Findings
The principal and teachers effectively support students’ wellbeing. Students benefit from small class sizes with plenty of individual support. Most students achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics. Teachers ensure students enjoy their learning, use their time well and make good progress. Trustees and teachers have positive relationships with parents.
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?
The school’s values of honesty, respect, responsibility and appreciation of difference are evident in the ways students learn and interact. Teachers help students live the school’s values. Students generally work and play together well. The principal and teachers place a strong focus on developing positive relationships to promote wellbeing for students and their families.
The school’s roll is stable at about 40, with an increased percentage of Māori students. The board funds extra teaching time to make class sizes small and ensure useful one-to-one interactions between teacher and students.
About half the students travel to school by a bus service managed by the school. Any new students and their families are warmly welcomed and quickly made to feel a part of the school and its community. Families are not asked for donations or to pay for school activities that are part of the curriculum. Trustees want to ensure there is no financial barrier to any student’s participation in their learning.
School grounds have a variety of spaces and resources that support students’ wellbeing and learning. These include a bushy area for imaginative play, a gym/hall, a heated swimming pool and other sports areas, an edible garden and orchard, and playground equipment that challenges a range of ages.
Since the 2011 ERO report, the classrooms have been significantly refurbished and updated. During the time it took to complete this work, well-planned alternative arrangements ensured the focus for students remained firmly on learning. The school’s 150th jubilee was a major event in 2014 and aspects of these celebrations were well linked into learning for current students. The board and principal responded well to the next steps identified in the last ERO report.
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.
Achievement information shows most students achieve at or above the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics.
Students are able to talk knowledgeably about their learning, what they enjoy, and the high expectations teachers have for them. Students can talk confidently about their goals and what they need to do to improve. The principal agrees a next step is for teachers to extend the ways students can be more fully involved in discussions about their learning in relation to national expectations.
The principal and teachers use achievement information to:
- monitor the progress students have made
- identify and respond effectively to students who need extra challenge or support
- identify aspects of teaching that are going well and what needs to be improved
- report clearly to parents about students’ progress, next steps and how parents can help.
The principal uses weekly newsletters to share successes with parents and the community so that students see their learning valued.
3 Curriculum
How effectively does this school’s curriculum promote and support student learning?
The school’s curriculum effectively promotes and supports students’ learning. Students enjoy and benefit from:
- rich experiences across the curriculum
- learning related to the local environment and history
- a wide range of authentic learning experiences.
Students appreciate:
- the sense of fun included into much of their learning, while being efficient with learning time
- the way their opinions and ideas are gathered, shared and well used
- the opportunities for responsibility and leadership they get
- the way ICT is integrated into teaching and learning, especially in the senior class.
Students are effectively supported by stimulating classroom environments with their learning valued and purposefully displayed. They are well guided by the school’s ‘safer school agreement’ to help make the playground a positive environment for all. The welcoming and inclusive school culture supports students well.
The principal and teachers focus on the development of the whole child. They deliberately emphasise all dimensions of wellbeing (hinengaro/emotional, wairua/spiritual, tinana/physical, and taha whānau/family wellbeing) to promote success for all students. The positive and caring relationships they have with their teachers are based on the key competencies of the New Zealand Curriculum in action.
Teachers are deliberate and purposeful about making sure their teaching has a sense of urgency so that opportunities for students to learn are maximised. Teachers:
- have high expectations for how teaching will support students and how students will learn
- are well supported by a useful appraisal process and targeted professional learning.
Qualified teachers in small classes support the students who are at risk of not achieving to make accelerated progress.
The next step is for the principal to ensure regular planned curriculum review is carried out and the outcomes reported to the board with full coverage of each area of the curriculum over time.
How effectively does the school promote educational success for Māori, as Māori?
The school is working effectively with whānau of Māori students and the local iwi to promote educational success for and as Māori.
Māori students achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics. Students who need to make accelerated progress are well supported.
The board, principal and teachers are:
- responding well to the challenges presented by the government’s Māori education strategy
- clear about their responsibilities and understandings arising from links with Ngai Tahu
- seeking the ideas of whānau and iwi to determine any new curriculum direction.
Teachers are:
- ensuring the curriculum responds to and reflects concepts that are important to Māori
- implementing a Māori curriculum that includes increasingly challenging levels of learning
- exploring the potential of kapa haka experiences to extend Māori success.
The principal ensures the Māori curriculum plan is well developed, documented and reviewed. The positive impact on Māori students is reported to trustees.
The next step is to record in the Māori curriculum plan how teachers already integrate aspects of te ao Māori through the inquiry-learning approach and in other daily practices in the school.
4 Sustainable Performance
How well placed is the school to sustain and improve its performance?
The school is well placed to sustain and improve its performance.
The board reviews many aspects of school effectiveness well. Trustees:
- gather information from a wide variety of sources
- ask useful, evaluative questions
- record the outcome of this process and identify what needs to happen next
- receive useful monthly reports with a focus on students’ progress
- are well informed about student wellbeing and achievement.
The board has comprehensive guidelines and documented practices in place for the sustainable work of trustees. Succession planning is in hand. The board funds extra teaching time and learning resources. Trustees support teaching and learning well.
Trustees are well focused on building increasingly positive relationships with parents. They work with staff to support students’ wellbeing and learning, and meet the expectations of parents.
The principal has strengthened the appraisal system for teachers. Teachers purposefully record the way they inquire into their practice with a focus on improving teaching and learning.
The principal is leading the school well. He has responded well to several significant challenges during 2014, including the relocation of all classes during building refurbishment and the school’s 150th celebrations. In addition, he:
- reflects in depth about how well the school is operating and makes continuous improvements
- focuses on priority learners, in terms of wellbeing, engagement and progress
- ensures teachers’ strengths and interests are well used to support students’ learning.
Collaborative staff teamwork is a positive feature of the school. The principal works with teachers to:
- establish positive relationships with parents and the community
- identify and support expectations for good-quality teaching
- strengthen the consistency of teachers’ practices to meet high expectations for teaching.
The next steps for the board are to:
- choose more clearly defined targets for improving student achievement
- monitor the ongoing effectiveness of the actions planned to achieve the annual targets
- regularly evaluate the impact and sustainability of board-funded initiatives
- clarify the links between strategic direction and annual planning.
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
The principal and teachers effectively support students’ wellbeing. Students benefit from small class sizes with plenty of individual support. Most students achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics. Teachers ensure students enjoy their learning, use their time well and make good progress. Trustees and teachers have positive relationships with parents.
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
Graham Randell
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern
9 February 2015
About the School
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Location
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Hampden, Otago
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Ministry of Education profile number
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3746
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School type
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Full Primary (Years 1 to 8)
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School roll
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39
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Gender composition
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Female: 21 Male: 18
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Ethnic composition
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Pākehā
Māori
Cook Island
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21
17
1
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Review team on site
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November 2014
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Date of this report
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9 February 2015
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Most recent ERO report(s)
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Education Review
Education Review
Supplementary Review
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December 2011
November 2009
November 2006
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