At Waihi College we take the responsibility of transitioning our students in the workplace or tertiary education very seriously. Senior Hub / Te Whakawhitinga is a new course for Year 12 and 13 students this year that has been designed to enable us to improve on how we do this. Senior Hub aims to equip our students with life skills that includes a knowledge of tenancy law and tenants’ rights, career pathways, effective communication and how to cope when times are tricky. There is also an individual study option which allows students to enrol on an enormous range of different correspondence courses, or focus on gaining University Entrance.
However, it is a long-standing myth that completing Year 13 at secondary school is essential for success. NCEA Level 2, which students achieve during their Year 12 year, is considered by employers and tertiary providers as the default national school leavers’ standard. To endorse this, the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) has provided secondary schools with a huge range of vocational and academic unit and achievement standards, which enables us to offer hands-on learning opportunities to students that enjoy “doing” in learning environments that include technology, agriculture and horticulture, sport and fitness, and creative spaces.
However, whilst the NZQA framework continues to offer this learning at Level 3 via tertiary providers, the unit standards available to secondary schools are dramatically reduced in these learning areas. This means that Level 3 students who love to learn by “doing” often have a more enjoyable Level 3 experience if they pursue their career pathway and/or passion via a tertiary provider. This enables them to spend all of their study hours learning in their chosen field, instead of negotiating a timetable of six or seven different subjects (some of which they may have little interest in) at Waihi College.
Tertiary providers (such as Toi Ohomai in Tauranga, and Wintec in Hamilton) offer full time courses where students can pursue their passions and/or vocational pathway, as well as earning NZQA qualifications. Toi Ohomai and Wintec have superb support structures in place to help students find their feet. This includes small classes run by industry tutors on 9am – 3pm timetables, bookable “help” sessions for any subject and extensive pastoral care including on-site medical services and counselling. The students get to know their tutors, and each other, very well. Campus life is fun, with numerous sporting teams and cultural groups. Students can remain living at home and travel to either campus for free: the Wintec bus leaves from Waihi, and the Toi Ohomai bus from Katikati.
Many of our stand-out students leave Waihi College at the end of Year 12 for tertiary study, as they realise that this option will accelerate their learning and enable them to quickly progress their careers. We currently have ex-students making great progress in fields such as marine biology, architectural technology, hospitality, the trades, music production, art, and sport and recreation. We also have students that wanted to pursue career pathways that require a degree, such as childcare and nursing, but did not want to remain at school to earn University Entrance at Level 3, so instead enrolled at Toi Ohomai for a Level 3 Study and Career Preparation course that would give them the necessary prerequisites for their chosen course. All of these ex-students have thrived on campus, as they are immersed full-time in a field of study that they love.
This year’s Senior Hub programme is offering a range of field trips to encourage students to explore tertiary education opportunities and career pathways. This term we visited Toi Ohomai, the University of Waikato (Tauranga campus) and Oceana Gold. Next term there are trips planned to Wintec in Hamilton, Te Wananga and Toi Ohomai’s Forestry campus in Rotorua.
Please encourage your teenager to sign up for these opportunities. The more our students know about the range of options available, the more likely they are to make a sound decision about their future, and be empowered to encourage their peers to do the same. You can also help by starting the conversation now with your child about whether returning to school for Year 13 is really the best choice for them.
You are most welcome to call the school on 07 863 8349 to book an appointment with Carolyn Graveson (Dean Years 11 – 13) and/or Kate Morley (Learning Leader Years 11 – 13) to discuss this further.