Sheffield Contributing School

Summary

Sheffield Contributing School is a small school of 104 children, situated in rural Canterbury. 82% of children identify as New Zealand European/Pākehā and 12% identify as Māori.

A new first-time principal has been in the role for three years. The roll has increased considerably and an enrolment zone is to be put in place in 2018.

Leaders and teachers are actively involved in the Malvern Kāhui Ako|Community of Learners (CoL).

The school has made very good progress in addressing the recommendations identified in the 2013 ERO report.

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

The school is very effectively achieving equitable outcomes for all children. The board and staff have high expectations for children’s learning and wellbeing.

Teachers collaborate to regularly review the broad-based curriculum, to ensure all children have a range of meaningful opportunities to succeed in areas that match their interests and abilities. Teachers work well together to support children who require additional programmes to help them learn.

Leaders and teachers closely monitor and track children’s progress over time. The school has very good examples of children who have successfully made accelerated progress.

At the time of this review, learners were achieving excellent educational outcomes. These have been sustained over time through well-focused, embedded processes and practices. This school is successfully addressing identified in-school disparity in educational outcomes as these arise.

The agreed next steps for leaders and teachers are to continue to build the integration of te reo and Māori perspectives across school practices, and strengthen the school’s internal evaluation process.

ERO intends to return to the school in four-to-five years.

Equity and excellence

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

Leaders and teachers are effectively responding to Māori and other children whose learning and achievement need acceleration.

A high number of children are achieving at or above the National Standards (NS) in reading, writing and mathematics. School information shows that the results in reading and mathematics have been reasonably stable over the last three years.

Māori students achieve well against the NS. They make similar rates of progress as other students and are achieving well in reading and particularly highly in mathematics.

Effective systems for assessment and moderation are in place. The school is engaged in moderation processes across the Malvern cluster of schools to support robust judgments about children’s progress in writing.

School conditions supporting equity and excellence

School processes are highly effective in supporting equity and excellence.

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

Leaders and teachers are very responsive to meeting the needs of all children. Achievement targets clearly state expectations for teachers and children. Teachers know the children well, and carefully plan a range of interventions to support their learning and progress.

Teachers consistently demonstrate this through:

• leading, enacting and modelling the school’s values and virtues

• building and maintaining a caring and positive learning environment

• increasing leadership capability through collaborative practice and professional sharing

• working in partnership with parents and whānau to support children’s learning and wellbeing.

Clear guidelines and useful systems are in place to support school practices and keep the focus on outcomes for children. Innovative internal professional development programmes ensure school needs are suitably addressed. Teachers make effective use of teaching as inquiry as an improvement model to help build teacher capability and to support positive outcomes for children.

The school’s broad-based curriculum responds to the interests, needs and abilities of learners. Some improvement in the school’s bicultural programme is evident.

Teachers effectively manage the specific needs of learners requiring additional support. The impact of programmes is regularly monitored to track progress.

Teachers use a range of effective practices to address identified disparity in writing and mathematics. Rates of accelerated progress are well documented, and this information is used to make the adjustments needed to help sustain learner’s progress.

Children have a positive view of their school experience. They know the schools values and are able to explain how these apply in their daily lives.

A range of strategies are used to successfully achieve community engagement in learning at the school and beyond. The contribution the community makes to school programmes is highly valued. A “learning in partnership”, parent team promotes and encourages meaningful home and school links. The school provides frequent opportunities for parents to learn about learning at workshops and information evenings.

The board and staff place high value on building relational trust across all levels of the school and between the school, home and community. The board are well-informed and scrutinise the work of the school in achieving the outcomes they value for children’s learning and wellbeing. Trustees bring a wide range of skills and experience to their role.

Since the 2013 ERO review the school has improved the integration of te reo, tikanga and Māori perspectives in the school’s programme. The expertise of a Māori tutor for kapa haka strongly supports this integration.

The board, leaders and teachers have created a strong culture of continuous improvement across all aspects of the schools operation and in terms of students and their learning. They have a comprehensive internal evaluation timetable with a focus on curriculum, policies and procedures, and health and safety.

Sustainable development for equity and excellence

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

The next step is for teachers to better demonstrate the ways they value the language, culture and heritage of all children but more particularly of Māori children.

A stronger focus on quality and the effectiveness of the school’s internal evaluation system will further strengthen the process.

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

• 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.

There are robust processes in place to help ensure staff and children’s safety and wellbeing.

Going forward

How well placed is the school to accelerate the achievement of all children who need it?

Learners are achieving very good educational outcomes. School performance has been sustained over time through well-focused, embedded processes and practices. This school successfully addresses in-school disparity in educational outcomes.

Agreed next steps are

• to continue to build teachers’ cultural responsiveness

• to strengthen the school’s internal evaluation process.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

Dr Lesley Patterson

Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern

Te Waipounamu - Southern Region

6 November 2017

About the school

1 Context

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

Sheffield Contributing School is a rural school situated west of Christchurch catering for students in Years 1 to 6. The board of trustees, teachers and students share a pride in their school and in their achievements.

The principal and curriculum leader provide strong leadership and support for staff. Significant teamwork and focused professional development are contributing positively to improvements in teaching and learning. The school’s vision and values are well understood and visible in the positive school culture. There has been a steady increase in the roll over the past two years.

The board and principal have addressed the recommendations outlined in the October 2010 ERO report. The school’s long-term plans effectively build on existing good practices and set specific direction for the future. The board, principal and teachers work effectively as a team and are well supported by an interested and involved school community.

2 Learning

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

The school makes very good use of achievement information to make positive changes to students’ engagement, progress and achievement.

Areas of strength

The board and staff effectively use achievement information to make decisions that support students’ engagement, progress and achievement. Teachers regularly make changes to their practice in order to meet students’ learning needs. More than 85% of students, including Māori students, are achieving at or above the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics. A significant number of students (27%) are achieving above the National Standards in reading.

Students are highly involved in their learning. They set their own goals, regularly check their progress and review how well they have achieved their goals. In conversation with others, students confidently use the language of learning to describe what they need to know and do in order to achieve their goals. Teachers provide useful feedback and encouragement that support students to focus on ongoing learning.

Teachers share professional ideas about effective teaching practices that stimulate and motivate these students and help to accelerate their progress in learning and achieving. The board, principal and teachers are strongly focused on supporting students who are not achieving at the National Standards.

The principal and teachers, supported by the board, have made significant progress in the development and use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to promote 21st century learning. This includes:

• improved, ongoing access to ICT for students
• parents being able to see on-line what students are learning
• collaborative on-line learning between students and between students and their teachers
• provision for families who cannot access the internet from home.

The board and staff continue to provide strong support and programmes to cater for their special needs students. These students learn alongside their peers in regular classrooms with the support of well-trained teachers and skilled teacher aides. Staff and students show a very good understanding and acceptance of students with high needs.

While targets have been set to lift the achievement of the school’s priority learners, some targets are not as clearly defined as others are. The next step is for the board and principal to strengthen the achievement targets so that they all consistently identify the amount of progress students are expected to make towards the National Standards.

3 Curriculum

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

The school’s curriculum promotes and supports student learning extremely well.

Areas of strength

The school’s well-designed curriculum clearly links its vision and values to students’ learning interests, strengths and needs. It strongly reflects the local environment, the priorities of the community and the New Zealand Curriculum (NZC). The principal and teachers have developed successful learning partnerships with parents and with neighbouring schools.

Well-considered literacy and numeracy programmes are given priority in the curriculum to meet the needs of all students, especially those with particular learning needs.

Other positive aspects of the curriculum include:

• high expectations and stimulating programmes that encourage students to be fully motivated and engaged in their learning
• clear guidelines and expectations for teachers, including teaching strategies that consistently support students’ learning
• good opportunities for students to evaluate their learning and extend on what they already know.

The school's curriculum could be further enhanced by:

• the development and use of a school-wide framework to further support students’ critical thinking and inquiry skills
• a review of the extent to which students are able to learn and progress through the strands of other learning areas beyond reading, writing and mathematics.

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

The school has made good progress in building an awareness and understanding of te ao Māori (the Māori world view).

Areas of progress since the last ERO review include:

• improved planning that clearly identifies ways of responding to the views of Māori parents and the community
• developing an increasing understanding and awareness of te reo and tikanga Māori
• increasing integration of Māori perspectives in appropriate learning areas.

The principal has identified, and ERO agrees, that the next steps are to extend the use of te reo Māori across all classes and continue to develop effective relationships with the local rūnaka.

4 Sustainable Performance

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

The school is very well placed to sustain and improve its performance.

Areas of strength

The principal and curriculum leader have worked closely with staff to develop effective systems that provide good guidance for all aspects of teaching and learning. There is also a strong culture of reflection that is highly focused on making ongoing improvement. The high-quality planning linked to the school’s values and goals is contributing to very positive outcomes for students’ learning and achievement.

The board is highly focused on maintaining the school’s positive reputation and traditions within a context that meets the needs of modern learners. Trustees use their considerable range of experiences and skills to govern the school effectively.

Self review is a particular strength and is used productively in all aspects of the school’s operation. A robust programme of school-wide self review is followed and outcomes are reported to the board. Staff and students continually reflect on their progress and set new goals for improvement.

The school maintains very good links and communication with the community. Consultation with students, staff, parents and the community is a special feature of the school.

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.

When is ERO likely to review the school again?

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

Graham Randell

National Manager Review Services Southern Region

16 September 2013

About the School