101 Plantation Road , Wanaka
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Mt Aspiring College
School Evaluation Report
Tēnā koutou e mau manawa rahi ki te kaupapa e aro ake nei, ko te tamaiti te pūtake o te kaupapa. Mā wai rā e kawe, mā tātau katoa
We acknowledge the collective effort, responsibility and commitment by all to ensure that the child remains at the heart of the matter.
Context
Mt Aspiring College is a co-educational Year 7 to 13 state secondary school located in Wānaka, drawing learners from the Upper Clutha area and from around New Zealand | Aotearoa. The school’s vision is to be an inclusive and sustainable learning environment, inspiring learners to be creative, curious, courageous, and compassionate.
There are three parts to this report.
Part A: A summary of the findings from the most recent Education Review Office (ERO) published report and subsequent evaluation.
Part B: An evaluative summary of learner outcomes and school conditions to inform the school board’s future strategic direction, including education in Rumaki/bilingual settings.
Part C: The improvement actions prioritised for the school’s next evaluation cycle.
Part A: Previous Improvement Goals
Since the previous ERO report in August 2022, ERO and the school have worked together to evaluate the ongoing impact of a schoolwide focus on improving literacy skills and developing learner agency (learners having choices and taking control of their learning) in each learning context.
Expected Improvements and Findings
The school expected to see:
That teaching and learning programmes are meeting the current and future needs of improving learners’ literacy skills.
- Leaders and teachers have initiated several effective steps to accelerate learners’ literacy progress at all year levels, including targeted interventions for priority learners, and regular reporting to parents, whānau and the board.
- The college is taking steps to address variability in learners’ writing skills and is increasingly focusing on improving the writing accuracy required for success in National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) qualifications in literacy and mathematics.
- Learner progress in literacy is consistently and regularly tracked, resulting in a cohesive approach to improving student progress and achievement at Years 7 to 10.
The development of teacher capability and confidence through inquiry to support learners in their literacy skill development across all learning contexts.
- Teachers across all learning areas are increasingly supporting students to build transferable literacy skills; through this process, teachers increasingly understand how effective literacy skill development occurs across the curriculum to improve students’ learning outcomes.
- Teachers use a collaborative inquiry process to examine and share their understandings about best practice to make a positive impact on learners’ literacy progress and achievement.
- Teachers are initiating steps to address the literacy needs of increasing numbers of English language learners joining the school community so that these learners can successfully access The New Zealand Curriculum (NZC).
Learners feeling in charge of their learning progress.
- Students are building a comprehensive long-term picture of themselves as learners, including their literacy learning, through conversations about their progress and next steps which they lead with their whānau teacher, parents and caregivers.
- Students report that they have an increased sense of ownership and commitment to the learning goals they have established in partnership with their teachers, parents and whānau.
The greatest shift that occurred in response to the school’s actions is an increase in teachers’ collective capability and commitment to prioritise literacy as a critical skill for learners to reach their potential both within and beyond school.
Part B: Current state
The following findings are to inform the school’s future priorities for improvement.
Learner Success and Wellbeing
Outcomes for learners show increasing equity, with learners progressing and achieving well at appropriate curriculum levels and in national qualifications. |
- The majority of learners in Years 7 to 10 are achieving at or above expected curriculum levels in reading, writing and mathematics, with equitable achievement for Māori learners.
- Achievement in literacy and numeracy for Years 7 to 10 learners is improving, with targeted programmes to accelerate progress for learners identified for literacy acceleration.
- Most learners continue to achieve Levels 1, 2 and 3 of NCEA and University Entrance, with increasing parity for Māori.
- Learner attendance is approaching but not yet at the Ministry of Education’s national target; the majority of learners attend regularly.
Conditions to support learner success
Leaders develop effective partnerships with staff and learners to drive school improvement. |
- The leadership team works collaboratively to build staff capacity and self-review processes which have a positive impact on learner achievement and engagement.
- Leaders effectively use schoolwide achievement information to inform the setting of key priorities in the school’s strategic plan, evaluate progress towards improving learning and wellbeing outcomes, and inform planning.
- The school provides responsive opportunities for learners to take on an increasing range of leadership roles that contribute to implementing the school’s values.
Curriculum design and teaching practices reflect clear expectations to raise learner engagement and achievement. |
- The school’s curriculum design integrates local contexts to increasingly address students’ learning interests and aspirations, through a range of connections, including to local tāhuhu kōrero and whenua (history and place).
- Leaders and teachers implement a cohesive schoolwide teaching approach to continue to develop learners’ cross-curricula literacy skills within learning programmes.
- Leaders and teachers are initiating the use of a common learning plan across curriculum areas incorporating teaching practices which respond to learners’ languages, cultures and identities, so that students increasingly develop key learning skills.
The school has established effective structures and partnerships with its community which benefit outcomes for learners. |
- The school’s whānau group structure is an effective support strategy for wellbeing, with teachers building responsive understandings about students both as learners and individuals.
- School leadership and the board foster productive partnerships with parents, whānau and the community to ensure alignment during the strategic planning process.
- The board effectively supports and resources strategic priorities to improve learners’ wellbeing and learning progress.
Part C: Where to next?
The agreed next steps for the school are to:
- continue to develop learners’ writing to enhance engagement and achievement across the curriculum through understanding progressions in writing and next steps for each learner to make progress
- support teachers’ professional learning to embed the NZC’s evidence-based teaching approaches that consistently improve student learning, to sustain and enhance learner engagement and achievement
- ensure that the refreshed curriculum is embedded to support student learning and engagement and allows learners to further develop their knowledge of the local curriculum and te ao Māori
- embed strategies to improve and sustain regular attendance.
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Within six months
- teachers engage in professional learning to increase learner engagement in writing, in evidence-based teaching approaches that consistently improve student learning, in the local curriculum and in te ao Māori
- leaders review reporting to parents on attendance and ensure that there are a range of supports in place to assist learners whose attendance needs to improve
Every six months
- leaders and teachers review learning programmes to ensure they provide engaging learning tasks and increase opportunities for students to develop their writing skills
- leaders and teachers use attendance data to identify trends and patterns and increase learner engagement
Annually
- leaders collect staff and student feedback to review progress on developing learning tasks and on improving student learning and engagement in writing skills
- leaders review learner achievement data to evaluate overall progress and achievement in writing across the curriculum
- leaders provide evaluative reports to the board on the impact of attendance strategies and teaching and curriculum developments on learner engagement and achievement, then apply findings to inform strategic planning.
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
- improvements in learners’ self-management, engagement and confidence in writing, which also support improvements in learner wellbeing
- learning tasks and a local curriculum, including te ao Māori, which engage students and help them feel increasing ownership of their learning progress
- improved and sustained levels of achievement and regular attendance.
ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.
Me mahi tahi tonu tātau, kia whai oranga a tātau tamariki
Let’s continue to work together for the greater good of all children.
Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools
23 January 2025
About the School
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Mt Aspiring College
Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2024 to 2027
As of July 2024, the Mt Aspiring College Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:
Board Administration
Yes
Curriculum
Yes
Management of Health, Safety and Welfare
Yes
Personnel Management
Yes
Finance
Yes
Assets
Yes
Further Information
For further information please contact Mt Aspiring College, School Board.
The next School Board assurance that it is meeting regulatory and legislative requirements will be reported, along with the Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report, within three years.
Information on ERO’s role and process in this review can be found on the Education Review Office website.
Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools
23 January 2025
About the School
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Mt Aspiring College
Hostel Report
Background
The Chief Review Officer has the authority to carry out reviews (which may be general or in relation to particular matters) of the provision of a safe physical and emotional environment that supports learning for students accommodated in hostels under section 470 of the Education and Training Act 2020. This function is delegated to review officers who have the powers to enter and carry out review of hostels under section 472 of the Act.
Findings
The hostel manager and the hostel owner have attested in the Hostel Assurance Statement that they meet the requirements of the Hostel Regulations 2005.
The hostel has provided accommodation for Year 13 students from around New Zealand since 1994 in independent living arrangements. It is made up of five standalone houses, each housing six Year 13 students with girls and boys in separate houses. There is an intensive outdoor pursuits programme which is run each Sunday during the school terms. Students attend the normal school programme during the school week.
Considerable emphasis is placed on collective responsibility and developing students’ independent living skills, with regular communication to ensure that expectations about independent living are shared and met. There is an extensive induction programme as well as ongoing mentorship and guidance from the hostel manager and assistant manager which includes dietary advice, as students cater within their houses and are responsible for several other domestic duties.
Students spoken with value the diverse range of experiences and challenges provided within the outdoor pursuits programme as well as the development of their independent living skills gained through shared living arrangements. Students report that they experience a positive and supportive living and learning environment. Their physical and emotional safety is well supported by established systems and processes.
The hostel’s documentation is thorough and up to date. There is termly reporting to the school board and a close relationship between the hostel and the school, with the hostel director being a deputy principal.
Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools
23 January 2025
About the School
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Mt Aspiring College
Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report
Background
This Profile Report was written within 12 months of the Education Review Office and Mt Aspiring College working in Te Ara Huarau, an improvement evaluation approach used in most English Medium State and State Integrated Schools. For more information about Te Ara Huarau see ERO’s website. www.ero.govt.nz
Context
Mt Aspiring College | Te Kura o Tititea is a co-educational Year 7 to 13 state secondary school located in Wānaka, drawing learners from the Upper Clutha area and from around New Zealand | Aotearoa. The school’s vision is to be an inclusive and sustainable learning environment, inspiring learners to be creative, curious, courageous, and compassionate.
Mt Aspiring College’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are to:
-
provide equitable opportunities for every learner in a safe, inclusive learner-centred learning environment
-
improve learner outcomes by collectively developing staff capacity through use of the inquiry cycle
-
strengthen literacy and numeracy acceleration programmes.
You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Mt Aspiring College’s website.
ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the ongoing impact of a schoolwide focus on improving literacy skills and developing learner agency in each learning context.
The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:
-
since the start of the COVID-19 global pandemic, achievement information indicates that there are increasing gaps in literacy skills and disparity between boys and girls
-
a growing percentage of learners in Years 7-9 are two curriculum sub-levels below their expected levels
-
by focusing on improving literacy skills and developing learner agency, the school can prepare learners to reach their potential in the senior school and beyond.
The school expects to see:
-
that teaching and learning programmes are meeting the current and future needs of improving learners’ literacy skills
-
the development of teacher capability and confidence through inquiry to support learners in their literacy skill development across all learning contexts
-
learners feeling in charge of their learning progress as they develop literacy skills.
Strengths
The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate the ongoing impact of a school-wide focus on improving literacy skills and developing learner agency in each learning context:
-
the prioritisation of literacy as a critical skill both at and beyond school
-
an emphasis on learner agency, with learner feedback part of the process
-
strategic leadership focused on improving outcomes for all learners.
Where to next?
Moving forward, the school will prioritise:
-
developing teacher capability and collective capacity in improving learners’ literacy skills and self-efficacy
-
learners developing their abilities to self-monitor their literacy skill development, articulate progress and set learning goals
-
schoolwide use of achievement information to track literacy skill development and evaluate progress.
ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. ERO will support the school in reporting their progress to the community. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
11 August 2022
About the School
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Mt Aspiring College
Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2022 to 2025
As of June 2022, the Mt Aspiring College Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:
Board Administration
Yes
Curriculum
Yes
Management of Health, Safety and Welfare
Yes
Personnel Management
Yes
Finance
Yes
Assets
Yes
Further Information
For further information please contact Mt Aspiring College Board of Trustees.
The next Board assurance that it is meeting regulatory and legislative requirements will be reported, along with the Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report, within three years.
Information on ERO’s role and process in this review can be found on the Education Review Office website.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
11 August 2022
About the School
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Mt Aspiring College
Hostel Report
Background
The Chief Review Officer has the authority to carry out reviews (which may be general or in relation to particular matters) of the provision of a safe physical and emotional environment that supports learning for students accommodated in hostels under section 470 of the Education and Training Act 2020. This function is delegated to review officers who have the powers to enter and carry out review of hostels under section 472 of the Act.
Findings
The hostel manager and the hostel owner have attested in the Hostel Assurance Statement that they meet the requirements of the Hostel Regulations 2005.
The hostel has provided accommodation for Year 13 students from around New Zealand since 1994 in independent living arrangements. There is an intensive outdoor pursuits programme which is run on each Sunday during the term. Students attend the normal school programme during the week.
There are 30 students in the hostel in 2022. The hostel is made up of five separate houses, with six students per house in shared double rooms. The hostel is owned by a foundation which delegates the running of the hostel to the school. There is termly reporting to the school board and school board members are also part of the foundation’s board. There is a close relationship between the hostel and the school, with the hostel director being the deputy principal.
Considerable emphasis is placed on developing students’ independent living skills, with regular communication to ensure that expectations about independent living are shared and understood by students, staff, and parents. There is an extensive induction programme as well as ongoing mentorship and guidance from the hostel manager and assistant manager which includes dietary advice, as students cater within their houses and are responsible for several other domestic duties.
Hostel students are well integrated into hostel, school, and community life. Students have access to a wide range of organised outdoor pursuits activities and facilities as part of normal hostel programme. Students spoken with were appreciative of the diverse range of experiences and challenges provided within the outdoor pursuits programme.
Hostel and school staff collaborate well with each other to provide an environment and conditions that support students’ learning, wellbeing, and personal development. Students spoke positively about the development of their independent living skills, regarding their hostel experience as a valuable springboard into their next step beyond school.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
11 August 2022
About the School
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home