Western News: October 22, 2019

18 Tuesday October 22 2019
Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
WESTERN NEWS
RICCARTON HIGH SCHOOL Te Kura Tuarua o Pūtaringamotu
Technology the focus for innovative teaching & learning
Riccarton High School’s
deputy principal Lisa Heald
is brimming with ideas for
enhancing students’ learning,
particularly by focusing on new
technology. This year she has
had the opportunity to share
and expand her thinking with
other like-minded educators as
a member of the international
BOMA educational fellowship.
The 10-member group from
Christchurch is being funded
by Christchurch International
Airport, with the organisation
keen to promote “innovation,
technology and exponential
thinking”, Lisa says.
“The fellowship is about
nurturing innovative education
in Christchurch and developing
teachers so we can transform learning,” she
says.
“A key focus is on what’s happening with
technology and the rapid changes that are
taking place, and what these mean for young
people and their future.”
The group meets monthly for discussions and
workshops, while earlier this year they took
a trip to the United States, where they visited
innovative schools, the IDEO design company,
Google X and Stanford University, spending two
days at the university’s design studio.
During the year each group member was
also required to develop a project with an
exponential technology component, and for Lisa
and her students this was the establishment
of the school’s Media and Advertising Division,
or MAD. Through this, the students learn how
to use the various social media platforms in a
positive way to inform, promote and celebrate
the school community and its activities.
“Unlike some other schools where the use of
social media is blocked during school hours,
Riccarton High School has embraced it.” Lisa
says.
“All today’s students are using it – it’s
part of their lives now, so for us it’s about
understanding it.”
MAD is developing a partnership with JIX, a
Christchurch organisation that specialises in
technology and experiential marketing.
“This opportunity allows us to network
with enterprising businesspeople to bring
technological thinking into the school, and
through this teaching and learning we can
create the future with the intention to make the
world a better place,” Lisa says.
STudeNTS SHOWCASe THeIR SkILLS IN MuSICAL SOIRee
The Lyttelton Arts Factory
provided the ideal venue for
Riccarton High School’s annual
senior music students’ Musical
Soiree, which they presented
there on September 14.
Head of department, Anne-
Marie Plummer, says the 40
students involved play a full
range of instruments to a
high standard, and the event
gave them the opportunity to
perform in a theatre, which was
transformed into a “jazz-like
cabaret venue” for the occasion.
“The idea is to give the students
the experience of performing in
a more real and genuine venue than at school –
a more adult performance setting,” Anne-Marie
says.
The repertoire included a wide selection of
numbers across jazz, contemporary and R&B
genres, and the performance received a positive
and enthusiastic response from the full house
of family and friends.
The Christchurch BOMA group at Stanford University, with
Lisa Heald middle row right. Front left is David Clifford of the
university’s design school.
The students delighted the audience with their musical prowess.
As well as being a showcase for their musical
talents, the soiree was also an opportunity for
the students to dress for the occasion, and they
all looked “smart and classy”, Anne-Marie says.
She was thrilled with her students’
performance, and the many positive comments
on the school’s Facebook page also showed the
audience felt the same.
Whare to enhance inclusive atmosphere at RHS
Teachers and staff at Riccarton
High School continue to
promote a welcoming and
inclusive whānau atmosphere
built on strong and positive
relationships and the Riccarton
Way values, says principal Neil
Haywood.
“As a key part of that we are
introducing a whare (house)
structure where all students will
be placed in one of four whare,”
Neil says.
As he explains, the whare will
be led by a Kaiarataki (Head of
House) and a Kaitiaki (Dean of
House), who will be supported
by a group of whānau teachers.
Students will be connected
to their allocated whare
throughout their time at RHS.
Each whare will consist of whānau groups
comprising around 18 students from Years 9-13,
with one whānau teacher.
“This will allow older students to mentor
Improvisation creates skills for life
The Riccarton Way symbol formed by groups of students.
younger ones,” Neil says. “In Te Ao Māori this
system of older and younger learning from each
other is referred to as tuakana-teina.”
“The intention is that students will stay with the
same whānau teacher from year to year.”
Improvised theatre, or
Theatresports as it is more
commonly known, has a long
tradition at Riccarton High
School, with annual inter-school
competitions giving students the
chance to pit their creative skills
against other improvisers.
Last month the school team
reached the finals of the senior
interschool competition, which
was held at the Court Theatre,
home of the popular Court
Jesters. Team members Olympia
Hodgson, Jasmine White, Andrea
Cochrane, Charis Knowles and
Josh Foreman competed in
three rounds.
The first was a speak in one
voice game, in which they had
The RHS Theatresports team with drama teacher
to improvise for three minutes,
Emma Cusdin, front.
for the second they had to
choose a game for which they
had to follow the rules, again
of skills, Emma says, skills that are not only
improvising for three minutes, while for the valuable for the stage, but also in the students’
third they had to challenge another team to school curriculum and in many other aspects of
come up with an idea for a challenge; this was
their life.
an open scene round and there were no rules
for the game.
Following the competition, Western News spoke
RHS came third in the South Island behind to two of the senior team members, Olympia
teams from Garin College Nelson and John
and Jasmine, about their future plans. Olympia
McGlashan College Dunedin.
said she was keen to continue in theatre when
RHS drama teacher Emma Cusdin has been an
she leaves school, and will be auditioning for
enthusiastic member of the Court Jesters for 13
years, and a number of former RHS students NASDA, while Jasmine would like to join the
have also joined the group.
Court Jesters, as well as studying journalism at
Improvised theatre acting requires a wide range the ARA broadcasting school.
COMMITMENT
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Ph. 03 348 5073 | E. info@riccarton.school.nz | www.riccarton.school.nz