Tohaina ō painga ki te ao
(Share your gifts with the world)
Ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou katoa
I would like to extend a warm welcome to all the students and their whānau as we begin the 2023 school year. A special welcome to all our new Year 9s, over 230 of you and other students who have arrived at our school for the first time.
The year is now well underway and already we have achieved a lot. Our annual peer support camp was a huge success, with the hot weather the water slide and swimming pool were very much in demand. The students were able to work collaboratively with their new form class members and teachers and as we were unimpeded by COVID-19 restrictions we were able to after the full range of our usual activities. By the time the students were formally welcomed by a powhiri the following week, the students were well versed in what it means to be a Newlands College student. They also had lots of fun and made new friends.
At the start of the year, we received our preliminary NCEA results and while we do not get the final results for a couple of months, I am extremely pleased how successful the students were. The table will give you some idea.
As a reminder, any student who has been in the school for 70 days is counted in the data. Also students if they identify with more than one ethnicity are counted in each of their chosen identities with up to three choices. The data includes students who have not yet engaged with Level 1 on the curriculum (NCEA Level 1 is Level 6 on the curriculum) and students who left during the year.
NCEA Results (%)
|
Newlands College Mean
|
National Mean
|
Level 1
|
84
|
63
|
Level 2
|
87
|
74
|
Level 3
|
80
|
67
|
University Entrance
|
64
|
48
|
Also of note is that our Pasifika and Māori students did extremely well, although in some cases using percentages can be misleading, as the groups of students are small in numbers. For this reason, I have not included all the data. National means are in brackets:
Māori Level 1 66% (51%) Level 2 83 (62%) Level 3 71% (54%)
Pacific People, Level 1 55% (55%) Level 2% 82% (65%) Level 3 (too few students)
We would also like to congratulate the following students who were successful in the Scholarship examinations. Scholarship is awarded to the top 0.5-1% of all candidates. Congratulations to:
Anush Goel gained 5 (English, Biology, Chemistry, Calculus, Economics), Rosie Meyer (Media Studies), Sopanhaven Sea (Calculus), and Thomas Ru (Biology,Chemistry,Physics). Thomas was a Year 12 student so this is an outstanding effort.
For families that are new to our school the ways that we communicate with you are very important. Communications, such as the Principal’s Newsletter are provided on the website every three weeks, and we advise parents of them by e-mail. In addition, parents and caregivers can find important information specific to their own student(s) through the Parent Portal. This information will include attendance, timetable, invoicing, and personal details. The students' progress is also reported through the portal, subject by subject as significant pieces of work are completed. In this way, you will receive regular feedback. All students will also receive a Me Whakamātau Report. This will replace the engagement report that we have used in the past. It will be uploaded to the Parent Portal on a regular basis and more details will be provided shortly. The portal is password protected and you should have received your password by now. If you have any difficulties with your password, please contact my P.A. Fei Gao at [email protected].
I would like to take this opportunity to welcome our new staff for 2023.
Emily Rietveld (Technology), Gabrielle Raz-Leibman (Technology),
Kupe Renata (Technology), Moira Hurst (Guidance Counselor),
Olivia Small (Health and PE), Paula Sanchez Paoli (Social Sciences)
Ryan Sumner (Digital Technology), Sharon Greenfield (Guidance Counselor, Part
time), Tessa-Kate Carroll (Sports Coordinator), Tom Woodham (English)
After a busy year with building work last year, we are back to the planning stages in 2023, when we will develop a new master plan for the whole school. We will have some smaller projects going on though, reroofing several buildings exterior painting and unisex toilets being built. Another relocatable classroom arrives at the end of the month and it will be located in the carpark.
This week we have begin the selection of our student leaders and these will be announced in my next message.
I will keep you informed of what is happening in the college as the year progresses, please regularly check the website and the Parent Portal as there is a lot happening this term.
Ngā mihi nui
Grant Jones