Hukarere Girls’ College

School Context

Hukarere College is an Anglican Māori secondary school and hostel catering for young women in Years 9 to 15. Te Aute Trust Board owns and operates the hostel and maintains the school buildings. St John’s College Trust Board Auckland, represents Anglican interests. The school offers a bilingual education for the current role of 85 Māori students.

The school motto – ‘Kia Ū Ki Te Pai, the school values – aroha, whakapono, manaakitanga, whanaungatanga’, and the school’s commitment to the Anglican order and Kaupapa Māori teaching and learning, are integral to the life, culture and activities of the school.

It is expected that girls will become confident and self-assured and gain leadership capabilities in academic, social, sporting, cultural and political fields.

Targets for improvement in student outcomes in 2019 focus on: supporting Years 9 and 10 students who are at risk of not succeeding in English literacy and mathematics; and lifting achievement across National Certificates of Educational Achievement (NCEA) at all levels, including University Entrance (UE).

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

• achievement and progress in literacy and numeracy for Years 9 and 10
• achievement in NCEA.

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?

Outcomes across learning, engagement and wellbeing and other areas are often good, but with some variation and inequity. Development of school conditions, including assessment practice, is required to promote a coherent and integrated way to make and sustain improvements towards achieving equity and excellence. The school has identified targets to lift student achievement across the school.

NCEA information shows that Levels 1, 2, 3 and UE achievement was tracking upward but decreased significantly in 2018. Fewer than half of the students achieved NCEA Level 1 in 2018.

Merit endorsements have generally tracked upwards since 2016. Excellence endorsements have tracked upward at Level 2 since 2016. There were no excellence endorsements at Levels 1 and 3 in 2018. All students achieved literacy requirements at Year 11 in 2018. Slightly over half achieved numeracy requirements at Year 11. Generally all students achieve numeracy expectations by Year 12.

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

The school can show accelerated progress for some Years 9 and 10 students in reading and mathematics.

Most students who enter the college at Year 9 require their achievement accelerated. School reported information shows that while most students made some progress in mathematics and literacy, the majority of those students remain below expected levels.

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 values, beliefs and social competencies are demonstrated across all aspects of school life. Shared values, traditions and desired outcomes create a sense of belonging and connection. Student identities and whānau and community knowledge, language and culture are represented in the enacted curriculum. Students’ cultural competence is well supported.

Ara Ako is focused on outcomes that are student centred with an emphasis on delivery and provision of good quality pastoral care that supports student wellbeing. A more personalised learning approach to curriculum through Ara Ako is tailored to match students’ strengths and needs. Class numbers are generally small and teachers develop individual learning plans for students. Teachers work positively to cater for the increasingly diverse needs of all students. Strengthening pathways to employment or training continue to extend students’ learning outside the school.

Sustaining and improving student wellbeing is a strategic priority. Pastoral care is well considered and responsive and supports students to work towards being successful learners. Positive and respectful relationships are evident. Teachers and staff know students well. Students are well supported by an active and engaged school community. Teachers increasingly gather and use students’ voice and encourage their contribution to decision making. Student leadership is a strength across the school.

Trustees demonstrate a willingness to extend their knowledge and understanding of their roles and responsibilities so that students can achieve equity and excellence. They participate in a range of professional learning and development opportunities to build their stewardship capability. The input from parent trustees, proprietor’s representatives, staff and students ensures a range of voices contribute to decisions about the ongoing wellbeing and academic needs of students.

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

Further work is required to promote high levels of staff performance through teacher appraisals. Teachers have not completed a full appraisal cycle for three years. A new performance review process was recently introduced. It is timely to collaborate with staff to fully implement this process.

Overall, more systematic acceleration of learning and achievement is required for those students who need this. Using purposeful assessment tools and strengthening tracking and monitoring of student achievement and progress to ensure an effective response to students whose learning requires acceleration, is needed to support consistency.

To ensure ongoing improvement to school conditions that support high quality learning outcomes for students, the following need to be addressed.

• There is a need to establish and sustain an effective senior leadership team. Building and maintaining relational trust and fostering collaboration between staff is required to support and embed school improvement and direction.

• The role of proprietor’s representatives on the board of trustees needs clarification so that information and communication flows.

• A new strategic plan is about to be developed. The board must consider how this review and development will occur collaboratively with all stakeholders, including leaders, teachers, whānau and students.

The school must continue to develop internal evaluation capacity to clearly identify what is working well and what needs further development. Using evaluation and inquiry to realise the impact of the vision, values, goals and targets on achieving valued outcomes and school priorities should support the board and staff to promote equitable and excellent outcomes for students.

3 Other Matters

Provision for students in the school hostel

The school hostel, Hukarere Girl’s Hostel, can accommodate 75 students. At the time of this review there were 70 girls boarding in the hostel from across New Zealand.

The Te Aute Trust Board has attested that all the requirements of the Hostel Regulations are met. The principal and the hostel manager are responsible for day-to-day hostel operation on behalf of the trust board. The hostel provides suitable accommodation for full-time and weekly boarders from Years 9 to 15. Good provision is made for individual and supervised study. The proprietors manage the upgrading of the premises and resources. An operations manager is employed by the Te Aute Trust Board to oversee hostel upgrades, maintenance and repairs.

Hostel practices complement and support pastoral care and learning in the school. The proprietors employ a social worker who visits two days a week. Daily reports from the hostel manager to the principal provide useful information about student welfare and wellbeing. Consistency of support is promoted.

Building positive relationships is a strong focus. Staff provide pastoral care in an environment that promotes student wellbeing and upholds school and Anglican traditions and values. Routines and expectations are well understood. Students have opportunities to participate in a range of school activities and sports. Leadership is fostered across all year groups. Student success is acknowledged and celebrated.

Hostel managers respond to feedback about hostel processes and relationships. This is encouraged and regularly sought from boarders and their parents.

4 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.

5 ERO’s Overall Judgement

On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of Hukarere College’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Developing.

6 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

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

• clear values and beliefs that teachers and students are expected to demonstrate in their daily lives and activities
• a commitment to kaupapa Māori teaching and learning that is integral to the special character.

Next steps

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

• leadership and stewardship that is collaborative to support and embed school improvement and direction
• use of assessment data to inform teaching practices to improve outcomes for individual students
• use of data from a range of sources for internal evaluation, that better identifies what is working well for students’ learning and where improvements are needed to raise levels of achievement overall.

Actions for compliance

ERO identified non-compliance in relation to policies and procedures for managing challenging behaviour and using physical restraint, and managing human resources.

In order to address this, the board of trustees must:

• develop a policy and procedures for managing challenging behaviour and the use of physical restraint
  [Education (Physical Restraint) Rules 2017]
• implement a system of regular appraisal.
  [Section 77A Sate Sector Act]

Areas for improved compliance practice

To improve current practice, the board of trustees should:

• consider recording or documenting discussions where the public is excluded from board meetings (in committee). Trustees should discuss what is recorded in the public minutes particularly related to personnel matters
• develop a data base to record police vetting of employees so that these can be easily monitored when due for updating.

Recommendations to other agencies

ERO recommends that:

• the board of trustees works with the New Zealand School Trustees Association (NZSTA) to consolidate their understanding of their respective roles

• the Ministry of Education supports the board and school leaders to develop cohesive leadership across the school, so that key conditions for high quality learner outcomes are sustainably developed.

Phillip Cowie

Director Review and Improvement Services Central

Central Region

17 October 2019

About the school

Findings

Hukarere College continues to promote special character, Māori Anglican education for girls. The boards, principal and staff constructively responded to the 2014 ERO report. They are better placed to improve the curriculum and teaching and learning, particularly for Years 9 and 10. An increased sense of shared purpose across the school community provides a valuable springboard for further developments.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years and will monitor progress in relation to the action plan. 

1 Background and Context

What is the background and context for this school’s review?

Hukarere College is a state integrated Māori girls’ secondary boarding school, located in the Esk Valley, near Napier. The school continues to have a proud history of providing special character Anglican Māori education for Years 9 to 13.

The current roll has recently increased to 92 and includes 19 students who previously attended Turakina Māori Girls’ College until the end of 2015, when it ceased to operate. There is a sustained focus on supporting their transition to Hukarere College.

The Board of Proprietors' hostel caters for 71 students. The remaining 21 students bus in from a wide local catchment area around Hastings and Napier.

The Hukarere College Board of Trustees (the board) provides stewardship for the school. Continuity of stable, improvement-focused governance is evident after recent trustee elections. The principal, permanently appointed at the end of 2013, continues to provide student-centred professional leadership. Most teaching staff are long-serving, with two new teaching appointments in 2016.

The June 2014 ERO report identified a number of significant areas that required improvement. Substantial progress has been made in addressing many key areas. These include: increases in the quality of provision in the hostel for students; extended senior pathways and qualifications; and meeting specific legislative requirements. Increased hostel staffing is a significant development.

Students’ success in achieving National Certificates of Educational Achievement (NCEAs) continues to be high and more students get merit and excellence endorsements. Improving curriculum leadership and teaching practices for students in Years 9 and 10 remains a key next step. Students, whānau, trustees and staff demonstrate a shared sense of the importance of continuing to improve teaching and student-led learning.

2 Review and Development

How effectively is the school addressing its priorities for review and development?

Priorities identified for review and development

ERO identified in 2014 that school leaders and teachers should:

• strengthen the analysis, use and reporting of student achievement information
• improve teaching to enhance Years 9 and 10 students’ progress in literacy and mathematics, and the quality of NCEA qualifications
• review the school’s curriculum in relation to The New Zealand Curriculum principles for 21st century learning, including how to better meet and cater for individual needs and interests
• strengthen curriculum leadership and teaching practices to further promote students’ learning, engagement and retention.

In addition, leaders should:

• support teachers to formally inquire into the effectiveness of teaching and how students are empowered to take increased ownership of their learning
• with teachers and senior staff, continue to strengthen evaluation practices to identify teaching strategies that contribute to better learning outcomes.

As part of the concluding on-site review process, ERO considered any other developments that had the potential to have a positive impact on the school’s curriculum to promote student achievement, progress and engagement in learning.

Progress

Substantial progress has been made in setting improvement targets linked to student achievement information. There is an appropriate focus on increasing achievement in literacy and mathematics in Years 9 and 10 and in National Certificates of Educational Achievement (NCEAs).

Expanded senior NCEA courses, particularly in sciences, Māori performing arts, participation in Trades Academy and planning for future pathways, go some way to cater to individual career goals. Students benefit from focused individual career support in Years 11 to 13. Other planned events such as Ngā Manu Kōrero speeches and kapa haka celebrate students’ culture. More flexible approaches support a wider range of individual future pathways.

Higher expectations for learning encourage more students, taking external achievement standard examinations in NCEA, to seek increased merit and excellence endorsements and be more ready for tertiary study. Senior students are becoming much more focused on achieving personal excellence through goal setting and clear future learning pathways.

The trialling of new school structures is supporting more professional dialogue and idea sharing between staff. Teachers of Year 9 and 10 English are beginning to consider student achievement information and new approaches to meet learning needs. Further work is required so that teaching is targeted to enable students to lead their learning.

Progress with students’ access to digital technologies as a tool to support learning has improved through increased resources. This development is supported by a lead teacher who assists teachers use common planning and information-sharing approaches to enable students to access their learning through modern learning practices.

As a result of ongoing review and some emerging teacher reflection, there is a growing awareness of the need to develop more effective Year 9 and 10 teaching practices and learning.

Ohu Ako mentoring groups assist students to set learning goals and to reflect and report their own progress. Whānau are well-informed about these goals. Senior students value the opportunity to focus their learning to achieve their future career pathway aspirations. There are plans to continue to refine the process to improve how the needs of Years 9 and 10 students are met and make links to their career education.

The principal and staff undertook a review of the school’s vision, values and special character to inform the beginning of a review of the school curriculum. This includes ongoing refinement of Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) approaches that affirm and celebrate students’ contributions to a supportive learning environment.

As part of a recent external professional development programme, teachers worked in pairs to undertake an inquiry into the effectiveness of their teaching practices. This work has led to a shared understanding of the importance of continuing to improve the effectiveness of the school curriculum.

Key next steps

The board, school leaders and teachers should:

• complete the review of the school curriculum, in relation to The New Zealand Curriculum principles, for Years 9 and 10, with particular emphasis on:
• establishing expectations for effective teaching in English, mathematics and across learning areas
• using student achievement information to target teaching
• using student voice and empowering students to understand and self-manage their learning
• accelerating the progress of learners at risk of poorer educational outcomes and specific provision for students with special learning needs
• further refining Years 9 and 10 Ohu Ako goal setting, including making links to a documented career programme
• further develop a shared understanding around accelerating student achievement for Years 9 and 10 school targets in literacy and mathematics, including analysis and reporting of progress
• continue to develop innovative and flexible teaching approaches to support increased NCEA success, including merit and excellence endorsements and learning pathways
• support teachers to use an inquiry process to improve their individual practices.

3 Sustainable performance and self review

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

The 2014 ERO report identified that trustees, school leaders and staff should:

• continue to strengthen learning partnerships with whānau to inform the school’s strategic direction and decision-making, including reporting the outcomes of consultation to whānau
• improve personnel practices, including staff induction and induction and mentoring for Provisionally Certificated Teachers (PCTs) and new heads of department
• develop robust appraisal for teachers and school leaders
• ensure the board participates in governance training
• use self review to support improvement
• clarify the respective roles of the board of trustees, board of proprietors and the St John’s College Trust Board, including policy coverage and communication.

Findings

Significant progress is evident in a number of key areas, including governance and responding to changes in legislative requirements. This has contributed to the school becoming better placed to sustain ongoing improvements.

The board uses external expertise to generate useful evaluation of performance in some key areas. These include a thorough whānau survey, the principal’s 2015 appraisal and a review of health and safety practices. There is more open, critical reflection and identification of areas for improvement. Good preparations are in place to better meet new health and safety requirements and aspects of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

Personnel practices have improved with the development of a staff induction booklet, handbook and a clearer programme of induction and mentoring for PCTs.

Progress is evident in embedding aspects of the teacher appraisal process, particularly for collecting evidence in relation to the Practising Teacher Criteria (PTC). There is an understanding about the importance of appraisal to grow professional practices. The principal had an appropriate external appraisal during 2015. Further review is needed to reflect the latest Education Council guidelines to ensure there is consistently sufficient evidence for the renewal and issue of teacher practising certificates.

Trustees continue to undertake stewardship training to improve their practices and understanding of their roles and responsibilities. The board chair provides clear leadership and accesses appropriate expertise to support ongoing improvements in school operation.

Good progress with re-establishing sound processes for financial management, including meeting audit time frames, is evident. Trustees are aware of the need to continue to ensure there are sufficient procedures to support the implementation of board policies. Student-centred resourcing decisions are well considered.

Increased collaboration between the three boards involved in operating Hukarere College positively contributes to students’ learning opportunities. There is an ongoing focus on continuing to develop transparency about the respective responsibilities through improved communication.

Key next steps for trustees, school leaders and staff to sustain and improve their practices include:

• continuing to develop procedures to enact the policy framework, particularly in relation to health and safety, police vetting and personnel
• reviewing the induction and mentoring programme for PCTs to meet the latest Education Council guidelines
• revising the appraisal process to ensure it meets the Education Council guidelines, including goals, teaching as inquiry, observations, feedback and next steps, reflective practices and summary reports signed by the principal
• continue to develop the use of internal evaluation to support ongoing school improvements.

Hostel Findings

ERO identified a number of key areas in the hostel for improvement in 2014, including:

• clarity of policy coverage between the hostel and school, including approaches for clear communication
• hostel property issues such as quality of beds, ventilation, insulation, heating and other fixtures
• inadequate hostel ratios, particularly for overnight supervision
• the welfare and role of students in cleaning the hostel
• trial evacuations of the hostel each term and ensuring emergency exits remain clear
• appraisal of hostel staff, and that residents on the school property are police vetted as required
• provision for students to study in Years 9 to 11, and recreation areas, the dining room and whānau area.

Significant progress has occurred in the hostel in the following areas:

• greater clarity and consistency in policy coverage between the hostel and school through better information sharing and clarity about respective roles and responsibilities
• replacement of mattresses and some beds, the provision of new heating, renovation of one hostel block and other improvements in property maintenance
• the use of an external review to assist with changes in hostel staffing
• a substantial increase in hostel staffing during the day and night, including a night matron who is on duty all night and regularly checks students’ wellbeing and safety
• the appointment of a full-time cleaner during the week, reducing the role of students to some weekend cleaning
• the appointment of a hostel manager to oversee ten hostel staff and clarification of the role of the principal in relation to the hostel operations
• increased weekend staffing to provide enhanced recreational opportunities and activities
• termly trial evacuations, including night time fire and evaluation drills
• increased hazard monitoring and management, including clear access to emergency exits
• hostel staff appraised and appropriate police vetting of most hostel staff
• increased avenues for students to discuss issues in the school and hostel, including healthier food options and access to comfortable recreation areas and a new whānau room
• improved provisions for study and access to digital technologies to support learning.

Key next steps for the hostel include:

• continuing to support the hostel manager and staff to grow into their new roles, responsibilities and accountabilities
• continuing to work towards the hostel adopting PB4L approaches, including use of student voice, to support consistency in approaches to creating a positive learning environment
• ensuring police vetting and renewals of all staff, volunteers and residents on the school property are in line with the Vulnerable Children Act 2014
• ensuring hostel matrons, including night staff, hold current first aid certificates
• ensuring regular trial evacuations are monitored and recorded by the health and safety committee.

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.

This report indicates that ongoing work is needed in a number of areas.

Key areas include:

• Year 9 and 10 curriculum development and improved assessment practices
• policy and procedures for aspects of health and safety, including expectations of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014
• meeting Education Council guidelines for PTCs and appraisal
• building internal evaluation capability.

The board should prepare an action plan that addresses the key next steps in this report. ERO will monitor progress against this action plan.

Conclusion

Hukarere College continues to promote special character, Māori Anglican education for girls. The boards, principal and staff constructively responded to the 2014 ERO report. They are better placed to improve the curriculum and teaching and learning, particularly for Years 9 and 10. An increased sense of shared purpose across the school community provides a valuable springboard for further developments.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years and will monitor progress in relation to the action plan.

Joyce Gebbie

Deputy Chief Review Officer Central

6 September 2016

About the School