Curriculum

It is school policy that teachers set homework on a regular basis. This has several objectives - to support what has been learned at school, to develop research skills, to encourage independent work habits and time management and to practise and revise work studied in class.

It also provides opportunities for parents to share and assist in their boys' learning. The following times are guidelines for the minimum that might be expected on an average day.

Year 7 & 8 45 minutes per night

Year 9 & 10 60 minutes per night

Year 11 & 12 90 minutes per night

Year 13 120 minutes per night

On, occasion there will be a requirement to do more than these times indicate; at other times less, but there is always revision and preparation and reading that can be done to meet these guidelines. Sometimes, simply reading a novel can be a very worthwhile study activity.

Homework notebooks are issued at the beginning of the year. Students use them as diaries and they can also be used as a means of communication between parents and teachers - there is space in them for notes and comments. Serious students should, from the beginning of the year, have a clear and precise time-table of work to be covered and targets to meet. Homework notebooks are a useful tool for organising and setting out this information.

Course options

In Years 7-10, the learning areas, set out in the New Zealand Curriculum Framework, are covered within the core subjects - English, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Physical Education, Art, Religious Studies, Music, Technology, Languages and Health.

At Years 9 & 10, boys opt for either French, German or Technology, which they then take all year. Other important areas, such as Drama, Music, Art, Computing, Graphics and Business Studies are delivered in modules each term.

At the end of Year 10, they make decisions about the subjects they will take in their “NCEA year”. Science, Mathematics and English are compulsory. Boys choose 3 others from the following: history, art, geography, agriculture, economics, design technology, physical education, accounting, French, German, graphics and music. Subjects are added to or deleted from this list from time to time.

Boys may take other subjects through the Correspondence School, after consultation with the timetable coordinator.

In term 3, each year, booklets are published which set out the subjects available in the following year and the pre-requisites for each. Through their choices, boys determine the option lines - that is, which subjects will be taught at the same time. We attempt to provide a coherent structure which meets the requirements of as many boys as possible.

English is compulsory in Year 12. Other subjects at this level include: art, physics, computing, maths, agriculture, classics, chemistry, biology, history, geography, German, accounting, economics, French, German, music, design technology, graphics, drama, physical education. Other subjects will be offered if there is sufficient demand.

Most students in Year 12 & 13 will have personal study time. This may be used in a variety of ways - for study, of course, but boys also use it to take an extra subject or to follow some programme of personal development - after consultation with the senior dean.

International Baccalaureate Diploma

The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma is a prestigious, internationally recognised university entrance qualification. It is studied over two years and incorporates the best features of many systems from around the world.

The IB organisation developed originally in the 1960’s to offer a ‘portable’ qualification to the sons and daughters of diplomats and other ex-patriots studying in International Schools. Its headquarters are in Switzerland and now almost 2,000 schools in over 120 countries offer the Diploma course to some 70,000 students around the world each year.

The programme requires students to study a broad range of subjects and it emphasises the importance of a global perspective. It avoids undue specialisation and allows students to develop the wide range of skills necessary to solve problems in a variety of contexts.

The third school to be accredited in New Zealand, McGlashan offers this extra challenge to Year 12 boys. In 2010, about 30 senior students will take it up.

Candidates take one subject from each of six main subject groups. Three subjects are taken at higher level (HL); three at standard (or subsidiary) level (SL). HL courses represent approximately 240 teaching hours and SL courses cover at least 150 hours. This allows students to explore some subjects in depth, but also acknowledges the importance of a broad education and knowledge of other subjects.

CAS (for Creativity, Action and Service) is a further, fundamental aspect of the Diploma. Students are expected to take part in at least three different types of extra-curricular activities for around three hours a week for two years. Service (to the school or the wider community) has a high priority. The “action” and “creativity” aspects of CAS encourage students to become involved in physical activity of some kind and to develop their cultural interests.

For the extended essay, candidates undertake original research and submit a paper of some 4000 words. The project is an opportunity to investigate a topic of special interest and it introduces students to the kind of independent research and writing they can expect at university.

Diploma candidates must study a second, or foreign language . The idea of this should not put off New Zealand students who may not have studied a language at Year 11, or at all, because students who have no experience in learning another language, may take one at a “basic” or ab initio level. This means that they study the language from the beginning in Year 12 and are not expected to reach the same level as students who may have been learning it in previous years.

S.T.A. R.

The Secondary Tertiary Alignment Resource is Ministry of Education funding which enables us to provide a number of tertiary level, vocational and recreational courses to senior boys. We do this mainly by contracting outside providers to deliver courses. Boys in Year 12 (and, in some cases, Year 13) study a range of subjects and most generate credits on the Qualifications Framework. Able 7th formers may be given permission to take University or Polytechnic courses in conjunction with their school-based programme. This too is funded through the STAR programme.

International Student Programme

The College runs an excellent, well resourced International Student Programme offering students education in the English language. Specialist tuition is given for learners of English. Each year we have around 30 students who attend the College from many different countries. They come for a range of reasons - to improve their language skills, to learn about another culture or to acquire qualifications that will allow them to attend a university, either in New Zealand elsewhere. Our international students live either with their parents, in homestay accommodation or in the boarding house.