Later in Term 2, we had the fantastic news that Emily Buckley became a proud mum, welcoming little Luna into the world. Despite her rather early arrival, mum and baby are doing well now and we look forward to her return next year in a part-time capacity. In her place, we were fortunate to have Taryn Randall available to step in for Emily during her maternity leave. Taryn’s care and knowledge of the boys have been a great asset to the department. In other exciting staffing news, Dr Graeme Swanson has decided to stand down as HOD after more than 10 years to take up a promotion as the Director of the Centre for Teaching Excellence & Research. In his place will be the very capable Kirsty Howatson, who is thrilled at the prospect of taking the department into its next chapter. Graeme Swanson HoD Biology Chemistry We started the year with a selection of boys from the 2022 cohort being awarded the New Zealand Scholarship in Chemistry. This included Bruce Chen and Scott Winefield, alongside Harry Vincent who earned an Outstanding Scholarship award. As the year progressed, we had boys enter the Year 11 Chemistry Competition at Ara. Taking out 1st equal with Rangi Ruru Girls' School was the team of Aaron Kwak, James Hadden, and Daniel Wilson. We had further success in the International Chemistry Quiz, with High Distinction awards presented to Lester Lai, Ericsson Ye, Sean Jang, and Oliver Glossop, alongside Distinction awards to Angus Whitteker, Robert Kidd, Marco Howe, and Michael Li. Invitations to the Chemistry Olympiad training group were made to Lester Lai and Angus Whitteker, with both earning Silver Awards in their entry examinations. In the University of Otago Senior Science Quiz, Aaron Kwak took out 2nd place for Year 11 students in New Zealand, while Angus Gifford took out 1st place for Year 13 students.
Both earned certificates and a monetary award, while Jack Hastie and Angus Whitteker were presented with Distinction awards in the competition. It was good to get back to a year of normalcy, as we move on from the disruptions that Covid-19 brought to our education programmes over the past few years. This yea, there was the continuation and refinement of our new Diploma programmes, particularly with adjustments to the organic chemistry content within the Prep Chemistry programme. Sidinei Teixeira continued with us in a part-time capacity, working alongside the rest of the teaching team of Dr Briar Wait, Dr Craig Aitken, and Head of Department Scott Franklin, aided by our wonderful technician, Vicki Bennie, continuing her critical support to the department.
This year, Earth & Space Science was taught as a distinct science at Level 3, Level 2, and Diploma prep. Numbers opting to take Level 3 Earth & Space Science were fewer than previous years, but this gave us the opportunity to delve a little deeper into the wide variety of topics covered in the Level 3 course. From geology, through atmospheric processes, solar storms and on to astronomy. This year we chose to do four internal assessments (16 credits) and only one external assessment. This offered a successful opportunity to work more specifically on scientific literacy in a less pressured environment. The Level 2 class also studied a wide range of topics, including rock and landscape formation, earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunami, survival in extreme environments, and star and planet formation. The Diploma Earth & Space Science prep course ran in both semesters. It included a whistle-stop tour of some fundamental topics such as heat flow as the underlying source of energy for dynamic Earth processes and then focused on the solar system, culminating with a practical investigation on meteorite impacts. This year, there was continued focus on developing the scientific literacy of all students studying Earth & Space Science. Working closely with the Learning Centre and introducing techniques shared by HoD English Chris Waugh in a series of professional learning sessions helped to ensure the success of all students in this literacy-rich science. At all levels, Earth & Space Science has continued to look at alternative ways of presenting internal assessment through greater use of diagrams and field trip observations or primary data. This approach has worked well for students who find writing difficult and has added detail to the work of students of all abilities. The beginning of the year included a day field trip for the Level 2 class over Banks Peninsula to Birdlings Flat looking at geology and landscape formation. The Level 3 class went on a successful three- day field trip to Tekapo in Term 2.
Scott Franklin HoD Chemistry Physics
Physics students continued to earn very good pass rates at Excellence and Merit levels in their 2022 NCEA examinations, despite the continuing impact of Covid-19 had on their education last year. Two Scholarships were also awarded. The course in 2023 has not been disrupted and this has come as a relief to all. NCEA Level 3 and 2 continue to be used for Year 13 and Year 12 students but Year 11 and below have done the College Diploma. David Newton HoD Physics Earth & Space Science Earth & Space Science gives an opportunity for the Planet Earth and Beyond strand of the New Zealand Science curriculum to be taught explicitly at Christ’s College. The aim of Earth & Space Science is to make students aware of their environment and the universe beyond. We do this through observation and experimentation and have included as much practical work into the classes as possible.
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Christ’s College Canterbury
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