Papakura High School (PHS) is a co-educational state secondary school based in the

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

suburb of

Papakura Papakura is a suburb of South Auckland, in northern New Zealand. It is located on the shores of the Pahurehure Inlet, approximately south of the Auckland CBD, Auckland City Centre. It is under the authority of the Auckland Council. The ar ...

in New Zealand, catering for students from Year 9 to Year 13. The school was established in 1954 and is now made up of a diverse student body, administering students from the greater southern

area. The school is located on the southern boundary of the Auckland metropolitan area, located approximately 32 kilometres south of

Auckland CBD The Auckland Central Business District (CBD), or Auckland city centre, is the geographical and economic heart of the Auckland, Auckland metropolitan area. It is the area in which Auckland was established in 1840, by William Hobson on land gifted ...

. In 2021 a school enrolment zone was introduced and encompasses the Papakura, Clevedon and Hunua area.

Enrolment

As of , Papakura High School has a roll of students, of which (%) identify as Māori. As of , the school has an

Equity Index In finance, a stock index, or stock market index, is an index that measures the performance of a stock market, or of a subset of a stock market. It helps investors compare current stock price levels with past prices to calculate market perform ...

of , placing it amongst schools whose students have the socioeconomic barriers to achievement (roughly equivalent to deciles 1 and 2 under the former

socio-economic decile In the education in New Zealand, New Zealand education system, decile was a key measure of socioeconomic status used to target funding and support schools. In academic contexts the full term "socioeconomic decile" or "socioeconomic decile band" wa ...

system).

School structure

The school is organised into four

whānau Whānau () is the Māori word for the basic extended family group. Within Māori society the ''whānau'' encompasses three or four generations and forms the political unit below the levels of hapū (subtribe), iwi (tribe or nation) and waka (mi ...

: Kirikiri, Te Apārangi, Otuuwairoa, and Waipapa. The school consulted the

kaumātua A kaumātua is a respected tribal elder in a Māori community who has been involved with their whānau for a number of years. They are appointed by their people who believe the chosen elders have the capacity to teach and guide both current a ...

(leaders) of their local iwi,

Ngāti Tamaoho Ngāti Tamaoho is a Māori iwi (tribe) of Auckland and the Waikato District of New Zealand. It is part of the Waiohua confederation of tribes. They have three marae, which are at Karaka, Mangatangi and Pukekohe. The tribe is a strong support ...

. In partnership with them, the original three whānau were named after historic places in the Papakura area, which are locations of importance within the

rohe The Māori people of New Zealand use the word ' to describe the territory or boundaries of tribes (, although some divide their into several . Background In 1793, chief Tuki Te Terenui Whare Pirau who had been brought to Norfolk Island drew ...

of the local

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

. These three whānau replaced the school's old house structure at the beginning of the 2017 school year. Waipapa whānau was added in 2024 following significant roll growth. Also in 2017, the school changed its school motto to ''Kia Rangatira''. This whakataukī (Māori

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) signifies a call to the young to step up as leaders. In

Māori culture Māori culture () is the customs, cultural practices, and beliefs of the Māori people of New Zealand. It originated from, and is still part of, Polynesians, Eastern Polynesian culture. Māori culture forms a distinctive part of Culture of New ...

, it is a challenge to take on a chiefly demeanour in behaviour and attitudes, ''rangatira'' meaning high ranking, chiefly, noble, esteemed, in te reo (Māori).

ERO Reports

Although the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

Education Review Office The Education Review Office (ERO; ) is the public service department of New Zealand charged with reviewing and publicly reporting on the quality of education and care of students in all New Zealand schools and early childhood services. Leader ...

(ERO) 2015 report was less positive, they summarised their 2020 report on Papakura High School with the remark "Leaders and staff are steadily improving outcomes for learners. Leaders have worked with determination to better serve students and their school community. Students, whānau, trustees and staff are expressing an increased optimism and pride in their school. The school has made significant improvement. The quality of teaching and curriculum design requires further development to improve student outcomes."

School curriculum

The school offers

National Certificate of Educational Achievement The National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) is the official secondary-school qualification in New Zealand. Phased in between 2002 and 2004, it replaced three older secondary-school qualifications. The New Zealand Qualifications A ...

(NCEA) as its national qualification standard. Students are able to sit NCEA Level 1 papers as early Year 11, however Papakura High School is one of the few colleges in

to offer an NCEA Level 1 Humanities class to academically able Year 10 students also. Selected senior students have the opportunity to participate in "Gateway", where they individually attend work experience placements during the school term, organised by the Careers department. The school also offers Correspondence papers for specialised subjects and regularly holds workshops and information sessions for students and their chosen programme. The school also recently introduced national qualifications into unit standard courses of Mathematics, Sports and Recreation, Technology, and Catering, where students can work towards NCEA credits as well as gaining a national qualification. Papakura High School was the first school in New Zealand to offer the Marae Catering course under the NCEA structure.

Notable alumni

* Ioane Fitu Afoa – former All Black * Billy-Jean Ale – Womens New Zealand Warriors & Kiwi Ferns * Mary Jane Ale – Former Kiwi Ferns * Junior Fa – Tongan – New Zealand professional boxer and Commonwealth Games Bronze Medallist *

Jerome Kaino Jerome Kaino (born 6 April 1983) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. In 2004, he was named IRB International Under-21 player of the year. In 2011, he was named the New Zealand Rugby player of the year, finishing ahead of Richie McCaw ...

– former All Black * Patrick Mailata – New Zealand professional boxer *

Karley Te Kawa Karley Te Kawa is a New Zealand rugby league footballer who played for the Brisbane Broncos Women in the NRL Women's Premiership. A or , she is a New Zealand representative. Background Born in Auckland, Te Kawa attended Papakura High School ...

– Brisbane Broncos & Kiwi Ferns * Jazz Tevaga – New Zealand Warriors & Toa Samoa *

Atawhai Tupaea Atawhai Tupaea (born 3 February 1989) is a New Zealand rugby league footballer who played as a for the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL Women's Premiership. She is a New Zealand representative. Background Born in Papakura, Auckland, Tupaea r ...

– Former Womens New Zealand Warriors & Kiwi Ferns

Notes

References

{{Authority control Papakura Local Board Area Educational institutions established in 1954 Secondary schools in Auckland 1954 establishments in New Zealand