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Our Facilitators

Meet the 2022/23 EONZ Facilitation Team

Sophie Hoskins

Sophie provides curriculum support and advice for kaiako of education outside the classroom and outdoor education. She has worked in this role of kaiārahi since 2018 and is also a secondary teacher of outdoor education.

Sophie has expertise in curriculum design that brings a modern approach to outdoor education. She loves working with kaiako to help develop what works best for their ākonga along with engaging in local places. She is passionate about helping people find solutions as well as making strong connections and networks where kaiako can find support from each other. 

Sophie has been involved with the NCEA change programme as part of the Outdoor Education Subject Expert Group and is excited to be involved with quality PLD for kaiako in this subject.

Jonathan Lynch

Jonathan provides Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC) PLD for schools and outdoor education organisations.

Originally from Scotland, Jonathan has worked in outdoor education across primary, secondary and tertiary contexts in the UK and New Zealand. He has a passion for interweaving formal education into the outdoors with a particular interest in place-responsive pedagogy and practice. He has a Masters degree in outdoor education and a PhD in outdoor learning and has published research on place-responsive outdoor learning and the use of digital technologies in the outdoors. Jonathan draws on current national and international research to inform his practice and work as an outdoor educator and facilitator.

Jonathan really enjoys facilitating PLD that people find useful and works hard to ensure participants leave with practical ideas or workable concepts for their practice.

Expertise and specialisation

  • Creation and co-design of place-responsive curricula
  • Research on outdoor education, outdoor learning, place-responsive practice, and pedagogy
  • Traditional fire lighting and bushcraft skills (European and Māori)
  • Land base adventure sports coaching (expeditions summer/winter and rock-climbing)
  • Use and integration of Digital and Mobile technologies in outdoor education

Sophie Watson

Sophie provides Local Curriculum and Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC) PLD for schools and outdoor education organisations.

She is passionate about supporting schools to develop local curriculum that is innovative, integrated, place-responsive, and student-centred. Sophie also has expertise in Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC), outdoor education, and HPE. She led the development of ‘Going with the flow’ – a multi-media resource that supports schools and outdoor centres to embed gender-inclusive practices in outdoor experiences.

Sophie offers co-designed PLD and support that is responsive, engaging, and interactive. As well as being a creator and facilitator of PLD, Sophie is an educational researcher and has a Master of Education (First class). She uses research, evidence-based practice, and her experience as a secondary school teacher and middle leader, to inform her PLD approaches.

Expertise and specialisation

  • Creation and re-design of learning programmes and curriculum
  • Development of school/organisational vision and strategy
  • Research and evaluation of educational programmes and initiatives
  • Mentoring and coaching, particularly with Early Career Teachers
  • Subject expertise in EOTC, outdoor education, and HPE
  • Additional expertise in wellbeing, hauora, and gender-inclusive practices

Fiona McDonald

Fiona is an outdoor education consultant, and lead auditor for the Adventure activities regulations. She provides advice and support to schools on their safety management systems, including how to manage school sport. She offers bespoke co-designed professional development, review, and ongoing support to kaiaki, schools, and kāhui ako.

She has been involved in the development of the Ministry of Education EOTC Guidelines and the associated tools since they were first created. She works with Recreation Aotearoa to develop Good Practice Guidelines for outdoor activities.

Previously she has worked as a PE and Outdoor education teacher, Head of Faculty, and Assistant Principal at high school level. 

Fiona strongly believes in the value of quality integrated systems across all the activities and events that occur in schools and reducing barriers to participation.

Gemma Periam

Gemma facilitates professional learning in Education Outside the Classroom Management focusing on both the importance of learning and health and safety. She also provides bespoke support to schools in developing and reviewing their EOTC systems.

Gemma also has extensive experience in supporting schools to design and deliver outdoor education programmes accessible and inclusive for all students, prioritising teachers as leaders and using a place responsive approach.