St Anne's School (Woolston)

School Context

St Anne’s School, located in Woolston, Christchurch, is a special Catholic character school for children in Years 1 to 8. The current roll is 147 children, which is representative of significant growth over the last three years.

The school vision, referred to as GRIT, is that learners will show gospel values, be regulated learners, demonstrate initiative and innovation and be team players. The vision is supported by the values statement: ‘Live our faith through our actions’.

The 2019 strategic goals are to:

• provide an innovative, child-centred and bilingual learning environment where students are achieving and making progress in relation to the New Zealand Curriculum
• encourage and empower the school community to live their faith through their actions
• have an actively involved school, parish and community that values and nurtures students’ learning and hauora/wellbeing.

The school leadership team and staffing have remained consistent in recent years. The school community is ethnically diverse, and leaders and teachers welcome children from a range of cultures, including those of Māori, Pacific and Filipino heritage.

Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, schoolwide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:

• achievement in reading, writing and mathematics
• progress and achievement in relation to school targets
• student wellbeing and engagement.

Since the 2016 ERO review, teachers and leaders have participated in professional learning for digital technologies, literacy programmes and te reo Māori. The school is an active participant in the Catholic Schools Kāhui Ako|Community of Learning.

Evaluation Findings

1 Equity and excellence – achievement of valued outcomes for students

1.1 How well is the school achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all its students?

The school is continuing to work towards achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all its students.

Overall achievement data for all students has shown improvement from 2017 to 2018 in reading, writing and mathematics.

Achievement information shows that in 2017 a large majority and in 2018 most students achieve at or above expected curriculum levels in reading. Māori and Pacific students achieve as well or better than other students in reading.

In 2017, the large majority, and in 2018 most students, achieved at or above expected curriculum levels in writing. Māori and Pacific students achieved as well or better than other students in writing. There was disparity for boys in writing in 2017. This disparity was effectively reduced in 2018.

In 2017 the large majority, and in 2018 most students, achieved at or above expected curriculum levels in mathematics. Pacific students achieve as well or better than other students in mathematics.

1.2 How well is the school accelerating learning for those Māori and other students who need this?

The school is making progress with accelerating learning for students in some learning areas who need this.

Progress data from 2017 and 2018 shows that the majority of students targeted for support made accelerated progress in writing. The 2017 progress data shows that the majority of Year 0-1 students targeted for support made accelerated progress in reading.

2 School conditions for equity and excellence – processes and practices

2.1 What school processes and practices are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

The school’s inclusive and welcoming school culture promotes a sense of community and belonging for students and their families. The Catholic special character and GRIT values are very well known, embedded and enacted across all areas of the school community.

Teachers know children and their families well and foster respectful relationships. They use a wide range of ways to communicate with parents and whānau to ensure they know about and are able to actively participate in their children’s learning. Students with specific needs are identified and supported through well-designed programmes and interventions.

Students have many rich, interesting and meaningful opportunities for learning. Teachers use a range of in-depth activities to engage and motivate students and extend their understanding and knowledge of the wider world.

There is a genuine, shared and well-led commitment to prioritising and using Māori language and promoting Māori culture across all areas of the school. Māori students have many opportunities to hear their language and see their culture valued, and are provided with appropriate leadership roles. The school values and acknowledges the cultures, languages and identities of all students.

The strong connections with and support from the parish and local community contribute positively to students’ wellbeing and opportunities for learning. The board is actively involved with the school community, and trustees are clearly focused on the wellbeing of students, families and staff. Leaders works collaboratively with the school community to develop a shared understanding of the vision and direction of the school.

School staff work collaboratively to meet the needs of individual students. Leaders have established clear and consistent guidelines and expectations to support teaching and learning. They make well-considered decisions and allocate resourcing that promotes equitable access to learning opportunities for all students.

Leaders and teachers are improvement and innovation focused. They regularly participate in targeted and in-depth professional learning. Very good use is made of internal and external expertise. The school benefits from, and makes positive contributions to, the wider educational community.

2.2 What further developments are needed in school processes and practices for achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

The board, leaders and teachers need to refine evaluative practices and processes to identify the impact of initiatives on student outcomes and be able to determine next steps. This evaluative information would be useful in providing assurance about the effectiveness of:

• how well the school’s strategic goals and targets are being met
• newly-introduced initiatives and interventions on student learning
• the localised curriculum.

School leaders have identified, and ERO agrees, that they need to continue to review and further develop aspects of the school’s curriculum to reflect current practices and recent initiatives.

3 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
• finance
• 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 Children’s Act 2014.

4 ERO’s Overall Judgement

On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of St Anne’s School (Woolston) performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Well placed.

ERO’s Framework: Overall School Performance is available on ERO’s website.

5 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:

• the welcoming and inclusive environment that clearly reflects the school’s special character and values
• strong community links that support students’ learning and wellbeing
• prioritising and valuing Māori language and culture across the school.

Next steps

For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for further development are in:

• localising the school’s curriculum to clearly reflect current good practices
• strengthening internal evaluation practices to determine the effectiveness and impact of initiatives and key school operations on outcomes for learners.

Dr Lesley Patterson

Director Review and Improvement Services Te Tai Tini

Southern Region

16 October 2019

About the school