Parawai School

1 Context

Parawai School is a full primary school in Thames. The population in the area, and consequently the school roll, have decreased since the 2011 ERO review. The school has a very positive history of ERO reports.

Trustees and school leaders responded effectively to the recommendations in the 2011 ERO report about children's leadership of their own learning and strengthening of te ao Māori as planning priorities. Senior leaders promote professional learning for teachers and recent initiatives have included the Accelerated Learning in Mathematics (ALiM) programme.

2 Equity and excellence

The vision and valued outcomes defined by the school for all children are to engage them as autonomous learners, who find and follow their passions, extend themselves and achieve success. The school values follow the acronym RECIPE (respect, emotional intelligence, cooperation, integrity, perseverance and excellence).

The school’s achievement information shows that:

• the proportion of Māori children achieving at or above the appropriate National Standards in reading and writing has increased over the last three years, and is now comparable to, or above, national comparisons for all children
• the proportion of Māori children achieving the appropriate National Standard in mathematics has remained consistent over this time, and is below national comparisons.

The National Standards data for the school as a whole shows a similar pattern. The proportion of children achieving at or above the required standards in reading and writing has increased over the past three years and been consistently above national comparisons. The proportion achieving the National Standard in mathematics has remained consistent and is comparable to overall national comparisons.

Data indicates that boys and girls achieve at comparable levels in reading and mathematics, while girls, on average, achieve at higher levels than boys in writing.

Since the previous ERO evaluation, the school has had a focus on improving educational outcomes for all children, and particularly those at risk of not achieving their potential. Charter targets have focussed on strategies and interventions to increase children's ownership of their learning, and to closely track the 20% of children not yet achieving the required National Standard levels in reading, writing or mathematics.

3 Accelerating achievement

How effectively does this school respond to Māori children whose learning and achievement need acceleration?

The school is effectively responding to Māori children whose learning and achievement needs acceleration.

The Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) works collaboratively with the other members of the senior leadership team and classroom teachers to ensure a clear, shared understanding of the expected levels of children's achievement in reading, writing and mathematics, at each year level of the school. Classroom teachers then prepare a targeted action plan for each Māori child whose progress requires acceleration. This plan is monitored by the SENCO and the senior leadership team.

Information from the past three years shows that the number of Māori children achieving below the appropriate National Standards has decreased from 17 to 8 in reading, 18 to 10 in writing and 22 to 16 in mathematics. School information shows that several of the children who have not yet met National Standards did make accelerated progress, and are tracking to achieve the required standards in coming years. A sustained priority on building relationships with family and whānau is evident for all children whose achievement needs accelerating.

How effectively does this school respond to other children whose learning and achievement need acceleration?

The school is also effectively responding to other children whose learning and achievement needs acceleration. Information from the last three years shows that the number of other children achieving below the appropriate National Standards has decreased from 29 to 19 in reading, 50 to 32 in writing and 47 to 32 in mathematics. School information shows that several of the children who have not yet met National Standards did make accelerated progress, and are tracking to achieve the required standards in coming years.

Children who are on the special needs register continue to be monitored throughout their schooling to ensure accelerated progress is sustained.

4 School conditions

How effectively do the school’s curriculum and other organisational processes and practices develop and enact the school’s vision, values, goals and priorities for equity and excellence?

The school's curriculum and other organisational processes and practices are successful in developing and enacting the school's vision goals and priorities for equity and excellence.

Trustees govern the school effectively and retain a priority on supporting equitable educational outcomes for all children. They work closely with school leaders to scrutinise evidence on children's achievement and set challenging and relevant progress targets in their annual charter, including those children who are still not achieving at the expected levels. Charter targets include a priority on monitoring children's attendance, because school self review suggested a link between poor or erratic attendance, and lower educational outcomes. Trustees allocate resources to support equitable outcomes for children through funding additional teacher aides and increasing children's and teachers' access to digital technologies.

The principal works collaboratively with his senior leadership team to lead professional practice and school operations, with a focus on continually improving educational outcomes for all children. They are deliberately seeking to empower teachers through more distributed leadership of many areas of curriculum and practice.

Children's educational outcomes benefit strongly from the ongoing, generous support of parents and whānau, staff and the wider community. School leaders are continuing to build their productive partnerships with local early childhood providers and the town's high school. These initiatives are especially effective in supporting children at risk as they transition into and from the school.

Children experience a rich range of opportunities to learn and achieve significant ongoing success. Teachers know children and their families very well. They respond appropriately to children's physical, emotional and academic needs. Recent self review of the curriculum has led to plans for a more integrated approach to teaching, with increased emphasis on bicultural and local contexts for learning.

Teachers are benefitting from sustained professional development opportunities about student agency and a revised performance management process, which retain a clear focus on improving educational outcomes for children. Teachers collaborate by sharing examples of successful 'teaching as inquiry' practice, and have increased confidence in using assessment information appropriately.

5 Going forward

How well placed is the school to achieve and sustain equitable and excellent outcomes for all children?

Leaders and teachers:

• know the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated
• respond effectively to the strengths, needs and interests of each child
• regularly evaluate how well teaching is working for these children
• act on what they know works well for each child
• build teacher capability effectively to achieve equitable outcomes for all children
• are well placed to achieve and sustain equitable and excellent outcomes for all children.

Children's learning is benefitting from a team of experienced and committed teachers, led by a well-informed leadership team. The supportive parent community ensures a wide range of opportunities are available to enhance the co-curricular and sporting success of the children.

School leaders recognise that their next steps are to continue the development of the role children take in leading their own learning and the role of parents as partners in their children's education. The Ka Hikitia (Accelerating Māori Success) documents, which include the principles of 'ako' and productive partnerships, are areas with the potential for further development for both Māori and other children and their families.

The effective use of digital technologies has been considerably strengthened. The school recognises the potential for further development in this area.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.

6 Board assurance on legal requirements

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 the following:

• board administration

• curriculum

• management of health, safety and welfare

• personnel management

• asset management.

During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student safety and wellbeing:

• emotional safety of students (including prevention of bullying and sexual harassment)

• physical safety of students

• teacher registration

• processes for appointing staff

• stand down, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions

• attendance

• compliance with the provisions of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014

7 Recommendations

Trustees and school leaders should review aspects of classroom practices and parent partnerships with specific reference to the principles of Ka Hikitia, Accelerating Māori Success. 

Lynda Pura-Watson

Deputy Chief Review Officer

27 June 2016

About the school