Student leadership can take many forms within schools and at Wairakei Primary School we have introduced a programme to develop student leadership, recognising the different skills students possess and can share with younger peers and staff. This was a natural next step to building on our successful Tokarewa programme and the introduction of our whare tiaki.
Students that applied to be a Manukura -
“(noun) person held in high esteem, leader in council, leader” -
have been assigned to four pillars of leadership - manaakitanga, whanaungatanga, kotahitanga and kaitiakitanga.
Students were chosen to be leaders of each of these pillars after demonstrating qualities across the school. Each of these pillars is explained further here.
Working together in a leadership workshop the Manukura developed a statement to identify and define their purpose as student leaders.
Manaakitanga - “helping students and staff at Wairakei Primary School by giving our time and knowledge to others”
Kaitiakitanga - “helping students and staff at Wairakei Primary School to learn about how to take care of our environment”
Whanaungatanga - “helping students and staff at Wairakei Primary School to participate in Maori cultural activities with confidence”
Kotahitanga - “helping students and staff at Wairakei Primary School to work together by developing skills to be part of a team”
Manukura will participate in a leadership programme completing workshops that will help to develop skills around communication, managing others, time management and planning events.
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