As an area school, Hurunui College offers many advantages. We are proud of its family atmosphere where students from Year 0 to Year 13 interact and care for each other.
Our vision is an aspirational learning community where all are empowered to reach their full potential. Students enter Hurunui College to learn and to develop their unique talents and abilities, so that they may leave school prepared to serve and enrich both themselves and their community.
Our College is strengthened by our core traditional values: Respect, Integrity, Service and Excellence. These qualities support high academic achievement and promote personal skills required by our local, national and international communities giving our students the foundation for future success in this rapidly changing world.
Please ensure you stay connected with the multiple forms of school communication.
School website - access to the longterm school calendar and general information about the school.
Skool Loop App - pushes out school notices and newsletter, school calendar and can be used for notifying absences - critical mode of communication - download Skool Loop from the app store/google play and select Hurunui College
Edge Student Management System - the parent portal provides access to school accounts, student information, contact information and reporting. Contact the school office if you are unable to access this facility and we can talk you through the process. This is also available via the Edge Mobile App.
Facebook - used only for celebration and pushing out general information and last-minute reminders
Ngā mihi nui,
Principal - Tumuaki Hurunui College
Newsletter - Panui Term 3 2024
Kia ora koutou parents and whānau
Welcome back to the new term. I hope you all managed to take a break and schedule some time out to spend with your children over the two week winter holiday period. We have had a busy but positive start to the term, beginning with our mihi whakatau on the first Monday where we formally welcomed to our school community our new ākonga, their families and whānau who have started our school since the beginning of Term 1.
Changping District - Beijing Visit In week two, on Tuesday 30 July, we welcomed a delegation of 29 students and four teachers from three schools, from the Changping District, Beijing. This is a Hurunui District Council initiative with the idea of building on the sister district and sister school relationship overtime. The original event was postponed in 2020 due to the covid outbreak.
There is a historical and cultural connection to the Hurunui District, developed through the work and life of a young boy Rewi Alley, who lived in Amberley with his family. He attended Amberley School where his father was also the Principal. On leaving school Rewi Alley left New Zealand and spent the next 60 years of his life in China, devoting his energies to the Chinese people. Through his work, Rewi Alley created a legacy serving as a friendly ally between New Zealand and China.
Our students were inspired and excited about their experience with the Chinese visitors, and we hope they can build on the connections they made. With the support of the Hurunui District Council, the school will continue to build on our relationships with the three schools, whilst ensuring that we follow the formal process. A huge effort was put in by our entire school community to prepare for this event, and I was very proud of the effort, integrity and respect that the students showed during this visit.
School Building Upgrade The renovations to Rooms 11-17 in the secondary area of the school have been completed. Both teachers and students are very happy to be back in their newly renovated classrooms, which are now well insulated and have new windows and doors, as well as decking that opens up to the front of the school. The classrooms look fabulous!
National Curriculum and Assessment Review The Education Minister, Erica Stanford, is reviewing and updating the approach to the refresh of the New Zealand Curriculum, which involves making changes to the high-level criteria and planned timelines. The minister states that the New Zealand Curriculum will be knowledge-rich, clear and easy to use, underpinned by the science of learning and will be inclusive of evidence informed practices.
As a result of this update, the New Zealand Curriculum is now being implemented in phases with the updated English learning area for Year 0-6 being implemented by schools at the beginning of 2025, and Year 7-13 English and Year 0-13 Mathematics and Statistics learning area implemented in 2026.
NCEA is being strengthened and a series of changes are being made, with NCEA Level 1 already being implemented in 2024; however the new Levels 2 and 3 will be in place by 2028 and 2029 respectively. One of the key changes for NCEA is the strengthening of literacy and numeracy requirements and assessments, which include the new co-requisites for literacy and numeracy.
The roll out and release of the reviewed and refreshed curriculum is slow, creating pressure and challenges for teachers to become familiar with the content and expectations before it is expected to be taught. As a school we are supporting our teachers by informing them of changes as they are released, as well as enabling them to access professional development opportunities as they arise to help to gain an understanding of the new requirements and the changes they will need to make to their teaching practice.
Positive School Culture We continue to focus on building and maintaining a positive school culture, through upholding and role modelling our school values of respect, integrity, service and excellence. Our key focuses have been on wearing the correct school uniform, using devices correctly and appropriately, using respectful language and behaving appropriately on the bus.
Parents, caregivers and whānau play a big part in positively influencing their child/ren to do the right thing, follow our school rules and expectations, and engage in learning activities at school. We appreciate your ongoing and continued support with this.
Attendance Regular attendance is another of our focuses for this year. Schools and kura, along with parents and whānau are legally responsible for making sure ākonga attend school every day. If a student misses one day of school every two weeks, they miss a whole year of school by 16 years of age.
Our school is committed to supporting your child to attend school and building a culture that fosters excellent attendance. Our staff care about your child's learning, and we do everything we can to make sure your child is at school, participating and progressing in their education.
As parents/caregivers, setting clear expectations with your child about why attending school every day is important, and being positive about school and setting good habits would all be helpful in supporting your child to attend school regularly.
If you're struggling at home with getting your child to school, please talk to us!
Parents/caregivers must let the school know if your child is going to be absent for a day or intends to be absent for a portion of the school term for whatever reason, like a tangi or medical procedure. Family holidays or taking time off for extracurricular activities (not organised by school) are not acceptable reasons for being absent.
Nāku noa, nā
Jane Marsh Acting Principal - Tumuaki Hurunui College
