4 minute read
FUTURE GENERATION
FUTURE GENERATION MEET THE TEACHER
Jared is Head of Mathematics at Western Springs College | Ngā Puna o Waiōrea.
How long have you been teaching? 16 years - over 12 years at Springs, and I’ve been the Maths Head of Department since 2010.
What do you enjoy about teaching Mathematics? I really like the subject so teaching it means that I get to do maths every day. I’ve always liked explaining things to people and seeing them “get it”. Of course, teaching is much more than some good explanations - the fact that many students don’t really like maths is a tough problem that I have to work on, and it is rewarding to solve challenging problems.
You have been a long-time member of the Sustainability Council at Springs, can you describe it for people who might not know about it. The Sustainability Panel is a group of students, teachers, parents, and ex-parents (often Board members), who are keen to drive our school forward to become more and more sustainable. As part of the panel, we have four active student groups in the school: Kaitiakitanga, Healthwise, Wastewise and Travelwise.
What has motivated you to be so involved with the Sustainability Council? Sustainability is so important. On the whole, young people in our community know this. Many are very anxious about the future when they see how we are struggling to make progress. I think students need to see adults who care about this stuff doing something about it. And students need to have a place where they can start to become the changemakers we need.
You support the Travelwise students - you must be delighted at the number of bikes that are parked at school most days. Yes, we do have a high proportion of staff and students on bikes (even one on a unicycle). Far more of our kids actually walk to school, and a large number use the school bus or public buses. Still, we do want to get even more of our students out of their parents’ cars. You cycle to work - how far is your commute and what do you enjoy about it? I live in Hillsborough and it’s 10km, roughly half an hour. I like that I get to be active out in the fresh air. My ride to and from work is some nice downtime. I do like that I am making a positive choice for the environment and for the community with one less car on the road.
Are you ever tempted to just drive? No, well not very often. I drive about once a term when I need to transport something. Cycling is a habit every morning, and no longer a conscious choice.
What keeps you occupied when you aren’t teaching? My wife and I have two primary-aged kids who keep us busy. Before the kids, I did some mountain biking and I’ve built a small pump track in my front yard that I like to play on which helped to keep me sane during lockdown. And over the last couple of years I’ve been doing a Masters degree.
Tell me a bit more about doing your Masters. I was lucky enough to get a teaching fellowship at Auckland University in 2018. I got to do some lecturing, interacted with their Maths Department, and also had enough downtime to start some Masters level study in Mathematics Education. Last year, I finished my dissertation on the topic of using technology to teach maths. PN
I LOVE LUCY BOOK REVIEW:
It’s My Life - Stacie Ramey - 11+
Jenna has cerebral palsy, and has learnt to deal with her disabilities. She spends her life subjecting herself to whatever new operation her well-meaning parents and doctors believe can help her. However, in light of new information that her condition was actually caused by an injury Jenna is livid with her parents, who have withheld the truth from her for her whole life.
We follow Jenna as she navigates high school with cerebral palsy, catfishes her crush by anonymously helping him with homework, hangs out with her gay best friend and tries to ‘fit in’. The story gives insight into what living with this condition is like and I like the fact the Jenna is determined and doesn’t let anything stop her from doing anything she sets her mind to.
I thought that this book was pretty good, but some parts felt a bit cheesy. Jenna’s character was interesting, but there were some parts where she displayed some classic main character traits - “I’m not pretty! He could never like me back!” These added a tiny bit of a cliche to some parts. Overall, ‘It’s My Life’ is an easy read which kept me entertained.
3 out of 5 cats. (LUCY KENNEDY) PN
