Summer School a popular option
With the release of NCEA exam results this week, students missing the few credits they need to complete their secondary school qualifications are turning to Te Kura Summer School.
It’s the fifth year the country’s largest school has offered summer study, with 1500 students taking the opportunity last year to top up their NCEA credits to ensure they achieve what they needed for further study, training or to secure a job.
Numbers have leapt every year as increasing numbers of students find out more about what Te Kura Summer School can offer.
More than 30 subjects are available, with all learning done online. That means student can study anywhere and at any time, just so long as they have access to a computer and connectivity.
Te Kura CE Mike Hollings says students who enrol at Summer School must work hard, but Te Kura teachers are available to help. “There is definitely a different feeling with Summer School. Our teachers make the point that there is a sense of urgency about it, with students acutely aware of the consequences of not getting their qualifications,” he says.
Schools benefit from Summer School as well because credits achieved by a student at Summer School and by the NZQA deadline – usually mid-February - are loaded on to the student’s previous school of enrolment.
More than 1200 students have already enrolled at Te Kura Summer School since November.
Mr Hollings says Te Kura gets a rush of enrolments when NCEA results come out and students can see they are just short of the credits they need to get over the line.