Good, better, best. Never let it rest. 'Til your good is better and your better is best at SPS!

By Thomas Bartlett, Tumuaki

My journey at SPS started in Term 2 of 2022. For the first time this year, Matariki was celebrated in Aotearoa with a public holiday. At the same time, the wonderful Whaea Barb left SPS and I was welcomed as the new tumuaki. It was the perfect time to learn about our night sky and think about new beginnings. 

I found out how the learning affected change within our students, staff and community after participating in a full pakirehua cycle in Term 3, and realising the concept that was the SPS signature of student development. In this instance team-work really did make the dream work and we always found ways to make the learning fun. I would like to thank key members of the leadership team in this respect.

As part of celebrating pakirehua at Sylvia Park School, we share our learning with our local community and the wider education sector. This website is part of that! 

To help with the documentation I started a new YouTube channel (2022; Term 2, Term 4 / 2023: Term 1, Term 2) and we show our learning on our facebook page.

We also welcome visits to our school and enjoy hosting educators to experience what pakirehua looks and feels like every day. I am always proud of the way our Year 8 prefects talk about their learning experiences during these visits. Their reflections as they speak about their years at SPS, and the language they use, indicate a deep understanding of the learning process and the impact past inquiries have had.

One of my proudest moments was our first inquiry of 2023. Ka mua ka muri - Learning from the past to lead the future. This investigation dove into “how the maunga in our rohe connect us to the past”. Learning and retelling the stories of the maunga help us to feel belonging and connected and is now part of the continuing drive to lift attendance. Our Attendance Matters data shows that it has definitely worked lifting Term 1 & 2 attendance 2022 by 6% respectively during each term in 2023.