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The benefits of a musical mind
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RUBY MURPHY strikes a chord for the importance of music in student development.
Ilove music. The Ministry of Education also provides music resources to help It has been a part of my life forever, and since I was six I teachers learn about, and teach music to their students. They can have been learning the piano. Now I am also learning guitar. download the books and adjust to meet the needs of children in We do some music at school, but I’m wondering why it’s not a their classrooms. regular thing every child learns. Knowing that the Government provides these things, why could You’ve got the regular reading, writing and maths, but when it there still be a lack of music education in primary schools? comes to learning about music, there seems to be a gap in the There is one problem that occurs with the Out of Hours Music bridge. Kids need music. The New Zealand curriculum talks and Arts Scheme, and that is that the school staff members about the importance of music to encourage teachers to bring ‘Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, cannot be teachers of the groups. The school has to find music into classrooms. There are many reasons kids need music. Research shows music helps improve success in many for some schools. flight to the imagination, and life to everything.’ outside teachers to teach the kids. This could be challenging areas of school life. It improves attitudes, increases motivation A study into 1000 teachers in five countries revealed challenges and attendance in school, and improves academic performance. with teaching music in primary schools. It described the lack of Music helps the brain to thrive in areas such as maths, reading, and even being able to control your emotions. Music improves teachers’ musical experiences, that there was no time to teach music, and the need for more experience in music education. memory, increases creative thinking and helps with social skills I interviewed my guitar teacher, Nick. He said ‘the government like teamwork, leadership skills and relating to others. It also does not provide enough funding to primary schools for any builds confidence, problem solving and self-discipline. music education above the most basic level. Because of this, any The New Zealand School Curriculum talks about music as an important part of young children’s lives. It says, ‘By making, music education that happens, has to come out of the school’s budget.’ sharing, and responding to music, students contribute to Nick thinks there is not enough music education being taught the cultural life of their schools, whanau, peer groups, and overall. He also said Flanshaw Road School did exceptionally communities. As they engage with and develop knowledge and well in music education. deeper understandings of music, they draw on cultural practices Sadly, this is not the same in every primary school. and on histories, theories, structures, technologies, and personal I have talked about why music is great for kid’s brains, and experiences.’ builds confidence, and that the Ministry of Education provides It is challenging and connects to children’s everyday lives and programs and resources, but there are still challenges for experiences, such as birthdays, festivals and sports events. There teachers who don’t have any musical experience, and there is are some programmes and resources the Ministry of Education not enough funding from the government. provides, like the Out of Hours Music and Arts Scheme. It is a As Nick says, everyone is responsible for something. programme for years 1 to 8. There are music classes and others, like sewing and cooking. Teachers, students and the Government all have a role to play to make sure everyone gets a good music education. As the At Freyberg school they have this programme and their education famous Greek philosopher Plato said ‘Music gives a soul to the co-ordinator Linda says ‘. . . our music classes are very popular universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life and they build confidence in the children and they enjoy them to everything.’ very much.’
Policy pilots need to grow new solutions
ANNABEL AITKEN (top) and NATALIA NOONE-JONES: We need to think about what children want, we need to think about other people and what they want changed.
With the elections coming up later in the year, it’s important politicians, parties and the public have a summary of the most important issues we are seeing in education today. Every party has their own policies and promises about what will happen if they are elected. We hope these five major issues for education could be considered as part of them. With a shortage of teachers, low pay and low funding for some schools, there is lots to think about. The following problems are the most important changes that need to be made. Who will take action on them? Who will ensure us a solution? How will they change? We need to think about what children want, we need to think about other people and what they want changed.
Funding
Schools have recently been offered to be opted into a scheme allowing more funding depending on the number of students they have, but it still isn’t enough for many schools, especially small ones. Some schools still lack the right amount of funding and are in need of more. We still need more equipment; sports, playground, other upgrades and extras that are also very important.
Students need to feel they are receiving the same opportunities and equipment that other schools are, and the right amount of funding for what the school requires.
Decile
Some students are finding it difficult to be in a low decile school. Private schools and public schools are great examples of high and low decile schools and the difference between different types of schools and the funding and resources they receive. Every school needs a safe environment for children to feel secure and not be mocked by others about their school’s decile or what they are getting compared to other schools. Decile schools are practically fighting over wealthy families and poor families.
Exams/NCEA
Exams may not exactly have the best system. Some students are stressing about the amount of time they have to complete tasks/exams and study too much. This can be a waste when students are up late and take too much in at once, resulting in themforgetting everything the next day and therefore losing the progress they made. Maybe independent times in different places are a good idea so that pupils aren’t cheating or feeling as though they are falling behind in time management. Stress is never good for students and can be caused by the pressure they put on themselves for their outcome in the test as well as the stress of studying for NCEA.
Safe learning environments
Buildings need to be safe. Some students are working in classrooms of which are poorly built and not fit for the purpose of learning in. Many schools are dealing with old, unsafe classrooms and need funding to repair, rebuild or upgrade them. Students need to feel safe at school so they can feel safe learning, if we don’t have substantial, stout, immovable buildings, then children would feel vulnerable and defenceless. It’s not a good look - children fearing over how classrooms are built.
'We want . . . schools linked to future jobs'
Curriculum
We are not being taught the importance of what we learn, and need more extra-curricular opportunities within schools linked to the future jobs we may have or desire. Children need to know about all the sorts of unlimited jobs out there, so they know what they want to do for the rest of their lives and have the chance to pick something rare and unique. If we are not informed about and educated with the necessary skills for the jobs we may choose, without realising it, having never tried it, we may miss out on something that could’ve been huge in our lives. It’s completely up to the child to choose what to study at universities, but the unlimited options are pulling them back. What are we meant to choose? Everything would feel much more comfortable knowing exactly how you’re going to live your life without stress or pressure. More curriculum activities are an amazing way for kids to express and truly know what they love. Overall, our five main problems are funding, decile, exams, safer learning environments and more life curriculums. We hope politicians will consider them because it may affect children and their learning capabilities. Students also need power over their own learning so it is suited to them and they can strive for a great educational future with their voices heard and more options from schools.
Living up to Polynesian expectations
SAINTS TUITAMA wants Polynesian communities to look harder at the pressure they put on their kids.
Ijust need a rest’. of us Polynesian youth. From a young age, I was so tempted to purposely injure we are encouraged to play the ‘typical island myself during the game just so I didn’t sports’ such as rugby, or rugby league, but have to play. I was exhausted from all the not only that, we are expected to be the best school work, studying for church exams, at these as well. plus extra training for other teams from the When I was six years old I was pretty much previous nights. forced to play rugby and my parents would I felt so drained to the point I wanted to cry. yell from the sideline every Saturday, ‘come people are heavily influenced by what they My instinct told me to give up, but I had on Saints, why are you so slow’ or ‘You see and hear. to put a mask on and act like nothing was wrong to impress those around me wishing they would at least show the slightest gesture of pride in me. better score at least one try’, not even acknowledging I was only a little boy and we had only just been taught how to catch and pass a ball. Exposure to an idea, concept or opinion normalises it and ends up being accepted by everyone else for example: Polynesians not being academically talented and only gifted This is the harsh reality of many of us I personally feel like our family gives us so in sporting. Polynesian youth, those with power over our lives are listening to the stereotypes provided from others, and making this our new unfortunate reality. much pressure when it comes to us playing sports because firstly, us islanders are naturally talented and have become overly successful in sporting. The social and racial divide between Polynesian and other cultures has grown over the years putting thoughts into the minds of our families who then start to believe it. In our Polynesian community there is a neverFor example, over the past 10 years there has Which is why us kids experience so ending cycle of others deciding our dreams for us. As a Polynesian, growing up it was such a struggle “They should . . . ignore these much pressure and have to live up to expectations, because we get compared to other ethnicities based having to live up to the expectation’s on the stereotypes heard from society, others set me. I know for a fact that there are so many other Polynesian teenagers deceptive stereotypes.” leading many of us to be depressed and commit suicide. The suicide stats among the attached that can relate to this struggle. Unfairly high expectations are affecting numerous Polynesian kids such as myself. The suicide rate of Polynesian kids is evident according to statistics. Just over the past year there have been over 20 suicides committed by Polynesians within the ages of 14-18 in Auckland alone. been a total of 83 All Blacks with Pacifica descent. But also, because the stereotype ‘islanders are only good at sports but are not academically gifted’ has become a vivid belief in so many of our parents’ minds, they believe the only way their children can be successful in life is by playing sports and hopefully making a career out of it. links should be a significant motivator to all our Polynesian families. They should no longer pay attention to any of these deceptive stereotypes made from society forcing them into thinking their children aren’t good enough, but rather take in to consideration the potential each and every one of us Polynesian teenagers have This should be a prime wake up call to all our Polynesian community. They expect us to be the very best at every single thing such as education, sports, and church events, without considering how it makes us feel and not even knowing the consequences there are towards us children building up this much pressure. This is why the pressure from the sideline and all the growlings after games start from such a young age. This leaves a small variety of options for us kids, as we have so much talent in other areas not involving sport. But because of this stereotype others believe we would not and instead of allowing so much pressure upon us Polynesian kids, show some appreciation and pride in us with whatever we do. This would definitely decrease the numbers of such terrible tragedies happening among our generally joyful Polynesian cultures. There are many reasons for these expectations, but the main reason is many of our families be able to compete with the ‘high class’ kids such as Europeans or Chinese. Links are first- and second-generation immigrants. Moving to New Zealand is basically the American Dream for all of the Pacific islands, This leads us Polynesian children to depression, suicide etc. We cannot cope with the pressure about ‘always being the best at https://www.allblacks.com/teams/all-blacks/ http://www..org.nz/ with its wealth and many opportunities that sports every game, every weekend’ but we https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/ you wouldn’t otherwise see back in our wish they would realise us Polynesian youth health/91938328/study-pacific-youth-morehomelands. have a lot of potential academically as well at-risk-of-suicide-than-any-other-group Polynesian leaders and parents want us to succeed in every aspect of life in order for us to not have to experience the way of living and if they gave us the support we needed we would be able to succeed just as well as any other teenagers in other ethnic groups. they did back in the islands. This representation of Polynesian is Family plays a major role in the sporting life negatively influencing many Kiwis, as
Inside the inside out
STEVE MATHAIS reveals his Aotearoa experience in deconstructing racism.
As we in our little nation begin to return to a semblance of leaving the victim with shame and the perpetrator with amnesia. normalcy, the world beyond our shores is experiencing Last year, we experienced the greatest tragedy our country has seismic rumblings of civil discontent. ever seen in the horrific murders of those who were in their house This isn’t altogether unexpected, but seeing a man plead for his of worship. Promptly, I saw almost everyone used a Facebook life and be murdered by those sworn to protect his liberties in profile filter saying: ‘This is not us. No, indeed, we are not like broad daylight seems to be the straw to finally break the camel’s that monster, but we are still living with the undertones of racism. back. Not one migrant friend I spoke to, could corroborate the sentiment People all over the country stand in solidarity for the plight of ‘this is not us’ because quite frankly we have all experienced African Americans because the it. Though I have personally ongoing systemic racism they face, simply to breathe is highlighted in no uncertain terms, George Floyd ‘This is not us . . . actually, it is.’ experienced overt racism, it’s not always so pronounced. ‘where are you from, no I mean died betcause he was black. where are you really from?’, had I not been born overseas and You may ask yourself, how is all this relevant in New Zealand? provided an acceptable answer, I don’t know how long I could This is how. We often think of racism as an overt and clear act keep up the charade of smiling and continuing conversations. such as the murder of George Floyd, however, racism in its most This is just one example, I could list many more. sinister form is much more insidious. Racism is most effective This is piece is not to stoke white guilt because racism exists when it is applied sparsely as butter is, over too much toast. across all races. With all that is going on in the world, we should Sprinkled in conversation, veiled as jokes and banter. take a moment of introspection to examine all our lives. In our I came to New Zealand when I was five years old. When I arrived, own country, how are we managing our biases? How long can I spoke no English, I had no idea what circumstances I would we marginalise and antagonise those in lower socio-economic face. I was just a cheerful young child who wanted nothing more situations and still claim we are all good? How can we be more than to learn about everything in his new environment. equitable to our Tangata Whenua? The first lesson came swiftly in the classroom, in the form of These are the questions coming to my mind. Perhaps we just contemptuous laughter, all because I was different. We often fear need to acknowledge we aren’t all together perfect, we do in what we don’t know. Out of pure necessity, I had to throw away fact have problems but we can begin to challenge a pre-existing almost every vestige of my identity to fit in, to avoid racism. cultural consciousness and reform it to be better. You couldn’t, however, stop the feeling no matter how hard you Racism is not an easy topic to confront, but it is necessary. In an worked or achieved there were people who thought they were ideal world, our fear and ignorance would be replaced with the superior to you simply because they had a different complexion thought we are all human, indivisible, inalienable, interdependent than you, especially because you were the minority. and interrelated. You have to roll with the punches, laugh along with the jokes Here is how we can begin: Love people, accept there will be imitating the accents of your people speaking English. People differences, practice empathy and extend compassion because who were multilingual and highly educated individuals. But we all need it. none of that matters when you are an ‘other’. Racism is insidious, Let’s take the opportunity to make a better world.
Open schools to wider learning
TALHA KHAN wants more school time given to increasing student exposure to wider learning and life-skill subjects.
Schools in New Zealand have a variety of common subjects such as math, science, English, even subjects such as health and physical education. When it comes to advancing learning in our schools, this coming election could provide the push schools need to advance learning and allow students to learn more skills to help in their future. This may mainly involve high schools but could include intermediate and primary schools. Advanced learning can mean more opportunities and learning areas which might not actually be subjects. We already have extracurricular activities such as debating, culture clubs and student newspapers. We could have more. These could include my own choices like robotics, archery, and camping skills. There are many cool and interesting activities which could be seen as subjects. Extra-curricular subjects can bring opportunities for students who would like to have some knowledge of coding or planting. There could be ways students could take a class of planting or coding twice a week for an hour in school time as a curriculum subject. There are schools already providing these types of benefits. In this election year we could lobby our politicians and political parties to support and encourage this kind of knowledge-gaining experience in all schools and on a regular basis. Students often wonder exactly what they want to do with their lives. Many have a natural talent to become lawyers, or firefighters – one vocation or another. If students were to be provided with a more enhanced curriculum, let’s say it included robotics, it could encourage them to focus on a possibly over-looked career option in robotic engineering. Subjects like these could also help students be more prepared and ensure they are on a successful path. There is a quote saying ‘Be somebody nobody thought you could be’. This could be an impressive motto to encourage students to find something they are good at and enjoy, and follow the path through. Another area for an advanced learning environment could be philosophy, which can help students think about ethics. Another could be financial literacy which could help students better understand and apply proper finance management skills. Another could be in lateral thinking, where students are able to use their perceptive mind to solve problems with creativity. So many more topics could be brought to schools and help encourage students to follow a successful path, no matter where they come from or what school, ethnicity or cultures they have. Diversity itself could be a subject. The idea is to provide more subjects not already considered in schools, yet which could be eye-openers and give students a path to success. I can confidently say every school wants their pupils to succeed, and be on a brilliant journey, and this kind of advanced learning can benefit them massively. In future, when push comes to shove, students can be remarkably prepared to solve issues as they arise, and be prepared for an issue before it actually happens.
Rough to smooth changing school
ARDYN MCCARTHY goes from senior to junior overnight.
Change can be something hard to cope with and my change was a big change, moving schools. It was hard saying goodbye to my friends, and starting new Changing schools didn’t only mean new stuff it meant harder stuff. The work took on was a bit difficult because I had
was difficult. There were people I had never seen in my life before and now had to know for seven years, with new teachers for seven years. One of the hardest things that I found is your friendships you have built from primary school won’t be the same, you both might grow up to like different things, you won’t see them as much and they will have different friends as well.
Petrified
When it was my first day I was petrified, I could barely utter a word and stared around at the kids who were double my size. I was lost. But then some people called me over that were in my year and I started hanging out with them and now have some really good friends who share the same interests. School was a different experience on the first day. I didn’t know where to go and where which class was which. I was used to just staying in one class and learning most of my subjects from one teacher but this year I had teachers for I also had new subjects I had never learned it before, I was a bit confused.
Hero to zero
I went from the leader of the school, the alpha, to the little kid. Another thing was blending in. I went from a tiny school where everyone knew my name and who I was to a big school where not many people even know who I am. I aim to not be useless for the school and show my talents. different subjects and had to move all around the school.
never known about it and it was hard for me. On top of the work, we have got the expectations. College pressures you to work harder. In my primary school, there wasn’t a big expectation, they just wanted you to be at average or above and aim high. But at my college, you’re encouraged to work to your full potential at every subject which was hard for the first couple weeks, but now I’m kind of getting used to it. Overall, changing to a new school is difficult but once you get the hang of it it’s like a smooth ride.
Paying for privilege
How private schools get the money they need to fund better facilities – MADELEINE CHRISTIANSEN.
What makes people want to send their children to private schools? The notion is private schools are often better than public schools in term of facilities available to the students. It is the case. The reasons for this can be seen in two cycles. One of donations and one of school fees. The first, which relates to donations, goes something like this: The fact school fees are expensive means the background of students is often rich, to be able to pay for education. This means donations are large, so the school can afford better facilities, so more rich people want their children to learn there, so donations are large etc. Round and round it goes so private schools are always improving. The second, a more long-term cycle, relating to school fees, goes a little like this: The exact number is unknown, but the school fees are very expensive. This allows the school to build better facilities for the students, giving them more opportunities to learn. This means they can achieve more, and get better jobs, allowing them to have to funds to send their own children to a private school, and so the cycle continues. With these two cycles in place, it is easy to see why private schools can afford such good facilities. Take the example of Diocesan School for Girls, my school. The school has a Olympic-level hockey turf, a state-of-the-art sports centre, a 25m long pool with a moving floor at one end, and is currently building an Arts Centre with soundproof practice rooms and a 975 seat auditorium. And where did the money to pay for all this come from? Mainly donations and school fees. The school was very good at providing incentive to donate. Donations for the Arts Centre of more than $10,000 were awarded with an engraved name on the outside of the building. Extremely large donations of huge sums of money were awarded with a room named after them. And donations of $1000 were awarded with a plaque on an auditorium seat. Since most families liked to be recognised, the money poured in, allowing the school to pay for the project. The funds didn’t all come from donations and school fees. The school also ran fundraisers, such as the Secret Art Exhibition. This was a fundraising event where students, teachers and even famous artists created a piece of work. The buyer didn’t know who’s artwork he or she was buying until they had already bought it. Each artwork was $100 and the Exhibition was held two years running. Since most, if not all, the paintings were bought, the school gained a multitude of money. But without the donations, the project would’ve been impossible. So, all in all, privates schools have better facilities, helped by excessive donations, staggeringly large school fees and a few fundraisers on the side.
COVID-19 Lockdown aftermath
MADELEINE CHRISTIANSEN canvasses COVID19 restrictions affecting students and staff at Diocesan School for Girls.
We’d come out of lockdown, and I was excited to go back to school. Until I saw the email about the rules in place for Level 2. Seating Plans, Social Distancing, using Hygiene Stations . . . the list was endless. Looking through it, I could understand the need to have seating plans for contact tracing, to maintain physical distancing, and to minimise congestion so there was less chance of COVID19 spreading, but the school had a few extra precautions I didn’t expect. Students must’ve used a hygiene station on their way in and out of school. This I didn’t understand. Why didn’t the teachers at Diocesan just tell the students to wash their hands often, including before and after school? Every student applying hand sanitiser twice every day was not only a huge waste of the lotion, but was also bad for their skin. Hand sanitiser is a once-a-day thing. Plus, wasn’t hand sanitiser supposed to protect your hands for 24 hours? However, no one ever died from being too careful. School didn’t feel like school with all the rules. Even teachers were affected. The Year 8 Dean and German teacher Mr Cheetham said, “the most frustrating thing was having everyone sitting in rows.” He also said he had to do two assemblies, which was annoying but also “quite good because you had time to practice it and the second time is usually better.” He felt it “made us feel as a school we were following the governments regulations.” And “they worked well.” Which is all good, unless people don’t follow the rules. Closer to when the rules were relaxed, people had begun meeting in the whanau spaces again. The teachers didn’t want to send them away, especially if the weather was bad. The rule of social distancing was also sidestepped, with girls meeting and being close to one another again, and making up excuses as to why they were allowed to. “We tried our best, it’s just hard to manage it,” Mr Cheetham said. The school had only so many teachers, and not everyone could be monitored all the time. The news didn’t help. After a few days with, ‘there are no new cases of COVID-19,’ people began to think it was fine to go against the social distancing requirements and be close to other people again. Now the rules are virtually gone, Mr Cheetham says “I think it feels just a little more back to normal, and the school can feel more together.” He says its “all about keeping that balance.” At least now, I can be with my friends. But only thanks to those rules put in place to get us through Alert Level 2.
TAYLOR QUEDLEY targets the need for drivers to concentrate on what they are doing.
We have all heard when crashes have happened. We may have heard on the radio or some may have seen one or been in one, but why did these crashes happen? They happen because of drunk drivers, people on their phones, or perhaps because of speeding. These are some ways crashes are caused. These are also the things we can stop doing to prevent crashes from happening. Nearly 1.25 million people across the world die each year because of car crashes. This equates to 26 percent of the New Zealand population and 75 percent of the Auckland population in 2017. I think there should be more advertising on TV, billboards and devices to stop car crashes from happening. The advertising could be online as well because people fast forward ads so they often don’t see TV ads, and they are also using their phones during ads which means they don’t see them. This could help because if people who do drunk drive, or go on their phones and get distracted, if they see the reminders it may stop them from doing these things. Discussion points: • Changes to young driver training to include more about road safety based on your ideas. Look at the use of virtual reality to show different situations, and the result of road crashes. • Discuss the increase in cyclists and the need for them to be more aware of motorists and take more care, and the need for motorists to drive much more slowly and carefully around bikes. But it’s a two-way street (pun intended) as both parties need to watch out, especially in rain, at night, around dusk. Discuss the need for cyclists to wear the right gear. • Look at road design around you. Does it work for pedestrian, cyclists and motorists. • Discuss the increasing use of escooters on footpaths. This is also road safety. • What do you think about recent government and NZTA suggestions cyclists will be allowed on footpaths? What speed limit is being suggested? Is it too fast? • Discuss the possibility of more truck transport being pushed toward rail so the highways have less trucks which would mean less road damage and safer roads. • Speed limits and safety around school zones – motorists and people dropping off kids. Talk about these, and more, with motorists, cyclists and pedestrians you know. Report what they say if it is relevant.
Quality resources for quality results
Wellington street art 'Doubtful Dolphin'
TALHA KAHN says ambition is the first step to success and the second is taking action.
School is a place for learning. It’s a place where children learn to socialise, communicate and study the skills needed to become something great. Encouraging and ensuring students care about their learning loses relevance if the students find it hard to learn and slowly lose hope. This becomes a struggle and leads to unfortunate failure. There are ways in which a student who is struggling can find ambition and start feeling a lot better in their studies. Political parties and their education policies and priorities have the potential to allow this to happen. At the time of general elections we see promises made and ideals spoken by the familiar parties. Including ideals such as encouraging students to study and strive high can be a great and effective promise and deliver a lot of benefit for the multiple schools around New Zealand. Politicians could do this by providing tutors with efficient resources and the latest technology. I see this as a game-changer for schools with budget issues and are ranked low in decile. There are at least a handful of schools lacking capable funding with low quality desks and equipment which could help students better educate with better quality equipment, resources and money. With quality resources students may find studying more interesting, knowing they have brand new computers or polished desks. When we are provided with something glamorous or of high quality, we use it more and continue to use it. This encourages students to learn more and spend time wisely during class. I asked a student about something he would like to have in his school other than what is already provided. He would like a workshop where in addition to his five period subjects he can work on building in his own free time. He could do this out of school but it would probably benefit him more inside school since he won’t have to go looking for everything when basic materials and resources are provided. If schools had better things, students may be attracted towards learning. If a student can become ambitious about at least one subject whether it be swimming, building or calculating numbers, that skill can help them advance and be encouraged to aim for greatness in their career goals. To quote Aristotle: ‘We are what we repeatedly do . . . excellence is then not an act but a habit’.
Thinking for the future
EMILY PARAMORE wants more advanced learning in schools to better prepare students for challenges they will face in life.
Future generations should be able to make our world one we want to learn and grow in. Education has evolved over the years from memorising key subjects to encouraging critical and independent thinking so we can learn for ourselves. This now puts the focus on problem solving while challenging ideas and concepts to help students work through the task without teachers telling them what to do. This shows schools are changing with the times. We are being prepared for what may come in the future and not what is happening now. Schools can do more than demonstrate how to complete questions. They should concentrate on building resilience and developing our creative problem solving abilities. This will be the most important thing we get out of our schooling experience. If you can work through problems without needing someone to do it for you, then you will be better prepared for anything life throws your way. New ideas are born from creative thinking and it is essential schools encourage students to develop these skills. This is where the new and crazy ideas driving innovation come from. Schools should aim to stimulate creativity to demonstrate there are lots of ways to address challenges we might face in our future lives. Learning how to plan should also be a big part of our education, because it gives us possible methods to work toward the goals we want to achieve. Having a process and structure can help us get the most out of the effort we put in. It helps us identify the choices available to us and choose the one best suited to our situation. Problem solving, creative thinking and planning skills will be essential for our futures. By encouraging our development in these areas we will be better prepared to thrive in tomorrow’s world. Schools must understand the importance of their role because without their efforts to develop advanced learning we will struggle to adapt and thrive in a rapidly changing world.
School attendance falling
HIMETO KISHIMOTO says there is a growing tendency for students to find reasons to dodge school.
Have you ever refused to go to school? Or thought you would stay at home because you don’t want to go? It’s a serious problem in New Zealand and has been long before the Covid virus disruption leaving kids at home in lockdown. Recent media reports claim the government is saying parents need to take their child’s school attendance more seriously. According to NZ Herald, children do not like attending school, especially on Mondays and Fridays, and 22 percent of students didn’t turn up on the last day of term 2, 2019. When I realised the problem, I felt disappointed because I like school and at the same time, I thought it was very serious. Other newspapers said going to school every day is hugely important. Children need to continue learning and improving their basic skills they need through regular attendance. I agree. I have never thought of NOT going to school because even though the subjects might be a little boring, being with friends and communicating with others is a great opportunity to know all the different things and a great way to have fun. But school is not only for hanging out with friends, it is for learning. And maybe you can find a subject you like a lot. If you are the one who doesn’t want to go, I have tips: Let’s start eating healthy, stay fit first. Because if you do, then you have the energy, the power to go to school, have lots and lots of fun, make new experiences.
Don’t force doing homework and preparation the next morning You will rush yourself if you do it the next morning. Don’t push it, do it the night before. As for homework, it might lead to homework deadline. Let’s think happy thoughts about school If you think negative, you might not want to go to school. Keep a smile on your face, think positive so you can kick a good start. I don’t expect all the students to be persuaded and brainwashed with this. But I will ask you once more, why do you refuse going to school? Try to think of a reason to this question. If you find the answer, then the next step would be finding your own tips. And of course, you can use my tips. It’s all up to you. Let’s have fun, just do and try what you can. Maybe school might be more fascinating than you think it would be. I hope the percentage of attendance rises up and everyone is having a fabulous day at school.
COVID-19 after the tidal wave
VIOLET TUCKER counts the cost, and the benefits of 2020’s pandemic lockdown.
Mum and dad drank champagne to welcome 2020. Little did anyone know. I can only begin to comprehend the disruption New Zealand is facing due to Corona Virus. It’s slightly like watching a movie but the plot unfolds more abruptly. It’s outside my window and I can watch it as I reflect on who is observing the regulations as they walk past my house. Who are those people walking together? This is a year starting a new decade. It was supposed to be, at least. A symbolic year compressed with an array of personal and international triumphs. It was deemed to be. I had finally found my feet in the endlessly challenging surrounding that was school. I was reaching out to assess and possibly grab remarkable opportunities. If anyone was to tell me in 2019 that a worldwide pandemic was to hit, transporting all of New Zealand into a five-week complete lockdown, I wouldn’t have believed them. That’s not my reality. That’s not me. It’s not my life. But I guess it is my life because one day I’ll probably be explaining to people younger than me what happened in 2020. I’ll be telling them about what life was like, with extensive self-isolation. Why did life change? Holidays arrived prematurely. Watching the clock rearranging its hands, wondering what I could do with all the time I suddenly had. Now I look back and wonder what I had been doing during the quarantine. But the quiet of isolation hasn’t been a disaster. Quarantine allowed me time to think. I’d obviously have been more social, interactive with all my friends on various escapades. How different would I be now, if I wasn’t selfisolating? So much has been missed. I don’t think students my age necessarily realise how disastrously this virus has Impacted New Zealand. I think many people don’t comprehend that as soon as we ‘get back to normal’ it doesn’t mean New Zealand will officially go back to an old regime. I don’t think we even know what normal looks like. So many companies will shut down. Being close to each other on the bus. The supermarket being like it was. A few days ago, I was talking to one of my old friends. Before all this, they didn’t have a clue who our current Prime Minister was. Turns out they had only found out once the lockdown announcements flooded in. The Government’s slogan, ‘unite against Covid- 19’ has made people look after one another. The recovery stage in New Zealand requires us to stay curious. Ask questions. Hold people to account. 2020 should finish up as a challenge that was met instead of a disaster that swamped us.
