At the heart of our school’s Purpose Curriculum are the four learning values which connect with our identity and culture.  These values complement our four Core Values (Aroha, Faith, Respect, Hope), but have a particular focus on learning.

These four learning values are Hirangatanga, Whanaungatanga, Positive mindset, and Agency.

The first of these, Hirangatanga means to strive for excellence.  It is all about effort and application, and the desire to make a positive difference.  The te reo word “Hira” can be translated to mean be great, important, of consequence, significant, notable, momentous.  We encourage all of our students to do their best, to set personal goals and to value their learning.

We have spoken about the Japanese concept of Kaizen which means to continuously improve.  This doesn’t mean undertaking a seismic shift, but rather constant striving which means that small changes accumulate to make a significant impact!

Our teachers support their learners to do their best, and equip them with knowledge and understanding.  However, as our students mature, they must see that the responsibility for learning lies with them.  The role of teachers is to shape students who are not dependent on teachers, but rather grow their capacity for resourcefulness and self-direction.

It is true of all of us that we will need to learn all of our lives.  We will have a teacher for only a fraction of that time!

This connects with a second crucial learning value: Agency.

We will look more at this key value in another Newsletter.