42 Kiddle Drive , Taupo
View on mapThis Profile Report was written within 17 months of the Education Review Office and Lake Taupo Christian School working in Te Ara Huarau, an improvement evaluation approach used in most English Medium State and State Integrated Schools. For more information about Te Ara Huarau see ERO’s website. www.ero.govt.nz
Lake Taupo Christian School is a state integrated; inter-denominational school located in Taupō. It provides education for learners from Years 1 to 13. An acting principal was appointed in Term 1 2024.
In 2023 the Ministry of Education appointed a Limited Statutory Manager (LSM) to support the School Board and leaders.
Lake Taupo Christian School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:
You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Lake Taupo Christian School’s website.
ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the learning progress, achievement and wellbeing of all students as the school transitions to the New Zealand Curriculum.
The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:
The school expects to see:
The school can draw from the following strengths to support the goal to evaluate the learning progress, achievement and wellbeing of all students as the school transitions to the New Zealand Curriculum.
Moving forward, the school will prioritise:
ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. ERO will support the school in reporting their progress to the community. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.
Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools
15 July 2024
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
As of May 2024, the Lake Taupo Christian School Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
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Yes
The board has identified the following areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:
The board has since taken steps to address the areas of non-compliance identified.
For further information please contact Lake Taupo Christian School, School Board.
The next School Board assurance that it is meeting regulatory and legislative requirements will be reported, along with the Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report, within three years.
Information on ERO’s role and process in this review can be found on the Education Review Office website.
Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools
15 July 2024
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO ‘s overall evaluation judgement of Lake Taupō Christian School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Developing.
Lake Taupō Christian School is a state integrated, inter-denominational school situated in Taupō. It caters for students in Years 1 to 15. The current roll of 110 includes 41 Māori, eight Pacific and students from a number of other ethnic backgrounds.
Since the 2018 ERO review, a new chairperson and several new trustees have been appointed to the board. The board and principal work closely with the proprietors’ trust board. The principal and head of senior school remain in their roles. A new leader was appointed to the junior school in 2019.
The school is now providing opportunities for students to learn within a broad Christian-based curriculum, integrating both the Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) curriculum and The New Zealand Curriculum (NZC). The alignment of the ACE curriculum with the NZC is enabling students to benefit from broader learning opportunities. Work to develop a localised curriculum reflecting the Christian ethos, with a focus on service, is underway.
The curriculum includes individual learning plans which are developed with each student. These include goal setting and progress expectations. Students with additional needs have comprehensive plans designed to meet their learning needs.
Student learning is supported by flexible individualised programmes and pathways that recognise and celebrate their diversity and individuality. For senior students this includes access to a range of learning opportunities such as the Gateway programme, specialised subjects through the college and online learning.
The school is collecting a range of achievement information but is yet to fully develop school-wide systems to identify trends and patterns in achievement for those students who are at-risk. Teachers gather data using a range of appropriate assessment tools. This data is collated at syndicate level and entered into the school student management systems. The school has recently begun to use the progress and consistency tool (PACT) in writing to further teacher understanding of student achievement and progress. Student achievement targets are set.
Internal evaluation is in the early phases. The school needs to develop systems and processes to implement regular internal evaluation to determine what is working for students. To date a curriculum review has identified gaps to be addressed. Reflective questions have been asked with the aim of understanding culturally responsive practice and student voice has been gathered informally. A policy review cycle has been established.
There is an ongoing need to:
There is a need to:
Leaders and teachers need to engage in internal evaluation using assessment data to better understand:
The school has developed the ability to sustain and continue to review its performance.
The school has made some progress towards addressing the areas for development identified in the previous ERO report. There has been a review and subsequent alignment of the ACE and NZC curricula to provide further learning opportunities for students. Some progress has been made towards establishing systems for the collation and analysis of achievement information. These systems now need refining and embedding. Building capability in understanding the purpose of internal evaluation and the systems and processes required for this, is an ongoing area for development.
Before the review, the board of trustees and principal of the school completed the ERO Board Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklists. In these documents they attested that they had taken all reasonable steps to meet their legislative obligations related to:
During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student achievement:
In order to meet its legal requirements the board must:
report on the progress and achievement of groups who are at risk of not achieving, including Māori.
[National Administration Guidelines 1(c), 2(d)]
In order to improve current practice, the board of trustees should ensure staff attend suitable training about safe physical restraint of students.
Recommendations, including any to other agencies for ongoing or additional support.
ERO recommends that the Ministry of Education consider providing support for the board in order to bring about the improvement listed above.
The school is in a good position to sustain and improve its performance, particularly in terms of curriculum development. There remains a need to further develop data management systems and processes to support internal evaluation processes.
On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO ‘s overall evaluation judgement of Lake Taupō Christian School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Developing.
ERO’s Framework: Overall Findings and Judgement Tool derived from School Evaluation Indicators: Effective Practice for Improvement and Learner Success is available on ERO’s website.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region - Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
28 October 2020