By Carol Craymer on Comments Off on That time of year again
Just after the release of the 2014 National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) results, I was contacted by a journalist writing an article on our national qualification and alternative credentials — the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma in this case — offered in New Zealand schools. My caller wanted to know the difference between the two […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
By Carol Craymer on Comments Off on “My own country”
It has been a rite of passage for young New Zealanders, living in a small island nation at the bottom of the world, to travel overseas. It is my experience that wherever you travel overseas, you will find a Kiwi. This is quite remarkable as, like our feathered emblem, we are a rare breed with […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
In 1950s New Zealand it was unusual for mothers with pre-school children to be in paid work. My mother was an exception, supplementing the family income by working night shifts as a nurse and, during the day, looking after me, the youngest, while my brother and sister were at school. One of my earliest memories […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
The past three years have flashed by and once again we have faced a national election during which, inevitably, education was under the spotlight, with a raft of ideas bandied about to lift outcomes. Education, it seems, is the answer to all of our problems. Whether we have children at school or not is irrelevant: […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
In a discussion with a parent about the wide range of international trips and exchanges available to students these days, he regretfully commented, “In my day a tour of a dairy farm with my geography class was all that was on offer.” With cheaper airfares today, times have changed: so many students are travelling within […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
Education discourse, like many professions, is littered with acronyms like NZQA, NCEA, RTLBs and ESOL. One acronym that I especially dislike is the abbreviation for gifted and talented education: GATE. Supposedly, this acronym should conjure up an image of a welcoming entrance leading to further enriched or accelerated educational programmes, but to me, I am […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
The most effective way to learn is by ‘doing’. In the digital world in which we live, technology now enables students to reach beyond the classroom and their immediate environment and engage in authentic virtual learning experiences. But even better still is learning through active engagement in your community, and in this respect, Wellington continually […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
An essential skill taught when I attended teachers’ college as a trainee in the 1970s was how to thread a projector. In those simpler days, showing a film to a class was cutting edge. Considerable organisation was required and time spent either moving students to a designated film room or out of school, on a […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
A few years ago I visited Cambodia. The highlight was a trip to Siem Reap to see the largest religious monument in the world, Angkor Wat. This temple complex, originally Hindu, then subsequently Buddhist, is the central feature of the Angkor UNESCO World Heritage Site, containing the magnificent remains of the Khmer civilisation. Built in […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
Kicking a rugby ball or running around a netball court on a wintry Saturday morning is all part of a Kiwi education. Sport has obvious physical benefits and also builds leadership skills such as confidence and resilience. For the Lydia Kos and Steven Adams of the world, this can be a springboard to a satisfying […]
Carol has an MA in English from the University of Canterbury and has been principal of Queen Margaret college since 2004. Prior to moving to Wellington, she was assistant principal at Orewa college and deputy principal at Takapuna Grammar.
However, Carol is not all about ‘dotting the is’ and crossing the t’s’. She has also worked for Radio New Zealand as an announcer, acted in England in a theatre troupe touring schools and raised two daughters.
