Monday 14 January 2019 11:51am
Pupils at a Hands-On Otago 'snack' session with Dr Karyn Paringatai
Nearly 400 Year 12 and 13 secondary pupils will enjoy a taste of student life at Otago this week.
During the week of 13 to 18 January, 388 teenagers will arrive in the city for Hands-On Otago (Whai Wheako i Ōtākou), an immersive experience into life and study options as a future student at Otago, with more than 110 electing to take three-day project or shorter 'snack' activities in the Division of Humanities.
The event marks its 30th anniversary this year, and has grown significantly from its first year when 138 students attended the inaugural Hands-On Science (Pūtaiao ā-ringa) event.
The pupils, from 165 New Zealand schools, will experience one of the 35 projects on offer across a wide range of disciplines taught at the University. Each student has a tailored programme for the week which includes a selection of “snacks”, ranging from medieval calligraphy to taiko drumming.
Pupils take a medieval calligraphy 'snack' session with Associate Professor Simone Marshall
These additional activities involve other organisations such as Otago Museum, Beverly-Begg Observatory, and Orokonui Ecosanctuary that showcase the city and local environment.
The intensive five-day programme also includes social activities and a presentation by Hands-On Otago and University alumnus Matt Carter, who is a maritime archaeologist and a presenter of the television series Coast New Zealand.
Emeritus Professor John Tagg led a Microbiology project in the inaugural 1990 event, and has been on the organising committee ever since.
At that time he had four sons at a local high school who were considering options for tertiary study. Each boy attended the programme and subsequently went on to study at Otago.
Professor Tagg says the programme has come a long way from those early years when the most challenging decision seemed to be the location of the annual BBQ. But he also says the central essence of the programme still remains.
Professor Tagg
“The students still have the same enthusiastic energy and are sponges for the week which is invigorating. They seem to be getting smarter and smarter, are always forgiving, and always positive and grateful for the experience."
Thousands of teenagers have experienced Hands-On Otago over the 30 years, including the current Prime Minister of New Zealand, the Right Honourable Jacinda Ardern.
Dee Roben, Hands-On Otago coordinator, says organising the week involves a huge amount of work, but the enthusiasm and vibrancy the students bring with them during the week makes it all worthwhile.
“Often I see them forming great friendships that then carry on when they decide to come and study at Otago the following year,” she says.
About 40 per cent of Hands-On participants later become students at Otago University and almost a third of those attending the January event will be Māori and Pacifica.
(Below: On Monday, 14 January, 10 Hands-On Otago pupils role played a street robbery and then learned what happens when the police arrest someone, process them in the cells, interview them, and then decide whether to lay charges. The focus of the day's session was on learning about the many procedures designed to protect people’s rights, and ensure any evidence gathered will stand up in court.)
