Prospectusonslow College Wellington, New Zealand About Onslow

Onslow College

ProspectusOnslow College Wellington, New Zealand About Onslow

Vision

Onslow College is a co-educational, decile 10 state secondary school located in the Inspiring students to learn, grow and north-western suburbs of Wellington. Our zone includes Johnsonville, Churton Park, achieve in an environment that encourages Ohariu Valley, Broadmeadows, Khandallah, Cashmere, Ngaio, Chartwell, Crofton individual and community responsibility, Downs, Wilton, Wadestown and Northland. We also serve Karori and Kelburn. Onslow freedom of expression and respect for the College operates an enrolment scheme. rights of others. Onslow College is an environment that encourages independence, self-discipline, and social responsibility with a student-centred philosophy. There is no prescribed uniform for students. Values Onslow College promotes an inclusive environment for all students and is renowned Working Together for the positive staff-student relationships and large co-curricular involvement of both groups. Through the creative talents and enthusiasm of our students and staff, Students, parents, the school and the we strive for excellence in all aspects of College life. community work together to achieve We encourage diversity and individuality whilst ensuring behaviour does not constrain an inclusive school that is socially and the rights of other students to an excellent education. culturally diverse, safe and free from disruption and which recognises the Onslow College works hard to communicate with its wider community and involve unique status of Mäori. families with their key role in supporting student learning. There are approximately 1300 students, 90 teachers and 30 support staff at Onslow Realising Potential College. Teachers effectively use a wide range of strategies that We value and celebrate effort, success, innovation and creativity. We believe support student engagement in purposeful learning. high expectations promote student achievement and encourage social These include: responsibility. Mutual Respect and Self- »» promoting respectful and reciprocal relationships and Management interactions Onslow is characterised by a mature »» challenging and extending students and supporting interaction between staff and students. their development of high levels of thinking and Teachers and students are treated with understanding respect and students share responsibility for learning with their teachers. »» fostering of student independence and self-management Life-Long Learning »» developing students’ confidence to seek clarification and share ideas Students are engaged by way of a personalised learning process and develop ERO Report 2014 as life-long learners. They are taught how to learn by high quality and motivated staff who continue to learn themselves. Onslow College Principal's Welcome

At Onslow College we are committed to providing our students with outstanding educational experiences and opportunities. We focus on helping our students experience success in their academic studies and on developing the personal skills and attributes that will enable them to have choice in their career paths and allow them to make valuable contributions to society. We are a school with a proud record of academic success; students leave Onslow College well prepared for the next stage of their lives. Students at Onslow College enjoy success and academically we rate among the top co-ed colleges in New Zealand. 1 A significant number of our graduates move on to tertiary level study and acknowledge how Onslow College helped them develop the skills to be successful in those studies. We also get feedback from those tertiary institutes saying how well our students settle into that level of study thanks to the grounding they received at Onslow College To achieve these aspirational goals, we need to build a positive partnership with students and their families, with everyone accepting responsibility for making these goals come to fruition. We place a lot of value on developing a positive sense of community with everyone recognising and working within clear standards and expectations. We aim to provide a rich learning environment where everyone can contribute to the desired outcome. We also offer our students a wide variety of co-curricular activities in music, drama, Ko Tarikäkä te maunga sport, and cultural activities, and these certainly help us develop well-rounded students. We are very proud of what our students achieve not only in NCEA but TARIKÄKÄ IS THE MOUNTAIN. in a wide range of national and international competitions in both academic and co-curricular activities. Ko Waipähïhï te awa We have a mantra of ‘community over conformity’ and we work hard on relationships WAIPÄHÏHÏ IS THE RIVER. and building a sense of community. As a result our students enjoy their school and are proud of it. We believe that one of our key strengths is our ability to create Ko Onslow College te kura positive learning-focused relationships that both our staff and students enjoy. ONSLOW COLLEGE IS THE SCHOOL. We also provide a very comprehensive student support network and our staff genuinely care about and know their students. We place real value on student voice and our student groups such as Peer Support, Student Mediation, School Council and Year level councils make a significant contribution to the smooth running of the College. We hope you will find that the information in this prospectus will help you in your decision-making and encourage you to visit the school and see our superb educational environment for yourself. We look forward to your child joining our outstanding College. Yours sincerely

Students thrive in a Peter Leggat culture of acceptance, Principal focused on learning.

ERO Report 2014 Junior school

Year 9 and 10 students study across all eight learning areas of the New Zealand Curriculum.

We regard the learning in the junior school (Years 9 and 10) Social Sciences as vital in: Social Studies •• Developing key skills and understandings necessary for Technology future success •• Establishing sound work and study habits Design Technology Digital Technologies •• Ensuring that students access a wide range of subjects and Fashion and Design Food Technology & Nutrition 2 disciplines to enable them to make informed choices in the Graphics and Design future. Our goal is to provide a balance between student Cross Curricular choice and intensive development of skills Digital Literacy Financial Literacy •• Enabling students to create and establish their own identity in a learning environment which is flexible and responsive to Planning for Action their needs while providing clear structures and guidelines The Junior Curriculum Handbooks contain full details of course to support them in their learning. content and requirements. Junior School Courses Extension Opportunities

The Arts As an inclusive school, Onslow College ensures that there are Art Dance extension opportunities available within all programmes. Staff are trained in providing differentiated lessons that allow students Drama Music to challenge themselves and to be challenged. Year 9 and 10 English Mathematics classes are banded. Health and Physical Education Students enter and are successful in a wide range of competitions including the Australian Maths, English and Science Competitions Languages and Science CREST programmes. French Japanese We may recommend students study some subjects at higher Mandarin Spanish levels. Te Reo Mäori Mathematics Science

The new subjects available at Onslow provided so many new choices, all of them exciting and interesting. The teachers at Onslow are all so welcoming and encouraging, making it an environment prime for learning.

Year 9 student Senior school

We offer an extensive range of subjects and students are able to choose a course which best suits their needs due to the flexibility of studying at multiple levels and the variety of courses offered.

Please refer to the Senior Curriculum Handbook for full course Leadership Opportunities details. Senior students at Onslow College have a range of The Transition Programme provides opportunities for work opportunities to provide active leadership within the school. experience and to study at polytechnics and other providers. •• BOT Representative Also available is a range of practical and vocationally oriented 3 subjects. •• Drama and Music Qualifications •• Environment Group •• Outdoor Education NCEA - Level 1 (Year 11) •• Peer Support

All students take English, Science, Mathematics and three other •• Peer Tutoring subjects. •• School Council Students who meet the prerequisites may take subjects above •• Sports Coaching Year 11 level. •• Sports Council NCEA - Level 2 (Year 12) •• Stage Challenge All students take English or Te Reo and the equivalent of an •• Student Mediation additional four and a half to five full year subjects. •• School Magazine - Ad Lib. Students who have met the prerequisites may take subjects at Year Level Leadership Groups NCEA Level 3. NCEA - Level 3 (Year 13) Students also play an integral part in school processes such as staff appointments, the College Property Committee and This includes University Entrance and Scholarship. other decision-making groups. Students take five subjects.

The Onslow community is very welcoming to Year 9 children and families. I was very impressed by the Open Evening, the welcome Powhiri, and the Year 9 tea - especially the role played by senior students, who are very engaged and enthusiastic. It reminded me of a comment from an Onslow parent: “They grow good adults here.”

New parent Student support support Onslow College is committed to providing a safe and welcoming environment for all students. We have an extensive pastoral care network.

Pastoral Care Learning Support

•• Every student is placed in a form class Students with any learning needs requiring special teaching •• Form Teachers provide support and advice to students in methods are fully mainstreamed. their form classes Learning Support coordinates Individual Education Plans and 4 •• Deans have overall responsibility for the welfare of students works with students, parents, class teachers and specialists. at each year level Support is available for other students in a number of areas •• If you need to contact the College about your child you including: should do so through the appropriate Form Teacher •• Mathematics •• The Deputy Principals are responsible for coordinating the •• Special Assessment assistance in assessments for qualifying pastoral support network students and •• Mentoring by senior students occurs in programmes such as •• Study skills seminars. peer support and student mediation •• The principles of restorative justice are a key focus of the Guidance Counsellors discipline system. •• For assistance with social and emotional issues students or parents can contact the Guidance Counsellors Mäori Students •• The Guidance Counsellors are professionally trained •• Onslow College recognises the unique status of Mäori •• All issues are dealt with confidentially •• Mäori language and culture can be studied at all levels •• The Kaitiaki is a guardian for Mäori students. •• The Kaitiaki and Mäori teacher work closely with students, whänau, and other staff Vocational Pathways •• Kapa Haka is an active group within the school. •• Onslow College has a comprehensive Careers Education and vocational pathways programme Tena Koutou Katoa •• This programme is the responsibility of the Careers Advisor Ka ähukahuka matou o te kura i te tuakiri o nga tauira Mäori. who is available to parents as well as students Ka taea e ngä tauira katoa ki te ako i te reo Mäori. •• Advice and guidance is provided on careers, tertiary He röpü haka tö te kura o Onslow. education, training courses and subject choices Ka whakamana te kura i ngä wähanga katoa o te Tiriti o Waitangi. •• Careers advice and guidance begins in Year 9. English Language

The EL department supports students from non-English speaking backgrounds. Language support is provided in mainstream classrooms and through small group tuition for students needing higher levels of English assistance.

The transition to Onslow was smooth and easy. The Peer Support programme helped me a lot, and in a few days I knew the school like the back of my hand. Onslow makes it seamless to go from Intermediate to College.

Year 9 student Sports and recreation Onslow College students participate and compete successfully in a wide range of sporting activities. Our sports staff coordinate sporting activities within the school and work to ensure that our students participate successfully in the full range of inter-school sports.

Onslow College encourages the discipline, commitment and Education Outside the Classroom healthy competition that enable many of our students to represent their sport at regional and national levels. The use of educational facilities beyond the classroom for subject fieldwork is encouraged. The success of the sports programme relies on the involvement 5 of parents and others in the community. This includes sports facilities, museums, galleries, libraries, government and private organisations, rivers, beaches and parks. Sports available to students include: Students are also involved in outdoor pursuits programmes, which are designed to provide challenges and support personal Athletics Orienteering development. All Year 9 classes participate in a camp at the Badminton Rowing start of the year. Year 13 Peer Supporters are involved in camp Basketball Rugby as leaders. Year 10 students are involved in an activities-based programme at the end of the year. Students may also take Bowls Shooting part in trips organised by an active tramping club and have the Canoe Polo Skiing opportunity to attend the Outdoor Pursuits Centre near Tongariro Chess Snowboarding National Park. Cricket Table Tennis Cross Country Tennis Football Touch Rugby Hockey Volleyball Netball Yachting / Sailing

Onslow College provides opportunities to participate in a wide range of sporting activities. It’s never too late to start a sport at Onslow. Our teams are provided with support and coaching to be the very best they can be.

Year 11 student Cultural excellence

Excellence in the arts is encouraged at Onslow College. The nature of the school is very much shaped by the creative talents and enthusiasm of its students.

Dance & Drama International Experiences

Onslow College provides opportunities for students interested in Onslow College offers students the opportunity to take dance to participate in both curricular and co-curricular dance. part in a number of exciting international experiences. 6 Dance is available as a curriculum subject at junior level. These include: The Level 2 Performing Arts Production course provides an •• The annual exchange with Yamamura Girls’ High School opportunity for students to choreograph and direct Onslow near Tokyo College’s bi-annual Stage Challenge production. •• Classics trip to Greece and Italy Drama follows a strong tradition of public performance. Students •• French trip are encouraged to extend their individual creativity, and learn to work together in a variety of settings with a wide range of •• China trip collaborators. •• Leadership trip to Vietnam & Cambodia Drama is available as a curriculum subject at all levels. Every •• Spanish trip Drama class from Year 10 upwards performs a play to a public •• Sports/Music trips to Australia. audience as a part of its course. Onslow College students are regularly selected to participate in Onslow students are also active participants in a wide range of exchanges such as: language exchanges, Rotary, AFS and YFU. co-curricular drama performances, including the Sheilah Winn Shakespeare Festival, the Classroom Comedians programme, and Kapa Haka Onslow College’s bi-annual Musical. Recent productions include West Side Story and The Pajama Game. We have a commitment to achieving excellence in Mäori A number of Onslow College students go on to tertiary study Peforming Arts and Kapa Haka. The Kapa Haka Group features and professional careers in the Performing Arts. prominently in school activities and are in an exciting phase of development. Anyone who wishes to participate is warmly Debating welcomed. Students are active in debating with teams in most grades. There Music is an annual inter-school debate with another local College. The Onslow College Music Department is a vibrant and thriving Environment community. We have a wide variety of Music groups including Choirs, Concert Band, Orchestra, Rock Bands and Chamber Onslow College has an active Green Group which participates Ensembles. in regional and national events and contributes to a project for These ensembles participate in a large number of festivals across the restoration of the Waipähïhï Stream area within the school the Wellington Region including The Big Sing, WeBO (Wellington environs. Bands and Orchestra Festival), Smokefree Rockquest, Chamber Students are directly involved in decision-making processes Music Competition and outreach programmes. which impact on the general school environment. The Music Department has an annual exchange with Wairarapa Te Whänau o Te Ara Poutama College involving Choral and Instrumental groups, with a strong focus on the workshopping and performance of student written Te Whänau o Te Ara Poutama celebrates Mäori Language compositions. and Culture, focusing on key elements of tikanga which are Manaakitanga (to be caring and enact hospitality wherever Across the course of the year there are many performance possible), whänaungatanga (building and maintaining positive opportunities and concerts, ranging from solo instruments to relationships) while remaining committed to strengthening the combined works for Choir and Orchestra. capacity of our tauira to utilise Te Reo to facilitate all Kaupapa The Music Curriculum includes the study of performance, Mäori. Te Whänau o Te Ara Poutama has a strong focus also on theory and history alongside a strong focus on the creation and the tuakana - teina model. performance of student composition. We work with our tuakana to develop leadership and teaching We also run a diverse Itinerant programme, giving the students skills to support and encourage our teina in learning and an opportunity to learn an instrument at school. Options include upholding tikanga at our school and the wider community. Brass, Woodwind, Strings, Percussion and Piano. Onslow College participates in music exchanges with other colleges. 7

During my time at Onslow, I became immersed in a world of creativity and means of personal expression. It represented a period of growth for me within a community of passionate, zany, and like-minded people.

Former student Facilities e-Learning & ICT

Onslow College enables and supports learning with information In the meantime, school laptops are available for use in the senior and communication technologies. school as needed, and senior students are welcome to bring their The New Zealand Curriculum encourages schools to explore devices to school. They will often be able to use them in class, how ICT can improve learning. Technology can enrich traditional although they are not always permitted for assessments. ways of teaching. It can also open up new and different ways of learning, helping students to develop skills they need in a Facilities rapidly changing world. Onslow College has a strategic goal of developing and Onslow College recognises the importance of e-Learning. We providing facilities which enhance student learning, creating an continually increase our capacity to deliver this effectively. environment which reflects the nature of Onslow College and its Onslow College has strengthened our school-wide wireless community. Currently, the facilities at Onslow College include: 8 network to facilitate e-Learning in all classrooms. We have •• Thirty general classrooms increased staff training in the effective use of ICT to improve learning. The training we offer students in safe and effective use •• Eight science laboratories of ICT expands every year. •• Three practical art rooms Student training includes: •• A music suite with classrooms, performance spaces, practice •• Information retrieval rooms and a recording studio •• Presentation and communication •• Six specialist technology classrooms •• Data processing •• Two gymnasiums •• Responsible online behaviour including safe digital practice. •• Indoor cricket practice facility, cricket nets and a multiuse turf We use two main platforms for e-Learning, Moodle and Office 365. These allow students to access course material at home •• Extensive grass playing fields and at school, collaborate with other students, complete and •• Three computer laboratories supplemented by computer store some of their school work online, and submit work online. pods throughout the school Both platforms can house links to resources and learning tools •• A well-established library which is the information centre that support the in-class teaching. Office 365 gives a student for the school free access to the suite of Microsoft Office applications (eg Word, OneNote, OneDrive, Excel) for as long as the student is •• The Arts Centre which is the focus of Drama in the school; enrolled at Onslow. •• A Student Centre and cafeteria and Students and parents have access to the Onslow College Portal •• A media studies suite with film production facilities. which provides important school notices. Parents receive an Onslow College has a long-term property plan which provides invitation to join the portal, an effective method to keep up for the ongoing development of the school to ensure that we to date with their child’s achievement at school and to book continue to provide a quality teaching and learning environment. appointments for parent teacher conferences. Onslow’s most recent ERO review can be accessed at this Students have a computer account, which gives them open use location, http://www.ero.govt.nz/review-reports/onslow- of school email and Internet, subject to the Onslow College college-19-08-2014/ Cybersafety Use Agreement and Cybersafety Policy. In 2017 Onslow introduced a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) programme for all year 9 and year 10 students. This policy will move up the school with these students. Each year teachers will expand their e-Learning practice to an additional year group.

We are Onslow Collegea

CONTACT Postal: Private Bag 13-906, Johnsonville, Wellington 6440, New Zealand. Phone: +64-4-4788189 Email: [email protected] Enrolement: [email protected] nz Website: www.onslow.school.nz