Owairaka District School

Owairaka District School

School Evaluation Report

Tēnā koutou e mau manawa rahi ki te kaupapa e aro ake nei, ko te tamaiti te pūtake o te kaupapa. Mā wai rā e kawe, mā tātau katoa.

We acknowledge the collective effort, responsibility and commitment by all to ensure that the child remains at the heart of the matter.

Context

Owairaka District School in Mt Albert, Auckland provides education for children in Years 1 to 6. A new deputy principal started at the beginning of 2024. The school expectations are to ‘be kind, be safe’ and these guide the children in their daily interactions. The school is preparing to move into a new 16 space collaborative learning block by the end of this year.

There are three parts to this report.

Part A: A summary of the findings from the most recent Education Review Office (ERO) report and/or subsequent evaluation. 

Part B: An evaluative summary of learner success and school conditions to inform the school board’s future strategic direction, including any education in Rumaki/bilingual settings. 

Part C: The improvement actions prioritised for the school’s next evaluation cycle. 

Part A: Previous Improvement Goals 

Since the previous ERO report of December 2022, ERO and the school worked together to evaluate how effectively the school provides equitable outcomes for all learners; and how effectively teachers’ collaborative practice impacts on all learners. 

Expected Improvements and Findings 

The school expected to see:

Tamariki who are happy, engaged and achieving their potential.

  • The majority of learners achieve at and above the expected curriculum levels in reading, writing and mathematics.
  • School values are visible and well lived by tamariki and staff across all school settings
  • Learning programmes focus on promoting the different cultures within the school and broadening tamariki and adults’ understanding of each other’s unique identity.

All tamariki understanding what they are learning, how they are achieving and what they need to learn next.

  • Teachers are strengthening teaching practices to ensure clarity of learning is evident in reading, writing and mathematics and other learning areas.
  • Team leaders collect information from learners about their learning during classroom observations to help identify where to next. 
  • Systems are being continually developed that support learners to successfully talk about their learning.

The schoolwide expectations in collaborative practice evident, and teachers working in partnership.

  • Leaders and teachers have a cohesive approach to teaching and learning in collaborative learning spaces.
  • Teaching teams are beginning to be more explicit in their collaborative inquiries to accelerate progress for learners, looking for ‘quick wins’ in a short period of time to accelerate learning. 

Other Findings 

During the course of the evaluation, it was found that providing more opportunities for parents, whānau and the school community to engage, improved student attendance. This engagement also had a positive impact on student progress and achievement.

The greatest shift that occurred in response to the school’s action is participation in professional learning that has improved teachers’ ability to more effectively use and respond to individual student assessment information. This shift is leading to improving the progress and achievement outcomes for all learners.

Part B: Current State 

The following findings are to inform the school’s future priorities for improvement.

Learner Success and Wellbeing 

Outcomes for learners show continuous improvement over time. 
  • The majority of learners achieve at or above the expected curriculum levels in reading, writing and mathematics.
  • Māori and Pacific learners make progress and achieve; leaders and teachers recognise there is disparity and respond to this as a priority.
  • The majority of students attend school regularly, the school is yet to meet the Ministry of Education’s target; attendance information shows a small upward trend of improvement.

Conditions to support learner success

School leadership works collaboratively and strategically to improve outcomes for all learners.
  • Leaders model and ensure a focus of continuously improving teaching practice to support all learners.
  • Teachers engage regularly in professional learning that aligns to the school’s strategic priorities and the needs of learners.
  • Strong relational trust among leaders and teachers ensures robust professional conversations is focused on best outcomes for learners.
The school's curriculum and teaching practices are increasingly responsive to student learning needs and cultures.
  • Well-established learning environments are consistently characterised by respect, inclusion and collaboration.
  • Professional development enhances teachers’ understanding of how to identify, plan and provide for learners’ next learning steps. 
  • Curriculum initiatives and programmes include the many cultures from within the school community, to support learners’ sense of belonging. 
Key conditions, including board governance and community engagement, that underpin a culture of continuous improvement are well embedded.
  • The board actively represents and serves the school in its stewardship role and is committed to providing equitable outcomes for all learners.
  • Teachers and leaders regularly analyse and use learner attendance, wellbeing and achievement information to promote learner success. 
  • Leaders and teachers work towards providing effective teaching and learning in the new collaborative learning environment.

Part C: Where to next? 

The agreed next steps for the school are to: 

  • increase equitable outcomes for Māori and Pacific learners and improved attendance rates for all learners
  • embed teachers’ understanding of the significance of providing learners with their next learning steps so they know what to do to make progress 
  • continue to strengthen and evaluate collaborative teaching and learning practices across the school to ensure that all staff are well placed for the move to the new learning space
  • ensure that the new curriculum requirements are integrated within the school’s local curriculum.

The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.

Within six months:

  • review student progress in reading, identifying students whose progress requires acceleration and plan and implement appropriate strategies to show progress over time
  • design a draft action plan for establishing a schoolwide framework for teaching and learning in the collaborative learning environment
  • review the content of the revised English learning area of The New Zealand Curriculum and develop an implementation plan
  • all staff continue to increase their capacity and confidence in using te reo Māori.

Every six months:

  • report to the board on the progress and achievement of target students in reading and of Māori and Pacific learners.

Annually:

  • report to the board on attendance, progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics for all learners
  • leaders and teachers review and report to the board the school’s preparedness to provide effective teaching and learning opportunities in a collaborative learning environment
  • report to the board on the implementation and impact of the new curriculum on improved outcomes for all learners
  • review and evaluate the Māori and Pacific engagement and achievement annual plan and respond accordingly.

Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in: 

  • all children and teachers to work and learn in a collaborative learning environment
  • continued improvement in progress and achievement particularly for Māori and Pacific learners; and continued improvement in attendance rates for all learners
  • systematic evaluation practices effectively use evidence to inform next steps for learning and strategic planning. 

ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.

Me mahi tahi tonu tātau, kia whai oranga a tātau tamariki
Let’s continue to work together for the greater good of all children

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

9 September 2024 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement.  educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Owairaka District School 

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2024 to 2027

As of May 2024, the Owairaka District School Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Yes

Personnel Management

Yes

Finance

Yes

Assets

Yes

Actions for Compliance 

ERO has identified the following areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:

  • ensure all staff employed have a current police vet, sufficient safety checks are undertaken, and appointment records of staff are kept.
    [Children’s Act 2014, s 104 Education and Training Act 2020]

The board has since taken steps to address the areas of non-compliance identified.

Further Information

For further information please contact Owairaka District 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

9 September 2024 

About the School 

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Owairaka District School

Provision for International Students Report 

Background

The Education Review Office reviews schools that are signatories to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020.

Findings 

The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code. 

No international students were enrolled at the time of the ERO review. 

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

9 September 2024 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home 

Owairaka District School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 18 months of the Education Review Office and Owairaka District 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

Context 

Owairaka District School, Mt Albert Auckland, provides education for children from Years 1 – 6. The very diverse roll is representative of its community. In recent years a major redevelopment of local housing is taking place. It is expected that the school roll will grow with this development.

Owairaka District School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are to:

  • develop a localised curriculum
  • embed future focused collaborative pedagogy across the school
  • tamariki will strengthen how to learn and be engaged in their learning
  • realise the intent of bicultural practices including Te Tiriti o Waitangi and extending te reo Māori learning to all
  • continue to strengthen connections with whānau, families, iwi, mana whenua and community
  • continue to provide tamariki with the support they need to reach their full potential.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Owairaka District School’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate:

  • how effective the school is in providing equitable outcomes for all learners; and
  • how effective teachers’ collaborative teaching practice is having a positive impact for all learners.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

  • ensuring all tamariki needs are met and that they are reaching their potential
  • enabling tamariki to know how to engage in their learning
  • supporting all teachers to be confident in their future focused collaborative practice.

The school expects to see:

  • tamariki who are happy, engaged and achieving their potential 
  • all tamariki understanding what they are learning, how they are achieving and what they need to learn next
  • the school wide expectations in collaborative practice evident and teachers working in partnership.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support it to evaluate the effectiveness of teacher collaborative practice on equitable outcomes for all tamariki:

  • the school vision and values are well enacted by the school community
  • a leadership team with clarity of vision and purpose
  • leaders and teachers know their tamariki including their strengths and learning needs.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

  • engaging with whānau Māori, Pacific families, and school community 
  • teachers effective use of the revised learning progressions
  • tamariki increasingly understanding their learning pathway.

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.

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

13 December 2022 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement.  educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Owairaka District School

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report to 2022 – 2025

As of June 2022, the Owairaka District School Board of Trustees has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Yes

Personnel Management

Yes

Finance

Yes

Assets

Yes

Further Information

For further information please contact Owairaka District School Board of Trustees.

The next Board of Trustees 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.

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

13 December 2022 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Owairaka District School

Provision for International Students Report

Background

The Education Review Office reviews schools that are signatories to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020.

Findings

Owairaka District School has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code and has completed an annual self-review of its implementation of the Code.

At the time of this review no international students were enrolled at the school and no exchange students.

The school ensures that international students have access to a broad curriculum and are fully integrated into the life of the school community.

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

13 December 2022 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home