a series of Inclusive Design Modules, which will soon become available online. The modules are for teachers, whānau, resource teachers, and Ministry practitioners. They aim to grow understanding of neurodiversity and how to design inclusive learning environments.
Special Education Needs Coordinators (SENCo) and Learning Support Coordinators (LSC) work within a team or alongside a teacher to understand and respond to neurodiverse ākonga needs in classroom contexts.
These learning support roles have a national network to support professional growth with a specific focus on neurodiversity. Learning Support Study Awards are available for degree-qualified kaiako who want to grow their understanding and capability to support complex and diverse needs.
When schools need additional support, they can also request access to Ministry Learning Support Specialists and the Resource Teacher Learning and Behaviour (RTLB) Service. The supports are shifting to focus on inclusive design of the curriculum and learning supports as part of everyday teaching and learning. Supports focus on adaptations within education settings as well as more targeted and tailored supports for ākonga.
When asked what she wants teachers to know from reading this article, she says she wants teachers to know that it’s important to care that neurodiversity isn’t easy.
“I would recommend learning more about it. And to help us press this issue of neurodiverse inequity, because it’s not their [teachers] fault that they’re not taught or shown how to teach and nurture neurodiverse students.”
Katie says she feels there is no plan for students who think differently but wants people to know that neurodiversity is not a curse.
“Neurodiversity means that this child is possible of great things. Create plans that work and don’t ridicule a student because of how they learn or what they learn. Neurodiversity means you could, you might, struggle in some areas but also excel in other areas.”
Katie recalls the story of an author called Benjamin Zephaniah, who is dyslexic and writes in slang.
“He’s found this whole new level to writing because his mind is just so incredible in the way he thinks and in his perspectives. But he was told, ‘you’re stupid, because you can’t write, or these words are jumbled up on a page so you can’t read it properly’. It’s just incredible the ways that people can turn it around.”
Like her peers who also spoke to Education Gazette, Katie is passionate about making the lives of neurodiverse people easier.
“One of my aspirations is to make neurodiverse students’ lives easier than it was for us, and to make sure that they get a good education, and that they belong in a school. That’s what I want for them.”
Young Neurodiversity Champions is an initiative of the Neurodiversity in Education Coalition which brings together
A Neurodiversity Action Plan for schools is also in development, as well as a new Neurodiversity Clubs initiative, co-designed with
Dunedin artist Ana Teofilo and Queen’s High School kaiako Cherie Ford collaborated on a Creatives in Schools project that has engaged, empowered, and celebrated its Pacific students.
When Dunedin artist Ana Teofilo put a call out to teachers on her Facebook page to gauge interest in partnering on a Creatives in Schools project, she was inundated with responses.
Cherie Ford, kaiako o te reo Māori at Queen’s High School, was one of the teachers who vied for Ana’s attention.
She says she went the un-subtle route: “I replied to her Facebook post with ‘Me, me, me! Us, us, us!’”
Cherie convinced Ana to be their creative partner. She did have a secret weapon though: Ana is a former Queen’s student.
“I was holding out to go back to my own school”, says Ana. “I wanted to return to Queen’s and give the girls what I never had in my years there – a chance to understand and connect to cultural identity.”
Together, the pair designed a project called ‘Finding Our Pasifika Niche’. Delivered by the Ministry of Education in partnership with Creative New Zealand and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatū Taonga, Creatives in Schools is all about fostering wellbeing via creative learning experiences.
As a successful artist who celebrates her Sāmoan heritage in her work – and as a thoroughly empathic human – Ana was made for this role.
Every Friday afternoon over the course of term 2, Ana led a dozen or so senior Pacific students (from Sāmoan, Cook Islands and Fijian backgrounds) through her art process.
“We’ve got students from all walks of life”, says Cherie. “There are some who are very strong in their culture and have only been in New Zealand for a very short amount of time and others who’ve never really identified with their culture.”
Under Ana’s guidance, the students carved motifs and patterns into painted board, embellished the surface with painted glue dots and varnished the finished piece.
Before letting them loose on the carving tools, Ana encouraged them to research their own backgrounds and embed their culture into their motifs.
“It’s important they lay that foundation down so they’re not just carving meaningless patterns.”
Previous art skills or experience wasn’t necessary, with Ana saying, “There’s no judgement on your art. It’s just about sharing and being open.”
Cherie was adamant that this programme be directed towards Pacific students only.
“I wanted to make sure they were at the centre and that we developed this programme around them. This aligns with our school goals and plans for our Pasifika students –just trying to let them know that there’s space in the school for them.”
Year 12 student Tiana has noticed this advocacy, saying, “Whaea [Cherie] backs us PI girls – she’s the backbone of our community.”
The programme is multi-layered. The students think they are there for the art, but really, nurturing their wellbeing is the underlying true purpose.
“They don’t know that’s what we’re doing”, says Cherie. Subterfuge is vital, adds Ana. “Any words like ‘wellness’ or ‘mental health’ are a turn-off for teenagers.
“For me, art is an escape. It’s very therapeutic. When the students are carving and listening to their music, they’re in the zone. It’s a space for them to activate sisterhood bonding and connect to their own heritage.”
Cherie says there’s been some great personal growth happening alongside the art.
“I’ve really noticed the change in a number of them, not only in this space but outside in the wider school – the way that they relate to each other as a group of Pasifika students.
“We’ve already seen a shift for a few of them around how they see themselves. If the programme has triggered their curiosity to find out a bit more and have a bit more pride, we’ve done what we wanted to do.”
There’s also been growth in attendance. At the beginning of the programme, the students would arrive after lunch and pack up around 3pm. Before long, they were drifting in during their lunch hour and leaving at 4pm.
“It’s a great way to end the week”, says Cherie. “I haven’t looked at stats yet but I have a feeling that for a few of the students, their attendance on Fridays has increased.”
Once the juniors have completed the programme in term 3, they’ll hold an exhibition of their works. After that, Ana-less Friday afternoons will no doubt lose some of their sheen.
Ilanevada: “It’s made me more comfortable and confident in doing things like this. I always just identify myself as Māori but with Ana here it’s made me more comfortable to learn and understand stuff about my Sāmoan side.”
Taia: “I did some research and found out all this interesting stuff about the Cook Islands that I wish I’d known when I was younger. I wish the rest of my subjects were like this. If art was like this I’d do it every day of the week.”
Tiana: “Having someone like Ana who’s so advanced in the arts and also the same ethnicity as me has been pretty powerful. I haven’t met anyone like her before – she’s so helpful and I get to hear a bit of my own language. It’s not like being with teachers that we have to impress. We look up to Whaea [Cherie] and Ana but they also get us. In maths or English we wouldn’t just raise our hand or call across the room for help but in this classroom, everyone knows how to ask for help.
“It’s totally different – it’s so free-flowing. There’s less pressure and more creative room and we don’t get graded for it. For a few of us Polynesian girls that pressure of our parents seeing our grades can make us feel disappointed in ourselves. In this class, we all feel like one family. We’re allowed to express ourselves here. This is the space where we all want to be.”
Kura and schools can now apply for Creatives in Schools, which provides funding of up to $17,000 per project.
They will work with their partner artist to plan and run their project. This can be any type of artform such as visual, performance, design, digital arts, Pacific arts and ngā toi Māori. If your kura or school is planning to run a creative project for your ākonga in 2024, visit creativesinschools.tki.org.nz to apply.
Applications close at 11.59pm on Monday 21 August 2023. For questions, email creativesinschools@education.govt.nz.
“She involves us in so many things to do with our culture. It doesn’t feel as if we come to school for a week and hear nothing about your culture till you go home, so it’s nice.”
Zara, Year 13
During celebrations of Sāmoan Language Week at Scots College in Wellington, Pacific students say they are feeling recognised, heard, and empowered to embrace their identity with the support of Pacific Liaison Bessie Fepulea’i.
Avoice is heard saying “Remember your smiles!” as a group of nervous but excited students practise for their assembly in a few minutes.
The voice comes from Bessie Fepulea’i, who is the Pacific Liaison at Scots College.
Bessie’s role as a Pacific Liaison encompasses many aspects, such as helping students manage their academic life, providing them with opportunities and supporting them to embrace their culture within the school.
“When I first started, my role was to identify the needs of Pasifika students coming through the school,” says Bessie.
There’s a significant number of Pacific students who now have the opportunity to attend Scots College, but Bessie says sometimes these students can struggle with the fast-paced nature of the school. She helps them to manage their workload.
Bessie also assists staff with culturally competent ways of teaching Pacific students and how Pacific students’ needs may differ from others.
She is currently helping three international students from Tonga to get a support person as they speak minimal English. They currently have people from the wider Pacific community to help with translations.
Bessie’s role has been funded through the the Ministry of Education’s Pacific Education Innovation Fund. Before this funding, her role was just five hours a week.
“I was doing quite a lot of voluntary work,” she says.
Bessie’s role is now full-time which has allowed more students access to her support.
The funding has also allowed Bessie, alongside others, to create a numeracy and literacy programme for Pacific students at Scots.
Pacific students at Scots College say that Bessie’s support has significantly helped.
“Having Bessie here is definitely a big help for us,” says Year 12 student Hayden. “She helps me be more organised with school and sports.”
Bessie has also organised a homework club which helps students stay on top of their workload.
Year 13 student Zara says having a staff member of the same cultural background makes students feel more comfortable and makes for a better connection.
“She involves us in so many things to do with our culture. It doesn’t feel as if we come to school for a week and hear nothing about your culture till you go home, so it’s nice,” says Zara.
Year 9 student Salote adds that Bessie has really helped her express her identity in a predominantly Pākehā school.
“She has really helped me do that, not only outside of school but inside as well. She keeps us in line and sometimes you just need that kind of comfort to know that you belong,” says Salote.
“It’s important for them to feel like they belong in a school like Scots,” says Bessie.
Bessie also pushes Pacific students to take up
opportunities that are rare. For example, Scots College offers an International Baccalaureate programme.
“We have very few Pasifika who do that course but a lot of that is because they are afraid of it. They think it’s too big for them, but we are pushing them to take on those challenges. We have quite a few of them in the programme at the moment,” she says.
She has also helped students get into Gateway programmes.
“This school didn’t do Gateway programmes. The pathway is university, but some of our students aren’t too strong going to university, but they are good with their hands, and they want to do a trade.”
Bessie also runs Poly group. This is another key role in supporting Pacific students to embrace their identities.
“It gives them that extra, ‘It’s OK, you can be who you are here in this school’,” says Bessie.
“They feel more valued. It’s showing that’s who they are as Pacific people, it’s a part of their identity to showcase like we did today.”
This year marked the first time the school has celebrated Sāmoan Language Week.
“It’s important that people understand who they are and where they come from because Pacific students carry not just themselves as they come through the school, but they carry their families with them.”
Bessie Fepulea’i
Zara says it’s special as the school doesn’t have a large population of Pacific Islanders.
“It’s a week where we get to show the school what we do as a culture and how we express it.”
Many of Zara’s peers feel the same.
Year 13 student Semurana says, “It’s cool to see our culture recognised. It’s cool for them to see our culture and to get involved.”
Hayden also feels excited to share his culture saying, “It’s about getting everyone involved in different cultures and including everyone, getting them to know our cultures and to know who we are as (Pacific) people.”
“We want to make sure Sāmoan language weeks and all other language weeks are able to be celebrated at any time,” says Bessie. “And that they (the students) are able to use their voice to teach and get other people to learn about who they are as Pacific people.”
Bessie says to sustain the efforts made to support Pacific Students, it’s important for continued support for full-time Pacific staff.
She says there is a need for people to “see the worth for what it is here in the school”. Pasifika community work is rarely rewarded monetary-wise and is commonly voluntary.
Bessie says that Scots is doing well in supporting Pacific students and that the school is asking them about their needs as opposed to creating roadblocks.
“It’s important that people understand who they are and where they come from because Pacific students carry not just themselves as they come through the school, but they carry their families with them.”
Bessie applying final touches before the students perform.
Pasifika Alo Fa’atasi standing proudly in front of the Sāmoan flag that was raised to celebrate Sāmoan Language Week.
Marlborough is home to many industries that rely on the land and sea, such as viticulture and aquaculture. An environmental sustainability course at Marlborough Girls’ College gives students an opportunity to take a hands-on approach to environmental challenges in the region.
The cross-curricular environmental sustainability course at Marlborough Girls’ College has been taught as a combined Year 12 and 13 course since 2018. Since then, a teaching team has seen the programme go from strength to strength.
The Year 12/13 course is based around five areas: conservation, farming, marine, school and viticulture.
“We know that students need to understand what sustainability is. We know there’s an issue with the decline in biodiversity. Yes, there are issues with climate change, but the decline of biodiversity is bigger in my mind; they go hand in hand,” says Melynda Bentley, who leads the course.
Originally primary school-trained, Melynda switched to teaching secondary school science in 2014 and is quite comfortable with a student-led cross-curricular programme, co-designed and co-constructed with students.
“We designed our Year 12 and 13 course so that in the first six to eight weeks, there are guest speakers and field trips. Everything is based around sustainability and the theme of ‘Marvellous Marlborough’.
“The students then choose the sustainability issue they are interested in. We encourage them to go for their passion because it is all student-led. Year 12 and 13s can work in the same group but they work on different assessments for two terms.”
If teaching like this for the first time, Melynda suggests keeping the Year 12s and 13s separate, so you can understand the process first.
“We have a structure for them to work through where we focus on the learning and then we bring back NCEA standards at the end. If you’re teaching that way you’ve got to know your standards and where it fits, because that’s how you can guide them,” she explains.
Students learn a myriad of skills that go well beyond science. For example, they might hear a range of perspectives on a trip with a Māori eco-tour to a commercial salmon farm in the Marlborough Sounds.
“We’ll have a guest with one opinion and then another guest negates it. We talk about it afterwards and we break that down. When they are doing their projects, especially Year 13s, they have to find out those perspectives. They interview different people, find out what they think and bring that into how they design their actions. It’s powerful stuff,” says Melynda.
Mentors from the community are happy to be involved and occasionally involve friends or colleagues from further afield. Melynda says people who work in environmental fields can deal with lots of negativity and are often refreshed by the enthusiasm and positivity the students bring.
“In our first year [2018] we had a team of students who wanted to focus on our marine environment and form a marine reserve in the Marlborough Sounds. Through this process, and our coastal scientist from Marlborough District Council, two university professors who are involved with the Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge came on board.”
“You can’t just get Year 9 and 10 ākonga to plant some trees. They’ve got to understand why they are planting the trees: What’s the science behind it? Why does this area need replanting? What was it like before? ”
Melynda BentleyGrace, MacKenzie and Lucy hopped into the chilly Fulton Creek waters to look for the invasive oxygen weed they are studying. Mentor Eric Jorgensen enjoys sharing information and knowledge about marine protection with Melynda Bentley and Year 13 students Jessie and Maddie.
The eight students (the marine team) looked at previous management of the Marlborough Sounds and argued there was an urgent need for better protection.
“They proposed a new way forward – a collaborative group of different stakeholders with powers to protect and manage the marine area,” says Melynda.
They drafted special legislation and won support from the Marlborough District Council to present it to then Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who spent 40 minutes discussing the issues with the students on a trip to Marlborough.
The marine team won the marine section of the Cawthron Marlborough Environmental Awards in 2019.
The winning citation said: “They’ve worked with the community, coastal scientists, university academics, the media, and Cabinet ministers to create political pressure and raise awareness about the Marlborough Sounds. The judges were impressed by their persistent and game-changing approach and congratulate the college for encouraging students to look beyond the classroom and connect with the broader community.”
After the marine study was complete, many of the students took up opportunities such as attending the Sustainable Seas national science conference, presenting their work to the Nelson Conservancy, and a whale watching trip to Kaikōura hosted by the Department of Conservation (DoC).
Through a board scholarship, Melynda had the opportunity to learn about ecosystem-based management (EBM), a holistic and inclusive way to manage marine environments. Students can use the principles of EBM as a tool in the course. While it originated overseas, a version unique to Aotearoa includes Te Tiriti o Waitangi articles and mātauranga Māori.
“EBM is a way we could be managing marine space, but you could apply those principles on land. Our students understand collaboration and getting ideas from different perspectives, but this gives them a structure to work within to make environmental decisions. It’s a really good tool to use, especially when they’re making a decision about their action,” explains Melynda.
She argues that many environmental policies are ‘set and forget’, and designed to address a broad-brush stroke issue which may have become out of date.
By using EBM as a guideline, she hopes her students can develop more flexible solutions.
“EBM is designed so that you might make a decision in a particular area, for example part of the Pelorus Sound. That decision and how you manage it might be different for the Queen Charlotte Sound, depending on the ecology and what the issue is.
“Monitoring is understanding what’s happening with ecology. While you are monitoring, if things change, you will change the way you manage it – that’s adaptability. The beauty of it is that it’s tailor-made for the environment to suit the conditions, not bureaucracy.”
Ākonga interest in marine environments has continued through the years. In 2021, another team of students collated all the work done in 2019 and looked at values.
“They said the sea doesn’t have a voice, animals don’t have a voice, plants don’t have a voice. All the policy legislation is about people and their voices. The students said, ‘Hang on – turn it around!’”
The students presented a document to the Mayor and the Marlborough District Council coastal scientist seeking inclusion of te taiao values in their policies. They also included mātauranga Māori, wairua, mauri and te ao
A group of Year 9 students, with teachers Jenny Pullin and Melynda Bentley, are proud of their Mountain to Sea mahi on the wall behind them.Māori concepts in their proposal.
Further marine studies have included underwater noise monitoring, studying microplastics in the ocean, and monitoring and collecting rubbish. This year a group is looking at the impact of overfishing in the Marlborough Sounds.
“They are looking at kina barrens and restoration, and they have been working with another Sustainable Seas Science Challenge project. If you get a lot of overfishing, kina populations boom, eat all the kelp and there’s not a lot of life. So how do you restore that back? That’s a big problem in the Sounds,” explains Melynda.
Students are also learning about environmental impacts in their own backyard, which includes Fulton Creek on the school’s boundary.
“Each year the Year 12s and 13s learn about climate change. Our Year 13s go and monitor the creek. They have to understand what kind of habitat a kōura would like to live in, then they have to decide if it’s a creek that’s suitable for kōura to live. If it is, what do you have to do to maintain it? If it’s not, what do you have to do to make it suitable for them to continue to live there?”
Year 12 students have visited local orchards and farms to observe how sustainable practices affect the
environment. With viticulture being a key industry in the province, two students ran a public meeting last year on the impacts of spray drift.
“They ran it with Beth Forrest from Forrest Estate Wines, and Edwin Massey from Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ) was their mentor. The students wrote what they wanted to say and one of their mates, who’s a good speaker, spoke for them. About 30 people attended, including parents, teachers and some people from the [wine] industry. It was hugely successful.
“They brought up some really interesting issues and some of the wine industry people are taking it back to think about how they operate,” says Melynda.
In 2021, a Year 9 and 10 programme was introduced to provide a link to the Year 12 and 13 course.
The Year 9 programme, Mountains to the sea, Ki uta ki tai, covers the landscape from Lake Rotoiti, across the Wairau Plain to the sea. The course, which is co-taught and incorporates science and social science, is designed using EBM principles.
Melynda explains that they start this process off with a scenario where ākonga have a challenge.
“There are three possible sites for forestry development.
They’ve got to decide which site is suitable and why. We haven’t taught them anything – it’s based on their own prior knowledge, and they give their reasoning and rationale.
“Then after we’ve taught them about the science, the ecology, mātauranga Māori, kaitiakitanga, human impacts and different perspectives, we give them the scenario with all the information. Every person gets a card, they’re told which person they are (scientist, iwi rep, tourism operator etc.). That’s their role and they act like that person. So, they have a robust discussion and then they come up with an agreement on how to manage this area,” says Melynda.
The Year 10 Mountains to the sea, Ki uta ki tai programme is similar but focuses on environments under the water. A Year 11 programme is currently in development.
As a progress outcome by end of Year 10, this links to Te Mātaiaho | the refreshed NZ curriculum under Te tūrangawaewae me te taiao | Place and environment. Under the ‘Know’ context, students should understand how the suitability of places for living in is influenced by natural and cultural factors; the ways in which people and communities enhance or damage suitability is influenced by the resources they have available to them and by their values and perspectives; how climate change and environmental degradation are impacting inequitably on different communities; and how groups are responding locally and internationally as they work towards environmental justice.
“We want these students to aspire to the Year 12/13 course, but they need to have the knowledge to apply the knowledge. You can’t just get Year 9 and 10 ākonga to plant some trees. They’ve got to understand why they are planting the trees: What’s the science behind it? Why does this area need replanting? What was it like before? They have got to understand the past and the present to go forward to the future,” says Melynda.
The environmental sustainability course can take a while to grow on students, laughs Melynda.
“The bonus of having the Year 12s and 13s together is that I tell the students it’s going to be hard, but they will get there and the Year 13s back me up. It’s scary for Year 12s, probably because it’s student-led and while we still have a structure and a process, they can’t always see the connections as they go through. But I sit and work with them to ensure they’re on the right track and I say, ‘Just trust me’.”
Melynda remembers one student who struggled with writing and had not shown much interest in environmental studies.
“She was in tears, gave me a big hug at prize giving, and said ‘You’ve changed my life, Miss’. She’s doing an environmental course at university.”
Another student aspired to be a baker but was keen to take the environmental sustainability course.
“She was in the first marine team. She went on to do a degree at Canterbury University and she’s just done a summer scholarship with the Cawthron Institute looking at sea grass.
“My challenge to students is, ‘This course is not about converting you. This course is about whatever career you go into. If you ever get an opportunity to make a decision, think about our environment, think about our ecosystems. The decisions you take make a huge difference no matter what job you’re in’. If we can do that with our students – wow!” concludes Melynda.
“Taking this course has inspired me to study environmental science next year to further my understanding of our impact on the Earth and ways we can fix this at a number of different levels.”Jessie, Year 13 student Year 12 student Chloe tested water clarity from a local wetland.
It was the last Friday of term 2 when Education Gazette dropped in to take photographs and see the environmental sustainability course in action. A group of Year 9 students came to show us their Mountain to Sea posters. Then the Year 12 and 13 students found their project groups and the discussion and mahi began.
Year 12 students Chloe and Zayla are researching the amount of merino wool in garments labelled as merino.
“We want them to stop putting plastics such as nylon and polyester in merino garments and calling it merino,” says Chloe.
MacKenzie, Lucy and Grace (all Year 12) have been testing and collecting data about invasive oxygen weed in Fulton Creek on the school’s boundary. The Year 10 programme has been involved in riparian planting and Year 13 students have been involved in monitoring the creek since 2018.
“We want to ask Council to stop spraying the creek and use more sustainable methods in controlling the growth of the weed,” explains Grace.
“Next year our action will be putting weed mats across part of the creek to see if that will stop the growth and allow native plants to be established,” she says.
Jessie, Year 13, took the environmental sustainability course in Year 12. She studied the human impact of mussel farming.
“Last year we researched the sustainability of mussel farming within the Marlborough Sounds. We found that mussel farming is mostly sustainable but does need improvements in areas such as mussel buoys floating
away and rope breaking away and polluting our ocean, along with the use of a large amount of diesel to harvest the mussels. We also found there has been a large decrease in the number of wild mussels growing throughout the Pelorus Sounds.
“Taking this course has inspired me to study environmental science next year to further my understanding of our impact on the Earth and ways we can fix this at a number of different levels,” she says.
Chloe, Year 12, is studying a QE2 wetland on the Ōpaoa River.
“Joanna who runs the wetland is my mentor. We went there and and tested the water for water clarity. I want to dive deeper into the wetland and do a bio-blitz observing all of the flora and fauna, looking at reducing invasive species,” she says.
Mentor Eric Jorgensen was on hand to work with a group on marine protection. After working in the corporate world, he returned home to Waikawa, near Picton. Concerned with the degradation of the marine environment in the Sounds, he set up the Marlborough Sounds Integrated Management Trust to encourage agencies to work together and build cohesion around the issues in the local community.
Eric has been a mentor in the course for four or five years and is currently working with Year 13 students Jessie and Maddie, who are looking at ways to sustain biodiversity on Titi Island. Their group includes some students from Marlborough Boys’ College who are seeking perspectives from local iwi, Ngāti Kuia, on customary fishing in the area.
“It’s one of the best things I do, without question,” says Eric about his mentoring role.
Read more about environmental education, climate resilience and sustainability in our series on Education Gazette online.
Find out more about the Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge and ecosystem-based management at sustainableseaschallenge.co.nz.
Are you ready for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023TM ?
Get your students ready to show their support for the Football Ferns and the world!
Beyond the Pitch is here to provide teachers with interactive resources aligned to the New Zealand Curriculum. Developed by education experts, the interactive platform helps students aged 5-14 connect to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023TM with online lessons and activities. Some of the important learning topics covered are cultural diversity, belonging, respect, teamwork and sustainability.
Bring some international tournament excitement to your classroom with the four curriculum-aligned interactive zones. Subscribe today and be the first to experience the interactive activities as they launch.
Teachers’ explore Beyond the Pitch with your students now. The FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023TM kicks o on July 20 when the Football Ferns take on Norway at Eden Park. Let the games begin!
Connected Ako: Digital and Data for Learning
Building teachers’ digital skills is sparking imagination in learners at Avonside Girls’ High School.
The positive impact of professional learning and development (PLD) is being highlighted at Avonside Girls’ High School in Ōtautahi Christchurch, where teachers’ commitment to upskilling in digital technology is inspiring ākonga. The mahi contributes to the transformation of learning, teaching, assessment, and research.
Avonside Girls’ High School e-learning integrator
Ginni Orr knows that in a world where technology is constantly changing, professional learning and development is vital to stay ahead, and to inspire ākonga to see digital technology as a potential career pathway.
“It’s really important to me to be able to tap into lots of professional development and network within the digital technology industry so that I am aware of what’s going on and gain new knowledge, new ideas and stories that I can take back to the students I teach,” she says.
Ginni’s background is originally in health and physical education, but as a lifelong learner, she has always been excited about digital technology and saw an opportunity to grow her passion into new professional skills.
In 2017 Ginni graduated with a Master of Education followed by a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (digital technologies) in 2020, and in 2022 did further study to receive a New Zealand Certificate in Information Technology. In addition to this she has undertaken numerous PLD courses and has been a member of the Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert community since 2018.
While constantly upskilling herself, she also works alongside students and teachers to help them do the same. The aim is to make digital technology less intimidating and more exciting.
“Digital technology is changing so fast, so it’s really important as teachers that we keep up and that means we can create learning activities for our students that really light the flame and get them thinking about what they can do for the future with tech,” she says.
Wilj Dekkers, professional learning and development facilitator for impactED, says it’s important to have teachers who are confident to deliver digital technology.
“We talk a lot in education about developing lifelong learners with our students, but to develop lifelong learners we need our teachers to also be lifelong learners and that’s why upskilling and professional
development continues to be so important for us as professionals.”
Avonside Girls’ High School students Zoe, Renee and Trinity say it’s “really beneficial” having teachers who can help them with digital technology.
“We can communicate with them and ask them questions about technology which is new and changing all the time,” says Zoe.
“Digital technology is used in day-to-day life and just the fact you can create those things really inspires me,” says Renee.
One of the six areas of mahi prioritised in Connected Ako, New Zealand education agencies’ new digital and data strategy, is maximising teacher and learner capability, a focus evident at Avonside Girls’ High School.
Last year the school was involved with Shark Tank, where industry professionals and education consultants came together in a high-impact experience for kaiako and ākonga in a collaborative event organised by impactED.
Students were challenged to solve the problem: How can we make school better using digital technology?
Renee, Trinity, and Zoe focused on the problem of toilet availability in the school, identified by the students as a
“My aim is to ignite some excitement around digital technology so our students can see it as a potential career pathway and somewhere where they can make a real difference to the world.”
Ginni Orr
real issue, and designed an app which showed when toilets were free or in use.
“What drove us to coming up with the idea is whenever we’d go to the bathroom there’d always be people there and it would take us forever to find a stall,” says Renee.
“We started off thinking of an app because that’s something based around what we use day to day so most students would be able to know how to navigate through apps,” adds Zoe.
The students got to present their app on stage at Shark Tank to other schools, tech leaders and mentors from the business industry, which was exciting for them.
“When we got up on that stage, I just felt excited. We got to share our idea to this whole audience of people,” says Trinity.
The bigger picture is the future Wilj says the conversations about solving the toilet availability issue inside school opened the door for students to look at how this technology could be utilised in industry.
“We’re at a point, not just in education but in industry, where they’re beginning to meld more which creates the most exciting opportunities for teachers to actually be able to grab,” he says.
Simon Brown, co-CEO of Banqer and Ed Tech industry mentor, says it’s important for industry to connect with learners at this level.
Ginni is keen to harness these connections for her students to bring the subject to life and allow students to see what working in the industry can involve, and how they can be part of it.
“At the end of the day I think it’s a two-way relationship. We can communicate the opportunities that we see going forward and what the workforce of the future needs to look like from an industry perspective,” she says.
The involvement of industry experts in designing education events, alongside teachers and former teachers, offers a fresh perspective and exposes possibilities beyond traditional classroom settings.
“In terms of getting more women into tech, I think it’s important to focus on what that opportunity is and ensuring we’re providing that context so women and young girls have an understanding of what a future in tech could look like.”
The Avonside Girls’ High School motto is “Ko HineTitama koe nānā I puta ki te whai ao ki te ao mārama: Educating and empowering young women to achieve now and in the future” which aligns with Ginni’s vision for digital technology at the school.
She says experienced teachers who have developed their professional skill sets will inspire students and may end up producing some of the next generation’s biggest innovators.
“I want to encourage students to be a part of digital technology as a subject, to see that they can have fun, be inventive and imaginative to create solutions to issues that can impact lots of people, and consequently see a place for themselves within the industry. I want young people to see that digital technology is an exciting place to be!”
Watch the video story showing how building teachers’ digital skills sparks imagination in learners at Avonside Girls’ High School.
“We talk a lot in education about developing lifelong learners with our students, but to develop lifelong learners we need our teachers to also be lifelong learners and that’s why upskilling and professional development continues to be so important for us as professionals.”
Wilj DekkersStudents presenting the app they developed for the Shark Tank event.
Learning, teaching, assessment and research can be transformed by digital and data to lift wellbeing, maximise capability and improve learning outcomes.
Learning, teaching, assessment and research at all levels can be enhanced by appropriate best use of digital and data approaches.
Education agencies are working to ensure education includes the skills learners need to thrive in the digital world. This includes approaches to safety and wellbeing, curriculum, assessment and research and building the capability of educators.
There is a rich and evolving digital strand to all these areas of work, including:
Growing digital competence, literacy, fluency and agency are now required for learning, living and participating in society.
This also means designing learning to ensure inclusion of those who face diverse challenges such as disability, neurodiversity, language, socioeconomic and age barriers.
The education workforce requires skills and knowledge to support learners. There are welldeveloped international and local models about what constitutes high-quality digitally enabled inclusive pedagogy. Educators need time to engage with these resources and approaches. Education agencies will encourage training for educators to maximise their knowledge and skills in digital environments.
A dynamic framework such as the Skills
Framework for the Information Age (SFIA), the global skills and competency framework for the digital world, could provide a visible and measurable way of education outcomes aligning with real world needs.
Coralanne Child, director of education for Canterbury and Chatham Islands, discusses how the Ministry of Education and Te Mahau is prioritising the development of teachers and leaders to deliver a rich and engaging curriculum in Canterbury.
“Professional learning and development (PLD) supports the idea that our whole system, and everyone in it, is on a journey of continuous improvement.
“A strong culture of ongoing PLD is positively associated with good-practice classroom strategies and practices and is associated with teachers reporting more positive experiences of their work. Critical to any PLD is not only learning that is personal but learning that is experienced as a team.
“Our investment into a regional digital PLD programme emerged from a call for support from teachers who felt less confident about the digital technology learning areas introduced in 2017, and from learners who were looking to digital technology as a career path and would benefit from working with industry professionals and be challenged by their thinking.
“Our work since with a range of industry partners, teachers, parents and students has focused on digital technologies integration through local curriculum. Our local initiatives are designed to build an understanding of how to successfully build digital technologies through local curriculum with hands-on opportunities and the creation of a suite of Canterbury-wide resources integrating narrative and digital technologies.
“We’ve recently established an alliance of PLD expertise to develop a framework to support kāhui ako to develop a more sustainable approach to implementing digital technologies integrated across the curriculum. Based on learning from work over the last two years, kāhui ako have access to a funded programme to develop this digital technologies framework in their context, a Poutama for learning from early learning through to Year 10, a kāhuiwide context for delivery of digital technologies, and supporting material to go with it.
“The agencies in the collective have been working with the Ministry on a number of projects including the roll-out of Kia Takatu, supporting Māori learners, engaging students in digital pathways and a number of other projects.
“Kāhui ako that do engage come away with a clear understanding of where their teacher capabilities and confidence sit in relation to the rest of the region. They can then choose what next steps they take through regional PLD support available.”
In the coming months Education Gazette is offering a series of articles highlighting digital success stories from across the education sector.
Digitally themed stories, like this one about up-skilling teachers in tech, are being regularly showcased. We will introduce you to students and educators from early childhood, compulsory schooling, alternative education, and tertiary.
You will meet Ngakau (who is learning to drive through virtual reality simulation at Waimate College), Amethyst (who’s developing a student-led Maker Space for
How is learning in a virtual world making young Kiwis safer drivers at Waimate High School?
the Manurewa community through Te Ara Poutama Alternative Education Centre), Romana from Digimatua (who is building digital skills for Pacific families to be able to better support their children’s education), and many others.
Watch all the videos at education.govt.nz/digitalstrategy. All articles will be available online at gazette.education.nz.
How is data better identifying learners in need of support at Massey University?
How is learning with technology expanding young minds at JustKidz Early Childhood Education Centre, Henderson?
How are families with stronger digital skills better supporting children’s education with Digimatua’s Pacific community digital inclusion programme?
How is tech-collaboration transforming learning and opportunities for young people at Te Ara
How can te ao Māori impact a digital world to create a special place for deaf learners at Rūaumoko Marae?
Ākonga from Aupaki Kāhui Ako are still buzzing from Aupaki Tech Fest – a two-day event encouraging hands-on experience with a huge variety of creative technologies to retell special pūrākau significant to the local area.
Under the theme of ‘Exploring the past, Creating the future,’ 150 ākonga from six primary schools in Ōtautahi discovered new technologies and delved into their local pūrākau (stories and legends) in a special festival at Tūranga (Christchurch Central Library) in June.
Aupaki Tech Fest involved ākonga from Te Kura o Matuku Takotako Sumner School, Te Raekura Redcliffs Primary School, Te Kura O Paeraki Mt Pleasant School, Te Kura Tuatahi o Ōhinehou Lyttelton Primary School, Te Tihi o Kahukura Heathcote Valley Primary School, and Our Lady Star of the Sea School.
The kāhui ako has held a tech fest for the last decade using the hall at Sumner School.
A refresh of the concept for tech fest led to a crosscurricular, off-site event to utilise the skills and technology available in collaboration with the Christchurch City Libraries | Ngā Kete Wānanga o Ōtautahi.
In partnership with the kāhui ako, the revitalised Aupaki Tech Fest 2023 was developed alongside Emma Planicka, managing director of Digital Learning PLD – an approved Ministry of Education professional learning development provider that supports schools to build digital fluency and creatively integrate the digital technologies curriculum.
After last year’s tech fest, kaiako got together to talk about next steps and brainstorm ideas to link the tech fest to the Aotearoa New Zealand’s histories curriculum.
“We wanted to ensure the event was meaningful, while also bringing to life the PLD kaiako were undertaking. It was a real team effort! We also really wanted the connections with designing and developing digital outcomes and computational thinking to be stronger,” says Emma.
The choice of Tūranga as a venue was simple. The wifi supports hundreds of devices, with many different technologies available to the public. It also provided PLD for kaiako on the specialist technological equipment, such as laser cutters, 3D printers, the labs, sticker makers, badge making, podcasting, and sound lab, to name a few.
Plus, getting the ākonga to experience what’s available at the library is a great way to encourage them to use the resources after school and in holidays, says co-organiser Anna Granger, principal of Sumner School.
“We want our ākonga to know the full potential that libraries can offer and have an understanding of all of the amazing resources available,” adds Anna.
The event was developed in collaboration with Ngāti Wheke and the Rāpaki Education Team.
There are three core Ngāti Wheke pūrākau at the centre of tech fest teaching. The storytelling strands connect with re-telling parts of each pūrākau, weaving through elements of navigation, habitation, and innovation.
“Our kāhui ako is continuing to develop a really meaningful and reciprocal relationship with Ngāti Wheke at Rāpaki,” says Anna.
The kāhui ako team also worked closely with Christchurch City Libraries | Ngā Kete Wānanga o Ōtautahi kaiwhakahaere ngā ratonga Māori manager, Māia Abraham.
Māia’s support ensured library-led workshops involved culturally responsive practice and he assisted the library team to connect their technology workshops to the pūrākau.
Once ākonga had absorbed the pūrākau in a storytelling workshop on day one, they then participated in four varying technology workshops, where each of the stories shaped their creative content and the digital outcomes.
Some of the workshops were led by kaiako, others by librarians.
“Our idea is to provide access to many different elements of technology, so each child will inevitably find something they love, igniting a new passion or interest,” says Emma.
Day two of the festival began with an inspirational
guest speaker, Avonhead Primary School principal Micah Hocquard, who motivated ākonga with his innovation. Micah talked about Banqer, the online tool he co-founded to teach primary ākonga about financial literacy.
“Through this experience ākonga can see how they can be creators of digital tools, rather than just consumers,” says Emma.
The kāhui ako received funding to subsidise the event for whānau, from the Ministry of Education Canterbury team, Te Mahau | Te Tai Runga, the Linwood-Woolston Rotary Club, and sponsorship from Greater Christchurch Schools’ Network and the Serious Food Co.
Aupaki Tech Fest is an opt-in event, which the kāhui ako intends to future proof, with fundraising already underway for next year’s event.
“Our idea is to provide access to many different elements of technology, so each child will inevitably find something they love, igniting a new passion or interest.”
Emma PlanickaLeft: Using Lego for Stop Motion Animation. Top right: Learning how to navigate the various historical records held at the library. Bottom right: Students were keen to create laser cut artwork using online resources and map data.
“I loved Tech Fest! I really enjoyed learning the pūrākau and the really relevant link to our learning at school at the moment – I feel really confident now in being able to retell the story and understand it because of the links that it made to my technology workshops.” Scarlett
“Tech Fest was epic ... I really loved it and if anything we would love it to be longer so that we could experience more technology!” Marshall
“I did Tech Fest last year and enjoyed it but loved this year. It was so great having a variety of experiences of both activities and people. I loved learning more about early Māori history and being able to combine my learning at school.” Finlay
Te Pūrākau ō Tamatea Pōkai Whenua shares elements of navigation. Tech workshops aligned with Minecraft creation, exploring the past with history resources, programming Sphero across Aotearoa, and coding a micro:bit to make a compass.
Te Pūrākau ō Tūterakiwhanoa connects with habitation, where tech workshops involved badge-making artwork, stop motion with Lego, creating digital art with Procreate and using GarageBand to create Soundscapes to match the moods and feelings within the pūrākau.
Te Pūrākau ō Te Rākaihautū linked to innovation, with ākonga using map data to create laser cut artwork, exploring how to make a podcast, creating GIF animations in Procreate, and exploring iMovie utilising green screen.
A former school gym has a new lease on life following the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes. The facility has been converted into a community-based sports and recreational centre, and since its opening in 2022, has provided numerous benefits to the local community.
Avon Hub, formerly the gym of Shirley Boys’ High School, is bringing more than 17 diverse organisations, four schools and a community together to foster social connections and provide a home-ground for a refreshed sense of community and wellbeing.
Located in east Ōtautahi, the facilities include a
basketball court-sized gym (including the option for two half-courts with hoops), a function and events room, several offices and a large outdoor turf (complete with floodlights) suitable for hockey and futsal.
“It’s a really significant asset,” says Toni Burnside, principal of Pareawa Banks Avenue School, which lies adjacent to Avon Hub.
“How lucky are we to have a brand-new school, with this incredible high school-sized gymnasium next door for us to use.”
Kate Latimer, manager at Eastern Community Sport and Recreation Inc, says Christchurch is generally short of indoor court spaces for community sport and recreation.
She adds that the scarcity was worsened by the major 2011 earthquake on Tuesday 22 February which destroyed so many homes in the suburbs surrounding Avon Hub.
Shirley Boys’ High School had significant land damage and relocated to a new shared site with Avonside Girls’ High School in 2019. Following their move, the school was demolished, with the gym remaining on site.
“The easy thing would have been to demolish the gym when they demolished the whole site,” says Toni, recalling how the sports facilities suffered from a spell of vandalism.
With community support and the go-ahead from the Ministry of Education, the site was refurbished, reopening as Avon Hub in May 2022.
Cody EversonAvon Hub represents a partnership between schools and local sporting organisations.
“It’s a really interesting community model,” says Toni, explaining that her school and those within the wider kāhui ako have access to the facilities both during school hours and after school.
Learners from up to four schools use the indoor facilities for sports, wet weather option for lunches, PE and after-school programmes. After 4pm, through a partnership between the kāhui ako and Eastern Community Sport and Recreation, Avon Hub is used by diverse groups including Wheelblack camps (New Zealand’s Wheelchair Rugby Team), the Canterbury Skating Academy, and TiMA – a tailored physical activity programme for tamariki and rangatahi with disabilities.
Toni says she’s grateful decision-makers worked hard to listen to the community and serve the region while providing room for expansion and growth.
“It’s really lovely to see it being used by those other groups and for it to be an ongoing conversation about how
“It’s a privilege to be able to train at the Avon Hub as it means a lot to me, and seeing what they are doing for a disabled community is outstanding.”Inclusive Rangatahi 3v3 Basketball session run by Matt Vernick, Basketball NZ inclusion manager. TiMA, a physical activity club for children aged 5-12 who have a disability, regularly uses Avon Hub.
else it’s being used and what else could happen,” she says.
Avon Hub has received endless praise from the community since opening.
Cody Everson, Paralympian and captain of the Wheelblacks, attended Shirley Boys’ High School and says it was tough to see his old school demolished. He was therefore glad that the east Christchurch community rallied to preserve its sport facilities.
“Seeing what the Avon Hub has done to the last remaining building is amazing,” says Cody.
“It’s a privilege to be able to train at the Avon Hub as it means a lot to me, and seeing what they are doing for a disabled community is outstanding.”
Riki Edmonds, the Ministry of Education delivery manager who helped oversee the site’s refurbishment, says the community love having a local facility like the Avon Hub.
“It is great to see good quality assets retained and
repurposed that can have such a positive impact on ākonga.”
Even before the earthquakes, adequate facilities for indoor sports were hard to come by.
Kate compares Christchurch’s case to that of Dunedin, a city two-thirds smaller than Christchurch.
“[Dunedin] has 25 indoor courts at the Edgar Centre, which has operated successfully for more than 25 years,” she says.
By comparison, Christchurch has a total of seven courts across three facilities.
“As such, the residents of Christchurch’s eastern suburbs could ill afford to lose the facilities now branded as the Avon Hub,” says Kate.
The courts provided by Avon Hub are essential for special needs sports. Kate says these assets have been “particularly well received by organisations based around
para-sports, inclusion and accessibility”.
She adds this popularity reflects a real desire for well-maintained, inclusive facilities in Christchurch.
“Having identified a clear need for such facilities, services and programmes, we look to extend this in future,” says Kate.
One key step in this direction is a partnership between Avon Hub and the Laura Fergusson Brain Injury Trust, a charity that serves, among others, those with traumatic and acquired brain and spinal injuries. The trust is building a campus directly adjacent to Avon Hub, with agreements in place for patients to use the space for recreational and therapeutic support.
Avon Hub shows the community’s need to come together to enjoy sport, inclusive activities, and to feel a sense of togetherness. The facility’s rebirth represents a new model for how public spaces can be reworked to suit different needs.
“One of our strategic pillars is connecting the community,” continues Toni. “It’s really nice to be involved in that connection – to have a resource like that which we not only get the full use of … but also get to share with our neighbours.”
“The Avon Hub has been successfully transitioned from an unused school gym to a wonderful sports facility that is well utilised and benefits the local community and the sports people who use it. It is a testament to what can be achieved when community groups are prepared to stand up with vision and energy to meet the needs of their community.” Steve Jones-Poole, community development activator of Shirley Village.
“The eastern suburbs lost so many community facilities due to the 2010/11 earthquakes and the transition of the Avon Hub to a community facility has allowed local sporting codes to continue to operate and even grow in the area with the extra capacity it provides.” Greg Mitchell, coach of Canterbury Wheelchair Rugby.
“The Avon Hub is a huge asset. It provides a safe place for our tamariki and rangatahi to spend time with their mates and join in on quality physical activity opportunities provided by the local community.” Isaac Sutherland, Sport Canterbury’s lead community connector.
We know schools are keen to take groups of students and their whānau to attend matches.
FIFA’s Community Group Sale Programme allows groups of 10 or more people to request tickets.
For more information on Community Group Sale Programme, please visit fifa.com/fifaplus
With the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023TM fast approaching, find out how your school or kura can be part of the excitement.
From 20 July to 20 August, some of the world’s best football players will take to the field right here in Aotearoa for a tournament like no other.
As co-hosts of the world’s largest women’s sporting event, we’re lucky to have front-row seats to all the action – both on and off the field.
FIFA want to support schools to get to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ and your school may be eligible. Scan the QR Code on the next page to learn more about the ticket offer for select matches.
Nau mai, Haere mai e Poi in Schools kaupapa! In celebration of FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023TM, Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga | The Ministry of Education supported the development of digital resources centred around a treasured taonga: poi.
This initiative embraces kotahitanga, the art of ako and the strengthening of our connections to both te ao Māori and te reo Māori. It also serves as a platform for expressing manaakitanga to our international visitors, right across the motu.
This kaupapa offers a range of digital resources with the option of learning in te reo Māori or English, including how to make poi and how to use poi.
As we unpack and deepen our understanding of poi and the mana of such taonga we are honouring mātauranga Māori and collectively celebrating from a Māori worldview. Through the provided resources, it is hoped that all will be empowered to be kaitiakitanga of poi and feel confident in creating their own. You will be able to access these resources at eyeson.nz.
If you have any Poi in Schools stories or would like to share how
your rōpū becomes involved with this initiative, please email maori.pacificcommunications@education.govt.nz.
Kōtuitui
Kōtuitui is a learning module to support ākonga in Years 4–8 to develop their knowledge and skills to connect to cultures other than their own, both in Aotearoa New Zealand and across the globe.
Using the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ as a context for learning about culture and collective identity and linked to tthe refreshed te ao tangata | social sciences learning area, Kōtuitui was developed by New Zealand Football and Sport NZ.
A stellar line-up of amazing wāhine has been confirmed to take the stages across the country for EQUALIZE, a free entry, gender-equity discussion series delivered in the four New Zealand FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™ host cities.
EQUALIZE is designed to celebrate, challenge, and inspire current and future generations around the achievements, barriers faced, and pathways forward to girls and women in New Zealand and elsewhere.
For more information about these initiatives and many others, please visit sportnz.org.nz/resources.
Connecting your school and community to the football action | Sport New ZealandIhi Aotearoa (sportnz.org.nz).
Diwali performers visit Wellington’s Newtown School.
Te Kura Kaupapa Motuhake has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent Iwi and all Aotearoa in a vibrant cultural festival in Japan – one of three schools chosen from across the world (outside of Japan). This is one of many ways that New Zealand-Asia connections are strengthening across the motu, with schools relishing opportunities to develop ‘world-ready’ rangatahi.
Ma te huruhuru te manu ka rere ai. Adorned with feathers, the bird is able to fly.
In the small North Island town of Murupara, something big is brewing. Te Kura Kaupapa Motuhake o Tāwhiuau has been selected to represent Aotearoa New Zealand at the 2023 National Japan High School cultural festival in Kagoshima, Japan.
A group of 15 senior students accompanied by kaiako and whānau will represent the kura, Iwi and Aotearoa at the vibrant festival which is attended by up to 100,000 spectators. Only three schools outside of Japan are selected to participate.
The experience is made possible by the foresight and efforts of the kura to equip their students to thrive in Asia – the region that will be most consequential to New Zealand’s future prosperity, security and development, according to the Asia New Zealand Foundation Te Whītau Tūhono.
The kura adopts an immersive trilingual model where students learn Māori, Mandarin and Japanese, including Ainu, an indigenous language of Japan.
From as early as 2009, the kura has been involved in reciprocal learning relationships with other indigenous communities across the globe.
Deputy principal Lianne Bird and kaiako carefully
maintain a special relationship with the Ainu people of Ainu Moshir (Hokkaido, Japan) and Japanese schools via digital and other cultural exchanges.
The students selected to represent Aotearoa will meet the Governor of Kagoshima Prefecture (similar to a district in New Zealand), located on the islands of Kyushu and Ryukyu and with a population of 1.5 million people. They will also get to participate in the official parade, perform at the festival and participate in student exchange events with other participating high schools.
Inngrid, who is 16 years old, will be representing the kura in Kagoshima and has been learning Asian languages for three years now.
“Learning languages, specifically Ainu and Japanese languages, has provided so many opportunities for us as Uri-descendants. It is so exciting to think that soon we will be in Kagoshima sharing our unique Ngāti Manawa culture with Japanese students and then heading to NibutaniHokkaido to reconnect with Ainu whānau,” she says.
In a bid to offer more options at NCEA level, the
“Kāre kē he parapainga i tua atu i te ako reo i Āhia hai huarahi whai i ngā tapuwae a tīpuna mā. We aspire to follow in our ancestors’ footsteps as global citizens.”
Lianne Bird
kura starting teaching Asian languages more than a decade ago.
They have since become a Confucius Class in the Bay of Plenty and are conducting annual indigenous youth cultural exchanges with the iwi taketake or indigenous people of Japan, the Ainu.
“The opportunities extended to our kura through these relationships in Asia are abundant. Our month-long visit to Japan will not only include the Kagoshima Festival but a week in Nibutani and Tomakamai with Ainu whānau, followed by six days on the Peace Boat Japan which is an opportunity for our uri to interact with youth from all over Japan.
“Kāre kē he parapainga i tua atu i te ako reo i Āhia hai huarahi whai i ngā tapuwae a tīpuna mā. We aspire to follow in our ancestors’ footsteps as global citizens,” says Lianne.
Educators in Aotearoa are increasingly seeing the need for students to know more about Asia, and they are not alone. In fact, research conducted by the Asia New Zealand Foundation shows that 79 percent of New Zealanders believe that developing political, social, and economic ties with Asia is important for New Zealand’s future and is the number one destination that young New Zealanders want to travel to and learn about (Perceptions of Asia 2022).
With educators more aware of the need for Asia-related learning, schools are finding ways to introduce Asia into their learning, and it’s a movement that is steadily gaining momentum.
One of the trailblazers is Oropi School which has developed an Asia awareness programme and maintains partnerships with schools in China, Korea and India digitally. Students at Oropi School also have the option to learn multiple languages, including Mandarin.
Oropi School principal Andrew King says, “We specify annual goals in relation to learning an Asian language and learning about an Asian culture. Fostering Asia awareness amongst our students is vital in preparing our children for their future world of work as adults.”
Over in Takaka, Golden Bay High School focuses on one Asian country each year, to help their students learn about different cultures and practices, and as part of teaching students about New Zealand’s own diversity.
The school’s principal, Linda Tame, is passionate about empowering rangatahi to have the skills and attitudes to thrive when they leave school. She says that one important aspect of being “world ready rangatahi” is being able to relate to and work with people from different backgrounds.
“As there are very few people of Asian ethnicity in our school’s community, our students have limited exposure to Asian cultures, values, language, geography and histories, despite how important Asia is to Aotearoa New Zealand,” Linda says.
In the last couple of years, the students have ‘explored’ Indonesia and Japan. This year, students are learning about India and the different aspects of Indian culture in New Zealand. Next year, the school will be focusing on South Korea.
Suzannah Jessep, the director of education at the Asia New Zealand Foundation, says if young New Zealanders do not have the confidence and skills to engage with the countries of Asia, they may miss out on the many opportunities the region has to offer. She adds that “Asia is the new centre of gravity”.
With the refreshed te ao tangata | social sciences learning area, a group of teachers from the Asia New Zealand Foundation’s Education Champions programme saw an opportunity for the Foundation to provide a resource that helped teachers build students’ knowledge and understanding of Asia.
The resource, Making Connections: Aotearoa New Zealand and Asia, provides opportunities for learners in Years 7 and 8 to explore connections between communities and culture in New Zealand and communities and cultures in Asia.
Using the te ao tangata | social sciences learning area, the resource guides learners through inquiries that span the history of Asian migration to Aotearoa and once here, how they settled and integrated and brought new skills and cultures with them.
“We specify annual goals in relation to learning an Asian language and learning about an Asian culture.
Fostering Asia awareness amongst our students is vital in preparing our children for their future world of work as adults.”
Andrew King
Designed as easy-to-use inquiry cards in PDF formats, the resource links to the Understand, Know, Do framework and leads into discussions of te ao Māori concepts such as being tauiwi (non-Māori), manaakitanga (showing respect, generosity, and care), whanaungatanga (relationship, kinship and a sense of family connection) and kaitiakitanga (stewardship and guardianship).
Steve Trotter, a teacher at Rototuna Junior High School, who is also a Foundation Education Champion, trialled the resource with his class.
“The set of inquiry cards was thought-provoking and sparked some great conversations. I like that the resource allowed for a wide scope of learning. I would recommend it; it is easy to modify for class use. The photos are cool, and I like the incorporation of te reo Māori,” he says.
Suzannah notes that social media and the popularity of Korean pop culture and Japanese manga is providing rangatahi with a taste of what’s cool in Asia. But the opportunities are so much more than this.
She says school remains an important source of student knowledge about Asia, but in a recent study of school leavers only half (49 percent) of students who said they knew something about an Asian country said they learned about it at school. The majority said more Asia learning was needed.
Adrienne Smith, teacher at Western Heights Primary School in Rotorua, who contributed to the Making Connections: Aotearoa New Zealand and Asia resource, says, “Asia holds both a world of opportunity and potential for our tamariki. I want to equip tamariki with the skills and confidence needed to one day forge their own way in this unique region.”
The Asia New Zealand Foundation Te Whītau Tūhono is New Zealand’s leading authority on Asia. Their education programme provides kaiako with the knowledge, resources and experiences to equip their students to thrive in Asia.
The Foundation’s Champions programme brings together leading educators from around Aotearoa to act as role models, ensuring knowledge and understanding of Asia is valued in schools and kura.
The Foundation would like to acknowledge the following educators for their input on the Making Connections: Aotearoa New Zealand and Asia resource: Adrienne Smith, Western Heights Primary; Andrew King, Oropi School; Corin Armstead, Coatesville School; Jane Bassett, Havelock North Intermediate School and Lynne Mossop, Greenpark School.
A free resource for teachers, designed for inquiry learning with Years 7 and 8 ākonga. Visual inquiry cards to explore the connections between the communities and cultures of Aotearoa New Zealand and Asia.
Learning linked to Te ao Tangata | Social Sciences
Understand, Know, Do framework.
www.asianz.org.nz
Teacher guide included - scan the QR code!
More than 200 people attended a teacher-only day for Tūranganui-a-Kiwa Kāhui Ako.
Dr Wayne Ngata MNZM.
KĀHUI AKO
A teacher-only day for a kāhui ako in Tairāwhiti provided the first opportunity for local educators to get together in person since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, with a focus on collaboration and knowledge-exchange around Te Mātaiaho | the refreshed NZ curriculum.
The lead principals of the Tūranganui-a-Kiwa Kāhui Ako, along with Ministry of Education curriculum leads, organised a teacher-only day on 24 April to unpack Te Mātaiaho | the refreshed NZ curriculum, focusing the kaupapa behind the curriculum refresh.
Tūranganui-a-Kiwa encompasses three separate kāhui ako of 33 schools working together.
This was the first time that the schools had come together in person since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. It was hosted by Campion College and St Mary’s School. Twenty-four schools were represented, with around 230 attendees altogether.
Keynote speakers included Dr Wayne Ngata MNZM; Carolyn English, chief advisor at the Ministry of Education, and Children’s Commissioner Judge Frances Eivers.
Helen McGuigan, principal of St Mary’s Catholic Primary School and lead principal of Taha Hinengaro
Gisborne Kāhui Ako, says the day provided an opportunity to connect as a region and spotlight incoming changes that “give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and focus on wellbeing”.
Frances’ video keynote challenged those present to have a broader view of ākonga success, and to recognise the strengths, interests and potential of all students.
She talked about the importance of ensuring that every child achieves at school and lives their best lives.
“Look for individual students’ strengths – everyone has a strength that grounds them in a certain direction. If our mokopuna feel safe at school, if they feel it’s part of their whānau and they’re having fun and want to go to school and want to engage then what you’re doing (as schools) is right.”
Wayne unpacked the whakapapa of Te Mātaiaho and
the overarching, guiding kaupapa which expresses the centrality of Te Tiriti O Waitangi articles in its vision for education in Aotearoa.
Wayne is a member of Rōpu Kaitiaki and is the mātauranga Māori expert behind the creation of the model. He also gifted the whakapapa and karakia of Te Mātaiaho.
His kōrero was further elaborated on by curriculum leads Jo Veen and Bruce Hill from the Hawke’s Bay and Tairāwhiti Te Mahau office, giving kaiako and tumuaki a greater awareness and understanding of Te Mātaiaho from a regional Ministry perspective.
Tumuaki had a separate workshop session facilitated by Carolyn English, one of the chief advisors from Te Poutāhū | The Curriculum Centre at the Ministry of Education.
Carolyn unpacked curriculum principles and calls to action from Mātainuku in Te Mātaiaho.
Tumuaki had an in-depth conversation around the shift in language and intent to give effect to Te Tiriti O Waitangi.
Carolyn and tūmuaki also discussed how to implement Te Mātaiaho. The kōrero reinforced that educators all want their students to thrive at school – to be confident and curious.
The broad curriculum presented in Te Mātaiaho provides schools and teachers with opportunities to find the strengths and interests of their learners.
In the afternoon, the educators heard a keynote from Bruce Jepson, president of Te Akatea Māori Principals’ Association.
Bruce shared his vision of kura working in relationship with mana whenua, hapū and iwi. He shared Te Akatea’s vision for an equal share between rangatiratanga and kawanatanga in the education space.
Carolyn says the Ministry has developed a range of tools to help teachers and leaders implement Te Mātaiaho in schools.
“We have an implementation pack which includes a readiness tool to plan and map changes up to 2027, and an overview of implementation supports available and planned.”
Nick Adams, principal of Matawai School, says Te Mātaiaho itself is still in its early stages.
“Having someone share some whakaaro around change management and the complexities involved in taking a new direction with minimal disruption (maximum efficiency, etc) would be great because we are all going to interpret the document in our own setting.
“I was on the Kaitiaki Board for Te Tai Whanake ki Tauranga Moana and the launch is in September. This is a localised curriculum specific to the area. Having something like this would provide a local perspective that would sit alongside Te Mātaiaho. So having a local entity (iwi/hapū) to speak about each tohu from the document’s whakapapa would give us a head start in implementing Te Mātaiaho here in Gisborne.”
Reflecting on the day, Ryan Tapsell, tumuaki of
Manutuke School, says, “Engaging with colleagues from different schools and educational contexts provided an opportunity to share insights, exchange ideas, and learn from one another’s experiences.”
Find out more about Te Mātaiaho | the refreshed NZ curriculum at education.govt.nz.
Explore the implementation pack and readiness tool at curriculumrefresh.education.govt. nzsupport-schools-leaders-andteachers.
Year 2 students Milana and Olivia enjoying their first day back at Eskdale Primary School after the cyclone clean-up.
Photo: Warren Buckland.
Almost immediately after Cyclone Gabrielle began causing damage, Network for Learning detected some outages across its network, peaking at 291. They explain how they supported schools to get back online, particularly one hard-hit primary school in Napier.
Few weather events are as terrifying, or powerful as a tropical cyclone. At the beginning of February this year, Cyclone Gabrielle caused devastating damage to property and lives around the country.
Devastation was widespread, but some of the hardest hit areas were in Hawke’s Bay, Coromandel, West Auckland and Tairāwhiti.
Many schools and kura sustained serious damage, experienced short- or long-term power cuts, or were required to close (most in the short term, but some longterm), which heavily impacted local communities.
This is where Crown-owned organisation Network for Learning (N4L) stepped in to do what they could for recovery efforts.
N4L, on behalf of the Ministry of Education, provides managed broadband, wi-fi and cybersecurity products and services to state and state-owned schools and kura across the motu.
Almost immediately after Cyclone Gabrielle hit, they began detecting a mounting number of outages.
As schools lost their power, they also lost internet, wi-fi and/or phone coverage, so, in some cases, they were unable to even let N4L know they needed help.
N4L, however, was able to remotely detect the outages on its systems. Initially, N4L quickly tallied 64 schools with internet outages, with the number eventually climbing to a peak of 291.
Over coming weeks, it was reduced to four schools, all of whom had networks that were impacted as well as property damage so severe, they would require a full rebuild or relocation.
Partnering with Downer, Spark, Chorus, New Era and local fibre companies, N4L proactively monitored schools’ systems for outages and reconnections, worked with Civil Defence and the Ministry to support on the ground where possible and followed up with schools to ensure reconnection, so that ākonga could quickly return to learning.
Complex fixes were being undertaken by their partners. In some cases, underwater fibre cables were damaged or severed, and these needed to be replaced or restored. In other cases, school networks were moved over to networks with working fibre links.
As well as the focus on reconnection, N4L also helped some schools temporarily relocate.
At Eskdale School, a primary school in Napier, the Esk River had burst its banks and completely submerged the school’s lower field and playground. Once the water had receded, the entire area was covered with half a metre of silt.
Many of Eskdale’s students had been rescued from perilous and traumatic situations. Ninety seven students at the school were directly impacted by the cyclone, ranging from being lucky to be alive to losing land, possessions or houses. Forty seven students were permanently displaced from their homes.
Fortunately, none of Eskdale’s school buildings were damaged, but the flooding had badly impacted their septic, sewage and wastewater systems and left them with no power, phone line, running water or internet, so students couldn’t return to school.
Keen to resume teaching, Eskdale made the call to relocate their 300 students to six makeshift learning hubs at the local playing fields at Petane Domain, calling on N4L to support them in this task.
Utilising buildings like the Eskdale Bowls Club and soccer club rooms, as well as a newly installed marquee, N4L collaborated with partners Spark and New Era to create new internet connections from scratch for all of these buildings. Also complicating things, the different learning hubs were spread out from each other, some as much as 500 metres apart, so each building needed a totally new connection created, rather than being able to ‘piggy-back’ onto each other’s signal.
“The support N4L provided was excellent,” says Eskdale School principal Tristan Cheer.
“They made things happen quickly – which isn’t always
possible for a school trying to get things sorted. The routers were sent to us, and Chorus was working on the internet lines before schooling had even begun on the Domain.
“I was really impressed just by how much of a bespoke solution N4L were able to come up with for our situation. They stepped up and made things happen, so our kids could get back to learning, get some normality and teachers could get back to doing their job.”
In late March, Eskdale was finally able to return to their usual school site and resume teaching there.
“We’re still waiting to get our school field back,” says Tristan. “That’s getting close. Everything else is operating as it should. It’s four months ago now and it still feels like it was only just yesterday.
“You wake up and think it must have been a nightmare, but you look out your window and see some of the remnants of the damage and you realise it wasn’t a nightmare – it did happen.”
Eskdale School has been incredibly courageous, showing amazing strength and resilience. N4L say they were proud to be able to play a small part in getting them back on their feet.
For more information about N4L, visit n4l.co.nz.
“I was really impressed just by how much of a bespoke solution N4L were able to come up with for our situation. They stepped up and made things happen, so our kids could get back to learning, get some normality and teachers could get back to doing their job.”
Tristan CheerWhen the Esk River’s banks burst, it flooded Eskdale Primary School’s lower field and left thick silt in its place when the water receded.
Kura and schools will work with their partner artist to plan and run their project. This can be any type of artform such as visual, performance, design, digital arts, Pacific arts and ngā toi Māori.
If your kura or school is planning to run a creative project for your ākonga in 2024, apply now for Creatives in Schools.
Applications close 21 August 2023.
To apply, visit: creativesinschools.tki.org.nz
For support with your applications, please email: cisregionalsupport@core-ed.ac.nz
For questions, email: CreativesinSchools@education.govt.nz
Place an advertisement in the vacancies section and reach both the passive and active jobseekers by contacting Jill Parker: jill.parker@nzme.co.nz 027 212 9277
Reduce Workload and Stress (Years 11-13) Use our Editable Assessment Masters, Internal and End of Year.
www.sincos.co.nz
SINCOS Mission Statement: Reducing Teacher Workload
This is a school with aspirations for their children and a school with heart. Situated on the West Coast, the school is awe-inspiring, with breath-taking surroundings. Pivot a full 360º and you will take in views of Mount Cook, the Tasman Sea and an extensive area of native bush on the eastern boundary of the school. This landscape reflects the scope, depth, and uniqueness of this role and opportunity.
The Board of Trustees seek a collaborative, caring, innovative and dynamic leader who continues to deliver on excellent results, providing outstanding educational opportunities, whilst ensuring a localised curriculum for local children. The new Principal will find themselves supported by a warm and involved community, a stable and highly professional staff, and a supportive, forward-thinking Board of Trustees. All in the school and community look forward to welcoming and working with their new leader.
To learn more about our school, what we seek in a Principal, and to apply for this position, please visit: www.karoro.school.nz
Applications close on Monday the 14th of August at 5pm
We are searching for an exceptional person to join our team. This position attracts 5 permanent units (4 Deputy Principal, 1 SENCO). You will be joining our school at an exciting time as we redevelop our school strategic plan and priorities to suit the needs of our ākonga and their whānau.
We are looking for a dynamic, proactive, committed, and engaging person to join our leadership team, in a supportive and rewarding environment. We want someone who would cherish the opportunity to be part of our semi-rural community.
We seek a leader who:
» Has proven successful leadership experience
» Has proven experience and is highly competent in the role of SENCO
» Is energetic and proactive, compassionate and caring
» Has great ‘people skills’, including a high level of emotional intelligence
» Is a team player who is flexible, adaptable, and solution-focused. Can work closely and collaboratively with a wide range of people, including parents, the Principal, the SLT, and the Administration Team
» Is experienced in collating and analyzing data, and skilled in utilizing data to develop strategies to accelerate student learning
» Has strong teaching and learning pedagogy across the curriculum, including assessment practices, and can lead school-wide teacher development
» Is an outstanding classroom practitioner
» Demonstrates cultural responsiveness, a commitment to Tiriti o Waitangi, and the ability to promote Te Ao Māori
» Has an excellent sense of humour
» Is a confident public speaker
Applications close 26 July. For an application pack, please email Bevan Clark clark.bevan@waiaupa.school.nz
Permanent
We have a vacancy in our Senior Leadership Team for an innovative Deputy Principal who is motivated, organised and has proven skills in curriculum development and student leadership. All members of the Senior Leadership Team have a role in leading pedagogical change in flexible learning spaces in our new school.
Strength in leadership around Tikanga Māori is an advantage.
The successful applicant will be expected to have experience in strategic development, excellent interpersonal skills, a strong work ethic, a good sense of humour and an awareness of current educational issues particularly in a boy’s school.
Applicants should be well qualified, experienced and highly motivated, with a commitment to high standards of achievement in a boys’ school environment. A strong commitment to restorative practice and culturally responsive and relational teaching approaches is essential. Responsibilities will be negotiated with the successful applicant.
Ka mohio hoki ki ngā ūara o te kura, ara ko te whakawhānaungatanga, manaakitanga, tika, pono, maia, aroha me te mahi tahi.
Application details: Information pack (including application form) can be obtained from the Principal’s PA email f.semenoff@wbhs.school.nz
Applications close: Monday 31 July 2023
The Boards of Trustees of St Oran’s College are looking to appoint a visionary and collaborative Principal, who has a strong commitment to both our special character and educational excellence.
St Oran’s College is a Year 7 - 13 state integrated Presbyterian girls’ school in Lower Hutt, with a maximum roll of 504 students, and an established reputation for empowering young women to be the best they can be.
We are seeking an experienced educational leader who is committed to professional learning, is positive, innovative, and well organised and who loves working with teenage girls.
Contact Sarah Worthington, Secretary to the Board at St Oran’s College, for an Application Pack at sworthington@storans.school.nz
For more information, visit the College website www.storans.school.nz
Closing Date for applications: Monday 14th August 2023.
Rototuna Junior High School is seeking to appoint a new Principal to provide leadership to further build on the successes and reputation of the school. This is an outstanding opportunity to combine your collaborative leadership experience with your passion for leading student educational achievement.
The school is a modern learning environment (MLE) school based in north Hamilton. The school operates as part of Rototuna High Schools – with the Junior High School and Senior High School operating collaboratively on a shared campus.
This is a complex Principal role that involves significant input to the future of the school due to a large student roll and a building expansion and re-design programme. The role requires someone who can adapt and grow with the school, bringing new ideas, but also being true to our vision.
As a combined schools model, it is essential that the Principal can collaborate effectively to ensure seamless education for students as they progress through year levels.
We are seeking a Principal who:
• is an innovative, collaborative leader who is passionate about academic and personal success for students.
• can demonstrate proven success in leading student educational achievement.
• has experience of leading innovation and change in learning design and delivery (for the middle school or NCEA years).
• has a future focussed approach in the development of individualised student pathways.
• can build leadership in others through coaching and mentoring.
• has open and honest communication together with a sense of humour and the ability to work effectively with the Senior Leadership team of both schools, and the wider staff. Candidates can download a position description and apply online at www.sheffield.co.nz To apply by email, attach your cover letter and CV and send to cvwlg@sheffield.co.nz quoting reference number 8575ED. Closing date: 02 August 2023. Emails will be electronically acknowledged and further correspondence may be by email. Consultant: Patrick Rooney on 021 458 362.
This year the first cohort of Leadership Advisors began providing support to Principals as a new frontline service to schools. Since February, Leadership Advisors have had nearly 1,000 engagements with school leaders individually or in a group/cluster.
We are now looking for the 2024 cohort and call for Expressions of Interest to fill the 12 regional advisory and three national focus advisory positions:
› Rural and Small schools with a Cyclone recovery focus — Hawke’s Bay based.
› Supporting Pacifica Principals — Tāmaki Makaurau based › Area School Advisor — based in Te Waipounamu. We welcome Expressions of Interest from experienced and recently retired Principals from across the sector, school sizes and types. Secondments are for 12, 18 or 24 months. Applicants’ most current renumeration will apply.
The Leadership Advisors will focus on Principal/Tumuaki in English and Māori medium schools/kura. Your expertise, mana, passion and experience will enable you to contribute to building leadership capability in the sector.
For more information refer to the Education Gazette — online vacancies, and search under leadership section in your region: https://gazette.education.govt.nz/vacancies/ Applications close 9am, 21st July 2023. Successful candidates will know by the end of term 3.
Be part of the Leadership Advisory team as we Support and build leadership capability across the sector, support transformative change across the system and help in the design of a sustainable Leadership Advisory model.
TE PIRIMIA.
Kia whakanui tātou i ngā ringa waihanga, ringa auaha, ringa rehe o anamata.
He paraihe e $2,000 te nui i whakaritea mō te tino tauira e whakaatu ana i te kairangitanga o te mātauranga ahumahi ki ia kura.
Kotahi te tauira Tau 12, Tau 13 rānei o ia kura e māraurau ana kia whakawhiwhia ki te Tohu.
Ka tuwhera ngā tautapatanga o 2023 hei te 17 o Hūrae, ka kati hei te 23 o Hepetema.
KA RIRO I NGĀ
KAIWHIWHI HE PARAIHE E $2,000 TE NUI
Mō ngā puka tautapa me ērā atu mōhiohio, toro atu ki: pmvea.education.govt.nz
Mō ngā pātai, tuku īmēra ki: vocational.excellence@education.govt.nz
AWARD.
Let’s celebrate our future creators, innovators, crafters and tradespeople. There’s a $2,000 cash prize for the top student who demonstrates vocational excellence at each school or wharekura.
One Year 12 or Year 13 student per school or wharekura is eligible to receive the Award.
Nominations for 2023 open on 17 July and close on 23 September.
RECIPIENTS RECEIVE A CASH PRIZE OF $2,000
For nomination forms and other information, go to: pmvea.education.govt.nz
For queries, email: vocational.excellence@education.govt.nz