A major focus for the faculty this year has been the implementation of the New Zealand Curriculum. At the Junior level, teachers have made improvements where necessary to the new Social Studies units that were rewritten in 2010 to bring them in line with the new curriculum. This year all topic tests on the compulsory subjects have been changed to a standards based assessment.
At the Senior level, Business Studies, Geography and History have been working hard implementing changes at Level 1. The TODs have been invaluable in giving staff time to work on these away from the distractions of day to day teaching. Although the new standards have created a huge extra workload for the staff, overall the changes are exciting and an opportunity to introduce some new topics to the subjects.
ICT
ICT continues to be used widely in the faculty. The addition of wall mounted data projectors in some of the classrooms has seen a huge increase in the use of ICT and the aim is to get all of the Social Sciences classrooms fitted with data projectors or plasma screen TVs. This year each faculty appointed a specialist ELynC person to continue the improvement to the school’s online learning environment. Ms Jane Moore has been the faculty representative and some great changes have been made to the Social Sciences site.
Quizzes
Each year departments within the faculty avail themselves of the chance to compete in any quizzes/competitions on offer within their respective subject areas. These are seen as opportunities to enhance student learning and a chance to mix with students in their subject areas from other schools.
Classical Studies sent 3 teams to the University of Auckland for their annual competition. While not placed in the top 3, the students (and teachers) thoroughly enjoyed themselves and appreciated how passionate students of Classics can be.
Geography was involved in both the Junior and Senior Geography quizzes. While being unable to gain a place in the finals, students enjoyed the experience.
. And Year 11 students took part in the annual Auckland History Teachers Associate Quiz
Year 12 and 13 Economics students participated in the annual University of Auckland Economics Competition with some excellent results. The Monetary policy team made a reasonable attempt at the challenge this year.
Staffing
2011 was a relatively stable year for the Faculty in terms of staffing. The only change was in the History department where Tracey Derbyshire left us to take up a teaching position at Papatoetoe High School.
Educational Excursions
Classics: Yr 12 and Yr 13 Classics students will once again be invited to participate in our annual Greek-themed dinner at Troy restaurant. Prizes are not only awarded to the best dressed but also a team quiz is held to determine who are the ‘geeks of Classics’.
Planning is well underway for the proposed inaugural Classical Studies trip to Europe in July 2012. A parents’ information evening has been held and there is sufficient interest to start preparation. The itinerary is comprehensive and involves a 21 day trip through Greece, Rome and parts of France to see the many places of historical significance relevant to the course of study at Year 12 and 13 Classics. The Classics teachers are excited about this adventure and acknowledge the school’s support in this great opportunity for students to not only enhance their learning but also to gain an international experience.
Geography: We managed to plan our trips to make the most of some lovely weather. The three days at Mt Ruapehu with the Year 12s was spectacular, and the trip up the ski lift landed us in a light sprinkling of snow. School work was forgotten as students took the opportunity to understand the physics of throwing a snowball. We were also fortunate that the fine weather meant we could make the most of the Year 11 trip to Rotorua and Waihi. We travelled to the “Buried Village” of Te Wairoa, which was once a tourist hot spot for those visiting the world famous Pink and White terraces. Next morning we headed to the Rotorua museum, which had a great exhibit on Tarawera and the geothermal activity of Rotorua. We headed home via the huge Martha mine and followed the process of gold mining and its implications. While the fantastic weather made the Year 13 trip to Muriwai a lot of fun, it meant limited results were recorded for some experiments that rely on a good wind. Students learnt that research does not always go according to plan.
History: Field trips included the Auckland Museum, the research centre at the Auckland Central Library, the Naval Museum in Devonport, the Sky Tower and an historical boat ride around the Auckland harbour.
Tourism: The Tourism classes are developing a range of skills that would be needed for someone working in the tourism industry and they will get some practical experience by looking behind the scenes at hotels and checking out the George Seymour College in the Central City. There is an opportunity to use the Rugby World Cup as an example of tourism operating in NZ.
The year began with a very small 13BUS class, which posed some interesting challenges for the team. Nevertheless, the A-Team managed to present their Sushi Kit idea at the Waitakere regional finals in May. Yuna Ueda attended the New Zealand Business Week at Palmerston North Boys High School in July. According to Yuna, “it was a thrilling week with awesome people”.
Year 12 Business students, starting as amateurs, took entrepreneurship to a lofty new level. A total of two teams commenced the year with great enthusiasm. The Esperanza team produced earring attachments and were selected to present these at the Waitakere regional finals. Not only did they come second, they managed to get a business mentor as well.
Our Year 12 and 13 Economics students also participated in the annual University of Auckland Economics Competition, with some excellent results.
All teams this year have faced challenges in achieving their business goals, however they learnt a lot about the challenges and obstacles people face when running their own business – and the value of hindsight. Well done to all three of our YES student companies. You have earned a well-deserved break. Thanks to teachers, business mentors and the Senior Management team for keeping an enterprising culture alive at Lynfield.
And well done to our Year 10 Business Studies students too, having put so much effort into the design, manufacture and marketing of their products for the annual Market Day. Moreover, this is the fourth successful year that we have run the SELL programme, a three day workshop delivered by Enterprise New Zealand Trust staff in which our Year10 students work in teams to create an expo presenting innovative business ideas to judges from the local business community. It proved to be a lot of fun, very motivational and challenging. Our Year 10s also visited the Auckland District Court in Term 4. The trip offered them a unique opportunity to explore, first hand, the critical role the District Court of Auckland plays in the justice system of New Zealand. Students studied the legal system during the year, and this visit assisted them in their understanding of criminal and civil law.
And of course no year would be complete without a Year 10 Business trip to visit the Ports of Auckland. It was a unique opportunity to explore the critical role the ports plays in the economy. The hour long tour took our students alongside the container terminals and beneath the cranes and machinery that represent the physical backbone of a thriving globalized economy. The tour boat wove through the commercial wharves while an informative commentary narrated infrastructure of particular interest, like the container wharves, tug boats, cool stores for bananas and other fruits, cruise ships, recreational yachts and launches, Tank Farm-Bulk liquid imports, and the Viaduct Harbour.
With the introduction of the newly aligned standards, the Year 11 Economics class took up some new challenges. They took a trip to McDonalds, Greenlane and the Villa Maria Estate in Mangere as part of their internal assessment topics. The presentation at McDonalds covered several aspects of the production process/ productivity and was hugely appreciated by the students. The tour of the Winery was also very well received.
General: The Social Sciences Faculty were asked again to join the Chinese group in organising their biennial trip to China. Mr Bevan Welsh was chosen as our staff representative and planning is well underway for their trip in April 2012.
Therese Marshall
Faculty Leader Social Sciences
At the Senior level, Business Studies, Geography and History have been working hard implementing changes at Level 1. The TODs have been invaluable in giving staff time to work on these away from the distractions of day to day teaching. Although the new standards have created a huge extra workload for the staff, overall the changes are exciting and an opportunity to introduce some new topics to the subjects.
ICT
ICT continues to be used widely in the faculty. The addition of wall mounted data projectors in some of the classrooms has seen a huge increase in the use of ICT and the aim is to get all of the Social Sciences classrooms fitted with data projectors or plasma screen TVs. This year each faculty appointed a specialist ELynC person to continue the improvement to the school’s online learning environment. Ms Jane Moore has been the faculty representative and some great changes have been made to the Social Sciences site.
Quizzes
Each year departments within the faculty avail themselves of the chance to compete in any quizzes/competitions on offer within their respective subject areas. These are seen as opportunities to enhance student learning and a chance to mix with students in their subject areas from other schools.
Classical Studies sent 3 teams to the University of Auckland for their annual competition. While not placed in the top 3, the students (and teachers) thoroughly enjoyed themselves and appreciated how passionate students of Classics can be.
Geography was involved in both the Junior and Senior Geography quizzes. While being unable to gain a place in the finals, students enjoyed the experience.
. And Year 11 students took part in the annual Auckland History Teachers Associate Quiz
 History sent 6 students to the Model United Nations Assembly, with one group representing Indonesia and the other Venezuela. |
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Year 12 and 13 Economics students participated in the annual University of Auckland Economics Competition with some excellent results. The Monetary policy team made a reasonable attempt at the challenge this year.
Staffing
2011 was a relatively stable year for the Faculty in terms of staffing. The only change was in the History department where Tracey Derbyshire left us to take up a teaching position at Papatoetoe High School.
Educational Excursions
Classics: Yr 12 and Yr 13 Classics students will once again be invited to participate in our annual Greek-themed dinner at Troy restaurant. Prizes are not only awarded to the best dressed but also a team quiz is held to determine who are the ‘geeks of Classics’.
Planning is well underway for the proposed inaugural Classical Studies trip to Europe in July 2012. A parents’ information evening has been held and there is sufficient interest to start preparation. The itinerary is comprehensive and involves a 21 day trip through Greece, Rome and parts of France to see the many places of historical significance relevant to the course of study at Year 12 and 13 Classics. The Classics teachers are excited about this adventure and acknowledge the school’s support in this great opportunity for students to not only enhance their learning but also to gain an international experience.
Geography: We managed to plan our trips to make the most of some lovely weather. The three days at Mt Ruapehu with the Year 12s was spectacular, and the trip up the ski lift landed us in a light sprinkling of snow. School work was forgotten as students took the opportunity to understand the physics of throwing a snowball. We were also fortunate that the fine weather meant we could make the most of the Year 11 trip to Rotorua and Waihi. We travelled to the “Buried Village” of Te Wairoa, which was once a tourist hot spot for those visiting the world famous Pink and White terraces. Next morning we headed to the Rotorua museum, which had a great exhibit on Tarawera and the geothermal activity of Rotorua. We headed home via the huge Martha mine and followed the process of gold mining and its implications. While the fantastic weather made the Year 13 trip to Muriwai a lot of fun, it meant limited results were recorded for some experiments that rely on a good wind. Students learnt that research does not always go according to plan.
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History: Field trips included the Auckland Museum, the research centre at the Auckland Central Library, the Naval Museum in Devonport, the Sky Tower and an historical boat ride around the Auckland harbour.
Tourism: The Tourism classes are developing a range of skills that would be needed for someone working in the tourism industry and they will get some practical experience by looking behind the scenes at hotels and checking out the George Seymour College in the Central City. There is an opportunity to use the Rugby World Cup as an example of tourism operating in NZ.
Business Department
The year began with a very small 13BUS class, which posed some interesting challenges for the team. Nevertheless, the A-Team managed to present their Sushi Kit idea at the Waitakere regional finals in May. Yuna Ueda attended the New Zealand Business Week at Palmerston North Boys High School in July. According to Yuna, “it was a thrilling week with awesome people”.
Year 12 Business students, starting as amateurs, took entrepreneurship to a lofty new level. A total of two teams commenced the year with great enthusiasm. The Esperanza team produced earring attachments and were selected to present these at the Waitakere regional finals. Not only did they come second, they managed to get a business mentor as well.
Our Year 12 and 13 Economics students also participated in the annual University of Auckland Economics Competition, with some excellent results.
All teams this year have faced challenges in achieving their business goals, however they learnt a lot about the challenges and obstacles people face when running their own business – and the value of hindsight. Well done to all three of our YES student companies. You have earned a well-deserved break. Thanks to teachers, business mentors and the Senior Management team for keeping an enterprising culture alive at Lynfield.
And well done to our Year 10 Business Studies students too, having put so much effort into the design, manufacture and marketing of their products for the annual Market Day. Moreover, this is the fourth successful year that we have run the SELL programme, a three day workshop delivered by Enterprise New Zealand Trust staff in which our Year10 students work in teams to create an expo presenting innovative business ideas to judges from the local business community. It proved to be a lot of fun, very motivational and challenging. Our Year 10s also visited the Auckland District Court in Term 4. The trip offered them a unique opportunity to explore, first hand, the critical role the District Court of Auckland plays in the justice system of New Zealand. Students studied the legal system during the year, and this visit assisted them in their understanding of criminal and civil law.
And of course no year would be complete without a Year 10 Business trip to visit the Ports of Auckland. It was a unique opportunity to explore the critical role the ports plays in the economy. The hour long tour took our students alongside the container terminals and beneath the cranes and machinery that represent the physical backbone of a thriving globalized economy. The tour boat wove through the commercial wharves while an informative commentary narrated infrastructure of particular interest, like the container wharves, tug boats, cool stores for bananas and other fruits, cruise ships, recreational yachts and launches, Tank Farm-Bulk liquid imports, and the Viaduct Harbour.
With the introduction of the newly aligned standards, the Year 11 Economics class took up some new challenges. They took a trip to McDonalds, Greenlane and the Villa Maria Estate in Mangere as part of their internal assessment topics. The presentation at McDonalds covered several aspects of the production process/ productivity and was hugely appreciated by the students. The tour of the Winery was also very well received.
General: The Social Sciences Faculty were asked again to join the Chinese group in organising their biennial trip to China. Mr Bevan Welsh was chosen as our staff representative and planning is well underway for their trip in April 2012.
Therese Marshall
Faculty Leader Social Sciences