Rodney College

International Prospectus

Our Principal’s Message

On behalf of Rodney College, I would like to

extend a warm welcome to you.

The college is known for our outstanding

NCEA examination results as well as being

a friendly and welcoming school where

students and staff all know each other and

show a high level of care and respect towards

each other.

We are committed to providing a safe

environment for students with a strong level of

support for students though our pastoral care

and house system.

We look forward to welcoming your child to

Rodney College and providing a very positive

and memorable experience during their time

in New Zealand.

Dave Ormandy

MSc(Hons), Dip.Tchg.

On this very narrow part of the island, just north of

Auckland, some students come from the west coast

of the island and some students from the east coast.

Wellsford town, where the school is situated, is central to

all these communities.

We are a smaller, very friendly school of 350 students,

both boys and girls of which we have around 15

international students. Our students know each other and

their teachers very well and even though they are placed

in their year group classes for their academic studies they

frequently come together with a range of year groups

for sports and cultural activities. Close friendships and

healthy team rivalry is built through frequent school wide

sporting, recreational and cultural activities.

Students start their secondary schooling at around 13

years of age in Year 9 and carry on their education up

to Year 13 where they then move on to employment

or tertiary studies. The students sit NCEA (National

Certifi cate of Educational Achievement) exams in Year 11,

Year 12 and Year 13. New Zealand students must stay at

school until they are 16 years of age.

Rodney College has a range of quality educational

facilities with a central library, science laboratories, a new

technology block for wood and metal design, fashion,

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graphics and food technologies. It has computer rooms,

dedicated arts, music, horticulture and agriculture

faculties as well as a large gymnasium, swimming

pool, soccer, hockey, rugby fi elds and tennis, netball

and basketball courts. We have a virtual classroom for

distance learning, a school hall for live performances and

assemblies, a school marae (Maori meeting house) and

our own canteen that sells a range of quality foods for the

students.

Many of our students travel to school by bus from all the

outlying districts. These buses are free and only for our

school students to travel on. The students that live in

Wellsford, where our school is located, walk to school.

Rodney College is a co-educational secondary school catering

for students from Year 9 to year 13. The school services a very

widespread coastal, urban, rural and semi rural community.

Rodney College

Auckland CBD

Mangawhai

Rodney College

Wellsford

Matakana

Warkworth

East Coast Beaches

Goat Island

Pacifi c Ocean

Kaipara Harbour

10 km

4 ml

Rodney College School Zone

The Rodney District is part of the

Auckland Super City and has a

growing population.

The east coast has exquisite beaches, safe harbours and

is sheltered by many off shore islands, making it perfect

for sailing, surfi ng and water sports.

We have a National marine park which is very popular for

scuba diving and snorkelling. On the west coast there

is the largest harbour in the southern hemisphere, the

mighty Kaipara Harbour and here the coastline is famous

for its fi shing and the vast beaches are popular for

landyacht sailing.

Mangawhai, with its very popular surf beaches and

Matakana with its markets, festivals and shopping are

tourist destinations and holiday hot spots. The district has

many entertainment and sporting facilities with several

coastal golf courses. The regions parks, lakes, beaches

and forests are popular with campers, trampers, horse

riders and bike riders.

The beautiful farmlands offer home stay families on

farms or lifestyle blocks with many home stays providing

facilities and horses for horse riding as part of their Kiwi

experience. Most families have a range of animals or pets.

Tourism is a growing industry in the area and we have an

exciting, traditional Maori Village at Te Hana with night

shows and visits to this classic, authentic village.

Rodney College offers packages to students who wish to

learn or improve their skills in sailing, surfi ng or equestrian

show jumping while here in New Zealand with quality

instructors as a part of their schooling programme.

For further information on our region see websites:

www.mangawhai.co.nz www.tehana.co.nz

www.matakanacoast.com www.kaipara.govt.nz

...

Rodney District

Rodney College offers a comprehensive range of

subjects at all levels. Junior secondary students study

up to 11 subjects per year and they must study English,

Mathematics, Science, Social Science, Physical

Education and Health. Year 11 and Year 12 students must

select six subjects from a range of options and in Year

11 English, Mathematics and Science is compulsory. In

Year 13 students take only fi ve subjects and use their one

study period per day to work independently.

To obtain a pass in NCEA level 1 student need 80 credits

at level 1 or above. For a pass at level 2 students need 60

credits at level 2 or above and 20 credits at level 1.

For a level 3 pass the students need 60 credits at level 3

or above and 20 level 2 credits.

Students staying for a school calendar year in senior

school are expected to sit NCEA papers at the end of the

year. NCEA qualifi cations are recognised in Europe, USA,

Australia, UK, Canada and South America.

For students coming in to the school with little English

then without incurring any extra cost, the student can

participate in ESOL language classes. The student will

be main streamed once their English is at a competent

level. They may attend an ESOL class for one or two

periods per day within the school, as well as their regular

mainstreamed classes.

Rodney College offers Spanish and French languages

through to Year 13 with a specialist teacher and the

Japanese language can be accessed through Virtual

Classroom lessons held in a dedicated E-learning space.

Other specialist subjects that are very popular with our

International students are Outdoor Education and Sports

Coaching, the Wood technologies, Automotive and Metal

technologies, Photography, Farming, Hospitality and Food

technologies, Fashion and Design, Visual arts, Music and

Digital technologies.

Rodney College does its best to place students in the

subjects they choose and at the level of study that meets

their needs. Some students work across more than one

academic level as a result.

See the Curriculum Flowchart to learn about subject

choices. Rodney College can also send you more detailed

information in a Subject Choice handbook if requested.

Rodney College achieves academic excellence and attains very high results at a

National Level. On the Auckland Secondary School league table we are ranked

8th out of 72 schools for University Entrance and Scholarship pass rates.

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Academic Studies

RODNEY COLLEGE

National Average

2009 NCEA RESULTS

% of Students who

attained NCEA

100

80

60

40

20

0Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 UE

87

70

.8

93

75

.5

85

.1

69

.3

68

.1

63

.4

RODNEY COLLEGE

National Average

2010 NCEA RESULTS

% of Students who

attained NCEA

100

80

60

40

20

0Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 UE

56

6264

82

70

92

64

84

JUNIOR COURSES SENIOR COURSES

YEAR 9 YEAR 10 LEVEL 1 LEVEL 2 LEVEL 3

English

Te Reo Maori

French

Spanish

Communications

English

Te Reo Maori

French

Spanish

English

English Literacy

Maori

French

Spanish

English

Alternative English

Communications English

Maori

French

Spanish

English

Alternative English

Maori

French

Spanish

Mathematics Mathematics Mathematics A

Mathematics B

Mathematics (work place numeracy)

Mathematics A

Mathematics with Statistics

Mathematics with Calculus

Mathematics with Statistics

Science Science Science

Applied Science

Agriculture/Horticulture

Biology

Chemistry

Physics

Farming Skills

Biology

Chemistry

Physics

Farming Skills

Social Studies Social Studies Geography

History

Economics

Geography

Tourism

History

Economics

Geography

Tourism

History

Economics

Physical Education & Health

Physical Education & Health

Physical Education Physical Education

Outdoor Education

Physical Education

Outdoor Education

Materials Technology – Wood

Engineering Technology

Textiles Technology

Design & Communication

Food Technology

Wood Technology

Engineering Technology

Textiles & Fashion Technology

Design & Visual Communication

Digital Technology

Food Technology

Design & Technology (wood)

Engineering Technology

Technology Fashion & Textiles

Design & Visual Communication (Graphics)

Digital Technology

Hospitality

Design & Technology (wood)

Building Construction

Engineering Technology & Automotive

Textiles & Design

Design & Visual Communication (Graphics)

Digital Technology

Hospitality

Design & Materials Technology (hard materials)

Engineering Technology & Automotive

Textiles & Design

Design & Visual Communication (Graphics)

Digital Technology

Hospitality

Visual Arts

Music

Drama

Visual Arts

Music

Drama

Art

Music

Maori Performing Arts

Drama

Employment Skills

Art

Photography

Music

Maori Performing Arts

Drama

Gateway

Early Childhood Education

Employment Skills

Art

Photography

Music

Maori Performing Arts

Drama

Gateway

Early Childhood Education

...

For subjects linked with solid arrows, a higher-level course can only be taken if the previous level has been satisfactorily

completed. For subjects linked with dotted arrows, it is highly desirable that a previous level course be completed.

Curriculum Flow Chart

6

Experience life at Rodney College

The Music Faculty is very strong and students can select

a range of instruments to learn and play. We have several

school bands varying from jazz, acoustic, to rock bands.

The students enjoy playing at several festivals throughout

the year and at school performances. Individual tuition is

available on a weekly basis with a range of instruments.

There is a school choir and there are many opportunities

for students to entertain at class and at school wide

performances held regularly throughout the year as part

of their school activities.

We have a dedicated Maori Performing Arts Group

(Kapa Haka) and students travel to regional festivals and

perform at school events throughout the year.

The drama department is active and we have a school

wide Variety Concert each year that all the students can

be involved in if they wish, either as a performer, script

writer, stage hand, props or costume designer. We have

a specialist drama tutor who runs a lunch time and after

school programme which culminates in community

performances during the year. The Wellsford community

also has a very active Drama Club that several of our

students belong to.

We have a very active debating club that competes very

successfully in the Auckland region and this team is

extremely well coached by our Head of English.

Throughout the year the school has a range of social

activities like our school ball and there is much excitement in

preparing for this annual event with ballroom dancing lessons,

hall decoration and food preparation. We get involved in

fundraising for charities, both local and international, like

World Vision. These school community activities are a lot

of fun and a great way to make new friends.

...

Rodney College has a vibrant and

varied cultural life.

Cultural Activities

Rodney College has an outstanding sporting record

and we have a very proactive sports department where

students can play very competitive or social sport on a

daily basis and can experience many trips way to other

schools to compete either during the week or in the

weekends.

We have a range of over 30 codes from clay bird shooting

to snow skiing. We have very competitive teams in the

codes of basketball, tennis, soccer, rugby, squash, rugby

7’s, netball, badminton, triathlon, athletics, cross country

running, swimming, touch rugby and surfi ng.

As well as our school wide sports programme our

International students have the opportunity to participate

in the Education Plus programme which is runs like an

academy. The student can choose to have specialist

tuition with very experienced and qualifi ed instructors

off site in the sporting codes of Surfi ng, Sailing and

Equestrian Show jumping. Each particular programme

has its respective fee and is available at the request of the

individual student.

Our sporting facilities include large playing fi elds, a

swimming pool, tennis and netball courts, as well as a

gymnasium and rock climbing wall. Students have access

to the town’s golf course, squash courts, and tennis

courts. Our surf beaches, lake and rivers are used for

surfi ng and kayaking.

Our school prides itself on its achievements at regional,

national and in some sports, International level.

Sport is probably the quickest and easiest way to make friends

and get involved in the life of the school-and to learn English!

8

Sport

As well Rodney College offers Education Plus which is

individualised sporting tuition at the following academies:

• Sailing

• Surfi ng

• Showjumping

Sailing

Students pay $100.00 for 3 hours of instruction (All

equipment provided) with Olympic coach, John Morgan,

at Sandspit Yacht Club in the beautiful waters of the

Hauraki Gulf.

• Laser yachts for more advanced sailors

• Optimist yachts for beginners if learning to sail

• Crewing available on cruising yachts for evening and

weekend sails for more experienced sailors

Lessons can be held each week or as required as part of

this programme from February to May and September to

January.

Students will be taken to the venue and returned to

school on the day of instruction.

Students experience safe sailing in sheltered waters

surrounded by many beautiful off shore islands.

Surfi ng

Students can learn to surf with Wayne Glover, one of New

Zealand’s most experienced and highly qualifi ed surf

coaches and owner of Aotearoa Surf School- based at

Mangawhai/Te Arai just 30 minutes from the school.

You will be surfi ng at some of the best surfi ng beaches in

New Zealand. The beaches are safe and well renowned

for their quality surf, clear water and clean white sands.

• Students will be collected from school and delivered

back at the end of the school day.

• Students will travel to the best of the local surf

beaches on the days most suitable for instruction, up

to one day per week if requested.

• Transport, wetsuits, surfboards and up to 4 hour hours

coaching are provided.

• This can be an all round year activity and students will

pay just $120.00 per day.

Showjumping

Students will be collected from school and can continue

with their dressage or showjumping competencies with

instruction from Michelle and Bruce Wakeling.

Bruce has had international show jumping and cross

country course building experience at Olympic and World

Games events and Michelle rides at a very competitive

level in New Zealand.

• Students need to have some experience with horses

and beginner to very competent riders can be catered

for on school master to younger “beginning serious

competition” horses.

• Instruction is held in a quality arena and will be

arranged as suits individual needs on a weekly basis

over a number of weeks as requested.

• Expenses will be $150.00 per lesson and this will be a

morning or afternoon activity.

• A range of quality horses are available with the

appropriate tack for each rider and horse.

...

Our students are able to obtain a quality academic,

cultural and sporting programme at Rodney College.

Education Plus

The international student is welcomed in to the family

as a fully functioning family member. The student is

guaranteed their own room, with a comfortable bed,

bedroom storage furniture and a desk. Rodney College

home stay families can be at the beachside towns on the

east coast, on lifestyle blocks, farms, or in the township of

Wellsford or Kaiwaka. If the students are placed outside

of Wellsford they will travel to school by bus, which is free

each day to and from the college.

Students are only 30 minutes or less to larger suburbs

near Auckland and 50 minutes to Whangarei, another city

north of Rodney College. It is quite safe for the students

to travel on public transport to Auckland city or to other

towns in New Zealand.

Throughout the stay, all aspects of accommodation are

monitored and there is pastoral care staff and procedures

in place should the student need assistance.

All International students are placed in a home stay whose

family has been visited and approved by the International

Education Department. Careful consideration is taken before

placing a student and every endeavour is made to have the best

fi t to meet each individual’s needs.

10

Accommodation

...

Luisa Nuhr

I really enjoy being at my New Zealand home

with my host parents, Sandy and Ron.

They are friendly, funny, open to learn new things about

me and my home and I know they are always there for me

if I’m not feeling very well.

I always feel welcome and I am always involved in

activities like horse riding or visiting the family.

They do very much for me to make my time in New

Zealand unforgettable.

I have been on a geography trip to Rotorua which I

really enjoyed and I went rock climbing with my physical

education class for a day trip. I’ve also been on a day trip

to the Auckland zoo.

As an international student you can do all the trips the

school offers even if you are not part of the class.

I also enjoy the subjects that are not offered in Germany,

like Textiles and Outdoor Education.

I do lots of horse riding at home in New Zealand. I also

have my own young horse here, which I can “break in”

with my host mum. I enjoy riding after school and on the

weekends we sometimes go riding at the beach which is

a lot of fun.

In the spring holidays I have been on a tour through the

South Island with many other people my age, which I

really enjoyed.

I have done skydiving and rafting and we had so much

fun all together.

There was also the opportunity to do many other activities

like bungee jumping, canyon swing or helicopter fl ights.

I have also done the Spirit of Adventure sailing voyage on a

tall ship to Great Barrier Island which was a lot of fun as well.

I have made many new friends and had an awesome time

on the boat. We learned to sail and did some work, but

we also had free time to hang out on the deck or to jump

off the boat into the water.

I learned quite a lot about myself there as well.”

Kaori Koyabu

Hi, I am Kaori and I’m from Japan. Japan was

affected by an earthquake and tsunami about

six months ago.

That was terrible. Many people were killed in the

earthquake and the nuclear power plant exploded and

so fi sheries, industries, fruit and vegetable gardens and

stockbreeding got affected with radioactivity. People can’t

eat local food because they are radioactive. I hope Japan

will recover!

By the way, why did I come to NZ? Because I’d like to

learn English, so I am happy to be in NZ. I like my host

family. They are very kind. They have four horses so on

the weekends and after school we go horse riding. They

also have lots of other animals.

I think Rodney College is a good school because when

I came here I was so nervous but many students said

Hello, so thank you for making me happy. Now I have a

few friends but I would like to make more friends. I have

six months left so I have more things to enjoy in NZ.”

Student Stories

12

Friederike Gertz

Hi. My name is Friederike Gertz, I`m 16

years old and at the moment I live in

Wellsford. Normally I live in Hamburg.

Hamburg is in the North of Germany. I live in a house with

a big garden. In my free time I do rowing, vaulting and

horse riding. I also meet my friends after school and at

weekends we go to many concerts in Hamburg City.

My father, Carsten, works in a big company near my

hometown and travels a lot for his job. My mum, Meike,

works three days a week for a lawyer. My brother, Jonas,

is 12 years old and goes to school.

I will stay in Wellsford until July 2012. I came to New

Zealand because it was my dream since I was 10 years

old. I have been here now for three months and I really

enjoy everything here. My host family lives near Wellsford

on a small farm with many animals. Because my host

family also has horses I can go horse riding, like I do in

Germany. With our dogs I can go for long walks on the

beaches and on the weekends we have already been to

Auckland a few times.

When I had my fi rst day at Rodney College, everybody

was really friendly and I met a lot of nice people. I am very

happy here and at the moment I don’t want to think about

having to go back to Germany one day.”

Moritz Gmeiner

Hello, my name is Moritz Gmeiner and I was

an international student at Rodney College

for one term.

I think that Rodney College was a really good choice,

because all students and teachers are very friendly.

You have many interesting subjects to choose from and

my favourites were Physical Education and Physics.

The different house-competitions are really interesting

to watch and I took part in the Miles House Concert. I

opened the show by playing the piano!

I had the opportunity to go scuba diving for a day and

I spent a weekend sailing on the Principal’s yacht. My

homestay family also took me to Tauranga for a weekend.

I will never forget my time at Rodney College.”

Katsuki Nada

I chose NZ because it is safer than some

other countries and the price was right. Also

it was right in the middle of my summer

holidays so I had time to do the trip.

I was worried that I couldn’t communicate because I can’t

speak much English and also I wasn’t sure about what I

would need to wear for PE.

School was nice and friendly and I liked the open

discussion in classes. Also, during break times people

were having a good time with all age groups or all

nationalities. There were a lot of breaks. I took Music,

PE, Computing, English, Maths and Photography. Music,

PE and Photography were the subjects I chose and they

were enjoyable. In the English, Maths and Computing

classes everybody was having open discussions and it

was a very good atmosphere.

From the fi rst day everybody was very friendly and kept

talking to me and tried to help me understand in so

many different ways what I couldn’t understand because

sometimes it was too fast. The teachers were nice and

asked me if I was enjoying myself every time we met. I

had support from the host family, Japanese people at

school and everybody. It was good that there were a lot

of breaks and I had a chance to talk to lots of friends.”

Step ONE

Student sends a completed and signed Application for Enrolment

as an International Student to Rodney College by Email

Step TWO

Rodney College reviews the application and sends a Conditional

Offer of Place/ Invoice and a Tuition Agreement. (If the student is

declined, the applicant will be notifi ed in writing.)

Step THREE

After carefully reading all the information provided by Rodney

College, the students, the parents complete and sign the Tuition

Agreement and return it along with the invoiced fees. The student

and parents must keep a copy of the signed Tuition agreement.

Step FOUR

Rodney College then sends a Confi rmed Offer of Place to the

student, which is kept as a receipt.

Step FIVE

The student applies for a student Visa and then advises Rodney

College of the details of the fl ight he/she will be on.

Step SIX

A member of the International Department of Rodney College will

meet the student at the airport and take the student to his/her

home stay.

The above mentioned forms can be obtained by

emailing [email protected]

or they can be accessed on the school website

www.rodneycollege.school.nz

...

Application Procedure

International College

Bronwyn Dempster

Email [email protected]

Director of International Education

Rodney College

287 – 319 Rodney Street

Wellsford 0900

New Zealand

Phone +64 9 423 6030 Ext 153

Mobile +64 27 290 9408

Fax +64 9 423 7555

Homestay enquiries

Maria Northin

Email [email protected]

Phone +64 9 423 6030 Ext 148

Mobile +64 27 694 4480

Enquiries of a general nature

Email [email protected]

Phone +64 9 423 6030

Further informationFor further information about the school please refer to our

website: www.rodneycollege.school.nz

14

Contact Details

www.rodneycollege.school.nz