Uni mates go the extra mile for youngsters

Students at a South Auckland school are unleashing their potential, thanks to the positive influence of university volunteers.

Mansell Senior School in Papakura is a 1A decile school that relies on programmes such as KidsCanand Eat My Lunch to support students during their education.

Another such concept is the Mentoring and Teaching Excellence Scheme (MATES), which pairs up university mentors with students moving from intermediate to secondary school, and from their final high school year into work or further study. The mentors work with students both academically and personally to ensure a smooth transition.

Mansell Senior School principal Rebecca Kaukau believed MATES could be credited for a lot of past students’ success.

The programme, introduced two years ago, was very solid – not just in terms of getting students to consistently engage in their learning, but also for some of them to come to school in the first place, she said.

“These mentors are university students who have their own studies and their own lives, but they are travelling all the way from Auckland Central into Papakura and back, which is at least two hours of travelling. That message really gets through to the kids, that it is a commitment that someone is putting into [them].”

The initiative was founded in 2008 to address the underachievement of disadvantaged youth in New Zealand by the Great Potentials Foundation, a charity which works with low socio-economic communities.

Andrew Dawson, MATES Auckland regional manager, said the programme provided mutual benefits.

“Our mentees get weekly contact with someone who cares about them and can help them unleash their potential for success both academically and personally.

“Our mentors get to meet and work with amazing mentees, and join a team of over 100 mentors to be a part of one of the most rewarding experiences available to tertiary students,” he said.

A previous study noted that more 90 per cent of MATES mentees made a significant improvement in their academic achievement and had higher NCEA results than other students from the same schools. Parents found MATES had a substantial impact on their child's attitude to school, as well as increased their self-confidence and self-esteem.

Connor Bourne has been working as a MATES mentor for two years, and finds the work very rewarding.

“There’s a great deal of research backing the positive influences that mentoring has and I feel what I do makes a real difference. Even just having the opportunity to sit down and provide support for a young person can be mutually beneficial,” he said.