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N e w s l e t t e r
S e p t e m b e r
TĀMAKI COLLEGE
TĀMAKI
COLLEGE
The Manaiakalani
Secondary School
TĀMAKI
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TĀMAKI
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Experiencing the
World of Business
Page 8
Page 22
The Manaiakalani Secondary School
Experiencing
the
The Manaiakalani
Secondary School
Ball
Photos
World of Business
Page 22
Tāmaki College leading the
Experiencing
the
Welcome!
Page
8
Ball
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Experiencing
the
World of Business
Page
22
Ball
way
in Photos
digital education
Page 8
World
of Business
Page 22
By Caleb Allison | Editor
Page 8
Tāmaki
College leading the
Welcome!
Chairman of the Manaiakalani Education Trust, Pat Snedden, says
Tāmaki College is taking giant leaps forward in improving the
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Tāmaki
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Newsletter | September 2014
Tāmaki College’s representatives at the National Young Leaders Day.
From left: Falaniko Liavaa, Hola Pahulu, Kathleen Temu, Spencer Isaia
Students inspired to become leaders
By Kathy Milne | Gateway Coordinator
On Thursday 10 April Hola Pahulu, Spencer Isaia, Falaniko
Liavaa and Kathleen Temu proudly represented the
students at Tāmaki College at the National Young Leaders
Day. The day is designed to empower students to develop
leadership skills and to motivate them.
Speakers at the National Young Leaders Day were: Cam
Calkoen, athlete and founder of the Carabiner Mentoring
Programme; Parris Goebel, choreographer and 2014
Young New Zealander of the Year; Russell Stanners, CEO of
Vodafone; and Zane Scarborough from Attitude.
Hola says that day was inspirational and a great
opportunity to meet up with students from other colleges.
The favourite speaker for her was Cam Calkoen because
he motivated her. He taught her that leadership is about
integrity, believing in yourself, being a team player, being
true to yourself and inspiring others.
2
Spencer says that the day was very motivational and
inspiring. “It was great to have a variety of speakers speaking
to us, motivating us to succeed in school and in life.” The
key skill that he learnt from the day is to make my days
count. In other words, whatever you do during your day,
make it count towards your future. Don’t let your day go to
waste. This message was delivered by Zane Scarborough,
from Attitude. The fun part of the day was listening to Parris
Goebel, choreographer and 2014 Young New Zealander of
the Year. She was inspirational with what she has done in
setting up her.
During the event Hola Pahulu was filmed by TV 1 for
Tagata Pasifika. It was great to see Hola representing Tamaki
College on the programme.
Newsletter | September 2014
Principal’s
Address
Continued from front page
Tāmaki College on the
World Stage in Atlanta
by Jason Borland | Head of Physical Education
Tāmaki College was used as a shining example of implementing technology for
learning at a major international technology conference recently.
Over the July holidays, Deputy Principal Russell Dunn and myself were fortunate
to travel to Atlanta, Georgia in the United States to attend the annual ISTE education
technology conference, attended by 15,000 people over four days. The conference
gave us a valuable insight into where technology is taking education.
I am pleased to report that Tāmaki College and the Manaiakalani cluster is not only
at the forefront from a national perspective, but also a world perspective. Many of
the presenters used our school as a shining example of how technology can be used
in education. Technology businesses also sought our advice and expertise when
looking to build their products.
The Google education team hosted us at the “Googleplex” in Mountain View,
California. This is a sprawling 600,000 sq m complex where 20,000 Google employees
work. There, they told us about the latest app developments in education and asked
us to review a new programme. We were treated to corporate hospitality in the
legendary Google cafeteria - they’ve got five restaurants and all the food is free!
We brought back with us the latest education Chromebook apps and newfound
knowledge on the latest research to do with teaching using technology. Overall it
was a wonderful experience that we are both grateful to have been part of.
The success experienced
by our students is a true
reflection of the on-going
partnership
between
students, their families and
school. This partnership
is evident in the success
of recent events such as
the Student Achievement
Conferences and the launch
of the Te Kura o Tāmaki
Study Class, together with
the everyday actions of
families which ensure that
students are at school
on time, dressed in the
correct uniform with lunch
available, and a charged
netbook ready for learning.
A recent trip to America
by Mr Dunn and Mr Borland
confirms
that
Tāmaki
College is a world leader
in digital learning through
its partnership with the
Manaiakalani
Education
Trust, a working model
that is now being copied
throughout New Zealand.
Term 3 is an excellent
time for families to
complete enrolments for
Tāmaki College in 2015.
Enrolment
packs
are
available from the school
office, with appointments
available between 10am
and 4.30pm each day. As
a school we warmly invite
all those students living in
our community to join our
Learning Family.
Hapaitia te ara tika
pumau ai te rangatiratanga
mo nga uri whakatipu.
Nga Mihi
Soana Pamaka
Principal
3
Newsletter | September 2014
Students champion sustainability
By Ben Grace | Biology Teacher
Max and Siale with The Roots team for the KATA project
The Tāmaki College Enviro-group is back in action. Mokani Glassie, Sialemoka Kuki-Langatule, Knacyah Galiki and Max
Leuila designed and built sustainable sculptures for Matariki and the KATA (Ko Au Te Awa) project.
This term, a small leadership group of year 12 students have been meeting to determine the focus and direction of
this group for the remainder of this year and next. So far they have conducted audits on the sustainability practices
currently in place at Tāmaki College and have decided to improve our recycling processes by the end of this term.
They are planning an awareness campaign and will be recruiting more members very soon. Look out for their “super”
initiatives around school.
Knacyah and Mokani designing their “fish trap” sculpture
4
The “Fish Trap” Sculture
Newsletter | September 2014
New Zealand’s education sector takes
notice
Continued from front page
Mr Snedden says Manaiakalani has been so groundbreaking
that 122 schools in 11 regions - with 35,000 students in total want to learn about how they could adopt the Manaiakalani
model in their community.
Tāmaki College is one of 11 schools in the Tāmaki (Glen
Innes, Point England and Panmure) district, and the only
public secondary school.
“We’ve received a great deal of help from our backers,
and we want to be able to offer the same kind of learning
experience to others in New Zealand,” Mr Snedden says.
“Two-thirds of these schools who want to talk to us are
decile 1 and 2.
“We show them the system and process that has brought
us to where we’ve got to, introduce them to the supporters
who’ve helped us, and encourage them to adopt the kind of
disciplines that are necessary for this to work.”
And it’s not just other schools wanting to adopt the
Manaiakalani model - the Labour Party is using the model
as the basis for its education policy, which would see all
Year 5-13 students get their own digital device.
Mr Snedden says the current government has also
referenced Manaiakalani in its 21st-Century learning paper.
“We’re extremely lucky to have Tāmaki College in
Manaiakalani.
“Taāmaki College has struggled for many years to
improve the learning outcomes, and has done a remarkable
job. It’s got a turbo charge from the Manaiakalani
programme, and that’s certainly changing the view of the
Ministry of Education about how it’s going.
“While it’s still tough, there is a whole lot more positive in
the education horizon for the students of Tāmaki College,
and the education community is taking notice.”
Digital isn’t everything
While the rollout of the Tāmaki Learning Network (TLN)
internet service this year is a major milestone for the
Manaiakalani educational model, it comes with warnings
that just “going digital” isn’t going to work on its own.
The TLN enables students in Manaiakalani schools to
get free internet access on their devices throughout the
community.
“That’s a whole lot more capacity to accelerate what you
know.”
However, Mr Snedden says having digital devices
and internet access isn’t the most important part of
Manaiakalani.
He says it’s mostly about getting teachers to change their
teaching philosophy to adapt to the technology.
“The Learn, Create, Share approach in Manaiakalani is a
way of simplifying what is a highly complex environment.
“It enables multiple levels of feedback from teachers, and
doesn’t rely on the teacher-student relationship, but brings
the home and the whole community in,” Mr Snedden says.
5
Newsletter | September 2014
Gateway Opening
Doors for Students
By Kathy Milne
This has been a great year for over 80 Tāmaki College students to experience the world of work and gain extra NCEA credits
while they are still at school.
Gateway is a programme for Year 12 and 13 students who are “work-ready”, reliable and have passed NCEA Level 1 in
English and Maths. The students are placed short-term in various workplaces according to their interests. Providing they
finished their Gateway Programme strong, they will have work experience to put on their CV, an employer willing to be their
verbal referee and have the ability to decide whether they wish to study or work in the career they have had
experience
in.
Some of the students have gained part-time work and for a few of the building and automotive students, there may be
opportunities of full time employment in 2015.
Early Childhood Education
Feagaimaleata Leitufia has successfully completed her Gateway work
placement at Seugagogo Aoga Amata Pre School. She is currently in the
process of completing her Early Childhood Education NCEA
credits
through Porse, Early Childhood Educators.
Feagaimaleata has this to say about her work placement:
“It was cool, awesome; I loved the people and the little children. The
children were helpful and knew their routines. It has helped me to decide
what to do for my future. That is to try my best at college as I want to go to
university to study Early Childhood Education.”
Feagaimaleata Leitufia at Seugagogo Aoga
Here is what the Supervisor of Seugagogo Aoga Amata Pre School said Amata Pre School
about Feagaimaleata
Tyra Pitolua at Aoga Ale Teuila Pre School
Tyra has successfully
completed her Gateway
work placement at
Aoga Ale Teuila Pre
School. The majority
of her work experience
was done in the July
holidays. She gave up
her time to work and be
part of the community.
Tyra is currently in the
process of completing
her Early Childhood
Education NCEA credits
through Porse, Early
Childhood Educators.
Vavae Leausa at Nafanua
Aoga Amata Child Care
Centre
Vavae Leausa is completing her
Gateway work placement at Nafanua
Aoga Amata Child Care Centre.
Vavae says this about her Gateway
Programme:
“It has helped me lots in accepting
responsibility when looking after
children. I want to study more
about Early Childhood Education.
Michelle, the tutor from Porse, Early
Childhood Educators, helps us a lot.
She is a great tutor.”
Congratulations to all the Early Childhood Gateway Students. They include: Mele Pepa – Pt England Kindergarten;
Rasil Faamausili – Pt England School; Shardhi Hopa – Glen Innes Kindergarten; Pauline Tuisafia – Te Ao Hou Childcare
Centre; Irene Tuisafia – St Johns Kindergarten; Malama Tumanuvao - Aoga Ale Teuila Pre School; Lesley Fifita –
Somerville Special School
6
Newsletter | September 2014
Retail
The Warehouse, along with The Service IQ, runs a very successful retail
programme whereby students can obtain the nationally recognised
qualification – The Warehouse Customer Service Award. Students complete
ten days of work in the workplace and complete workbooks to obtain 27
credits at NCEA Level 2.
Students that successfully completed The Warehouse Customer Service
Award are: Daniel Tuipulotu, Waiora Mihaka, Iesha Hepana, Rose Ikimata,
Seneti Tulia and Fine Tukuafu.
Students who are doing The Warehouse Customer Service Award in term 3
are; Elizabeth Fepuleai, Justice Fulau, Mafi Loloa Junior, Uani Makalio, Alysha
Rapata and Kolotita Sosefo.
For the first time, this year, five students had the opportunity to complete
the Level 3 Service IQ, Retail Insights Programme at The Warehouse, Sylvia
Park in the April holidays.
Students who successfully completed the Retail Insights Programme are:
Paul Sioneuesile, Mikaela Edwards, Laura I’u, Bobby Materariki and Wendy Iesha Hepana, Kayla Kitione and Daniel
Tuipulotu
Veatupu.
Automotive
John Ake, Taverio Mauala and Moses Vekene have had
very good feedback from their employers. They proved
themselves to be very reliable and hard working. All
three students enjoyed their initial ten days in the
workplace so much, that they asked to extend their work
placement. All three employers happily extended the
time for John, Taverio and Moses. Well done.
Above: Moses Vekene at Moyes Panmure. Below:
Taverio Mauala at Panmure Automotive and Tyres
John Ake at FM Autos
Thank you to all the organisations/companies, who
so generously welcome Tāmaki College students into
their work place to experience the realities of work and
introduce the students to careers that they are interested
in.
For anyone interested in finding out more about Gateway,
please contact, Kathy Miln, Gateway Coordinator.
7
Newsletter | September 2014
Innovation on Display
at Business Challenge
Sparks CEO Gives
Leadership Advice
The winning team, ‘Fresh 79’, with their product C020.
The Tāmaki College auditorium buzzed with excitement
on June 18th - 20th as students participated in the Young
Enterprise Trust’s BP Business Challenge, a three day
workshop providing students with the opportunity to
develop their individual and team skills.
Students formed eight “companies”, created a product
idea and a business plan which were presented to four
judges on the final day. The event’s facilitators were Mrs
Lucy Wymer and Mr Wayne Prince who provided students
with the necessary business “know-how” to develop their
business plans and presentations.
Judging the presentations were: Stephen Geddes,
Divisional Marketing Coordinator, Business School,
University of Otago; Emmett Geoghegan, Head of Customer
Value Management & Business Performance, HSBC; Wendy
Mansell, Marketing & Online Channel Sales Manager,
Brightstar; and Pat Snedden, Executive Chair, Manaiakalani
Education Trust
The winning team was ‘Fresh 79’ with their product C020,
a filtering system that converts carbon dioxide to oxygen
and helps prevent global warming. The team members were
Olivia Fonua (CEO), Luana Lester-Makoare, Alysha Rapata,
Gena Maupese, Feagai Leitufia, Clinton Nakono, Zahra Salehi.
The Best CEO award went to Millie Mara, while Mereia Bare
was dubbed Best Marketing Manager.
The school is grateful to the Young Enterprise Trust, BP
and the sponsors of the Business Challenge for making this
unique experience available to the students of the college,
the facilitators for supporting the students and the judges
for giving up their time to be at this event.
Tāmaki College has been priviledged to have Mr Simon
Moutter, CEO of Sparks (formerly Telecom) and Ms Lynne
Le Gros visit three times!
Mr Moutter’s first visit was to hold a one hour seminar
on Leadership with all the Year 13 students in Term 1.
He then visited again on the 4th and 18th of June to hold
one-hour seminars with the Year 13 Economics class on
market failure and government intervention.
Since most of the students in the class are doing
Economics for the first time and just started learning
about market failure and government intervention,
they found the seminars helpful as Mr Moutter used his
experiences in business to explain these concepts, gave
examples of policies the government uses to address
market failure in businesses he worked with, answered
questions from students and asked leading questions
that helped students think more about the different
market failures in both the production and consumption
of goods and services.
Ms Le Gros also helped students during the discussions
by answering questions, clarifying issues that they did
not understand at first and asking questions to get
students thinking about the issues discussed.
The school is grateful that Mr Moutter and Ms Le
Gros took time out of their busy schedules to come into
school and run these seminars for our students. These
were unique opportunities and experiences for our
students. Thank you Mr Moutter and Ms Le Gros.
Year 13 Economics with Sparks CEO Simon Moutter.
8
Newsletter | September 2014
Seeing
How
Auckland
Moves
By Caleb Allison | Geography teacher
On the 25th of July the Level 2 Geography class
spent a day at various sites around Auckland
learning about how the city’s transport system
operates and why traffic congestion happens.
Our first stop was to the Britomart Transport
Centre so we could see where Auckland’s train
network begins - and ends.
We saw that because Britomart is a dead end
station, trains have to reverse back out of it,
and that limits the number of trains that can
run on Auckland’s passenger rail network.
The class at the Joint Transport Operations Centre. Note the big screens in
the background.
We finished our big day out
with a quick stop underneath
the Harbour Bridge (left) and a
trip up the SkyTower to survey
Auckland from above (right).
The main message of the day
was that Auckand’s roads are
congested, but we can help that
by only driving when we have
to and using public transport
if possible.
Above: Britomart Transport Centre.
Below Left: Evelyn and Vaioletti
survey the scene at Britomart. Below
Right: Trish chats with a train officer.
Next, we travelled to Smales
Farm on the North Shore to visit
the place where all of Auckland’s
roads are monitored by live
cameras.
It’s called the Joint Transport
Operations Centre and it’s run
by the New Zealand Transport
Agency. It means Auckland’s
motorways
and
major
intersections can be monitored
around the clock to make sure
they’re running smoothly.
While we were there, we heard
from spokeswoman Rosemary
Martin, who told us that the
centre’s main job is to keep
motorists informed of the road
conditions.
9
Newsletter | September 2014
Students Learn Coding
By Hinerau Anderson | HOD Technology
Women Encouraged to
Join IT Industry
By Tamara Okay | Year 11 Student
On Tuesday the 10th of June, I had a wonderful opportunity
to be one of two students to offer a student voice at the
Women In Innovation Summit that was held at The Mind Lab
near Unitech in Newmarket.
This was great opportunity, not just for me, but for the
school because I got to represent Tāmaki College and gain
more knowledge about why I should join the IT industry.
The purpose of the Women In Innovation Summit is to
encourage women to join the IT and Technology industry
and that there should be no brains left behind.
They had guest speakers such as: Hon Jo Goodhew, Minister
of Women’s Affairs; Francis Valintine, Managing Director of
The Mind Lab; and Victoria Crone, Managing Director at Xero
New Zealand.
These inspiring speakers educated us girls about how
innovation and technology have a big role on their everyday
lives and help them manage their roles in big corporations.
What I got out of this experience was that women have many
barriers towards joining the IT and Technology industry, and
also, I gained a better understanding of technology and its
outcomes on our everyday lives.
Tamara provides “student voice” at the Women’s Innovation
Summit in Newmarket today. From left: Frances Valintine
- The Mind Lab by Unitec; Victoria Crone - Managing Director at Xero New Zealand; Tamara Okay - Tāmaki College;
Hon Jo Goodhew - Minister of Women’s Affairs
10
Top: Year 9 students Salome and Precious
practice coding. Bottom: Tanya Gray from
Gather Workshops with a group of keen
students.
Earlier in the year, Tanya Gray from Gather came
with a team of tutors to Tāmaki College to
deliver HTML and CSS workshops to students.
The students spent the day learning coding
language to develop basic websites.
Mahsa Mohaghegh from UNITEC also brought
a team of tutors along to the College to deliver
a one hour workshop on using code to develop
a phone app. Computer coding or computer
programming can be used to develop software,
online games, websites, apps etc.
From these workshops, ‘Codeanators’ was
formed. Codeanators is a club for students who
are interested in learning how to code. It has
been running each week in T2 during Thursday
lunch time and also after school since the
beginning of term 2.
Students of all year levels are more than
welcome to come along. You do not have to
have any previous coding experience; just
come along and give it a try. Take a look at the
Codeanators blog to see what students have
been up to: http://codeanators.blogspot.co.nz/
If you’re interested, drop in to T2 on Thursday
during lunchtime or after school, or email
Ms Anderson to be kept up to date with
‘Codeanator’ events: anderson@tamaki.ac.nz.
Newsletter | September 2014
Art Students Brighten Up Glen Innes
Lianna Tati | Year 13 Student
The mural, painted by Tāmaki College students, outside the Glen Innes Music and Arts Centre construction site
Art students from Tāmaki College have been involved in some exciting community projects this year.
The first project is a mural project, which was facilitated by international street artist Gary Silipa.
He drove through Glen Innes one day and noticed a big white temporary wall being put up next to the library to
fence off the construction area of the new Glen Innes Music and Arts Centre.
Mr Silipa thought the wall would be a good place to display a mural. He wanted to have young people in the
community involved in the project and contacted Tāmaki College for this.
The students involved in painting the mural were Spencer Isaia, Sam Fatongiatau and Pale Ngapera.
It is important to the school and the community because the site is going to be used for creative activities when the
building is complete. The mural is the very first creative work made on this site and it is done by students of Tāmaki
College.
The story behind the mural is that in the future, Earth is visited by aliens with highly advanced technology.
They have a laser beam which highlights what would have been in the space in the past. As they glide over areas of
Glen Innes, the laser beams would show iconic things that represented what was here in this community.
Above: Students working on their bamboo sulpture.
Below: Students with ROOTS mentors at Maybury
Creek.
Another exciting project this year is the Bamboo
Sculpture building workshops, which were
facilitated by a group called ROOTS Creative
Entrepreneurs.
The workshops ran alongside the Ko Au Te Awa
initiative. The purpose of the workshops was
to create sculptures out of sustainable material
(bamboo) to highlight the state the local Maybury
Creek.
This project involved primary and secondary
students in the community. Students were made
aware of how polluted the local waterway is and
took a trip to the Auckland City Art Gallery for a
brainstorm and designing session to see how best
they can use bamboo to highlight the problems
facing Maybury Creek.
The end result of these sculptures is that they
were on display for a week at the Glen Innes
Matariki Festival and later gifted to local primary
schools.
It was good to see our students get along and
work side by side with their peers from other
schools for the common good of the community.
Students who were involved in this include
Mokani Glassie, Max Leuila, Knacyah Galiki,
Sialemoka Lagatule and a former Tāmaki College
student Ngatokorima “Jake” Lamkum.
11
Newsletter | September 2014
Experiencing Science Hands-On
Jay Malhotra | Head of Science
As part of the LENScience Face-to-Face programme, two
of our Year 9 classes visited the Liggins Institute at the
University of Auckland earlier this year. The focus for their
learning was a healthy start to life. This day introduces the
topic to students and the learning then continues as part of
their junior science programme at school. The day was split
into three parts, combining classroom teaching, practical
activities and meeting real scientists.
EXERCISE MATTERS:
After enjoying morning tea in the sunshine
students next had the chance to investigate
the effect of exercise on heart rate using data
loggers and exercise bikes.
The only thing going fast, in some cases, was
their heart rate as some students chose to go as
fast as they could whilst others seemed to enjoy
a leisurely cruise!
VITAL SIGNS!
In this practical activity students are using
data loggers connected to the computer to
measure their heart rate. The display on screen
shows what happens to their heart rate as they
are either sitting still, laughing or waving their
arms around.
REAL SCIENTISTS?
The final part of the day gave students the
opportunity to meet with different scientists, talk
with them about the work they do at the University
and ask lots of questions - mostly about science
stuff! We look forward to the success of our future
scientists who were maybe inspired by someone or
something today.
12
Newsletter | September 2014
Our Trip to Parliament
Salome Wara | Year 9 Student
It’s Wednesday the 30th of July. Everyone in our class is all ready to go with our bags packed and uniforms on but instead of
heading off to school we were all ready to catch a plane to Wellington.
This term students from 9KEm have been learning about what government is and what goes on. It has been timed
perfectly with the election.
To give us an idea of what happens inside of Parliament, we made a trip down to one of Wellington’s main landmarks, the
Beehive.
With our tickets in hand and we lined up to depart, the excitement starting to build for those of us that hadn’t been on a
plane yet. Once we were in the air and the adrenaline died down a bit, we caught up on sleep or got a better look at what
was outside our window.
Landed and officially in Wellington, we all couldn’t wait to arrive at the Beehive. Entering the Beehive we first met an MP
(Member of Parliament) from the National Party named Tim MacIndoe.
He took us on a tour around the Beehive and gave us a look inside The House of Representatives where debates happen.
We were then told about a special piece in Parliament called the mace - this piece looks like a golden staff and is a symbol of
authority in the House. Its purpose is to escort the Speaker into the House and to open and close Parliament.
We were then taken into a new room by Mr MacIndoe where we met another MP from National named Simon O’Connor.
He is the MP for Tāmaki, our electorate.
We asked them both questions about their lives in Parliament. One question was: “What is the hardest part of your job?”.
Both replied with, “Keeping up with emails and trying to make sure not to miss any important information from them.”
Another question was: “What is the most rewarding part of your job?”. They said it was confronting a problem and seeing it
turn out right in the end.
After questions we headed back to the public gallery above The House of Representatives to see Question Time in action.
Once we were seated we waited for the mace to be placed in front of the Speaker’s seat while MPs start to file in and take
their seats.
Parliament had now had began and questions, disagreements and a few insults were exchanged. Most questions were
directed towards John Key by the Labour leader David Cunliffe. Most of his questions to John Key were about if John Key
would stick to his policies, and his answer was always “Yes”. After Question Time we left to collect our belongings and said
our goodbyes to Parliament.
13
Newsletter | September 2014
Spirit of Adventure
Talofa Lava,
Above and below: Millie on the Spirit of Adventure
Spirit of Adventure - Mokani Glassie’s Story.
By Kathy Miln | Student Incentive Coordinator.
On the first day on the Spirit of Adventure Mokani met lots
of other young people - known on board as trainees - from
different schools all over New Zealand. They talked about
how they came to sail on Spirit. Mokani says it was good
to hear their stories. Some of them had to pay for their
berth on the Spirit of Adventure but he was privileged to be
sponsored by the Mt Wellington Foundation.
Challenges on board for Mokani included: getting to know
everyone, waking up at 7 am in the morning and going for
early morning swims. For the swims everyone had to jump
of the boat.
Climbing up the mast was cool for Mokani, as the view was
fantastic. As part of the voyage and for community service,
when the trainees went ashore to beaches, everyone had to
pick up rubbish off the beaches. Mokani said the food was
beautiful. He willingly helped with dishes and assisted in
the kitchen whenever he could.
Mokani received the Amokura Award which is awarded
to the trainee whose community spirit and consideration
of others contributed significantly to the success of the
voyage. Congratulations, Mokani.
14
My name is MIllie-Terisa Mara-Oti. I am a year 12 student
here at Tāmaki College. This year I was honoured with the
opportunity to attend Spirit of Adventure.
Spirit of Adventure is a ten-day youth development
voyage. This voyage covered the aspects of leadership,
communication, independence, motivation, confidence,
resilience and community spirit.
This year I was lucky enough to be chosen to go on Voyage
669. This camp helped me gain leadership skills as well as
work with a diverse group of students.
On this voyage was 38 other students with the company of
14 crew members. Everyone got put into groups, starboard A,
starboard B, port A and port B. I was in stary A.
Everyday I got to experience things that I never thought I
would do in my whole entire life such as waking up at 6:45am
every morning to jump off the ship.
Breakfast was always served around 7 and after that was
clean up time. Sailing was one thing that everyone got into.
Unfortunately the voyage I was on was hit with bad weather.
Throughout the 10 days we sailed to Karepiro bay, Kawau
Bay, Port Fitzroy, Coromandel and then back to Auckland.
Throughout these stops I got to see dolphins, climb up the
ship mast, go to the beach and play games, yard swing off
the ship, bonfire at a onshore BBQ spot, go tramping on great
barrier, and have a movie night.
Every night we had group competition by having fun
activities such as rope tie challenges, sing star, mini olympics,
and jamming sessions with the other trainees.
This experience was amazing and unforgettable for me
because I got to meet 52 new people.
This experience made me socialise with diverse people as
well as connect with them. Attending this camp also made
me face two of my biggest fears which is heights and jumping
into deep sea.
If it was not for this amazing opportunity then I would have
not been able to have such high self-esteem. SONZ really
builds up peoples abilities by having a variety of activities that
involves everyone.
By the time this adventure was finished everyone was
as close as a family. Saying goodbye was not easy because
everyone had built a strong bond throughout the voyage but
everyone was glad to be back home where they belong with
their family and friends.
I personally was very happy to be back home because I
was home sick but this adventure was most definitely one to
remember for the rest of my life.
Newsletter | September 2014
A Day at the Opera
By Arna Metcalfe | English Teacher
The drama club was lucky enough to
be able to go to an opera workshop
in Week 4 of Term 3 at the NZ Opera
facility in Onehunga. We were hosted
by Joanne Cole and Stuart Maunder
who ran us through a couple of
workshops based on the upcoming
opera, Don Giovanni. We were able
to act in a scene and then direct the
singers in a duet.
The students (and Ms Wethey!)
shone in their performance and
were confident and enjoyed this new
experience.
This is a new initiative from NZ
Opera, and a precursor to us seeing
the production in late September.
This is offered free of charge to the
school and we are very grateful.
Students at the NZ Opera facility in Onehunga.
Exploring the Exciting World of Media
By Ms Christine Emery | English and Media Studies Teacher
Media Studies is always lots of fun, with Level 1, 2 and 3 students who love using media. In the first term we enjoyed
a screening of the New Zealand film, ‘The Pa Boys’. It was fantastic. We were lucky to have two main characters sitting
behind us in the cinema. I’m sure they were delighted to hear the many compliments, from the senior girls in our class,
about their ‘acting’ .
This year our genre study has been Documentary. We’ve watched a number of documentaries to understand the
conventions that directors use to make their films ‘real’. Students completed their own documentary productions
during term 2. Those projects will be presented during the Manaiakalani Film Festival in term 4.
During term 3 we’ve been looking at two New Zealand documentaries and completing assessments using those texts.
The first documentary was ‘Beyond the Edge’; a film about Sir Edmund Hillary’s conquest of Mt. Everest. Three intrepid
Media students, plus Ms Ferguson and myself, visited Extreme Edge rock climbing to get a taste of what it feels like to
scale a mountain range. It was tricky and sometimes scary, but also exciting.
Throughout the year the senior Media students have been fundraising towards a trip to Wellington during the October
holidays. We will be visiting WETA workshop, The World of Wearable Arts show, The Film School, Parliament and Te Papa.
The Media Studies class will be joined by Ms Ferguson’s L2 Graphics class and technology students from Marist College.
The trip has been made possible thanks to Mr Grundy and everybody who has contributed to the fundraising events. We
would like to give a huge shout of thanks to Wally, Chase and Ruiha for their help with the hangi fundraiser.
As part of our wider film education, Film Club has been running in B8 every second or third Thursday from 3.10pm.
Classic films have been screened such as; Casablanca, Star Wars: A New Hope, Ghostbusters and The Blues Brothers,
Mary Poppins, Singing in the Rain, The Sound of Music and Grease. In Term 4 the theme will be classic Disney animated
films, starting with The Jungle Book. Anyone is welcome to the screenings, as long as you LOVE films.
15
Newsletter | September 2014
Tech at
Tāmaki
By Gloria | Year 8 Student at
Point England
I am always delighted to attend Technology at Tāmaki College. Whether it’s cooking with Mrs Heka and Mrs Tuipulotu,
working on hard materials with Mr Grundy or drawing and expanding our creative minds with Mr Pineada, Technology
is always a good time.
As a fellow student who attends the Technology programme, I personally find it very interesting. It has definitely
helped me in some areas that I am not so familiar with and even though I might not do an incredible job at the
subjects, the classes are every time full of learning.
Tech is interesting in many ways but the tasks we’re given by our teachers are probably the reason why I get excited
each week to take part. It kind of gives us an early colle ge experience that we don’t get from our normal subjects.
Take Hard Materials for example - not many schools have the supplies and facilities to make this an official subject
and I didn’t know it existed before making an appearance at Tech. But Tāmaki College lets our students use their
equipment and working space to try it out. It also gives me the chance to think about what sort of subjects I will
choose to take when I arrive at college.
Not only are the subjects fun and exciting but they benefit our learning in many ways. Graphics improves our artistic
techniques and drawing abilities while Food teaches us to cook individually without a lot of help from an adult. And
lastly, Hard Materials challenges us and gives us the opportunity to create things out of our given materials.
Currently in my Hard Materials class, we’re using coloured glass to create pieces of artwork. But we have to shape
our glass into our desired form which is pretty difficult. What I enjoy the most about this class is how Mr Grundy lets
us do our own thing while he goes around the class helping the students out. This way, everyone is doing something
and not just hanging about and waiting for the teacher to move on to the next thing.
Mr Grundy makes sure to tell us what we need to complete before hand and then sets us free to do our work. It
makes things easier and more efficient.
All in all, Technology at Tāmaki has been very enjoyable and unique. It gets me really excited to come to college next
year and I look forward to continuing it very soon.
16
Newsletter | September 2014
Top Ten Study Tips for Exams
By Lupe Feki | Year 13 Student
1. Start as early as possible.
2. Be Positive.
Don’t cram. I know it’s been preached
to you many times before, but it’s true:
Studying before and going over it multiple
times really is the best way to learn the
material.
Before you study or go into an exam,
make sure you approach it with a “can-do”
attitude. Remind yourself of your skills and
abilities, not your obstacles.
3. Break It Down.
4. Make use of colours.
Re-write your notes, or put them in outline
form. This will help you break down the
larger concepts into smaller chunks, helping
you understand the material better.
5. Make a study plan.
Know what you want to
achieve, and figure out how
much you need to study to
get there. Make a list of all the
topics you need to revise, and
put them into a timetable.
7. Use music.
This may not work with everyone, but see
if you can concentrate better with music
playing in the background. If not, find a quiet
and comfortable place where you can study
on your own, and where you are able to focus.
9. Quiz yourself.
Once you feel you understand a concept or a
topic, test yourself on it. Try to replicate exam
conditions as much as possible: turn your
phone off, don’t talk, etc. You can set yourself
a study quiz or practice exam questions.
Highlighter pens can be effective in bringing
out the salient points of a topic. You can
even use them on your notes, if necessary.
Make use of various colors to help you
visually remember categories.
6. Don’t wait.
Don’t “cram” up until the last
minute. This only increases
anxiety during the exam. Jot
down a few notes the night
before and read through
them before your exam, but
make sure they’re just bullet
points. You don’t want to
learn new things just before
an exam.
8. Write notes in your own
Doing well in an exam means understanding
the theories, not just memorising facts. So
try to explain things in your own words
when you’re doing revision. This will help you
understand the concepts better.
10. Don’t rush!
In the exam, don’t rush yourself, take your
time. Go over the questions, start with the
most difficult questions and then work your
way to the more easier questions
Time management is key.
17
Newsletter | September 2014
Students Learn Traditional
Māori Wood Carving
Tāmaki College students have this year been involved in a traditional Māori wood carving course.
The course tutor was an ex-student of Tāmaki College, Harry Wikaira, who was really pleased to be back in College to share
his skills and knowledge with our students
Year 13 Students Chrstian Makea and Clem Kaka were the driving forces to getting the Whakairo course available at
Tāmaki College
Christian says: “I thought was a great opportunity for boys that were Māori being myself and other boys of different
cultural backgrounds to learn a bit more in depth about Māori culture and the way we look at traditional carvings today.
“Our group of boys enjoyed the theory side of the course but I’m sure majority of us favoured the practical more which
consisted of the actual carving which at the end of the programme turned out great.
“I think this programme should continue to run in schools all over New Zealand. This is a great opportunity for a more indepth look at Māori Art and the skills involved with Whakairo.”
18
Newsletter | September 2014
Tamaki Herenga Waka Māori Department
Nau mai haere mai whakatau mai and welcome to our department. Our students have written a few statements about their journey in our department. Titiro mai…
Dillon Davis
What I like about Te Reo Māori is the students
who are in it. I am working on Unit Standard
Wananga Tuhituhi which is creating a C.V in
Māori. I have still got a long way to go but by
the end of the year I should pull through in
getting all my Internals completed.
Aaliyah Jobe
Working on
Unit Standards
and focusing on
explaining the
history and usage
of Traditional
Ketes. Finished
3 Unit Standards
already with 12
Level 2 credits.
Teinakura Katuke
I am currently working on Unit Standards
which is about Wahine Rongonui (well known
woman). I have completed in Te Reo Māori a
presentation, which had to be about a specific
plant.
What I like about being in Te Reo Māori is
that we get the opportunity to learn a new
language.
Students in Māori class, working hard.
Tiana Puru
In Māori I am doing a Unit Standard about 2
Māori Women. I have chosen Whina Cooper
and Stacey Morrison and about what they’re
famous for.
I like finding out about Māori women, or Māori
in general. I like doing our Whakapapa and
learning about it.
Ngaina Mihaka
In Māori I am working on explaining the history of
traditional kete design and usage. Previously I was
working on Te Ope Taua NCEA, which is a report
about a rescue operation in the Kaingaroa Forest.
I enjoy finding out more about my language and
learning how to structure sentences and learning
how to speak my language each day I come to class
Reign Makea
‘Asinate Fusitu’a
I am working on a Unit
Standard which is to
explain the history
of Traditional Kete
designs and usage. In
Māori I have achieved
12 credits because I’m a
hard worker of course.
I have completed 3
other Unit Standards
so far.
In Te Reo Māori I have achieved a Unit Standard
Level 3 with 5 credits which was to Identify and
explain the history of Natural Attraction and
Significant Sites in Tourism Māori. And at the
moment I’m working on another Unit Standard Level
3 with 3 credits which is to List and Use a Range of
Māori Greetings and Farewells. I enjoy doing Māori
because I have the opportunity to learn different
language other than my own. Being Bilingual is
a passion for me, and also being able to speak
different languages is just amazing.
19
Newsletter | September 2014
Staff Experience Māori Immersion
In term 2, all of the Tāmaki College staff spent two days in the Marae experiencing the
essence of Māori culture. This included learning some expressions and waiata, experiencing
Māori protocol, and understanding the philosophy which underpins the Māori way.
The most important message was that Māuri (the essense of life) is in all of us, and to be Māori
means to care for ourselves and others physically, emotionally and spiritually.
Learning a dance
20
Practising actions to a waiata
One of the groups introduces themselves
Learning to use Rākau
Blackie, our teacher for the two days,
leads a waiata
Staff introduce themselves in Māori
Newsletter | September 2014
Talent Quest
By Seleni Misa | Year 13 Student
Tāmaki College’s annual Talent Quest was held on the 30th
of June in the auditorium. The Talent Quest was open to any
student in school who wanted to perform, but of course they
had to audition first. Auditions for Talent Quest were run by our
very own music teacher, Mr Telefoni. If he said yes, you made it
through to the next round.
There were 2 categories: solo performances and group
performances. At the judges panel we were honoured to have
Steven Rapana and Thomas Cho, who had the task of selecting
the winners and providing supportive feedback to our rising
stars. The winners of the competition would perform at the
school assembly. Although it was a cold evening, family and
friends turned up to cheer people on. All in all it was good
turnout.
The Winners
Solo Music
1. John Lemalie (voice)
2. Lata To’a ( Voice )
3. Lem Schwenke ( Drums )
Group
1. Island Foundation
2. Junior, John, Lem, Pale, Francis.
3. 11 Music
Congratulations to all the participants, and a big thank you to
the judges for their efforts and to
everyone who made this annual
event a success.
21
Newsletter | September 2014
Mystery Mafia Ball
By Lianna Tati | Year 13 Student
On the 26th July 2014, Tāmaki College’s senior students enjoyed a glamorous night out at
Sorrento on One Tree Hill for this year’s ball.
With the an awesome theme of ‘Mystery Mafia’, there were about 109 students that
attended the ball and 23 staff members. There were a lot of amazing and interesting outfits
for both males and females. We had a delicious buffet dinner, which included lasagna,
ham, potato salad and lots of sweet things for dessert. The food was so yummy that almost
everyone went back for seconds. We had awesome people dancing and, man, they can
dance!
22
Newsletter | September 2014
Staff enjoying their night at the ball
Prize Winners
Best Dressed Male - Loma Pua
Best Dressed Female - Seneti Tukia
Best Male Dancer: Nathan ( Lesley’s friend)
Prince and Princess: Daniel
Tuitupou and Vai Matavao
King and Queen: Alifeleti
(Chuckty) Tuipulotu and Vailima
Katoa
Best Female Dancer - Tylah KaulimaPalalagi
23
Newsletter | September 2014
Acknowledgments
Editor
Caleb Allison
Student Contributors
Lianna Tati, Salome Wara, Millie-Terisa Mara-Oti, Lupe Feki, Seleni Misa
Staff Contributors
Kathy Milne, Jason Borland, Soana Pamaka, Ben Grace, Hinerau Anderson, Jay Malhotra, Arna
Metcalfe, Christine Emery, Paula Bailey, Whaea Pakinga.