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Greetings.

Acknowledgements: John McAleese, Mrs Lyon (Chair, Board of Trustees), Sir Barry Curtis, John Walker, Kapa Haka group.

Thank you for the invitation to help celebrate the official opening of your new, improved administration block. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to join you here today, as I always am when visiting the school on a regular basis, and I welcome this opportunity to continue to learn and serve as your Member of Parliament.

I’m impressed with the new facilities you have developed and the dedication of the school community in completing the project. It is clear that there is a strong focus here on providing the best facilities for our children.

I know that Howick Intermediate has a strong commitment to quality teaching and learning. I can see the school provides a positive climate to build student confidence and self esteem, enabling students to stand tall and reach their potential.

I want to pay tribute today to your Principal, John McAleese, and teachers for their dedication and commitment to fostering achievement. The research is very clear, both in New Zealand and internationally, that quality teaching is a key influence on student achievement. It is an issue I feel passionately about.

Education is at the heart of what the government wants to achieve for New Zealand’s sustainable social and economic development. Education helps tear down the barriers that hold people back and gives them the skills and confidence to aim high, to believe they can achieve to their full potential, to play an active part in their community, and to make a difference at a national level. The UNESCO Report on Education affirms that sound values, ethics and the spiritual dimension are all part of the most important essence of education.

One of the government’s key education goals is to build an education system that equips New Zealanders with 21st century skills, and the increased use of information and communications technology (ICT) as a teaching and learning tool is an important means of achieving that goal. So it is great to see Howick Intermediate focussing on ICT in its strategic plan.

As well as your strong commitment to ICT, I am pleased that literacy and numeracy are also priorities, for literacy is the key to success. It is clear that the school is working hard to equip students with the knowledge and tools to prepare them well for their secondary education and beyond.

It is inspired leadership that blesses any building to quality purposes; here I would like to record my admiration of the reputation of the leadership team at Howick Intermediate – the Board of Trustees; the Principal and staff; indeed, the whole school community who are so active and supportive of their children’s education.

This building is to bring out and bless the best in these young citizens. The leadership here is helping to hone and harness a new spirit of New Zealand, and that leadership has identified international education as being rich in potential for service. I commend your being honoured by a ‘finalist’ award in New Zealand Export Education. You bring great credit to yourselves and are an inspiration to our region. Our district is the home to 164 cultures who are crafting our new community, and I will be watching closely to support your efforts to best equip our young in that great project. Your efforts are designed to deliver quality resources and children who leave this school to serve their district with a profound sense of ‘what can I give?’ rather that ‘what can I get?’

So please join me in affirming the opening of this Administration Block – long may it be the hallmark and home of sound decisions that deliver excellence in and an enthusiasm for lifelong education. For in a time of drastic change it is the learners who inherit the future. There is no future for the unskilled; knowledge is king – go get it!

Thank you again for the opportunity to join you today. Congratulations to everyone involved in the redevelopment of the administration block and best wishes for your school’s continuing success.

Tihei mauriora!

 

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