WESTLAKE BOYS HIGH SCHOOL YEARBOOK 2015 WESTLAKE BOYS HIGH SCHOOL 2015 BOYS WESTLAKE 2015 PREFECTS Back Row: Mitchell Ottow, Jerry Shen, Nikhil Luthra, Oliver Kelsey, Ben Williams, Dhilesh Vasan, Ben Adkins, Louis Abplanalp 4th Row: Kevin Li, Arthur Close, Daniel Lee, Samuel Yang, Dylan Carlyle, Thomas Song, Scott Prentice, Annan Chen, Angus Nicoll 3rd Row: Jaepeth Tiakia, Thomas Patrick, Connor Stephen, Henry Li, James Parkes, Alesh Sukha, Andrew Lee, Oscar Ramsay, Michael Booth, Luke Dewar, Matthew Freeman 2nd Row: Tigerson Cao, Matt Lupton, Dan Richards, Corey Annandale, William O'Donnell, Benjamin Reidy, Connor Beamish, Brayden Print, Noah Kemp, Logan Hunt, Ihtishaam Muhammed Front Row: Ian Lim, Ammon Moller, Ross Ter Braak, Riley Cahill, Andre Jackson (Head Boy), Mr D Ferguson (Headmaster), Liam Rawlings (Deputy Head Boy), Mr J Cachopa (Deputy Headmaster), George Han (Deputy Head Boy), Jake Konia, Tyler Smith Headmaster'sFORMAL Report REPORTS 2 CULTURELibrary, Performance Poetry 93 Head Boy's Report 7 Culture Week 94 Board of Trustees Report 8 Chinese Night, Korean Evening 95 High Achievers 9 Cultural Clubs 96 Successes at Westlake 12 Debating 97 Staff 2015 14 School Production - Assassins 98 Year 13 Ball 100 Pasifika 102 Maori Evening, Field of Remembrance 103 ArtFACU History, LTICareers ES 18 Art 104 Commerce 19 Computing, ESOL 20 Drama 21 English 22 SPORTAdventure Racing, Badminton 115 Hauora, Sports Institute Classes 23 Chess, Pétanque 116 Gateway 24 Dragon Boating, Duke of Edinburgh 117 International Department 25 Basketball 118 Languages 26 Cricket 120 Scholarship, Learner Support 27 Cross Country 122 Mathematics 28 Cycling 124 Media Studies 29 Orienteering, Multisport 125 Music 30 Football 126 Outdoor Education 33 Hockey 128 Outdoor Pursuits Centre 34 Lacrosse 130 Peer Mentoring, Peer Tutoring 35 Road Running 131 Physical Education 36 Skiing, Snowboarding 132 Science 37 Sailing, Squash 133 Social Science 38 Rowing 134 Technology 39 Rugby 136 Te Tari Maori 40 Rugby League 138 Swimming 139 Touch Rugby 140 Table Tennis, Ultimate Frisbee 141 HoodHOUSES 41 Tennis 142 Pupuke 48 Track and Field 144 Murchison 55 Volleyball 146 Smale 62 Waterpolo 147 Ururoto 69 NZ Representatives 148 Stanley 76 Sports Teams A-Z 149 WW01 83 Groups A-Z 181 GeographyOVERSEAS Tour to Hawaii TRIPS 84 WESTLAKERSWestlakers Report 184 Distance Running Tour to South Africa 85 Old Boys Profiles 190 Rugby Tour to California 86 Conservation Tour to South Africa 87 Languages Tour to Japan 88 Basketball Tour to USA 89 Hockey Tour to Europe 90 TOLong Serving FINISH Staff 196 Universities Tour to UK & USA 91 In Memoriam 199 Staff Travel Award 92 Editor's Note, Statistics 2015, Property 200 FORMAL REPORTS 1 HEADMASTER'S Joshua Hansen with Prime Minister John Key and Mr Ferguson at REPORT Parliament to receive his Academic Award for Excellence. HEADMASTER’S ANNUAL REPORT FROM SENIOR PRIZEGIVING 2015 has been another year to remember for our school and we are Our success, good reputation and standing in the New Zealand looking forward to what is still to come in the final term. education community has come from hard work, determination and an unwillingness to accept mediocrity. We should never take Friday the 18th of September was a significant day in the life of the success for granted and your own personal success does not just school. I doubt there has ever been a day in the school’s history happen by turning up to school every day. As our Prime Minister where we have appeared on the front page of the Herald and the said “you’ll get out of life what you put into it”. Substitute life for Prime Minister comes in to see us on the same day. It is worth school and the same principle applies. As he also said “now pin reflecting on the reasons for both. A few months ago now, we made your ears back and go for it”. A great message as we go into exam a decision about the future of the school that we thought would be season. better for future generations of students, the decision to make the complete transition to NCEA. Just as Mr Dale and his team in 2002 We all have a role to play in making sure this school continues to thought Cambridge International Examinations would be a good improve, otherwise we are not doing our jobs. In the immediate option for our school and at the time I think he was right, we believe future your jobs as the Year 11, 12 and 13 students of the class that what we are doing now is the right thing to do as well. Ultimately of 2015, is to work harder than you’ve ever worked before over we think it will add to the school experience for those coming in the next few weeks. Prioritise preparation for your exams and to the school from 2016. We will still give our future Westlakers a completing coursework well, over everything else. If you can’t strong grounding in recall based learning strategies and they will still do that you’re letting yourself down and don’t deserve to be have to show mastery in their subjects. successful when the results come out at the end of the year. It is interesting, though, that in 2015 our decision generates front Academic page headlines. Academically we are more successful now than The academic headlines at the start of this year were dominated we have ever been. On the scholarship board for 2014, 29 names by the 29 young men I referred to earlier who have their names on were added, compared to 6 in 2008, which was a real standout year the scholar’s board forever. We were getting used to doing well but when we had two students in the top 10 in New Zealand. For the only not quite as well as some of our academic rivals at other schools other occasion, and whilst I’m not desperate for our school to be in Auckland and Wellington. We could take consolation in our pass in the media, it is significant that an educational decision we have rates and gradual, consistent improvement (these things have made in 2015 is worthy of front page news headlines. The Prime been really important over the last five years). But it was nice in Minister had to say during his visit that if he lived on the North Shore 2015 to be at the top of the pile as far as scholarship results were and had a son of high school age, there is only one school he would concerned. Joshua Hansen and Chris Hagan, our 2014 Proxime send him to. We should be proud of that. He also said that there are Accessit and Dux respectively, were two of the top three students two schools in Auckland that have very long waiting lists - ourselves in New Zealand, with Joshua receiving the top accolade, the Prime and Auckland Grammar School. Minister’s Award for Academic Excellence, something Westlake 2 FORMAL REPORTS Mr Ferguson with the Junior runners at Auckland Cross Country Champs. Boys High School has never seen before. Just outside the national A special mention to our Head Boy, Andre Jackson at this point who top ten sat Nathan Regal, George Han, David Hoggard and Peter achieved our most ever Excellence credits in 2014, 126 at Level 2. I Huxford, all named as national Outstanding Scholars. These six wonder how long his record will last. A special mention as well to young men achieved an astonishing 20 Outstanding Scholarships Rengen Parlane who was Top in the World at AS level Geography, between them and a further 17 Scholarships. The challenge now to George Han who was Top in the World at AS Level Thinking is to do it all again. Getting to the top is hard, staying there is even Skills and to Rafi Baboe, our first Year 11 student to achieve two harder. Bertie Charles Forbes was a 19th century Scottish-born Scholarship passes, in English and Media respectively. American, financial journalist and author who founded Forbes Sport magazine. He said “nobody can fight their way to the top and stay at the top without exercising the fullest measure of grit, courage, We have won five New Zealand premier sport titles so far this year and we’ve still realistically got a chance in Basketball and Cricket determination and resolution. Everybody who gets anywhere does where the finals have yet to happen. Congratulations to our Hockey, so because they have first firmly resolved to progress in the world Squash, Tennis, Swimming and Cross Country teams respectively. and then have had enough ‘stick-to-it-tiveness’ to transform their Good luck to our Basketball and Cricket teams. This would be our resolution into reality. Without resolution, nobody can win any best ever year, if we managed to add either or both of these two to worthwhile place among other people.” the list. No pressure. Remember there are over 400 high schools in Our combined pass rates last year at IGCSE or Level 1, AS or Level New Zealand. In 2015 our Premier Cricket, Squash, Table Tennis, 2 and A2 or Level 3 were 96%, 91% and 94% respectively. In Road Running, Hockey, Cross Country, Rowing and Lacrosse, all 2008 our Year 13 pass rate had been 69%, so we have had a 25% won Auckland premier sports titles. Our 1st XV will be disappointed improvement in the six years since then. 418 students passed their to have not won the North Harbour title this year. They know they Year 13 qualification last year, over 150 more than in 2008. The could have and should have won but sometimes sport is like that.