John Lewis

English will be Larissa Hinds' second language for the next few weeks as she prepares to travel to France for the Allons en France international conference in Paris.

Principals at Otago's four intermediate schools are threatening strike action if the Government continues with its Budget 2012 plans to eliminate technology teachers from New Zealand schools.

Otago primary principals yesterday accused Education Minister Hekia Parata of living in a "fantasy world" following a pre-Budget announcement that class sizes are to increase and teachers will come under tougher performance scrutiny.

One plus two equals free electricity for schools. It's an equation students and staff at the University of Otago's education and applied sciences departments hope will become a reality soon.

When sailing around the Pacific Ocean on a Polynesian waka with basic food and and cramped accommodation, it's the simple things in life you miss most - such as a good cup of coffee, fresh bread and a cushion to sit on.

In a bid to be more accessible for vulnerable children, the Roxburgh Children's Health Camp has opened an office in Dunedin.

It is now a case of waiting to see what happens to Rotary Park School after the final consultation meeting this week, which gave submitters a chance to save the collapsing school from closure.

Choosing a career is as simple as hanging around, playing computer games and collecting pamphlets - or at least it was at this week's Dunedin Careers Expo.

School pupils may be subject to searches of their school bags and seizures of property, if recommendations from the Secondary Principals' Association of New Zealand (Spanz) are adopted by the Ministry of Education.

"Don't listen to what they say. Go see." If New Zealanders took more notice of the Chinese proverb frequently shared by University of Otago media, film and communication senior lecturer Davinia Thornley, maybe Out of the Blue by Dunedin film-maker Robert Sarkies would have received the critical acclaim it deserved.

Travelling to explore some of the most remote islands in New Zealand territory requires an adventurous spirit, and organisers of the inaugural Young Blake Expedition to the Kermadec Islands are counting on two Dunedin secondary school pupils to be up to the 11-day challenge.

Rio de Janeiro sounds like a fabulous place to escape the Dunedin midwinter chill, but Injy Johnstone says the warm weather and sandy beaches there will be far from her mind when she visits next month.

The dean of the University of Otago College of Education says it is still too early to say how the Ministry of Education's budget plans will affect supply and demand for teaching graduates, despite concerns from the education sector.

It was just one small step for Stephanie Wilson which led her to one giant leap in career opportunities - taking science at her secondary school in Pittsfield, Massachusetts.

Brendan Eathorne is not so superstitious that he has to put his gumboots on in a particular order, start his lawn mower within three pulls, or avoid stepping on the white lines when going on to the field at Forsyth Barr Stadium.

What coffee grower Michael Toliman knows about coffee, is worth losing sleep over.