Figure 1.--
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Figure 1.-- |
T he traditions and formation of the New Zealand educational system is largely British as New Zealand was a British colony. Most of the first teachers and school administrators were British. Many of New Zealands more traditional schools still have the look of a British public school. Newer schools, however, have the look of an American high school and are often called high schools. One import from America is elected student councils. We notice in recent years secondary schools have included students in the board of directors meetings.
Each form elects a representative on to its form-level council, and each form level chooses one member to repiesent it on the School Cpuncil. The council, under the guidance of "big" My Hays, has branched out this year, taking several assemblies and achieving some changes around the place, including, at long last, the installation of a Coke machine--although it wasn't long before some council members were wishing they had never
thought of the @##*! thing.... Thanks to Mr Hays for his support and encouragement.
Lymphad, Cashmere High School, 1993
While most people like to go home and relax after school, Garet Riseborough goes home and tries to think of ways to improve the school.
Since his appointment as our student representative on the Board of Trustees Gareth has been quite busy trying to convey the students’ ideas on improving the school to the Board. Since the start of the year Gareth has been to seven meetings, which are held on the first Thursday of every month and start at 7:30 p.m. Gareth said that for the first few meetings he found the format was quite hard to use.
Gareth gets ideas from the student body and puts them to Mr. Syms,
then if Gareth is happy with the Rector’s thoughts then the idea won’t go to the board but if Gareth thinks that the idea is of benefit to the school then he will put it to the Board for them to decide. Gareth says that not many people come to him with ideas so he makes up most of them
himself. They mainly consist of ways to improve the grounds with things
such as more student shelter during wet lunch times and intervals. If you have any ideas that you want to put to the Board then see Gareth in E3 at form time.
Tim Borlase, Off the Record, Palmerson North Boys High School, September 27, 1999
Being the student on the Board of Trustees this year has been an exiting and new challenge which has given me the opportunity to experience issues and matters at an adult level. I was not at all sure what the meetings would be like and it was one very nervous 7th Former who entered Room 6 that Tuesday night. After being wlcimed by a reassuring Board the rest of the meeting past in a bit of a blur. The technical meeting jargon took a lot of getting use to, but by the end of the night I was starting to catch on. There was a huge amount of background reading to do before each meeting, but I soon got into the routine of getting through it. My job has been quite easy, with few complaints coming from the students. This can only suggest that the school is functining well. Although I have not made any outstanding changes within the College, I ave, as my titke suggests, represented the students to the best of my ability. A big development for the school this year has been the addition of alarm systems around the College. My year as student representative also involved the review of the Strategic Plan and several other policies. This of course meant there were a few sub-committees which I was fortunate enough to be part of. I would like to thank the rest of the Board members, especially Brother Tim, for making me feel welcome, and also thank them on behalf of the students for all the work they do. Their work usually goes unnoticed in the school community and they should congratulated for their smooth running of the school. Finaly I would like to thank the students for allowing me the privilege of serving you on the Board of Trustees and I wish you all well for the future. To next year's representative, I wish you the best of luck too, and hope that you get as much out of your experience as I have.
Tony Penn, Francis Douglass Memorial College, 1996
What have a selected group of seventh formers all got in common (besides-owning pieces of clothing in shades of red, black, and white [Nite: school uniform colors]) ? Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, its the Student Executive badge! Yes, this patriotic symbol of Glenfield College not only ties us to the common room every Wednesday lunchtime, but also entitles us to stand up during assemblies )just like our beloved teachers). Besides being the envy of the school, the Student Executive members are ambassadors of Glenfield College and represent the students' views and concerns. We come up with ideas on ways to improve the school's environment and facilities, organise various activities to ger get students involved, and we try to do our best to make Glenfield College a better place.
Our first assignment was to march through Takapuna in the Anzac Day parade and lay a wreath. It was a touching and memorable experience, and a good start to our year.
We were also honoured to act as amnassadors for Glenfield College during a visit from students of Honjo Daichi High School. We learntsome useful Japanese in the process, showing them our culture and scared them witless with the haka! Speaking of visits, the Student Executive also gave prospective Form 2 students an insight to our school.
Our student-run assemblies also gave us a chance to test our organizational skills, with talented displays of music, friendly mix of guide dogs and a loveable puppy named Pices all taking part in the action. Pices was the receiver of the chool's fund raising efforts, as was our World Vision child whom we have continued to sponor in the tradition of Student Executive.
During the secnd anf third terms, the Student Executive organized lunch time inter-block netball games between staff and students. This not only gave students something to do during lunch times, but also brought tutor groups together which stirred up lots of fun. The staff team manged to win overall (by luck of course), and Team A2 was first runners-up. Inter-block netball was a huge success, and students were given the opportunity to view and embarrass their teachers too.
The highlight of the Student Executive year was the very James Bondish "Spy Ball". After months of preparation, our efforts finally paid off on a night of style and sophistication.
In order to keep the seventh formers "radiating with energy" through the year, a coffee machine was installed to satisfy those caffeine cravings.
All in all, it has been a challenging and most enjoyable year for the Student Executive of 1996. We have gained great satisfactionfrom the tasks we have accomplished, and would like to wish everyone the best of luck in whatever they hope to achieve.
Tessie Teoh and David Francis, "Glenfield College, 1996".
