Pastoral

Pastoral Care Introduction / Tiaki Akonga 

 

Pastoral care is one of our top priorities at Kaikorai Valley College (KVC) and something we take extremely seriously.  A happy learner (ākonga) will be a successful learner!  In 2020 we introduced whānau groups in Years 9 - 13 to recognise the strong relationship that is needed in the learning partnership between students, school and whānau.  More detail about these whānau groups can be found under the Whānau group tab above.   Year 7 and 8 students are based in homerooms with a homeroom teacher who takes a personal interest in their development.  These Year 7 and 8 classes are supported by Peer Support leaders from Year 13 who work alongside the younger students helping them settle into life at KVC and are often the first point of contact.  These older students become very effective role models and often form relationships that last beyond school.   The pastoral team at KVC consists of the Principal, Deputy Principal, Assistant Principals, Deans, Careers Advisor, Learning Support Coordinator and Guidance Counsellor.  Each of these are very experienced teachers with proven skills in student management.

This team is also supported by numerous outside agencies who come in from time to time to offer guidance and support to students and whānau, helping them to build confidence and function effectively in a school and home setting.

At KVC we have always prided ourselves on being a safe school where people look out for each other and treat others with respect.  This underpins our values system of PRIDE - Participation, Respect, Inquiry, Diversity and Environment.

We understand that all learning is underpinned by positive relationships amongst students and between staff and students.  We take a very strong stand on bullying and hold to the fact that it is unfortunately something we find through all phases of life, even into adulthood, but that does not make it OK.  Any school that tells you it does not have bullying, we believe are not being honest with themselves.  When reported to us we will do everything in our power to address it in a way where everyone can come out of it having learned how to treat others in a more positive way.

As a school we are always very keen to engage with whānau and this is one of the reasons we moved to a whānau group platform.  There will be many opportunities to engage with the school including:

  • Fortnightly attitude to learning reports
  • Musac Edge Parent portals
  • School Facebook page
  • School Links text alert system
  • Weekly Newsletters
  • Students’ Reports
  • Parent/Student/Teacher Report evenings
  • Meet the Teacher Meetings
  • Course Selection Interviews
  • Teacher / Form Teacher / Dean contact with Parents
  • Student Drama and Musical performances
  • Class Blogs
  • Parent Staff group
  • School Board of Trustees
  • Contact at sport practices and games
  • Emails, phone calls, texts and letters home from the school office

If you wish to discuss a concern, other than academic, the first port of call may well be the whānau/homeroom teacher.  Contact details can be found on the staff list under the our school tab.

Kaikorai Valley College has a very strong record of catering for the needs of all students, once again based on our mantra of ‘Opportunity and Success for ALL’. This means we will turn over every stone to make sure students are able to taste success, whatever that may mean for each individual.

We are very proud of our inclusiveness and this is something people are very quick to feed back to us in conversations around how things are going for their children. The family atmosphere means students and staff look out for each other and take a personal interest in ensuring that everyone is being looked after.

 Counsellor / Kaiwhakamahereora

GC3KVC has a highly qualified counsellor available to see students and whānau regarding any issues which might be of concern.  Outside agencies can also be engaged to provide additional support in specialist areas.  Our counsellor, Mrs Gillespie, is extremely approachable and has a strong caring manner that sees students warm to her.  Her contact details are: legillespie@kvc.school.nz.  Contact details can also be found on the staff list under Our School.