Background
St Kentigern College in Pakuranga, Auckland, is a private co-educational Presbyterian school with over 1,600 students. Many of the boys have come through from the single-sex St Kentigern School (Years 1-6).
Students at middle school level (Years 7-10) are taught in single-sex classes, and seniors (Years 11-13) in co-educational classes.
Food Technology and Soft Materials Technology were introduced in 2003, the first year that girls were admitted to the school. A purpose-built Art and Technology block was opened that year to accommodate the extra classes and students. Three boys took on the challenge of the Year 10 Textiles option that first year, and numbers have steadily increased since then.
Textiles Technology teacher Sandra Davies trained in Otago as a Home Economics teacher and has, apart from a break while home with young children, continued in teaching and worked through the many changes in direction in her subject: "There's been a huge number of changes, each one requiring you to come to grips with it, but I am passionate about the advantages of the present Technology curriculum."
