Nau mai ki te pānui tuatahi o te wāhanga tuawhā — he mihi nui ki a koutou katoa!
Welcome to the first newsletter of Term 4 — greetings to you all!
Term 4 may be the shortest term of the school year, but it certainly isn’t the quietest! We’re already well into one of the busiest periods on our school calendar, with senior students preparing for their external examinations, our prizegiving season underway, and plenty of exciting things happening across the school.
Senior examinations and stepping up
Next week marks a significant change in the school environment. Our senior students will begin their study leave, and our Years 9 and 10 students will suddenly find themselves the most senior students on site!
With that comes an important responsibility: showing manaakitanga (care and respect for others) to our senior students who will be returning to school to sit their examinations. Creating a calm, quiet and distraction-free environment will be one of our highest priorities over the coming weeks. We’ll be holding several junior assemblies next week to reinforce our expectations and help students understand the important role they play in supporting the success of others.
To all our seniors preparing for examinations — we wish you all the very best!
Of course, we know that success isn’t really about luck. Our students have been working towards these assessments all year, and now is the opportunity to demonstrate what they’ve learnt.
There is, however, one message I want to reinforce very strongly: if you’re entered for an examination, prepare for it and sit it — even if you’re not feeling particularly confident.
Very few people walk into an examination feeling 100% confident that they know everything. That’s perfectly normal. What matters is giving yourself every possible opportunity to succeed.
Why am I making such a point of this? Because every year, without fail, we see the consequences of students deciding not to sit an examination because they believe they already have enough credits.
When NCEA results are released in January, we inevitably hear from a small number of students who suddenly discover they’re five or ten credits short of what they need. Perhaps it’s an NCEA qualification, university entrance, or the entry requirements for a particular course. Whatever the reason, they find themselves contacting the school during the holidays, desperately hoping there’s something we can do.
Unfortunately, by that stage, there often isn’t.
For some, this means scrambling to complete a summer school course. For others, it can mean missing out on an employment opportunity or having to rethink their tertiary education plans. The frustrating part is that, in many cases, sitting just one more examination could have made all the difference.
My message to students is simple: don’t close doors for yourself unnecessarily. Give every examination your best shot. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you achieve, and you’ll certainly be glad you tried.
Parents and whānau, you can play an important part here too. Please take a little time to check which examinations your young person is entered for, encourage them to develop a realistic study plan, and help ensure they’re at school and ready to sit each one. A little encouragement and support at this stage can make an enormous difference.
Celebrating excellence — Māori-Pasifika Whakanuia
One of the absolute highlights of this week has been our Māori-Pasifika Whakanuia, an evening dedicated to celebrating the achievements, contributions and successes of our Māori and Pasifika ākonga.
I’ve said this before, but if you’ve never attended one of these evenings, you really must!
There is something incredibly special about seeing our young people recognised for their excellence while proudly celebrating the cultures, identities and traditions that make up such an important part of who we are as a school and as a country.
These occasions are about so much more than presenting awards. They’re about celebrating identity, strengthening connections between school and whānau, and recognising the many different ways our young people shine. The pride, energy and sense of community in the auditorium make these evenings truly something to remember.
A huge congratulations to all our award recipients, and my sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to making the evening such a wonderful celebration.
Celebrating sporting success
At the time of writing, we’re also preparing to celebrate the achievements of our sportspeople at our annual Sports Awards ceremony.
Sport continues to go from strength to strength at Kaiapoi High School. Participation has grown tremendously, both in the number of teams representing our school and in the range of individual sporting pursuits our students are involved in.
What I particularly enjoy about these celebrations is that they recognise not only sporting excellence, but also the dedication, perseverance, teamwork and commitment that go into achieving success. Behind every outstanding performance are countless hours of training, early mornings, late afternoons, and more often than not, a significant amount of support from others.
And on that note, with the continued growth of sport comes an ever-increasing need for people willing to lend a hand.
As we begin planning for 2027, you can be certain there will be another call for volunteers to support our sports programmes. Whether it’s coaching, managing, transporting students or helping out in other ways, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved. Please keep an eye out for these requests — our students benefit enormously from the generosity of those who give their time.
Looking ahead to 2027
While our seniors are focused on examinations and our juniors continue with their learning programmes, there’s another enormous amount of work happening behind the scenes.
Our staff are already investing considerable time and energy into preparing for 2027. From planning engaging learning experiences and refining courses to preparing for the many changes taking place across education, there’s plenty to keep everyone busy!
One of the things I particularly appreciate about working in a school is that, even during the busiest times of the year, we’re constantly looking ahead. We’re not simply finishing one year; we’re laying the foundations to make the next one even better.
And there’s certainly plenty to look forward to!
We still have two more newsletters before the end of the year, so there will be plenty more opportunities to share our successes, celebrate our young people, and keep you informed about what’s happening across our school.
Until then, mā te wā!
Ngā mihi mahana,
Jason Reid
