P RO S P E C T U S
EDUCATION IS ONE OF THE MOST VALUABLE GIFTS WE CAN GIVE OUR CHILDREN AND THE CHOICE OF SCHOOL ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT DECISIONS YOU MAKE. Principal Carol Craymer
Queen Margaret College education provides a seamless progression for girls catering for their developmental needs from Pre-School through to Year 13. We recognise your daughter’s special qualities and foster her talents and abilities. The College was established in 1919 on its present site in inner-city Wellington, its educational purpose as stated in its original prospectus being “to develop the best type of girlhood and womanhood” – in short ‘a well balanced education’. Today, the College continues to deliver, in a 21st century context, a rich holistic education. As an independent school we are committed to achieving excellence and providing optimal opportunities. With a roll of approximately 680 pupils, the College is small enough to ensure every girl is appreciated as an individual but large enough to offer a full range of subjects, along with a myriad of sporting and cultural activities. We also extend our girls through leadership opportunities and teamwork experiences. At Queen Margaret College we pride ourselves on offering every opportunity to each of our girls. Our girls are the leaders. We encourage them to speak out, be heard and engage in demanding discussion. In this way they become confident learners, critical thinkers and self-starters. Schooling years behind her, your daughter will be equipped with the confidence and competence to achieve her dreams and make a significant contribution to the lives of others.
LUCE VERITATIS: LET OUR LIVES BE LIVED BY THE LIGHT OF TRUTH - Today our motto remains our touchstone as to how we should lead our lives.
As a Presbyterian girls’ school, our special character is nurtured by a religious education programme, assemblies and services where respect for spirituality and different beliefs is encouraged. Emphasis is placed on participation in community service in order to raise the awareness of the needs of others. Through extensive exchange programmes and the global perspective of the International Baccalaureate (IB) currriculum, students develop an outlook extending beyond New Zealand’s geographic and cultural borders. Traditional values are further enhanced by our House system which fosters involvement, camaraderie and lively competition. As part of a smaller community, our girls are encouraged to be caring, cooperative and develop friendly relationships between different age levels through shared activities and identity. Special assemblies such as Founders’ Day, Queen Margaret Day, Prefect Commissioning and House Banners keep the history and traditions of the College alive and expressed in our everyday life. Our wider school community includes our Old Girls who are active supporters of the College, and also our brother school, Scots College, with whom we share Founders and the site of our founding. This common heritage is fostered by the annual QUOTS Shield competition between the two Colleges.
Va l u e s
our girls become
confident, principled
women who make a difference in the modern world
QUEEN MARGARET COLLEGE IS LOCATED IN THORNDON, A GRACIOUS LEAFY INNER SUBURB OF WELLINGTON, THE CAPITAL CITY OF NEW ZEALAND. Our historic buildings, purpose-built classrooms and beautifully kept gardens all serve to promote an environment conducive to learning. As an inner city school, Queen Margaret College has access to a wide range of world class resources and the exciting learning opportunities available in the Capital. Our neighbours include most of the Capital’s embassies, the National Library, Katherine Mansfield Birthplace, National Archives and Parliament. Our girls attend the church services at St Andrew’s on the Terrace, the Wellington Cathedral and St Johns. And we are only a short distance away from the country’s national museum Te Papa, the University of Victoria and from Wellington’s finest theatres. Although the College is located in the city there is ready access to the best nature has to offer, with the white sands of Oriental Bay within easy walking distance from the school along with the Botanical Gardens and the hiking tracks in the nearby hills. Thorndon is surrounded by major transport links. Just minutes away from the College is the city’s main bus and train centre, the base for suburban commuter lines to northern Wellington suburbs, the Kapiti Coast and the Hutt Valley.
A College in the City
the historic college buildings are near
the heart of the city
QUEEN MARGARET COLLEGE IS NOT JUST ONE SCHOOL BUT FOUR SCHOOLS IN THE ONE: PRE-SCHOOL, JUNIOR, MIDDLE AND SENIOR SCHOOL. THE COLLEGE HAS A FAMILY ATMOSPHERE WHERE GIRLS OF ALL AGES INTERACT. Queen Margaret College provides continuity in education from Pre-School to Year 13. This is further enhanced by the delivery of all three International Baccalaureate (IB) programmes. The Pre-School and Junior School are delivering the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP). This focuses on the total growth of the developing child – the social, physical, emotional and cultural needs as well as the academic. Our Junior girls receive specialist teaching in Music, Art, and French. We offer a dynamic education to girls from Year 7 to Year 10 which provides a strong base for Senior study, supporting their progression from dependent to independent learning. We are implementing the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) to which holistic learning, intercultural awareness and communication is central. The Queen Margaret College Senior School consists of classes from Year 11 to 13. Our broad-based curriculum prepares girls well for tertiary study and diverse career paths. We celebrate the uniqueness of each girl and our nurturing environment allows her to thrive. Although pastoral care is the responsibility of every teacher, we also have a network of people with specific responsibilities: Form teachers, Year Level Deans and our full time College nurse monitor the well-being of every girl. Our mentoring programme is one of the opportunities our girls have to be role models and experience leadership.
Family Atmosphere
four unique schools
in one college
A QUEEN MARGARET COLLEGE EDUCATION PREPARES GIRLS FOR THE ‘GLOBAL VILLAGE’.
Queen Margaret College has always been at the forefront of educational innovation in New Zealand. It has an impressive record of academic achievement which show our students gain results well above those of comparable girls’ schools. Small class sizes, dedicated teachers, and a learner-centred approach to education, complemented by the latest digital technologies and a 1:1 laptop programme, support our girls in their development as independent, confident young women with a life-long love of learning. With increasing globalisation our girls need to be able to take their place on the world stage. In the Senior School we offer a dual qualification pathway leading to the IB Diploma or the National Certificate of Education Achievement (NCEA) and opportunities for all girls to enter the New Zealand Scholarship examinations. The IB Diploma is highly regarded internationally, providing entrance to universities in New Zealand and around the world. It recognises the importance of an ‘all round education’ – the academic and the sporting, creative, cultural and service orientated. And with its higher level requirements, the IB Diploma also provides scope for specialisation. It is a 21st century qualification, rigorously academic, which encourages students to have an international perspective and to think and act ethically. In short the IB Diploma produces ‘global citizens’.
Learning
a world class
education on offer right here in Wellington
WE HAVE AN EXTENSIVE VISUAL AND PERFORMING ARTS PROGRAMME OFFERING GIRLS A WEALTH OF CULTURAL EXPERIENCES.
Visual Art is taught at all year levels by specialist teachers. Music is a College strength and our specialist music wing provides a backdrop for a variety of musical activities. We have a strong choral tradition with our Chorale and Barbershop Chorus regularly reaching the national finales. In recent years, Queen Margaret College’s talented musicians have been invited to join the New Zealand School of Music Academy and the elite ranks of the New Zealand National Youth Orchestra. Our girls have the opportunity from Year 1 on to learn singing or a musical instrument and, if they so wish, to gain qualifications. There are choirs, orchestras and ensembles at every year level. Recognising students learn expressive skills through drama, we also provide opportunities for girls to tread the boards and to feel the excitement of live performance. In recent years our drama students have gained success at national level in the Sheilah Winn Shakespearean Competition. House plays, the Junior and Middle School productions, major musicals, delivering oral presentations and debating are all part of the Queen Margaret College way of life. For many, our Year 9 musicals, in which all Year 9 girls participate, remain one of the highlights of their school days. Materials Technology education at Queen Margaret College also offers girls the opportunity to work on creative projects for authentic occasions such as the Wearable Art Displays as part of the Capital’s annual World of Wearable Arts Awards (WOW).
Performing & Visu a l Ar ts
life
in the spotlight
WE ARE AWARE OF THE IMPORTANCE OF, AND THE KNOWN BENEFITS RESULTING FROM, REGULAR PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND SPORT FOR ALL AGES.
Sport and recreational activities are an integral part of College life. We recognise their value in preparing our girls for future trials in life by developing qualities of determination and perseverance. Physical Education is taught at all year levels. Our dedicated Sports staff encourage girls to participate in sport, summer and winter, offering them a choice of a wide range of sporting codes. Many Junior, Middle and Senior School students participate in inter-school sport and sports exchanges with other private girls’ schools. We are fortunate our central location allows us to use all the resources the Capital city has to offer, and our sports participation levels remain among the highest in the country. Our Queen Margaret College Sports Academy supports promising young sportswomen, nurturing their abilities through a combination of theory and practical experience. We provide an extensive Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC) Programme, traditionally known as ‘school camps’, involving all girls from Junior School to Year 13. For our youngest girls this might mean camping out in brightly coloured pup tents on the College front lawn while our older students take part in a range of New Zealand adventures including walking the Abel Tasman Track, visiting a marae and responding to the rigorous challenges of the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre.
Sport & Outdoor Education
Strong competitors
Gracious winners Respectful losers
AT QUEEN MARGARET COLLEGE WE BELIEVE BY ENCOURAGING YOUNG PEOPLE FROM A VARIETY OF BACKGROUNDS TO STUDY TOGETHER, THEY WILL LEARN TO RESPECT AND APPRECIATE EACH OTHER.
We have taught girls from Japan, China, Korea, Malaysia, Europe and North and South America. Our International students are required to live in a homestay which provides them with a comfortable but secure family environment. They are also required to have a mentor who meets with them regularly to ensure they are content and all is well with regard to educational, homestay, financial and social matters. The College also keeps in regular contact with the girl and her family, and is a signatory to the New Zealand Ministry of Education’s Code Of Practice for the pastoral care of International students. The IB Diploma is well suited to International students as it allows them to continue studying their first language and provides a credential recognised by all overseas universities. Extra English language tuition is provided throughout their academic course along with assistance with mainstream subjects. Queen Margaret College has links with the international body of Margaret Schools and Independent Schools of New Zealand. These links, which include individual, cultural and sporting exchanges within New Zealand and overseas, offer our girls the opportunity to extend their horizons and to develop awareness of the global community.
International Mindedness
we welcome
overseas students