St John's Girls' School (Invercargill)

School Context

St John’s Girls’ School (Invercargill) is a state integrated school that provides education for girls in Years 1 to 8. The school has a roll of 136 students. Gilmour House, the boarding accommodation on campus, has 13 boarders.

The school’s mission statement is to educate each girl, in a safe, supportive Christian environment, to be a confident life-long learner. Its valued outcomes are for students to be confident, happy, resilient and independent learners, who achieve and progress well.

To achieve these outcomes the school’s current strategic aims are:

• to increase the correct use of surface features in writing and extend written vocabulary throughout the school

• to maintain the current numbers of students achieving ‘at’ or ‘above’ against the expectations for mathematics

• that all Māori girls will experience a sense of belonging, the opportunity to succeed as Māori and to achieve well in relation to school expectations.

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

• achievement in reading, writing and mathematics

• achievement in all other learning areas in relation to the levels of the New Zealand Curriculum

• progress and achievement in relation to school targets for mathematics and writing.

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 achieving excellent outcomes and making significant progress towards achieving equity for all of its students.

Over the last three years most students have achieved at or above the school’s expectations in all learning areas of the New Zealand Curriculum. The proportion of students achieving at or above expectations has been 92% for reading over the three years, and rose to 90% for mathematics in 2017. Māori students achieve at similar or better levels to their non-Māori peers.

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

The school is improving its effectiveness in accelerating the learning of those students who need it.

For the last three years the school set targets to accelerate targeted students’ progress in mathematics. They had variable success. In 2017, just over half the targeted students made more than a year’s progress and were achieving at expected levels for their year levels.

In 2018, the school set its target in response to the lower numbers of students achieving at expectation in writing.

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?

Students experience a range of rich learning opportunities. The school’s curriculum is strongly based on the New Zealand Curriculum. Leaders and teachers have established a carefully-considered balance for students to develop skills, attitudes and competencies to be life-long learners. The school values are known by all students and are highly evident around the school and in classrooms. The girls learn within all learning areas, often with specialist teachers. They are well supported to be actively involved in the learning process.

School leadership is committed to all students succeeding and being good citizens. They:

• have high expectations of teachers and learners

• closely scrutinise learning data to know about improved outcomes

• foster a culture of collaboration between teachers to share ideas and student information

• have an ongoing emphasis on the continuing growth of teaching practice.

There is a growing reflection and inclusion of Māori language and culture within school programmes and the school environment.

Students’ learning, wellbeing, achievement and progress is the board’s core focus. Trustees use information, including the perspectives of students, parents and staff, to make strategic and resourcing decisions. From this information, they identify relevant priorities and targets, and determine the impact of board resourcing and decisions. Coherent planning and reporting link closely to strategic priorities.

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

School leaders and teachers now need to use the learning information already in the school to know about and report clearly on the sufficiency of progress for all students.

School leaders and teachers need to formally collate teachers’ individual evaluations to know what strategies worked well to accelerate students’ progress.

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 Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

Provision for students in the school hostel

Gilmour House accommodates 13 students, 10% of the school roll. It is owned by St John’s Girls’ School (Invercargill) Board of Proprietors. The boarding house owner has attested that all the requirements of the Hostel Regulations are met.

There are positive relationships between students and boarding staff, and these are supported by clear routines and expectations for all.Girls at Gilmour House are well cared for and supported with their school learning. Staff place a particular focus on supporting boarders so that their opinions and ideas are responded to, and their needs are well considered.

4 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

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

• commitment to all students succeeding academically

• the collection, analysis and use of learning information

• the strategic focus of the board and school leaders.

Next steps

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

• monitoring and reporting the rates of progress of all students

• knowing effective teaching strategies and documenting these in the school Curriculum Plan as expected practice.

ERO’s next external evaluation process and timing

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

Dr Lesley Patterson

Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern

Te Waipounamu - Southern Region

13 August 2018

About the school