Nau mai, hoki mai ki te pānui tuatahi o te wāhanga tuatoru — he mihi nui ki a koutou katoa!
Welcome back to the first newsletter of Term 3 — greetings to you all.
It is great to be back at Kaiapoi High after spending 10 weeks on a principal’s sabbatical. I would like to sincerely thank Scott Liddell for leading the school as Acting Principal during this time, along with Ash Fowler and Sam Creed, who stepped into Senior Leadership Team (SLT) roles. Their leadership, together with the work of all our staff, ensured the school continued to thrive while I was away.
As you may have noticed from previous newsletter articles, New Zealand’s education system is currently experiencing an unprecedented pace of change. My sabbatical project focused on exploring how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can support school leaders in navigating the ever-increasing volume of information, policy and guidance flowing into schools.
I would like to thank our Board of Trustees and the Ministry of Education for supporting this project, the many principals who generously shared their experiences and expertise, and the tutors and fellow participants at the University of Bologna for the wealth of knowledge they contributed. One of the key outcomes has been the development of an AI assistant designed specifically to help school leaders navigate complex information with greater ease and confidence. Over the coming weeks, I will begin sharing this assistant with local principals before making it available more widely across New Zealand.
Anyway, enough about me!
This is an extremely important term for our students, particularly our seniors. Last week, we met with our Year 13 students to reinforce just how significant the remainder of this year will be for their future pathways. We spoke about the importance of excellent attendance, completing every assessment opportunity, and fully engaging in learning—not only for their own benefit, but also for those learning alongside them. As the finish line comes into view, it can be tempting to ease off. In reality, this is one of the most important times of their education, and every lesson and assessment matters.
I mentioned earlier the significant changes taking place across education. This term, you may notice some changes to the way we communicate about attendance and student reporting. As new systems are introduced, there will be a period where some year levels receive communications through newer processes while others continue using existing ones. If you receive a mixture of old and new styles of communication, this is expected and reflects our phased implementation approach, which generally begins in the junior school before extending into the senior school.
If you ever have questions about information you receive from the school, please don’t hesitate to contact us using the details provided. Likewise, if you notice what appears to be a genuine error, we would greatly appreciate your letting us know so we can continue refining these new systems as they come online.
Term 3 is also a significant time for two groups of students: our current Year 12 students as they prepare for their final year of school in 2027, and our current Year 8 students as they prepare to join us as Year 9 students next year.
For our Year 12 students, the qualifications they gain this year will, for many, be the only formal results available when employers, tertiary providers and training organisations begin making decisions about opportunities for 2027. It can be tempting to think, “I’ll work harder next year,” but unfortunately opportunities can sometimes be missed if preparation begins too late.
It may also seem early, but nominations for our 2027 Head Student team will open shortly. If you know a Year 12 student who would make a valuable contribution to our leadership team, please encourage them to apply. They are also very welcome to speak with our current Head Students or with me if they would like to learn more about the role.
For families of current Year 8 students, enrolments for 2027 are currently open for students within our zone. If you haven’t already submitted an enrolment, we encourage you to do so as soon as possible. Throughout this term, we will be visiting contributing schools and hosting our popular “Coffee and Cake” evenings, where families can ask questions and meet members of our team. These sessions will run from 10 August through to 27 August at primary schools across our community, and we look forward to meeting many of you there.
Before I finish, one final reminder about attendance. We know that attendance is the single biggest factor influencing a student’s success at school. For this reason, we continue to encourage all students to maintain at least 85% attendance, and a number of school activities and privileges are linked to meeting this expectation. This includes eligibility for opportunities such as sports tournaments and the senior formal.
As always, thank you for your ongoing support of our students and our school. I look forward to catching up with many of you over the course of the term.
Hei konā mai.
Until next time.
Jason Reid
