Ko Ngāti Kahungunu tōku iwi
Ko Ngāti Moe tōku hapu
Kō Papawai tōku marae
Kō John Stenton Workman rāua Kokoriti Ellen Riwhanga tōku tipuna
Ko Paula Hay tōku ingoa.
Ever since I was little I wanted to be a teacher. As I got older the question wasn’t “what am I going to do when I grow up?” but “what age should I teach? Which subjects am I most excited by?”
In the end, it was science that inspired me the most – with the help of an amazing teacher at high school. It was exciting, yet logical. The questions that came from observations and experiments were never really answered, they just led to more and more questions. While friends sometimes found this frustrating I was enraptured!
The concept of the key science capabilities is what has underpinned my experience as an educator. I have taught science in a range of secondary schools in New Zealand and at a preparatory school in London. As I have observed my “experiment” (my classroom) and gathered evidence, I would analyse the evidence then ask more questions… How can I include more cooperative activities in my class? How might I change the representation of this key concept, so that students can better understand and engage with it? How might digital technologies be integrated into my learning programs to help my students learn and understand?
I am passionate about the achievement of our rangatahi – and my particular passions are raising the achievement of females in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) disciplines and the success of Māori and Pasifika as learners.
After six and a half years as HOD Science at St Mary’s College in Wellington the opportunity came up to join N4L as Education Sector Specialist. I was ready for a new challenge and interested in making more of an impact to teaching and learning across the sector. So here I am!
My role at N4L is focussed on connecting the sector with services offered by N4L. I’ll be doing a lot of work with sector groups such as the Subject Associations, AP/DP organisations, and Teacher Educator groups helping them to understand and make use of N4L’s products and services.
I’ll be honest and admit I am missing my students and in the process of adapting my mindset to working in a different environment – a bit like a musician without an instrument who has been placed in charge of a music studio – but I’m open-minded and ready for this challenge! My mantra is “If we always do what we have always done, we will always get what we’ve always got.” As one of my students wrote in a farewell card: “Ehara toku toa i te toa takitahi, he toa takatini taku toa. My strength is not mine alone, but the strength of many.”
I look forward to working with the strength of many (that means you!) to try new things and build a better learning environment for our rangatahi and future rangatira.
No reira – tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa.