St Annes School (Newtown)

Education institution number:

2997

School type:

Full Primary

School gender:

Co-Educational

Definition:

Not Applicable

Total roll:

140

Website:

http://www.st-annes.school.nz

Telephone:

04 389 3705

Address:

14 Daniell Street, Newtown, Wellington

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St Annes School (Newtown) - 30/11/2017

30 Nov 2017

Summary

St Annes School, Newtown, caters for 128 students in Years 1 to 8. Of the students enrolled, 11 identify as Māori and 65 are of Pacific heritage.

Since the February 2014 ERO report, St Annes School has experienced changes in leadership and staff. New teachers, including a new assistant principal, have been appointed. The school has a long serving principal. Experienced and newly elected members make up the board of trustees.

Teachers are regularly involved in professional learning and development to strengthen teacher capability and promote positive learner outcomes. The current schoolwide focus is mathematics.

The school’s mercy values of human dignity, justice, service, compassion and care of the vulnerable are evident.

The school is part of the Wellington Catholic Community of Learning|Kāhui Ako.

How well is the school achieving equitable outcomes for all children?

The school is strengthening its response to those children whose learning and achievement need acceleration. Sound processes are in place for identifying, tracking and monitoring student progress and achievement.

Data for 2016, indicated that most students achieved at and above in relation to the National Standards in reading and mathematics. Many students achieved in writing. In comparison with outcomes for girls, disparity for boys in relation to the National Standards is evident.

A clear focus on promoting positive behaviour provides an inclusive and supportive learning environment.

There is a collective responsibility for, and a strong focus on, student learning and enhancing whānau engagement.

To improve equitable outcomes the school needs to sharpen the focus on those learners whose achievement needs acceleration. Strengthening internal evaluation to identify the impact of teaching programmes and initiatives on student outcomes, is a next step.

The school has capacity and capability to accelerate learning for all children. However, disparity in achievement for boys remains.

The school agrees to:

develop more targeted planning to accelerate progress for learners
continue to monitor targeted planning, improved teaching, and learners’ progress
discuss the school’s progress with ERO.

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

Equity and excellence

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

The school is strengthening its response to those children whose learning and achievement need acceleration. The school has yet to have a sustained upward trajectory of improved achievement for all students.

Reported achievement data for 2016, indicated that approximately three quarters of students achieve at and above in relation to the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics. Many children of Pacific heritage achieve at or above in relation to National Standards. Most Māori students and many Asian students, achieve at and above in relation to the National Standards, and above their peers.

By the end of 2016, Year 8 achievement data showed that all students achieved at and above in relation to the National Standards in reading. Most of this group achieved at and above the National Standards in relation to writing and mathematics. There is significant disparity for boys in relation to the National Standards. Further strengthening of school processes is a priority to address this disparity.

Children with additional learning needs are well identified and appropriately supported. Relationships between external agencies, families and school personnel are well coordinated.

The school has identified the need to strengthen moderation practices in relation to National Standards, to ensure judgements made about student achievement are dependable. ERO’s evaluation confirms this priority.

School conditions supporting equity and excellence

What school processes are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence?

Leaders, teachers and trustees are strengthening their understanding of accelerated progress and their response to those students whose learning and achievementneed acceleration. This should assist them towards achieving equity and excellence for all students.

Student engagement and learning is well supported by the school’s values and respectful, reciprocal relationships between children and teachers. Teachers know their students well. Students enjoy a sense of belonging and connection to the school. Continuing to gather students’ views in relation to wellbeing is an ongoing focus.

Teachers use a suitable range of assessment tools to identify, respond to and monitor individuals learning needs. Good systems and processes are in place to track and monitor student progress.

Increased learning experiences align to students’ cultures, identities and languages. A broad curriculum, inclusive of valued outcomes for learners, guides teaching and learning.Regular opportunities are taken by leaders and teachers to discuss effective teaching and student achievement.

A considered approach to engaging and seeking whānau voice supports the school’s strategic direction and promotes families and whānau involvement in more meaningful learning relationships. External expertise from the community is valued and used to enrich learning programmes.

Leaders and teachers appropriately support students’ transition into, through and out of the school.

Teachers and leaders work collaboratively and are improvement focused. Trustees receive information from leaders to set priorities that inform their decisions. They acknowledge the importance of continuing to develop shared understanding of their stewardship role.Growing schoolwide leadership is a focus for the school.

Sustainable development for equity and excellence

What further developments are needed in school processes to achieve equity and excellence?

To promote equity and excellence, ERO’s evaluation confirms trustees’ and leaders’ need to:

strengthen internal evaluation to more effectively and formally analyse the impact and effectiveness of teaching programmes and initiatives on student outcomes
strengthen moderation processes to ensure dependability of achievement data
refine school targets to focus on accelerating the progress of students whose learning requires acceleration
prioritise curriculum review to include student voice, and appropriate content and contexts for diverse learners

further build to address the needs of target learners.shared understanding of effective appraisal processes that align with current best practice

Board assurance on legal requirements

Before the review, the board 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
financial 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 and certification
processes for appointing staff
stand down, suspension, expulsion and exclusion of students
attendance
school policies in relation to meeting the requirements of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

To improve current practice, the board of trustees should:

implement a medication administration record
ensure they follow best practice for appointment procedures.

Going forward

The school has capacity and capability to accelerate learning for all learners. However, disparity in achievement for boys remains.

Leaders and teachers:

know the learners whose progress and achievement need to be accelerated
need to develop and implement approaches that effectively meet the needs of each learner.

The school agrees to:

develop more targeted planning to accelerate progress for learners
continues to monitor targeted planning, improved teaching, and learners’ progress
discuss the school’s progress with ERO.

ERO will provide an internal evaluation workshop in response to a request by the school to develop shared understanding of evaluating the impact of initiatives on student outcomes.

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

Patricia Davey

Deputy Chief Review Officer Central (Acting)

Te Tai Pokapū - Central Region

30 November 2017

About the school

Location	(Newtown), Wellington
Ministry of Education profile number	2997
School type	Full Primary (Years 1 to 8)
School roll	128
Gender composition	Female 62%, Male 38%
Ethnic composition	Māori 9% Pacific 51% Asian 27% MELAA 12% Other ethnic groups 1%
Provision of Māori medium education	No
Review team on site	September 2017
Date of this report	30 November 2017
Most recent ERO report(s)	Education Review, February 2014 Education Review, August 2011 Education Review, August 2008

St Annes School (Newtown) - 26/02/2014

26 Feb 2014

Findings

A strong focus on pastoral care underpins the school culture. Staff know the students well and make good use of achievement information to inform their teaching. Students are purposefully engaged in their learning. Alignment of school processes with new strategic goals will better guide future direction and support ongoing improvement.

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

1 Context

What are the important features of this school that have an impact on student learning?

St Annes School in Newtown, Wellington, is a state integrated, multicultural school for students in Years 1 to 8. Of the current roll of 139 students, 43% are Samoan and 9% are Māori. Ninety five percent of students have English as a second or third language. The diversity of ethnic groups of students has increased since the August 2011 ERO review.

The Catholic character is strongly evident, including close links with St Anne’s Parish. A clear focus on pastoral care underpins the school culture.

Teachers are participating in long-term professional development. Literacy is an ongoing development focus and this is the third year of the school’s involvement in the Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) initiative.

2 Learning

How well does this school use achievement information to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement?

The school makes good use of achievement information to inform teaching and learning.

Schoolwide targets are appropriately based on the previous year’s National Standard data. Specific groups of underachievers are identified and plans for increasing their progress are documented. The school’s 2013 end of year achievement data showed that approximately three quarters of students were achieving at or above the reading, writing and mathematics National Standards. Overall, Pacific students’ achievement was higher than that of all students. Most Māori students were achieving at or above the National Standards.

Teachers make sound use of assessment data to identify individual students’ learning needs. They know the students who are underachieving and what they need to learn. These students are identified as target students and a school system of tracking the progress of each student enables close monitoring of individual progress.

Teachers differentiate their planning to meet specific learning needs in reading and mathematics. Increasing the consistency of teacher use of specific planning and deliberate teaching strategies is the next step.

3 Curriculum

How effectively does this school’s curriculum promote and support student learning?

Through the curriculum, a caring school culture and support for student learning in literacy and numeracy are promoted.

The curriculum is based on the school values which focus on care, compassion and respecting the rights of all. These values have been developed in line with those of the Sisters of Mercy. The key competencies from The New Zealand Curriculum are well integrated throughout the curriculum.

Curriculum documents clearly outline expectations for teaching reading, writing and mathematics. These include schoolwide requirements for planning and assessment in literacy and numeracy.

Teachers ensure that students know the purpose of lessons and provide examples of good quality work as models for students. Classroom routines are well established.

Students are purposefully engaged in their learning. They talk confidently about their work and, in some classrooms, students self assess their work against set criteria. Teachers should continue to strengthen ways that students can take an increased lead in their learning.

How effectively does the school promote educational success for Māori, as Māori?

Staff know the students and their families well. The principal leads this emphasis on building positive relationships with families and whānau. Prayers and hymns in classrooms and at church are often in te reo Māori. Senior students have stayed overnight at a local marae. Teachers should continue to develop the ways they promote success for Māori students, as Māori.

How effectively does the school promote educational success for Pacific, as Pacific?

The caring school culture is demonstrated by staff valuing the involvement of parents of Pacific students. Senior students have several leadership roles and they carry out their duties with pride. Leaders have identified that the transition to school process for those students who have been attending a Samoan early childhood centre should be strengthened. ERO’s evaluation supports this direction.

While staff acknowledge and value the culture, language and identity of Pacific students, teachers should further increase opportunities for Pacific students, and other ethnic groups, to celebrate their culture at school. Continuing to build on relationships with parents to increase opportunities for them to contribute to the curriculum and school organisation is also a next step.

4 Sustainable Performance

How well placed is the school to sustain and improve its performance?

Shared values and systems are in place to sustain the school’s performance. However, further development is needed to better support ongoing improvement.

The principal has a strong focus on pastoral care and supporting all students to be able to access all learning experiences. Continuity of leadership and staffing has contributed to the development of shared understandings from ongoing professional development.

Self review is used to reflect on what is happening and it is beginning to be used to plan for the future with an emphasis on outcomes for students. Teachers inquire into their teaching through the appraisal process and trustees regularly review school policies. Increasing the focus on evaluation against clear criteria is likely to strengthen self-review processes.

Increasing the clarity of planning for the future will better support ongoing improvement. It is timely for trustees and staff to revisit the strategic plan. When new goals are developed, other school processes should be aligned, including reports to the board of trustees and appraisal goals.

Other priorities necessary to support ongoing improvement include continued development of:

board members’ shared understanding of governance
recording the outcomes of consultation and discussion, so that they can be used more effectively to inform review and development decisions
the appraisal process, to ensure that feedback to staff is documented and improvementfocused.

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:

board administration
curriculum
management of health, safety and welfare
personnel management
financial management
asset management.

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

emotional safety of students (including prevention of bullying and sexual harassment)
physical safety of students
teacher registration
processes for appointing staff
stand-downs, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions
attendance.

Conclusion

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

Joyce Gebbie

National Manager Review Services Central Region

26 August 2014

About the School

Location	Wellington
Ministry of Education profile number	2997
School type	Full Primary (Years 1 to 8)
School roll	139
Gender composition	Female 53%, Male 47%
Ethnic composition	Samoan African Indian Filipino Māori Tongan Middle Eastern Other South East Asian Other ethnic groups	43% 13% 10% 10% 9% 4% 4% 4% 3%
Review team on site	July 2014
Date of this report	26 August 2014
Most recent ERO report(s)	Education Review Education Review Education Review	August 2011 August 2008 November 2005