School enrollments  more than expected

At Waikanae School, enrollments have risen by more than the expected number this year — and the school roll has now reached 442, according to school figures.

“We were surprised by the extraordinary number of unexpected enrollments, thirty four in total, with many of them in the senior part of the school.” says Waikanae School principal, Bevan Campbell.

This unexpected influx has impacted on the number of classes in the year 7-8 syndicate, and the school management decided to start a new class at this level.

There are now five classes rather than the four that had been planned.

“The arrival of so many new and unexpected students has had a big impact upon class sizes,” says the Principal. “The Year 7/8 syndicate the classes would have been too big, with some classes carrying an extra six students over the normal 29 expected.

“Clearly where we have overly large classes the quality of learning and teaching can be affected.” he says.

But with the hustle and bustle of this year’s school life under way, there has been much excitement as children start work in their new classes.