Kia Toa Street , Ngaruawahia
View on mapTēnā 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.
Waipa School is located in the town of Ngāruawāhia and provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. The school has 14 core values that focus on building lifelong learners and underpin The Waipa Way.
There are two parts to this report.
Part A: 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 B: The improvement actions prioritised for the school’s next evaluation cycle.
The following findings are to inform the school’s future priorities for improvement.
| The school is working towards equitable and excellent outcomes for learners. |
| Collaborative leadership focuses on the continuous improvement of the school’s strategic priorities and targets. |
| The school is working towards strengthening the local curriculum and teaching practices to better meet the needs of all students. |
| Key conditions, including learner wellbeing, that underpin successful schooling outcomes are being embedded. |
The agreed next steps for the school are to:
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Within six months:
Every six months:
Annually:
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
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
30 September 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 Waipa School Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
ERO has identified the following area of non-compliance during the board assurance process:
The board has since addressed the area of non-compliance identified.
For further information please contact Waipa 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
30 September 2024
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Good progress has been made in addressing the areas for improvement identified in the 2018 ERO report. Leaders, trustees and teachers have improved their capability to use internal evaluation systems and processes to improve outcomes for students. Professional learning has been undertaken by staff and this is supporting a more targeted approach to accelerate progress and achievement of students.
On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO ‘s overall evaluation judgement of Waipa School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Developing.
Waipa School, located in the town of Ngāruawāhia, has students in Years 1 to 8. The current roll of 402, includes 336 students who identify as Māori. Since the November 2018 ERO review the principal and deputy principal have remained the same. A new assistant principal has been appointed and there have been several changes to the teaching team. The last report identified aspects of school operation requiring improvement to more effectively provide excellent and equitable outcomes for students. This report summarises the progress made during the past two years. It also provides some next steps for the school to continue to promote positive outcomes for all learners.
Leaders have strengthened internal evaluation processes in the school. A useful system is in place to collate and analyse schoolwide student achievement information, with an emphasis on showing progress and acceleration across year levels. There is clear identification of at-risk learners across the school. Achievement information is gathered, using a range of sound assessment tools and increasingly dependable teacher judgements linked to curriculum levels. This information is scrutinised by leaders and teachers to inform decisions about teaching programmes and initiatives.
School processes are in place to gather community and student aspirations, including information about health and wellbeing needs. Leaders and trustees are highly responsive to this feedback and provide extensive curriculum opportunities and resourcing to meet identified priorities and improve equitable outcomes for students.
Leaders have developed and implemented schoolwide systems and expectations about planning for learning, assessment and tracking student progress. Online planning and tracking tools are accessible to all staff and promote sharing, collaboration and consistency of practice. Leaders regularly monitor these expectations and provide feedback to teachers that has led to improved confidence and competence in these areas.
In response to student achievement trends and patterns, school leaders have accessed external professional development to build teacher capability, particularly in literacy and mathematics. This is beginning to provide teachers with a wide range of strategies and practices to deliberately target student progress and acceleration. Additional resourcing provided by the board, including teacher aides in classrooms, supports a strong focus on engaging and accelerating the progress of at-risk learners.
Leaders need to further embed internal evaluation processes. This should include:
Leaders and teachers should continue to build collective capacity through targeted professional development in literacy and mathematics, including a focus on high expectations for student progress and achievement.
Waipa School is developing the capability to sustain and continue its performance. Factors contributing to sustainability are:
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 improve current practice, leaders should:
Good progress has been made in addressing the areas for improvement identified in the 2018 ERO report. Leaders, trustees and teachers have improved their capability to use internal evaluation systems and processes to improve outcomes for students. Professional learning has been undertaken by staff and this is supporting a more targeted approach to accelerate progress and achievement of students.
On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO ‘s overall evaluation judgement of Waipa 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
14 December 2020