Tauranga principals reflect on 2021 NCEA results

Ōtūmoetai College Year 10 student Megan Sushames. Photo / Mead Norton

"Really stoked and super relieved."

That's how Ōtūmoetai College's Megan Sushames felt when she found out she had received a New Zealand Scholarship in Calculus as a Year 10 student.

She's one of the eight Year 10 students across the country to receive a scholarship in 2021, which the NZQA chief executive describes as a "remarkable achievement".

Megan, who is now in Year 11, said she was filled with nerves while waiting for her scholarship results to arrive.

She had "always loved maths" but really started challenging herself as a Year 7 student - completing workbooks and looking up equations online outside of school.

"Every spare second I would get I would work on these problems, because I really like the feeling of getting things right and working out the answer," she said.

She completed NCEA Level 2 Maths as a Year 9 student and then went onto Level 3 Calculus in Year 10.

Now the 16-year-old is completing a first-year maths paper at the University of Canterbury. And after school, she plans to further her studies through a double major of maths and physics.

"I want to do theoretical physics and mathematical physics, then maybe work at Nasa or something like that," she said.

NZQA chief executive Dr Grant Klinkum said receiving a Scholarship in Year 10 was a "remarkable achievement" as the competitive awards were "demanding for the most able candidates".

Scholarship was generally attempted by students in Year 13, he said.

Ōtūmoetai College principal Russell Gordon said there were 23 New Zealand Scholarships awarded to 16 students at the end of 2021.

He described Megan as a "lovely, quiet kid" who once explained an algebraic equation to him in two minutes.

"For her, mathematics was a language she was born to. She just gets it."

School leaders reflect on 2021 NCEA results

At Ōtūmoetai College 84.1 per cent of 390 students who attempted Level 1 achieved it.
At Level 2, 86.2 per cent passed, and at Level 3 77.2 per cent passed.

Sixty per cent of 268 students gained University Entrance.

Gordon said given the disruptions of last year the results were a "testament to the work of our kids, and the incredible support they got from teachers".

He said students across the country suffered as a result of Covid-19 last year, with lockdown and hybrid teaching.

"Not getting individual guidance or individual feedback in a timely manner was, I think for students, the most difficult thing.

"We can't underestimate the impact Covid has had. I am so proud of what our students have done."

He said when working with year-levels of around 300 students it was key to understand the needs of every student and have individual interventions when necessary.

Ninety-nine per cent of 104 students achieved Level 1 at Aquinas College last year, whereas the overall attainment rate nationally stood at 69 per cent.

At the school there was a 97.2 per cent pass rate at Level 2, and a 96.3 per cent pass rate at Level 3.

Out of 80 students, 86.3 per cent gained University Entrance and 12 Scholarships were awarded throughout the cohort.

"In another Covid-disrupted year - and the impact it has around attendance and time in school - to achieve these results was outstanding," principal Matt Dalton said.

Aquinas College principal Matt Dalton. Photo / George Novak

"The national trend was regression, and our trend continues to be moving forward," he said.

Dalton said the school had "robust tracking systems" and a "history of academic excellence" so the results did not come as a surprise.

He also praised the hard work put in by teachers, students and family.

"The communication between home and school - keeping students at the centre - is absolutely critical to what we do."

He said the school had a "very broad curriculum" for its size and stood firm on keeping opportunities open for young people.

"We are not putting barriers up for them to be successful by having overly rigorous prerequisites."

Tauranga Girls' College principal Tara Kanji. Photo / Supplied

Tauranga Girls' College principal Tara Kanji she was "very proud" of what students were able to achieve despite the range of pressures, saying the college reflected a focus on learning, teaching and wellbeing.

She said the school community had been forced to adapt to lockdowns, sickness, staffing shortages and mandates - with some coping better than others.

"The mental health and well-being of all at times been thrown into question as many, of the plans and pathway staff and students had planned for were turned on their heads," she said.

Eighty-one per cent of 306 students at Tauranga Girls' College passed Level 1.
At Level 2, 81 per cent passed, and at Level 3 78.9 per cent passed.

Fifty-eight per cent of 194 students gained University Entrance and 21 Scholarships were awarded to students.

Kanji said it was important to celebrate and reflect on the school's resiliency during this time.

"The point I make is to not to focus on outcomes [NCEA] alone but to notice the sense of belonging, diversity, the support for well-being and of the learning and teaching."