Week 3 Term 4: English Department - English Department Starter Pack: Plan for Term 4 2024 (October 28 - November 01)

English Department Careers Evening Term 3 2024

As a department, we like to discuss what our priorities and goals are. Sometimes our priorities change as we journey through the term but we try to stick to our goals as best as we can.

Below are some of the goals that we would like to work towards in Term 3.

NCEA Exam Preparation - Term 4 is such an important time for our department and students. We will be dedicating time in not only supporting our students in finishing their internal assessments but also helping prepare and study for their Derived Grade Exams (Week 2 Term 4) and NCEA Examinations (Week 4 and Week 4 Term 4). We also have three Year 13 students who are sitting the Scholarship English Exam (Week 6 Term 4)


Redesign our Junior English Program - I am excited to redesign our Junior English program. I am hoping to work alongside our Library Department to ensure that we use the space in a meaningful way with our Year 9 and Year 10 students. We are wanting to encourage ‘reading for pleasure’ in our program next year.


Academic Push for NCEA Level 1, 2 + 3 English students - We are still on our pursuit to ensuring that our students get the credits they are offered across NCEA Level 1, 2 and 3 English. We will be working with our students closely in making sure that this is a success for them/


Our Voice Vol.2 - We are excited to publish and share ‘Our Voice Vol.2’ publication in Term 4. A huge thank you to Mr Spruyt who will be collating and producing this year’s publication.

Junior English + Senior English Plan for Term 4 2024

With the start of Term 4 already underway, I want to acknowledge some of the things that we have finished and also what we are looking forward to: 

• Internal Assessments - we have officially closed the internal assessment schedule for 2024. We are now in the process of completing the marking and moderating for all of our NCEA Level 1, 2 and 3 English internal assessments. 
• Derived Grade Exams - we have finished our Derived Grade Exams and we are now going to prepare our students for the NCEA Exams which take place in Week 4 and Week 5 of Term 4 (November). 
• Our Voices - The first publication is almost ready and we are excited to share this with our school and community. 
• Junior Exams - we are preparing our Junior English Exams which is slated for Week 5 and Week 6 of Term 4 (November). 

Week 2 Term 4: English Department - English Department Starter Pack: Review of Term 3 2024 (October 21 - October 25)

Some of the English Department @ TC Career Pathway Evening Term 3

Term 3 was a very busy term for the English Department. From the beginning of the term right up to the last week of term, the English Department has been working very hard with their students. The journey through our Junior English program in Term 3 specifically focussing on the Literacy Co-Requisite that took place in Week 9, working through the internal assessment schedule with our NCEA Level 1, 2 and 3 English students, has been laborious but rewarding. We knew that Term 3 was going to be full on. We knew that Term 3 was going to be our opportunity to get through our curriculum with our akonga especially as this is our last full academic term with our senior students as they finish school in Week 3 of Term 4. As a school, we have had to navigate the demands of relief teaching as many of our colleagues have been unwell or called to other family priorities, stepping in to fill the gap for relief has meant that a lot of us in the department have had to cover classes on top of their own classes. This is what we do. We step in and help because we want to - for our colleagues and our students. 

Some of the English Department @ the AATEL Twilight PLD Term 3

We had an opportunity to attend the Auckland Association Teachers of English Literature workshop this term which was centered around Junior English. Attending these professional development workshops is our opportunity to make connections with the Auckland cohort of English teachers and most importantly see what other teachers are doing and collect the resources that they share. I am really pleased with our NCEA Achievement Data as we have (and continue to) strive to help our students attain their credits and get through the curriculum. At the beginning of Term 3 our Achievement Data for NCEA Level 1, 2 and 3 English showed us: 

Tamaki College English Department: NCEA Level 1, 2 + 3 English Internal Assessment Comparative Data Term 3

I want to thank Mrs Pravina Harde, Mrs Christine Williams, Mr Faiyaz Hoosein, Mr Jeremy Spruyt, Ms Anahina Latu and Ms Francis Kolo for your commitment, your work, your heart of service and your leadership in what has been another busy term for us as a department. I say it all the time because this is how I truly feel, I am so grateful and honored to work alongside you all. Thank you for trusting my leadership. I thank you for everything that you bring to our department. Without you, there is no English Department. My heart is full of gratitude when I think about our team and how they have blessed our students this term. I would also like to acknowledge Mrs Vivienne Jenson-Jones, Mrs Maryanne Wyatt and Mr Marc Milford for their work and support for the English Department this term. I will now review our Term 3 Junior and Senior English program.

JUNIOR ENGLISH PROGRAM TERM 3 REVIEW: 

This term our Year 9 and Year 10 students looked at visual texts (film) as our primary text study and the common assessment task was Close Viewing. This term our theme was ‘Our Stories’ specifically looking at stories and texts that reflect the experiences of those in our community and globally. Some of the texts that featured in our Junior English program in Term 3 were:

The Freedom Writers

The Truman Show

Encanto

Junior English Close Viewing: Student Exemplar

We have taken elements of the Close Viewing assessment that we have used in the past and modified it for our own classes so that it is specific and appropriate for their Year level. We have also been working with a select group of Year 10 students who are at Level 5 of the curriculum for reading - they were selected to sit the Literacy Co-Requisite in September (Week 9 of Term 3).

SENIOR ENGLISH PROGRAM REVIEW TERM 3

Our focus Term 3 across our NCEA Level 1, 2 and 3 English classes was to get our students through the internal assessment schedule and to get them prepared for the Derived Grade Exams (Term 4) and the NCEA End of Year Examinations (Term 4). Our students have done extremely well working towards and gaining their credits (as mentioned earlier) this term. Term 3 is always scheduled as our time for our senior students to finish and complete their internal assessments.

NCEA Level 1 English: 91924 Student Exemplar

NCEA Level 3 English: 91475 Student Exemplar

In Term 3 our students are working on the following assessments across NCEA Level 1, 2 and 3 English.

• 91924 - New NCEA Level 1 English internal assessment
• 91925 - New NCEA Level 1 English internal assessment
• 91104 - NCEA Level 2 English internal assessment (Connections Essay)
• 91106 - NCEA Level 2 English internal assessment (Reading Responses)
• 91101 - NCEA Level 2 English internal assessment (Writing Portfolio)
• 91107 - NCEA Level 2 English internal assessment (Close Viewing)
• 91478 - NCEA Level 3 English internal assessment (Connections Essay)
• 91475 - NCEA Level 3 English internal assessment (Writing Portfolio)

In my next post I will reflect on our plans for Term 4 2024. 

Week 1 Term 4: Teacher Practice: Reviewing School Goal 1: Māori Achievement (October 14 - October 18)

Reflection and review is a major of part of my teacher pedagogy. I wanted to start the term off by reviewing School Goal 1. School Goal 1 is: 

To raise Māori student achievement and cultural visibility. 
85% of Māori students will achieve NCEA Level 2.

In this post I want outline and try my best to answer the following questions in relation to School Goal 1. 

My reflections on School Goal 1: To raise Māori cultural visibility

In our Junior and English programs we have become increasingly intentional about Māori cultural visibility by incorporating Māori Texts into our curriculum. These include stories of Ngati Paoa, texts centered around Māori stories, myths, characters, written by Māori We are also creating units that are specifically Te Ao Māori centered (Korowai unit) and also using our primary text study units as the vehicle to explore study texts about Māori and written and crafted by Māori (both written and visual texts). In our new curriculum refresh for our NCEA Level 1 English Program we are looking at contexts around colonization in Aotearoa in New Zealand and the implications that this has on Māori, Pacific and other ethnic minority communities.

Māori cultural visibility means actively incorporating and celebrating Māori culture, language, and perspectives within our school environment. This involves more than just acknowledging Māori culture; it's about making it an integral part of our curriculum, our teaching practices, and our school culture.

Tamaki College Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori Language Week 2024

For students, this visibility fosters a sense of belonging and identity, particularly for our Māori students. It also enriches the educational experience for all students, promoting understanding and respect for different cultures. We can achieve this and we have achieved this in our Department through various initiatives, such as:

1. Curriculum Integration: Incorporating Māori texts, authors, and perspectives into our English curriculum, ensuring that students engage with literature that reflects Māori voices and experiences.

2. Cultural Events: Celebrating Māori events such as Matariki and Waitangi Day, and encouraging participation in cultural performances, which helps to create a vibrant school community.

3. Te Reo Māori: Supporting the teaching and learning of Te Reo Māori across subjects, making it a visible and valued part of daily school life.

4. Collaboration with Whānau: Engaging with Māori families and community members to gain insights and build partnerships that support our students’ learning and cultural understanding.

By making Māori culture visible and valued, we not only honor the heritage of Aotearoa but also create a richer, more inclusive learning environment for all our students.

My reflections on School Goal 1: 85% of Māori students will achieve NCEA Level 2.

As a department we are constantly reviewing our data, unpacking the numbers and understanding the story behind the data. We have 17 students in our NCEA Level 2 English cohort who are identified as Māori. The data from Week 8 Term 3 (September 9 - September 13) states that:

• 6 out 17 Māori students in NCEA Level 2 English have 0 credits
• 3 out of 17 Māori students in NCEA Level 2 English have 3 credits (they passed the assessment in Term 1)
• 1 out of 17 Māori students in NCEA Level 2 English have 4 credits (they passed the assessment in Term 2)
• 5 out of 17 Māori students in NCEA Level 2 English have 7 credits (they passed the internal assessment in Term 1 and Term 2)
• 1 out of 17 Māori students in NCEA Level 2 English have 11 credits (they passed the internal assessment in Term 1, 2 and 3).

Totara House Kapa Haka 2024

Our plan going forward:

• Work with Māori students to complete internal assessments (due on Friday October 18 - end of Week 1 Term 4).
• Students with 0 credits - get them to work on ONE internal assessment this term and get them to finish it so that they can have at least 3 credits for NCEA Level 2 English. Prepare them for External Assessments in Term 4.

Totara House Kapa Haka Group 2024

I believe that there is so much room for improvement. I am grateful for this reflection because it is inspiring me to think about how I can better support Māori in a way that is meaningful and empowering. I do not want to just tick off a box. The intervention and wrap around our Māori learners needs to be authentic, genuine and mana enhancing. I look forward to documenting this journey.