A graphic giving the status of Avondale Primary School.
A video about the Ministry of Education's decision to close Avondale Primary School. The video includes interviews with Principal Mark Scown and Julie Begg, the parent of a student at the school.
A PDF copy of a certificate for the Avondale School Pumpkin Growing Competition 2015. The certificate depicts 'All Righties' harvesting a giant pumpkin and carrots.
A graphic giving the status of Chisnallwood Intermediate School.
A video of interviews with primary and high-school students about their experiences during the 22 February 2011 earthquake. The students interviewed include (Paityn Ower from Avondale Primary School; Leah Temesvari, Ryan Cleaver, Jenna Hayes, and Logan Emery from Kaiapoi High School; Nikora Webster-Epiha, Grace Smith, and Natasha Gordon from Wainoni School; and Harry Loughan, Rebecca Lane, Scott Price, Maltin Tauave, Charlie Kavanagh, and Amy Sisson from Linwood College. This video was part of The Press's 'Christchurch, one year after February 22, 2011' series.
A digital photograph in a PDF format with caption. Image showing the view of the Avondale bridge during the 2012 Earthquake Memorial, looking East.
A digital photograph in a PDF format with caption. Image showing one of the spectators on the Avondale bridge, a few minutes before the 2012 Earthquake Memorial, looking North-East.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
This thesis examines the closing of Aranui High School in 2016, a low socio-economic secondary school in eastern Christchurch, New Zealand, and reflects on its history through the major themes of innovation and the impact of central government intervention. The history is explored through the leadership of the school principals, and the necessity for constant adaptation by staff to new ways of teaching and learning, driven by the need to accommodate a more varied student population – academically, behaviourally and culturally – than most other schools in wider Christchurch. Several extreme changes, following a neoliberal approach to education policies at a national government level, impacted severely on the school’s ability to thrive and even survive over the 57 years of its existence, with the final impact of the 2010 and 2011 Canterbury earthquakes leading indirectly to Aranui High’s closure. The earthquakes provided the National government with the impetus to advocate for change to education in Christchurch; changes which impacted negatively on many schools in Christchurch, including Aranui High School. The announcement of the closure of Aranui High shocked many staff and students, who were devastated that the school would no longer exist. Aranui High School, Aranui Primary School, Wainoni Primary School and Avondale Primary School were all closed to make way for Haeata Community Campus, a year 1 to 13 school, which was built on the Aranui High site. Aranui High School served the communities of eastern Christchurch for 57 years from 1960 and deserves acknowledgment and remembrance, and my hope is that this thesis will provide a fair representation of the school’s story, including its successes and challenges, while also explaining the reasons behind the eventual closure. This thesis contributes to New Zealand public history and uses mixed research methods to examine Aranui High School’s role as a secondary school in eastern Christchurch. I argue that the closure of Aranui High School in 2016 was an unjustified act by the Ministry of Education.