MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community

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MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
MAGAZINE   October 2020

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MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
Contents
  3    The Headmaster’s           OLD BOYS’ NEWS                 36 Robert Haldene Makgill
       Update
                                  33 The President’s Report      37 The Lions of the Few
  4    Report from the Board

                                  34 2020 Augusta Awards         38 The 1948 Poliomyelitis
  6    Effective practice for                                           Epidemic
       online teaching

  9    Return to play
                                                                 39 Vintage Luncheon
                                                                                                                             The Headmaster’s Update
                                                                 40 Old Boys’ Events
  11   A final year to remember                                                                                 JUST ONE YEAR AGO, THE WIDER GR AMMAR COMMUNIT Y JOINED TOGETHER
                                                                                                             UNDER THE BANNER ‘150 YEARS – A PAST TO CELEBR ATE AND A FUTURE TO EMBR ACE’.
                                                                 41 WW2 Malayan
  12 Academia                                                           Campaign                             OUR 151 ST YEAR HAS PROVEN TO BE ONE TO EMBR ACE, TO INNOVATE, AND TO LEARN.

  15 Sport                                                       42 News                                     As with other sectors across New             • Advancing the way teachers, students       there is evidence of an even stronger

                                                          11                                                 Zealand, the Covid-19 restrictions have
                                                                                                             affected how the School could operate
                                                                                                                                                            and parents interacted within our
                                                                                                                                                            learning management system,
                                                                                                                                                                                                       community around us today. My thanks
                                                                                                                                                                                                       to the Grammar community who
 18 Arts and Culture                                             44 From the Archives                        and, specifically, what we could share         GrammarNet                                 willingly followed our lead and worked to
                                                                                                             in person. For our young men, the            • Advocating for our senior students to be   understand the specificities of our online
                                                                                                             loss of face-to-face teaching time, the        able to attend in-person tutorials, then   approach to teaching, which aligned with
  21 Thinking ahead                                              46 Grammar Families                         opportunity to compete across a variety of     providing them within the Ministry of      our School’s educational philosophies. You
                                                                                                             contexts, and the ritual of daily assembly     Health’s guidelines                        supported the primary place education
                                                                                                             impacted the style of education they were                                                 takes in the lives of Grammar boys,
 22 Staff                                                        48 Obituaries                               familiar with at Grammar.                    • Providing wellbeing advice and online      whether in person or online.
                                                                                                                                                            programmes, such as GrammarFit,
                                                                                                             We, too, have had sympathy for our                                                        Finally, my special thanks to Grammar
                                                                                                                                                            to support the welfare of students
                                                                                                             Form 7 cohort, who have had fewer                                                         masters who implemented the School’s
 24 International                                                50 Grammar Publications                     opportunities to lead and enjoy special
                                                                                                                                                            involved with distance learning.
                                                                                                                                                                                                       online teaching framework in such a
       Department                                                                                            moments that are forged through the          We also learnt a lot, as we saw a growing    manner that classes could continue
                                                                                                             relationships they develop with masters      sense of gratitude for face-to-face          seamlessly. The uncertain times we

 26 Art House Tour                                       24    Guest editor: Amanda Harkness
                                                                                                             and each other in their final year.
                                                                                                             In times of uncertainty and considerable
                                                                                                                                                          teaching and the components that make
                                                                                                                                                          up quality teaching. That is, there has
                                                                                                                                                                                                       experienced saw our teachers embrace
                                                                                                                                                                                                       the circumstances and innovate, both
                                                               Ph 09 623 5400 ext 576                                                                     been a greater student understanding of      as a learner and a teacher, to provide
                                                                                                             change, we are challenged to act
                                                               s.meade@ags.school.nz                                                                      the value a specialist teacher brings to a   our young men with exemplary distance
 27 A heartfelt bequest                                        School website: ags.school.nz
                                                                                                             innovatively. In our context, with many
                                                                                                                                                          classroom environment.                       learning.
                                                                                                             unknowns, we built on the School’s
                                                               Feedback, comments and suggestions            Learning Management System (for online       We have been reminded of the                 Per Angusta Ad Augusta.
                                                               are welcome.                                                                               motivation that many students get from
 28 Giving to Grammar                                          With thanks to all contributors, especially
                                                                                                             teaching) and worked to promote learning
                                                                                                                                                          being in a classroom with their peers
                                                                                                             online in a way that aligned with the
                                                               Peter Stanes ‘58, Murray McKinnon ‘59,                                                     and an understanding that learning does
                                                                                                             School’s educational philosophies. This
                                                               Jessica Betty and the Grammar Media                                                                                                     Tim O’Connor
 30 The Commerce                                               Group. And to designer PK Malkamaki
                                                                                                             included:                                    take place through their interactions
                                                                                                                                                                                                       Headmaster
                                                                                                                                                          with classmates – in particular, the
       Department                                              (Spawn) and proofreader Jim Espie ’38.        • Further developing the Auckland
                                                                                                               Grammar School Online Teaching             critical thinking component of learning,
                                                               Cover image: Tamiro Armstrong and
                                                                                                               Framework that held students               when an opinion can be tested and
                                                               Thomas Jackson celebrate the 1st XV win
 32 Gateway and Term 4                                         vs King’s College. Photograph by Hugo           accountable for acquiring new              validated in person.
       Calendar                                          38    Swinson, Grammar Media Group leader.            knowledge by completing set work           Auckland Grammar School has a strong
                                                               Designed and produced by gardyneHOLT.           online and/or submitting it                foundation and, in our 151st year,

2 AD AUGUSTA                                                                                  OCTOBER 2020   OCTOBER 2020                                                                                                          AD AUGUSTA 3
MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
Responding to a pandemic
                                                                                                                                              “IN THE DAYS, WEEKS A ND MONTHS AHE AD, THERE WILL BE CHOICES FOR US TO M AKE A ND
                                                                                                                                             THERE WILL BE CROSSROADS WHERE WE C A N TAKE THE E ASIER ROUTE WITH JUSTIFIC ATION
                                                                                                                                               BEC AUSE OF THESE TOUGH TIMES, OR, WE C A N ACCEPT THE CIRCUMSTA NCES ARE BEYOND
                                                                                                                                                        OUR CONTROL A ND MOV E FORWARD WITH POSITIV IT Y A ND PURPOSE.”
                                                                                                                                                           - HE A DM A STER TIM O’CONNOR, LOCKDOW N A SSEMBLY, W EDNESDAY 30 M AY, 2020

                        Report from the Board
“GR AMMAR TEACHERS ARE AWESOME!” THIS WAS THE VIEW EXPRESSED TO ME BY A GROUP
 OF FORM 6 BOYS ABOUT COPING WITH LOCKDOWN, ONLINE LEARNING AND RETURNING
                      TO SCHOOL UNDER THE “NEW NORMAL”.
                                                                                                                                                   Effective practice
Our young men have really appreciated
the extra efforts that their teachers
                                                and software. Our Heads of Department
                                                have worked tirelessly to coordinate their
                                                                                             have always appreciated John’s cheery
                                                                                             disposition as he greets us as teacher
                                                                                                                                                   for online teaching
have made in these unusual times. It is         teams from afar, to maintain the delivery    librarian. I hope John enjoys his well-
certainly a view shared by our Board.           of teaching programmes throughout            earned retirement. Mr Daniel Oram is
                                                the School. Again, I must acknowledge        stepping down after six years as Director
It has been a demanding year for all of
                                                the hard work of our Headmaster, Mr          of Boarding at Tibbs House. Daniel has
our staff and members of our School
                                                Tim O’Connor and the Leadership              done a great job leading Tibbs House and
Board, who have all been required to put
                                                Team. They have done a magnificent           ensuring that Tibbs is a safe and happy
in extra hours to focus on the demands
                                                job in coordinating the logistics and        place for our boarders. Frank Haszard is
that Covid-19 has imposed upon us all.
                                                communications to keep our entire            taking over as Director of Boarding and
Our teachers and support staff have

                                                                                                                                                          Return to play
                                                community informed throughout the year.      I know Frank will continue with the fine
been incredible. Everyone has pulled
                                                                                             work of Daniel and others before him.
together to make sure that we deliver the       As I walk about the School, I can see
curriculum to all boys, at all levels. Whilst   that teachers and support staff have         Finally, I want to thank parents and the
all staff have gone above and beyond            given it everything they have this year.     wider school community who have been
the call of duty, I want to specifically        They can be incredibly proud of what         incredibly supportive of the School in
acknowledge the work of Dr John Etty,           they have achieved under very trying         so many ways. Your ongoing support is
who has driven the development of the           circumstances indeed.                        greatly appreciated by our Board and our
School’s online teaching framework.                                                          staff. Whatever 2021 serves up, I am
                                                Whilst the year has been challenging,
This work is aligned with international                                                      confident that the Auckland Grammar
                                                there have also been occasions to
research and we have delivered quality                                                       School community is ready. Our school
                                                celebrate. Our music groups managed
teaching to our boys as we adopt the                                                         has faced tougher times in its history and
                                                to deliver two superb winter concerts to
technology. Credit should also go to Mr                                                      not only survived but thrived. I have total
                                                rave reviews. Our much-anticipated staff
Chris Dunn, who has led the professional                                                     confidence that we will continue in that

                                                                                                                                                   A final year
                                                versus prefects rugby match was played
development and implementation of the                                                        positive manner moving forward.
                                                with the usual determination shown by
School’s online learning management
                                                both sides and, as a Grammar Old Boy, I      Per Angusta Ad Augusta.
system over the past three years, to

                                                                                                                                                   to remember
                                                was delighted to be at King’s College to
ensure the School could support our
                                                watch our 1st XV triumph in what was
young men in these unusual times. We
                                                our 134th win in the 210th game of this
are fortunate indeed that we commenced
                                                fixture.
this work three years ago. Mr Cameron                                                        Mark Sandelin ‘75
Watt has led the development of the             I also want to recognise long-serving        Chairman, Board of Trustees
School’s IT infrastructure to allow us to       master John Warner, who retires after
use the latest technology, programmes           30 years of service to the School. I

4 AD AUGUSTA                                                                                                              OCTOBER 2020     OCTOBER 2020                                                                                   AD AUGUSTA 5
MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
Effective practice for
                             online teaching
               IN THESE CHALLENGING TIMES, TEACHERS AND STUDENTS HAVE
                           CONTINUED TO WORK IN NEW WAYS.

                                                                                                                                          Above: At left, Chris Dunn and Dr John Etty discuss online best practice and at right, a student taking lessons on GrammarNet.
Having rapidly deployed online learning     Did things change when the second              online mechanisms to generate those
via GrammerNet in response to the first     closure was announced?                         effective teaching and learning practices,
lockdown of the pandemic in late March,                                                    like reflection.                               content knowledge. Areas of                    How has the Grammar community                   the value of being in the classroom.
                                            Etty: We initially felt the second closure                                                    technological knowledge are things like        responded to online learning?                   But it has also forced us to think about
the School continued to extend and
                                            would be like the first time, and that         Reflecting on practice might include           how do I make a screencast? How do I                                                           things like sequencing and chunking and
improve its work in this area during the                                                                                                                                                 Etty: I think in lockdown one, there was
                                            we could work in the same way, but it          asking yourself: What have I provided for      run a Zoom? How do I manage my class                                                           explanation.
second round of school closures.                                                           the boys? How will they have engaged                                                          an increased respect for teachers from
                                            was different for a number of reasons.                                                        page, my course content? And then the
                                            The time of the academic year made a           with that? What have they thought                                                             parents because they could see what             Dunn: And I think differentiation as well.
Largely instrumental in developing                                                                                                        pedagogical knowledge is around the
                                                                                           about? How have they performed? And                                                           teachers were doing.                            As John was saying, about anticipating
and delivering the online teaching          difference – there was more academic                                                          teaching – what are you going to do and
                                                                                           that’s something that’s really useful to do.                                                                                                  learner misunderstanding but also
framework, Grammar masters Dr John          pressure to get through material in a                                                         how are you going to do it and why are         Dunn: I think that that parent-teacher
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         providing a diversity of tasks and different
Etty and Chris Dunn shared some of          way that we didn’t necessarily feel first                                                     you going to do it that way instead of this    interaction space is important – the home-
                                                                                           Etty: I found that process really                                                                                                             approaches for different classes.
their learnings with us.                    time around. And last time had a holiday                                                      other way. The content knowledge is just       school interaction. I’ve engaged more
                                                                                           interesting, looking back at how I’d
                                            in the middle, which enabled people to         sequenced those lessons, and thinking          that, the content you are going to cover.      from the parent perspective of looking          Etty: And the idea of the best practice
What are the effects of the pandemic        catch their breath a little bit and recover.                                                                                                 at what’s been provided for my own              online lesson is not always what you
                                                                                           about how I could have done a better           The intersection point between pedagogy
on teaching and how have teachers           Although having said that, I know many                                                                                                       children, how and when, and to what             think it might be. Some peoples’
                                                                                           job. And how I could have explained            and technology is a rich space for
had to adapt?                               people didn’t actually have a holiday, they                                                                                                  extent they’re pushed and challenged.           perception of the perfect online lesson
                                                                                           or expressed to the boys why I was             engagement between teachers and
Dunn: Teachers have had to work hard        just worked through. And there was a           doing what I was doing. It is important                                                                                                       is a Zoom lesson and we’ve challenged
                                                                                                                                          students.                                      Etty: There’s a lot of noise in the news
to convert what they do face-to-face into   novelty value last time. Although it was       that students have an understanding                                                                                                           that. There’s some work to be done on
                                                                                                                                                                                         about wellbeing and I think there’s a
an online environment and to adapt really   unpleasant, it was still a novelty and the     of the rationale for the work they’re                                                                                                         nuancing the understanding of good
                                                                                                                                                                                         tendancy to think that wellbeing means
                                            political rhetoric was quite encouraging,                                                                                                                                                    online teaching practice and clarifying that
quickly. It’s an adaptation of practice,                                                   being asked to produce. So, I think that       “And the idea of the best practice             not making kids do schoolwork, and
                                            because it was saying “we can beat this”                                                                                                                                                     perhaps the way that adults work is not
where their ability to relay information                                                   online teaching makes you much more            online lesson is not always what               giving them lots of time off school. But I
                                            as if once the thing was finished, we                                                                                                                                                        necessarily the best way that teachers
changes – they can no longer talk and                                                      conscious of what you’re doing and why         you think it might be. Some                    think wellbeing also means making sure
                                            would move on and never look back.                                                                                                                                                           should work with students.
write notes on the board but there are                                                     you’re doing it and why you’re doing it in     peoples’ perception of the perfect             that students are supported and have
other ways to do that through the use of    During the second closure, the level of        that way.                                      online lesson is a Zoom lesson                 got something to work on, and checking          Dunn: Part of that discourse is based
technology. Using GrammarNet, they’re       expectation increased. There were higher       The other difference between online
                                                                                                                                          and we’ve challenged that.”                    in with them to make sure that they’re          on media conceptions of what school
able to provide written information for     standards, higher levels of expectation                                                                                                      doing it and that they can do it and that       and schooling is and part of it is parental
                                                                                           teaching and classroom teaching is that
students, they can provide screencasts or   from the community and from ourselves.                                                                                                       they don’t need help with it, and keeping       expectations of how adults in an
                                                                                           when you are in the classroom and you
verbal direct instruction and a number of                                                                                                 Etty: And that model becomes quite             them motivated - that is a dimension of         organisation interact versus effective
                                            We did okay last time but we wanted to         realise that you have missed something
teachers have been making screencasts                                                                                                     helpful for explaining the difference          being concerned about their wellbeing.          teaching and learning practices, which
                                            try to do better.                              out or skipped a stage, or gone too quickly
of slideshows talking to the points.                                                                                                      between the two lockdowns. In lockdown         So there’s still some work to be done on        everybody has an opinion about but not
                                            Dunn: Last time, we were basically             or not explained something very well,
                                                                                                                                          one, we were spending all our time             clarifying how we think about teaching          everybody has a wide knowledge about.
And then they can provide opportunities     in triage, just trying to get through.         you get immediate feedback. You can
                                                                                                                                          improving our technological knowledge.         online. Because at the moment, some of
for students to process that information    But then we started producing work             respond to it immediately and put it right                                                                                                    Etty: Importantly, the teaching and
                                                                                                                                          In lockdown two, with the Headmaster’s         the discussion of it in the public realm is
through tasks and due work. That can        around Effective Practice for Online           immediately. With online teaching, you                                                                                                        learning advice that we’ve given to
                                                                                                                                          leadership and encouragement, we               still a little bit one-dimensional.
                                            Teaching – and created an interactive          have to anticipate the problems students                                                                                                      teachers and the approach Grammar has
be done formally through GrammarNet                                                                                                       put much more time and energy in
                                            PDF for teachers. I think that was a real      might encounter and the misconceptions                                                        Has teaching changed overall since the          taken is based on sound research into
or it can be done through simply getting                                                                                                  to thinking about how we can move
                                            achievement and it has been widely             that might develop, and avoid making                                                          onset of the pandemic?                          effective online teaching practices.
students to email them the work.                                                                                                          the technological capability in order
                                            used. It was designed to improve               those mistakes in the first place.
But GrammarNet is preferable, as it                                                                                                       to improve the pedagogical capability.         Etty: The pandemic has made us think
organises things and keeps everything in    practice and raise the awareness of            Dunn: There’s a concept in e-learning          Whereas first time around, we were             about face-to-face teaching in a different
the same place.                             teachers around the opportunities to use       called TPCK. Technological, pedagogical,       concentrating on technology.                   way, because we can now appreciate

6 AD AUGUSTA                                                                                                            OCTOBER 2020      OCTOBER 2020                                                                                                                AD AUGUSTA 7
MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
Return to play
                                     DIRECTOR OF SPORTS DEVELOPMENT, MR DAVE ASKEW, DISCUSSES THE
                                  ‘COGNITIVE REFR AMING’ THAT TOOK PL ACE DURING THE PANDEMIC PERIOD.

                              The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic earlier this year and its        to another. An example of this was the approach taken by our
                              recent resurgence has affected sport, active recreation, and play      winter sports codes when they considered how best to ‘return
                              across the country. Sport, like most other sectors in society,         students to play’ after the lockdown. Our basketball coaches
                              initially took some time to accept the news. Everything from           were able to share medical information gathered from the NBA
                              pinnacle events for our summer sports athletes, community              strike in 2011 when the competition was locked out for over 100
                              competitions and tournaments, to social leagues, workshops and         days. Likewise, the School’s relationship with Functional Physio
                              pre-season training for our winter sports was impacted and it          enabled us to discuss both physiological data and anecdotal
                              was extremely difficult to stomach.                                    feedback on youth-aged athletes returning from injury and draw
                                                                                                     comparisons with the situation we were in today. This level of
                              I’m sure many of us initially attempted to reject the news as
                                                                                                     collaboration allowed us to implement ‘return to play’ guidelines
                              we struggled to understand something working against us that
                                                                                                     that ultimately took some of the guesswork out of our approach
                              we couldn’t control. However, avoiding the situation at hand is
                                                                                                     and placed students’ wellbeing at the forefront of our planning.
                              counterintuitive and, ultimately, probably leads to you thinking
                              about it more. One of the wonderful aspects of sport at Grammar        We have also learned to be more innovative than before as we
                              is the relationships formed between teachers and students              attempt to remotely motivate students whilst in their home
                              through shared experiences in sport. We are so fortunate to            environment and look for diverse approaches to maintain their
                              have such a significant number of teachers committed to sport          hauora (wellbeing) and preparedness for sport. This has involved
                              and it is at times like these that students lean on those teachers     designing training sessions with limited/varied equipment, with
                              for support, particularly those who found accepting the news           less space, with fewer people and many other constraints when
                              difficult, namely our Form 7 cohort, who were due to represent         attempting to practice from home. We have had to adapt to using
                              their school for the last time. It was, however, encouraging to        technology to maintain connections with students and teams
                              see most deal with this adversity by staying connected and             through Zoom meetings or via group chats. Our football coaches,
                              supporting each other. Sport can be a great teacher and I firmly       for example, kept the 1st XI connected by linking their training to
                              believe that it helps prepare and deal with situations later in life   a group running app so that they could have challenges against
                              when we experience undesirable news, events, or outcomes.              one another in an attempt to maintain that competitive drive
                                                                                                     amongst the students. These are just some of the ways we have
                              As time passed during the nationwide lockdown and the school
                                                                                                     attempted to adapt in these uncertain times.
                              was able to reopen in Term 2, I took the opportunity to speak
                              with several sporting groups and teams about the opportunity           One of the most powerful and positive aspects to come from
                              this pandemic has provided us. Once you’ve repeatedly                  the cognitive reframing of this pandemic has been the ‘themes’
                              reflected on negative news, it’s important to take a step back         that teams have generated to help students keep perspective.
                              and view the situation in a new light. Experts in this field call it   An excellent example of this has been seen in the 1st XV Rugby
                              cognitive reframing. The idea is simply to find a more positive        team. They looked sideways at their peers who missed out on
                              interpretation from the negative news or event. It challenges          their pinnacle summer events and immediately felt grateful for
                              you to look past the immediate emotional impact and into a             the season ahead of them, where they focused on playing every
                              more creative and positive space. Asking yourself “Are there           game as though it could be their last. Unfortunately, the winter
                              any positives from this challenging situation?” is the start of        season was also suspended and interrupted, which further
                              new opportunities and that’s exactly what we did. We have              reinforced the uncertain nature of these times. Thankfully, the 1st
                              seen collaboration extended to new levels as teachers who              XV could look back to the Grammar v King’s game with grateful
                              coach share experiences and resources from one environment             and fond memories.

8 AD AUGUSTA   OCTOBER 2020   OCTOBER 2020                                                                                                               AD AUGUSTA 9
MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
A final year to remember
                                     HEAD PREFECT MICHAEL HIDDLESTON AND DEPUT Y HEAD PREFECT
                                 GEORGE MILES REFLECT ON A YEAR LIKE NO OTHER FOR THEIR FORM 7 COHORT
                                       AND THE POSITIVES THAT HAVE COME OUT OF THE PANDEMIC.

                               The 7th form year is, for many, considered the highlight of a       the cultural evening, the events of this year have given us the
                               Grammar boy’s time at school. It is an opportunity to be leaders,   opportunity to appreciate just how lucky we are. This idea is
                               to embrace all that the school has to offer, and to create final,   even more important now with only a few short weeks to go
                               lasting memories. The 2016 cohort has experienced a final           before study leave. For Form 7, these are the final weeks of our
                               year unlike any other and, while this has had both positive and     schooling career and, in a year when there has been so much
                               negative aspects, ultimately it has without a doubt resulted in a   uncertainty, it cannot be overstated how important it is to seize
                               year to remember.                                                   the opportunities we have left.

                               While in years gone by, 7th formers have spent the year in the      While the lockdown period may not have been ideal, it did
                               classroom, preparing for life after school and embracing the        have the benefit of providing not only a chance to continue to
                               small luxuries that come with being the oldest of 2500 boys,        progress academically but to also form and strengthen valuable
                               our cohort has had to settle for spending much of that time         relationships. Whether this meant connecting with family or
                               behind a screen at home. While in some respects this has been       spending time with friends in a virtual sense, the lockdown
                               a shame and has resulted in various groups of boys missing out      taught many of us teenage boys how important healthy
                               on what we might consider normal school life, in many regards       relationships are. It also provided unity in that sense to be able to
                               we have been hugely lucky. Grammar implemented a smooth             pick up the phone and give a friend or family member a call and
                               and seamless online platform (GrammarNet) where we could            check on how they’re coping and what they’ve been up to. This
                               continue in our academic endeavours, preparing for our lives        was very special and valuable to strengthening the ever-present
                               outside of Grammar in whatever form that takes. Learning online     bond we have as Grammar boys and friends.
                               taught us a different form of academic resilience and, while we     Ultimately this will be remembered as the year of Covid. It has
                               have sat countless exams as a cohort, having the discipline to      been a year filled with surprises and is certainly not one that
                               learn online day-in and day-out took a real determination to keep   anyone could have predicted. While the year has taken much
                               going, knowing the importance of the work. The entire school        away from us, in the sense of time at school and the unique
                               is to be commended for the personal leadership and academic         aspects of being a senior cohort, it has also offered us the
                               resilience shown over the year to date, and experiences like this   chance to seize the time we did have and to really make the most
                               will make a ‘normal’ academic year that much easier.                of it. We will leave the School with fond memories of the special
                                                                                                   moments Covid was unable to touch and the reassurance that
                               The cancellation of many events due to Covid has also put a
                                                                                                   there is a positive side to be found in even the most seemingly
                               special emphasis on those which have been able to proceed.
                                                                                                   disappointing situations. For those of you who still have time left
                               The latter half of Term 2 and the beginning of Term 3 offered a
                                                                                                   at Grammar, hopefully, this will act as a reminder to make the
                               window of opportunity in which to make the most of normality
                                                                                                   most of every opportunity, as it flies by all too quickly and can
                               and it was fantastic to see this seized by the boys in both a
                                                                                                   be influenced by unseen factors. We hope that you can embrace
                               sporting and cultural sense. Whether it was standing on the
                                                                                                   this remaining time just as much as we will.
                               sidelines amongst hundreds of other Augusta Army members
                               or watching the display of unique and varied backgrounds at         Per Angusta Ad Augusta

10 AD AUGUSTA   OCTOBER 2020   OCTOBER 2020                                                                                                              AD AUGUSTA 11
MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
ACADEMIA                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       ACADEMIA

 ADMISSION TO OVERSEAS                                  NEW ZEAL AND DEBATING TEAM                                                        INTERNATIONAL                                       NEW ZEAL AND YOUNG PHYSICISTS
 UNIVERSITIES                                           At the start of June, Isaac Mellis-Glynn was selected as a member of the          INFORMATICS OLYMPIAD                                THIRD IN WORLD
                                                        New Zealand Schools Online Debating Team to compete in the World Schools                                                              Grammar entered two teams for the New Zealand Young Physicists’ Tournament
At the end of 2019, a number of our students gained     Debating Championships, which was held in an online capacity this year due                                                            in 2020. The Auckland regional tournament held at Kristin School on March 7
admission into New Zealand universities across a        to Covid-19. Preparation for this tournament involved an eight-day training                                                           was once again a festival of Physics ‘blue sky science’ research, with 18 teams
wide range of courses including the Arts, Commerce,     camp in Masterton during the July school holidays. Mellis-Glynn played a role                                                         participating. Both Grammar teams reported their findings of the scientific
Engineering, Law, and the Sciences.                     as a first speaker within the team, focusing on establishing the team’s case                                                          investigations they had carried out and successfully challenged the reports of
                                                        and path to victory in a clear and cogent manner during his speeches.                                                                 the other teams. The judges scored them highly, placing them 1st and 3rd. This
In addition to students gaining admission here in New
                                                        The Online World Schools Debating Championships, which involved over 60                                                               reinforced the strength of the Physics research carried out by Grammar teams in
Zealand, a large number of students have chosen to
                                                        national teams, was split up into two divisions to accommodate time zone                                                              previous competitions. The 1st place team consisted of Nathan Chen 7A, Sven
study overseas. The list below provides a glimpse of
                                                        differences. The New Zealand team won four out of their six round-robin                                                               Jansen-Snip 7A and Ayaan Saiyad 7B. The team of Kelvin Liu 7A, Krit Teyavongsak
where some of them have obtained admission.
                                                        debates. Mellis-Glynn started for New Zealand in three of these six debates,                                                          7C and Michael Yao 5A placed 3rd.
This list, while not comprehensive, includes students
                                                        debating the UAE, Pakistan and Vietnam. Motions ranged from ‘This House                                                               Both Grammar teams were scheduled to participate in the National final NZYPT but
who have indicated to the School their choice of
                                                        prefers a world where all land was held in a government trust and leased out                                                          the Covid-19 crisis and resulting lockdown saw the National tournament cancelled.
university and their courses.
                                                        on limited-term contracts’ to ‘This House would pay additional benefits to
                                                                                                                                                                                              Students from high-performing teams in the regional tournaments were invited
                                                        families on welfare according to their child’s performance in school’.
Thomas Barrell                                                                                                                                                                                to be part of the New Zealand Young Physicists’ squad. This required them to
University of Berkeley                                  Their performance in the preliminary rounds earned the team a breaking           The International Informatics Olympiad team          carry out further research on a new problem and submit their findings to a panel
                                                        position of ninth in their division of the competition and placed them in the    in Matamata, with Grammar Form 7 student             of international judges. Chen and Liu were selected to be part of this elite squad
Jaydon Chai                                                                                                                              Zhi Yuan Qi pictured fourth from left.
                                                        top 24 teams globally. New Zealand then lost its first break-round debate                                                             and Chen was selected to be part of the final team to represent New Zealand in
Monash University, Melbourne
                                                        against Romania. Individually, Mellis-Glynn was ranked as the 44th best                                                               Romania in IYPT 2020. When this was also cancelled because of the pandemic, the
Jeremy (Tianyu) Chi                                                                                                                      Students from around the country compete in
                                                        speaker in New Zealand’s half of the competition.                                                                                     NZYPT organising committee set up an International IYPT Online competition.
New York University                                                                                                                      the New Zealand Informatics Contest, which
                                                        Since the tournament, Mellis-Glynn was named best speaker at the New             is held online three times a year. The top           A training camp for the New Zealand team of five students was held during the first
Kaylin Daji
                                                        Zealand National Championships for 2020 and has been selected for the            contestants are selected to go to a training         week of the Term 2 holidays to get the team up to ‘international’ standard. The IYPT
University of Sydney, St John’s College
                                                        New Zealand Schools Debating Team, which is hoping to compete in a trans-        camp, held in January at the University of           New Zealand Online competition was held from 6pm to 2am each night from July
Andrew Gutschlag                                        Tasman tournament at the end of the year.                                        Canterbury. Team members are then selected           10–12, to accommodate the time differences for teams from all over the world.
Monash University, Melbourne
                                                                                                                                         from the camp based on the Australian                Teams from Austria, Croatia, Georgia, Greece, New Zealand, Singapore and Thailand
Miller Hawkesby                                                                                                                                                                               all took part, with teams from Iran, Romania and Pakistan having to withdraw at the
                                                                                                                                         informatics contests.
University of Georgetown/Dartmouth                                                                                                                                                            last minute.
Alexander Hornung                                                                                                                        The New Zealand team is made up of four
                                                                                                                                                                                              At the end of an unprecedented tournament, the current world champions from
Monash University, Melbourne                                                                                                             team members plus a reserve and the
                                                                                                                                                                                              Singapore were in 1st place, with Austria in 2nd place and New Zealand in 3rd
Henry Jamieson                                                                                                                           Olympiad is normally held over two days,
                                                                                                                                                                                              place. The New Zealand team can look back with pride in the knowledge that they
University of Sydney, St John’s College                                                                                                  with five-hour sessions each day. This year’s
                                                                                                                                                                                              managed to outscore the Singapore team in the round of the competition where
                                                                                                                                         contest was to be held in Singapore but, with
Matthew Jefferies                                                                                                                                                                             they were directly competing against each other.
University of Sydney, St Paul’s College                                                                                                  the advent of Covid-19, it was changed to an
                                                                                                                                         online event, taking place in Hamilton and
Benjamin Lerner
                                                                                                                                         supervised by the University of Waikato. This
University of Sydney, St Paul’s College
                                                                                                                                         year, the contest was extended to run over four
Hugh Marshall
                                                                                                                                         days, from June 16 to June 19.
University of Sydney, St John’s College
Ruiqi Shi                                                                                                                                Form 7 Grammar student Zhi Yuan Qi
The Juilliard School, NY                                                                                                                 represented New Zealand this year and the
Owen Sun                                                                                                                                 team came away with one Bronze medal. Qi
Monash University, Melbourne                                                                                                             said the problems seemed more challenging
                                                                                                                                         than those last year in Azerbaijan and most
Liam Wong
University of Sydney, St John’s College                                                                                                  contestants were unable to solve the “hardest”
                                                                                                                                         problem on each contest day.
David Xu
University of Sydney, St John’s College                                                                                                  But Qi said there were some benefits in holding
Kefei Zheng                                                                                                                              the competition online. “Normally you’d be in
University of Sydney                                                                                                                     a large venue with the sounds of keyboards all
Daniel Zhu                                                                                                                               around you,” he said. “But this year, it was a lot
University of Pennsylvania                              Debator, Isaac Mellis-Glynn.                                                     more quiet and perhaps more calm.”                   Above: Ayaan Saiyad, Sven Jansen-Snip, Nathan Chen and Mr Gavin Jennings.

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MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
ACADEMIA                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               SPORT

                                                                       EDUCATION PERFECT                                                                                                                                         BASKETBALL
 YOUNG ENTERPRISE SCHEME (YES)                                         LANGUAGES CHAMPIONSHIP WINNERS                                       CYCLING
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 A heavily interrupted Covid season hasn’t
                                                                       Students studying languages took part in two competitions run                                                                                             stopped the Premier Basketball team from
                                                                       by Education Perfect this year: the Education Perfect Global                                                                                              enjoying great success so far in 2020.
                                                                       Languages Championships in May and the Education Perfect                                                                                                  After an impressive 86–81 victory over current
                                                                       Regional Championships in late July and August.                                                                                                           national champions St Kentigern College, the
                                                                       Both are online competitions in which students are tested                                                                                                 team has pushed on to record wins over Liston
                                                                       on their language skills, including reading, listening, writing,                                                                                          92–55, Westlake 84–71, and Mount Albert
                                                                       dictation, grammar and cultural knowledge. They gain points by                                                                                            Grammar 67–53.
                                                                       answering questions online and as they reach certain thresholds,                                                                                          The team started the year with a pre-season
                                                                       they earn certificates ranging from Elite, Emerald, Gold, Silver,                                                                                         camp at Mount Maunganui the week before
                                                                       Bronze and Credit. Competitors from more than 2,155 schools                                                                                               the country was placed into its first lockdown.
                                                                       worldwide took part.                                                                                                                                      From that point, a high level of self-motivation
                                                                       In the global championships, 21 certificates were awarded to                                                                                              to remain fit and ready in the uncertain times
                                                                       Grammar students this year: 1 at Elite level (R.J. Maguire 5E), 1                                                                                         brought about by the pandemic was the
                                                                       Emerald (J Shin 3D), 3 Gold (D Nimmakayala 4A, F.W. Maguire                                                                                               challenge. The focus of ‘train or play today like
                                                                       3K and E.J. Moy 4A), 3 Silver, 2 Bronze and 11 Credit. R.J.                                                                                               it may be your last’ quickly became the team’s
                                                                       Maguire’s Elite certificate (the second year in a row) placed him                                                                                         driver when returning from lockdown and that
                                                                       in the top 0.2 % of 181,000 competitors from around the world.                                                                                            sentiment certainly proved meaningful after
                                                                                                                                           Above: Senior A Team at the Team Time Trials in Pukekohe
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 moving into the second lockdown.
                                                                       In the regional championships, 38 certificates were awarded: 4 at
                                                                       Gold Level, 3 Silver, 11 Bronze and 20 Credit. Grammar came first   The 2020 Cycling season was disrupted by Covid-19 but this did not discourage the     The team continued to train with great focus and
                                                                       in Spanish out of the 239 schools which took part nationwide.       squad. The Auckland Secondary School Cycle Series commenced with the Points           energy in the hope that further games would
                                                                                                                                           Race on 21 June.                                                                      be played, but unfortunately the season was
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 cancelled due to further Covid-19 restrictions.
                                                                                                                                           The Team Time Trial (TTT) Series began on 28 June, with Grammar entering 11
Above: Form 7 students Mutian Li, Drew Raby and Toby Svoboda.                                                                                                                                                                    A final non-competition game against Rangitoto
                                                                                                                                           teams. In Race 1, the Senior A team won with a time of 21 mins, 41 seconds, with
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 College resulted in an 80–76 win for Grammar.
                                                                                                                                           Grammar’s Senior B placing 3rd. Grammar’s Junior A team won with a time of 23
The Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme (YES) is an
                                                                                                                                           mins, 40 seconds and the B team placed 2nd, 30 seconds later.
experiential programme where students set up and run a real
business.                                                                                                                                  In Race 2, the Senior A team won with a time of 21 mins, 14 seconds. Grammar’s
                                                                                                                                           Junior A team won with a time of 23 mins, 41 seconds, with Junior B coming 3rd
One of three teams representing Grammar this year is Auckland
                                                                                                                                           with a time of 24 mins, 56 seconds.
Central region YES Company of the Year 2019 OneCut, who are
aiming to reach the nationals for the second year running.                                                                                 Race 3 saw Grammar’s Senior A team take their third win, with a winning time of
                                                                                                                                           21 mins, 32 seconds. The Junior A team also had their third win; 10.09 seconds
Although they did not place in the top three in the nationals in
                                                                                                                                           faster than our Junior B team, which placed 2nd.
Wellington last year, Form 7 students Mutian Li, Tobias Svoboda
and Drew Raby have made significant developments in the                                                                                    In Race 4, Grammar’s Senior A took another win with their fastest lap and a total
creation of their innovative product, the Synergy 45, which is an                                                                          time of 21 mins, 59 seconds. Grammar’s Senior B team was placed 3rd. The
architectural and graphic design multi-use tool.                                                                                           Junior A team also had another win with a total time of 23 mins, 21 seconds, with
                                                                                                                                           Grammar’s Junior B team in 3rd place.
The quality of the product and the integrity of the group has
seen the Synergy 45 all-in-one graphics tool now stocked in the                                                                            The fifth TTT and Finals day was unfortunately cancelled due to Covid-19 regional
School Shop and experiencing good sales.                                                                                                   restrictions. College Sport later released the Cycling Results for 2020, which
                                                                                                                                           showed Grammar performed incredibly well, winning the Championship Series
HOD Business Studies, Mr Doug Newton, says the group is
                                                                                                                                           overall with a Gold for Senior A, Gold for Junior A, Silver for Junior B and Silver
now producing a new tool prototype; the Synergy 30, which
                                                                                                                                           for Senior E for Most Improved Senior Boys. The fastest time went to Grammar’s
they believe will allow them to maximise opportunities in this
                                                                                                                                           Senior A team with a new lap record of 21:14.72.
year’s YES competition. The new prototype is set to go into full
production shortly.                                                                                                                        In the Points Race, Jonny Barclay won Gold in the Boys Under 14; Nate Boness,
                                                                                                                                           Lucas Bhimy and Quinn Gardiner-Hall won Gold, Silver and Bronze in the Boys
“This is the second year for Onecut in their continued progress
                                                                                                                                           Under 15; Austin Norwell Silver in Under 16; Olano Scarlett Gold in Under 17 and
in the competition, in which they have developed their unique
                                                                                                                                           Oliver Simcock Smith and Jacob Rackham took Silver and Bronze in Under 19.
products, the ‘Synergy 45’ and the ‘Synergy 30’. The group are in
their final year at School and hope to reach the National Finals for                                                                       The 2020 Cycling season was cut short with the cancellation of the North Island       Above: Toby Caldwell from the Premier
the second consecutive year in 2020.”                                  Above: R.J. Maguire receives his Education Perfect award.           Road Championships and National Road Championships.                                   basketball team takes a shot for goal vs MAGS.

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MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
SPORT                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           SPORT

                                                                             St Peter’s before slipping to close losses in the                                                                                  SQUASH
 FOOTBALL                                                                    following two matches. A resurgence against Mount        RUGBY
                                                                                                                                                                                                                The National Secondary Schools Squash Championship in
                                                                             Roskill saw them win by an emphatic 5-nil scoreline,
                                                                                                                                                                                                                Tauranga hosted 350 players, with Grammar seeded 2nd
                                                                             before losing a closely fought battle against Selwyn.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                in the 34 boys’ teams section. The team of Ben Tomlinson,
                                                                             Having won the Knockout Cup in 2018, the 1st XI                                                                                    Apa Fatialofa, Noah Thomas, Blake Richardson, Ethan
                                                                             were knocked out of the cup competition when                                                                                       Fazakerley, Finn Goodson and captain, Leo Fatialofa began
                                                                             they were defeated 3–1 by Rangitoto College after                                                                                  the tournament with a comfortable 5–0 win over St Paul’s
                                                                             dominating for the vast majority of the game. With                                                                                 and went on to beat both Taupo-Nui-A-Tia and Matamata in
                                                                             the team still recovering from the heartbreak of the                                                                               the next two rounds by the same margin.
                                                                             2019 Nationals final, there were many encouraging
                                                                             and promising signs from the 1st XI who were                                                                                       The fourth round was a semi-final against 3rd seed
                                                                             looking to continue their run before the season was                                                                                Tauranga on their home courts in front of a partisan and
                                                                             ended abruptly due to the Covid-19 resurgence.                                                                                     vocal crowd. This was a tough and prolonged contest and
                                                                                                                                                                                                                one which Grammar eventually lost, 2 matches to 3. The
                                                                             There was a great start by several of the other                                                                                    5th and final match was against 4th seeds, Whangarei. The
                                                                             football teams also, with some promising talent                                                                                    Premier team finished in style by dispatching a very good
                                                                             coming through the ranks. The 13A1 team were top                                                                                   team 5 matches to none and, in doing so, secured 3rd
                                                                             of their pool after 4 wins and a draw against last                                                                                 place at Nationals and a podium finish.
                                                                             season’s champions, St Kentigern. The 14A1 and
                                                                             15A2 sides were performing even better with a                                                                                      The team is most grateful for the opportunity to attend a
                                                                                                                                     Fatafehi Fineanganofo in the Grammar vs Sacred Heart 1st XV match
                                                                             100% start to their respective seasons, both teams                                                                                 national tournament in a year in which most other sporting
                                                                             securing 5 wins out of 5. It is a shame the season      As with all areas of life, Covid has severely impacted the rugby season.   codes have had their own cancelled or changed to some
                                                                             ended early as there was a strong chance these          Even so, a number of games have been played, teams have trained            lesser form.

Josh Stephan, Rhys Davies and Jayden Reddy, all challenging for the ball.    teams could have won their respective leagues.          hard and gained in spirit and cohesion. Given the outlook earlier in the   At the prizegiving ceremony, Fatialofa was named captain
                                                                                                                                     year, we can be grateful that we have had some meaningful rugby.           and no.1 in the New Zealand Secondary Schools’ Senior
                                                                             In the knockout competition, the 13th grade team
After a strong season in 2019 that saw the 1st XI finish as runners-up       was handed a tough away-draw against Mount              The 1st XV had a strong run of results and sat at the top of the 1A        Squash team and Thomas was named as no.1 in the New
in both the National Championship and the Auckland competition, there        Albert Grammar and although they put up a great         table at the conclusion of the season. After starting the season with      Zealand Secondary Schools’ Junior Squash Team; both of
were high expectations this year. The team had an unfortunate start to the   fight in the first half, they succumbed to some late    a comfortable win against Dilworth, we lost a very close game to           which would have played full tests against the Australian
season, losing their Captain, Dempsey Thomas to a season-ending injury in    goals to lose and be eliminated at the first hurdle.    Sacred Heart, after they were able to score in the last minute. Term       equivalents had it not been for Covid-19.
the first match of the season against Mount Albert, forcing the game to be   In the 15th grade fixture, the team played a spirited   Three started with an outstanding defensive performance against St
abandoned. The rescheduled fixture saw Grammar lose a tight game 3–2.        Western Springs side and won the fixture 3-nil.         Kentigern College. Team spirit, commitment, and accuracy were to the
They recovered from this loss to secure an unlucky draw against national     A quarter-final against Sacred Heart awaited but        fore as we defended our line to secure a well-deserved 10–3 victory.
champions Sacred Heart. They won their first fixture against local rivals    unfortunately never materialised.                       Another tough battle against Kelston was won 23–17, which brought
                                                                                                                                     us to an epic game against King’s. Early mistakes, combined with
                                                                                                                                     outstanding attack from the King’s backline, saw us 15 points behind,
                                                                                                                                     however, our forwards gained the upper hand and we managed to get
                                                                                                                                     our defensive systems functioning. Pressure led to tries and when
HOCKEY                                                                                                                               King’s conceded a penalty under pressure on their line, the goal was
Like other sports, the 1st XI hockey team had                                                                                        kicked and we led for the first time. A crucial turnover penalty was
their season curtailed by the Covid-19 pandemic.                                                                                     earned and the game was won 34–32.
The team was involved in a very limited                                                                                              The return to lockdown saw the games against Mt Albert, De La
Auckland competition where they had several                                                                                          Salle, Aorere, St. Peter’s, Liston and Tangaroa cancelled and no
easy games and big double-digit wins. The 1st                                                                                        competition winner awarded. A disappointing end to what had been a
XI did have the traditional fixture against King’s                                                                                   successful season.
College - where they came out 2-1 winners.
The team stumbled in the final 0-1 against St                                                                                        The 2nd, 3rd XVs and 4A were all unbeaten, while all our ‘A’ teams
                                                                                                                                     (and many ‘B’ and ‘C’ teams) were very competitive in their respective     National Tournament medal ceremony. From left:
Kentigern College – despite controlling play and
                                                                                                                                                                                                                Goodson, Leo Fatialofa, Fazakerley, Apa Fatialofa,
creating chances at will, the 1st XI could not                                                                                       grades. A pleasing development this year is that we have two U14 open
                                                                                                                                                                                                                Richardson, Tomlinson and Thomas.
capitalise. The second lockdown prevented the                                                                                        weight teams, having had none for some time. We aimed to select two
Supercity competition from starting and the                                                                                          even teams, and while one has proved to be a little stronger than the
National tournament from taking place.                                                                                               other, both are competitive. The two lockdowns meant that there were
                                                                                                                                     no championships contested in grade rugby but we can be happy that
                                                                                                                                     the sheer enjoyment of playing with your mates, challenging yourselves
The Grammar 1st XI takes a penalty corner.                                                                                           and dealing with victory and defeat was able to continue.

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MAGAZINE October 2020 - Auckland Grammar School Online Community
ARTS AND CULTURE                                                                                                                                                                                                                             ARTS AND CULTURE

                                                                  MINISTER’S PL ATE WINNERS                                                                                                                   Richard Saucedo; Into the Clouds, Looking Past the Shadows
 PERFORMANCE DAY                                                                                                                            WINTER CONCERT SERIES                                             and Pulsation. These pieces demonstrated the skills and
                                                                  A well-established tradition within the Grammar community                                                                                   development of the Band over the course of the year with a
                                                                  which recognises the achievement of the finest solo musicians                                                                               polished performance.
                                                                  at the School, the Minister’s Plate was held on Tuesday 23
                                                                  June. The competition sees finalists from each of the Junior                                                                                The concert concluded with a bracket of music from the
                                                                  and Senior division heats compete for their respective plates.                                                                              Symphony Orchestra. Beginning with Awakening, written
                                                                                                                                                                                                              and conducted by student Ed Nelson. This was followed by a
                                                                  Finalists P. Zhai (guitar), S. Wheeler (clarinet), W. Wang (cello), T.                                                                      performance of the first movement from New Zealand composer
                                                                  Yi (piano) and J. Cheung (piano) competed for the Junior Music                                                                              Anthony Ritchie’s Viola Concerto again featuring Taliesin Amoore
                                                                  Plate, which was awarded to Cheung. He played Nocturne in                                                                                   as the soloist. This was then followed by the Allegretto from
                                                                  E-Flat Major, by F. Chopin and Presto alla tedesca, in G, Op.79                                                                             Symphony No.7 by Ludwig Beethoven, 250 years after his birth
                                                                  by L. van Beethoven. Both of these pieces are very difficult but                                                                            and the tormented and passionate March to the Scaffold from
                                                                  Cheung made it look effortless. His showmanship, confidence                                                                                 Symphonie Fantastique by Hector Berlioz.
                                                                  and maturity put him one step ahead of his competitors.
                                                                                                                                                                                                              The second Winter Concert featured the Pipe Band, both choirs,
                                                                  The Minister’s Plate was contested by R. Gan (violin), K.                                                                                   Grammarphonics and Grammar Voices, the Jazz Combo and
                                                                  Oyamada (trombone), S. Park (clarinet), B.J. Ross (voice), J.                                                                               Big Band. Beginning with a medley of traditional and arranged
                                                                  Xu (piano), A. Raby (tenor saxophone) and D. Fleming (cello).                                                                               tunes by the Pipe Band with accompanying traditional Scottish
                                                                  Fleming was the overall winner, playing Tarantella, Op.33,                                                                                  dancers, including favourites Highland Cathedral, Amazing Grace
                                                                  by D. Popper (accompanied by David Kelly on piano). Again,                                                                                  and the more recent Galway Girl by Steve Earle. The concert then
                                                                  a very difficult piece played with ease. It was a strong final                                                                              moved into two brackets from Grammarphonics and Grammar
                                                                  performance for the night that could not be faulted.                                                                                        Voices, conducted by Mr David Hamilton, with music by Bach,
                                                                  The Adjudicator for this year was Old Boy Mathew Fieldes ‘85.                                                                               Mr Hamilton, traditional hymns, the Four Tops, and music from
                                                                  Mat has recently returned to New Zealand after working in New                                                                               the musicals Les Miserables and Porgy and Bess, including a
                                                                  York for 25 years as a freelance electric and acoustic bassist           Above: Grammar Virtuosi’s cello players in the first
                                                                                                                                                                                                              stunning solo from Mrs Emma Roxburgh with Grammarphonics.
                                                                  in an extensive career which has produced four Grammy-                   Winter Concert.                                                    After interval, the Jazz Combo and Big Band took to the stage.
                                                                  nominated albums.                                                                                                                           The Jazz Combo performed a set of four pieces; Lift Off, Mind
                                                                                                                                           Held this year on Monday 3 and Wednesday 5 August, the
                                                                                                                                                                                                              of J, Valdez Off Crenshaw and Confessions. This was followed
                                                                                                                                           annual Winter Concerts attracted a sizeable audience, possibly     by Big Band, directed by Mr Eddie Hare, performing a set of five
                                                                                                                                           as a result of a desire by many to attend musical concerts         pieces and showcasing various members of the band in solo
                                                                                                                                           having had an absence of live performances as a result of          roles, including B.J. Ross, in an arrangement of Harry Connick
                                                                                                                                           the lockdown or perhaps as a continuation of the success           Jr’s Come by Me and T.C. Levi, most notably in Stevie Wonder’s
                                                                                                                                           of our musical ensembles following on from last year’s             Isn’t She Lovely.
                                                                                                                                           sesquicentenary celebrations.
At top, violinist Taliesin Amoore, and above, Grammar Voices.
                                                                                                                                           The first Winter Concert featured the large instrumental
Following the need to cancel the first Performance Day due to                                                                              ensembles, the Wind Band, Concert Band, Grammar Virtuosi
Covid-19, it was with much excitement on Thursday 30 July that                                                                             and the Symphony Orchestra. Beginning with the Concert Band,
almost 180 boys in eight different groups travelled to Remuera                                                                             conducted by Mr Barry Wasson, Head of Music, presented a
Intermediate, Kohia Terrace School and Kowhai Intermediate to                                                                              bracket of music including the premiere of the Double Double
perform for their students.                                                                                                                Percussion Concerto by Mr David Hamilton, featuring four
                                                                                                                                           percussionists as soloists, alongside Double Happiness by
An hour-long programme was presented at each school, with                                                                                  Joseph Curiale and Cajun Folksongs by Frank Ticheli. This was
performances by the Pipe Band, Grammar Virtuosi, Symphony
                                                                                                                                           followed by a performance by Grammar Virtuosi, presenting
Orchestra, Grammarphonics, Wind Band, Concert Band and the
                                                                                                                                           Battalia by Heinrich Biber, a baroque work depicting the life of
Big Band.
                                                                                                                                           a soldier, with many innovative techniques, such as stomping,
“It is a long day for the boys,” says Director of Performance                                                                              using the wood of the bow and playing in several different keys
Music, Mr Chris Adams, “leaving school at 8am and arriving back                                                                            at the same time. This was followed by a Prelude and Fugue by
at 3.45pm, loading and unloading the truck at each school and                                                                              Clara Schumann, four movements from Five Summer Songs by
then performing three times, but it’s an invaluable performance                                                                            Mr Chris Adams, written especially for the group, and concluded
experience as well an educational and entertaining experience                                                                              with Libertango by Astor Piazzolla and arranged by a member of
for the students at the schools at which they perform.”                                                                                    the ensemble, Taliesin Amoore.

Thank you to all the ensemble directors, accompanying staff and   Above: Junior Plate Winner, Jayden Cheung (left) and the                 After the interval, the Wind Band took to the stage and
students for a very successful trip.                              Minister’s Plate Winner, Daniel Fleming.                                 presented a bracket of three pieces by the American composer       Above: Andrew Raby on the tenor saxophone.

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ARTS AND CULTURE                                                                                                                                                                                                                                STUDENT STORY

 CULTUR AL EVENING

                                                                                                                                                                         Thinking ahead
                                                                                                                                                    TREE PL ANTING IDEA IN SUPPORT OF OUR ENVIRONMENT AND
                                                                                                                                                               CLIMATE CHANGE WINS COMPETITION

                                                                                                                                    ‘Sorted in Schools’ is a division of the NZ Financial
                                                                                                                                    Capability Commission. Its aim is to improve the financial
                                                                                                                                    literacy of school students.

                                                                                                                                    In March this year, they announced a New Zealand-wide
                                                                                                                                    contest, Money Jam, for school groups to create their
                                                                                                                                    own events. The groups had to plan and complete a
                                                                                                                                    budget proposal for their community activity, event or
                                                                                                                                    experience. These activities could include a market day,
Above: The Grammar Pasifika Group at the height of their performance.                                                               art exhibition, fun-run or beach clean-up with a barbeque
                                                                                                                                    for the workers afterwards. The budget proposal needed
On the night of 31 July, the Headmaster’s Cultural Committee                                                                        to include a detailed breakdown of costs and a creative
came together to showcase the diversity that populates the                                                                          video or PowerPoint to support it.
Grammar community at the annual Cultural Night. The audience
came from far and wide to fill the Centennial Theatre in support                                                                    A group of 26 Interact members were tasked with
of the cultural and performing arts groups of various ethnic                                                                        developing a proposal for a tree planting day at Duder
backgrounds. The show opened with a stunning demonstration                                                                          Regional Park but, due to the lockdown, the proposal was
of New Zealand’s local culture by the Kapa Haka Group,                                                                              completed on behalf of the Interact Club by Q.S. Li of 6A.
then proceeding to the Pasifika Group with a lively, eccentric                                                                      The proposal presented by Li was for a tree planting day
performance that generated a significant involvement of the                                                                         with a shared pizza lunch. The remainder of the budget
audience with family and friends joining their sons on stage.                                                                       was to revisit the trees, check on their progress and carry
Groups from South Asia ended the first half of the show, with                                                                       out any maintenance that was required. It would be an
the Indian and Sri Lankan Groups showing aspects of both                                                                            unforgettable, fun and unique experience where students
old and contemporary sides of their cultures through well-                                                                          can interact with nature and give back to the community.
choreographed dances.
                                                                                                                                    Initially the proposal won a spot prize of a $500
The latter half of the night featured our groups from East Asia.
                                                                                                                                    Rockshop voucher. This was followed shortly after by the
The Dragon and Lion Dance Group illustrated more ancient
                                                                                                                                    announcement that the School’s tree planting proposal
aspects of Chinese culture, while the Chinese Chamber
                                                                                                                                    had won the top prize of $5000. This money was to be
Group presented an array of traditional Chinese folk songs on
                                                                                                                                    used to cover all the costs of the tree planting activity and
conventional Western string instruments. The Diabolo Group
                                                                                                                                    food afterwards.
wowed the audience with their amazing technical skills and
tricks, which they spent the first half of the year mastering,                                                                      Headmaster Tim O’Connor says the School’s Interact
generating ecstatic applause and cheering. The Korean Group                                                                         Club regularly gives back to the local community through
showed off modern Korean pop culture through a rap duet, which                                                                      charity street collections, food banks, stream clean-ups
was followed by the Korean Nanta Group, who finished off the                                                                        and tree planting. “We strive for our young men to seek
night with a thunderous traditional drum performance, sending                                                                       out new challenges that reflect our school’s values,” he        The school liaised with Auckland Council’s Park Services to select
both the audience and our performance home on a high note.                                                                          said. “Taking part in this competition taught the students      180 Mānuka (tea-tree), Kahikatea, Tā Kāuka (cabbage tree), Kōwhai,
                                                                                                                                                                                                    Harakeke (flax) and Karamū. The trees were planted in retired
All the cultural groups at Grammar have been extremely grateful     At top: The Korean Group Traditional Nanta Drums reach          important budgeting skills, helped them gain financial          paddocks around gullies and hillsides to stop erosion and create
to have been given the opportunity to celebrate our talent and      their crescendo. Above: Sheer passion expressed by the          confidence and make a positive contribution to our local        buffers for wetlands and to help restore habitats, boost wildlife, and
diversity and share it with the Grammar community.                  Kapa Haka Group.                                                environment.”                                                   help increase the urban ngahere (forest) across Tāmaki Makaurau.

20 AD AUGUSTA                                                                                                        OCTOBER 2020   OCTOBER 2020                                                                                                             AD AUGUSTA 21
STAFF                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            STAFF

                                                                                                                                                                                                                     MR WARNER RETIRES

                New Director of Boarding
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Mr John Warner started teaching at Auckland Grammar School
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     in 1990 after teaching at St Peter’s College. His qualifications
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     include a Bachelor of Arts and Diploma of Teaching from the

                      announced
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     University of Auckland.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Mr Warner is also an Old Boy of Grammar, class of ’68. He
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     started his career at the School teaching Social Studies and
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     English before specialising in English from 1993. He was
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     recognised as a 25-year master in December 2014. Throughout
                                                                         Mr Oram has been extremely well-supported by his wife Rachel                                                                                his teaching career, he has taught a range of qualification
                                                                         and their two daughters, Grace and Chloe, who have been an                                                                                  pathways, including University Bursary, University Entrance,
                                                                         integral part of the Tibbs community. We thank the Oram family                                                                              School Certificate and, since its introduction, all levels of NCEA.
                                                                         for their service to Tibbs House.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     From 1992 to 1999, Mr Warner accepted the additional
                                                                         Mr Oram will continue as an experienced master and senior                                                                                   responsibility of managing the School Stationery and
                                                                         staff member at Grammar and we look forward to his continued                                                                                Clothing Shop before being appointed as the Director of
                                                                         contributions to School life.                                                                                                               Library in April 1999, a time when extensions to the Library
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     were being completed.
                                                                         The School is pleased to announce that Mr Frank Haszard will
                                                                         begin in the Director’s role at the start of the 2021 academic year.                                                                        Mr Warner has fulfilled the function of the teacher-librarian,
                                                                         He is a proud Old Boy, class ’93, and an experienced Economics                                                                              overseeing all aspects of the Library’s operation until his
                                                                         teacher, who has taught the subject at all levels.                                                                                          retirement at the end of Term 1. His interest in this integral part
                                                                                                                                                Departing Head of Faculty, Student Services, Mr Graeme Martin.       of School life has been evident through the way he advocated
                                                                         During his time at Grammar, Mr Haszard has held a number of
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     for the retention and advancement of a quality library for all
                                                                         positions of responsibility, including Master in Charge of Cambridge   FAREWELL MR MARTIN                                                   students, alongside his support of the qualified and committed
                                                                         Economics and Master in Charge of Cricket. He is the current Form                                                                           staff members who contributed to its ongoing success.
                                                                         7 Dean and the School’s Cambridge Examinations Officer.                In June, the School farewelled Mr Graeme Martin, as he prepared
                                                                                                                                                to move to China to take up the position of Head of Student          Mr Warner’s service to education was recognised through being
Mr Daniel Oram, on left, with the new Director of Boarding,              Mr Haszard has a good understanding of Tibbs House life, as he         Services at ISA Science City in Guangzhou, China.                    granted a Study Award in 2013.
Mr Frank Haszard.                                                        was an Assistant Housemaster from 2012 to 2016, and he will
                                                                         be working with Mr Oram over the coming months to aid the              Mr Martin joined the Auckland Grammar School staff in January        Mr Warner was also actively involved in the extracurricular life of
After six years dedicated service as the Director of Boarding,                                                                                  2016 as a counsellor and member of the Student Services team.        the School, through his commitment to coaching rugby teams
                                                                         seamless transition of the Tibbs House leadership.
Daniel Oram has made the decision to leave Tibbs House at the                                                                                   An experienced and well-qualified counsellor, he held an MBA and     throughout his Grammar career, primarily 6th and 7th-grade
end of this year.                                                        Mr Haszard is a highly respected Grammar master. He is well-           Bachelor of Arts, as well as post-graduate diplomas in counselling   teams. He also managed tennis and squash teams.
                                                                         supported by his wife Eloise and their children, Zac and Isabelle,     and Japanese Studies.
Mr Oram has led our boarding establishment in a selfless and loyal                                                                                                                                                   The wider Auckland Grammar School community thanks Mr
                                                                         who together look forward to being an integral part of the Tibbs
manner and worked to advance the quality of boarding life for all                                                                               Mr Martin was appointed Head of Faculty of Student Services          Warner for his 30 years’ loyal service to the School and wishes
                                                                         community.
boarders and staff members. This has included the improvement                                                                                   in January 2018, a role he fulfilled until the end of Term 1 this    him well in retirement.
of facilities (dormitories, bathrooms and recreational), the             The Tibbs and wider Grammar community welcome the Haszard              year. During that time, he saw considerable success growing
advancement of catering services and the development of a new            family to Tibbs House and looks forward to their contributions to      the student services model that we provide here at Grammar,
pastoral care system for boarders.                                       boarding and School life.                                              leading and developing the faculty to become an exemplar of best
                                                                                                                                                practice in the wider sector.

                                                                                                                                                He has enjoyed wide contact with students in a variety of
                                                          As a valued member of the Grammar community, we would love you to                     capacities and has been an active and engaged member of our
                                                          become part of our Grammar Online Community. Once you have logged                     staff. In an extracurricular sense, Mr Martin coached numerous
                                                          on, you will be able to register for events, view photo galleries, find Old           junior football teams throughout the winter seasons and was
                                                                                Boys, plus much, much more.                                     involved with many Form 6 leadership camps and Form 4 camps
                                                                                                                                                at Venturelodge in Ohakune.
                                                                 To log on and join us, just head to: community.ags.school.nz
                                                         If you would like any help, please email us at community@ags.school.nz                 Mr Martin has supported many students throughout his tenure
                                                                                                                                                and made Student Services an integral part of daily school

       Stay connected                                                                                                                           life, whether this has been providing pastoral support, careers
                                                                                                                                                advice, tertiary education advice or the myriad of applications to
       with Auckland Grammar School                                                                                                             universities and colleges around the world.
                                                                                    #grammarpride
                                                                                                                                                We thank Mr Martin for his over four years’ service to Auckland
                                                                                                                                                Grammar School and wish him all the best in his new position.        Mr John Warner.

22 AD AUGUSTA                                                                                                                   OCTOBER 2020    OCTOBER 2020                                                                                                               AD AUGUSTA 23
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