192 Rongotai Road, Kilbirnie, Wellington
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Montessori Rongotai provides education and care for children from two to five years of age, five days a week. At the time of this ERO review, two of the children enrolled identified as Māori. Families and teachers represent a range of ethnicities.
Since the October 2015 ERO evaluation, a new teaching team has been established. All teachers are Montessori qualified or fully qualified in early childhood education. Day-to-day operation is the responsibility of the centre manager who also supports the teaching team.
Montessori Rongotai is owned and operated by BestStart Educare Ltd. BestStart (previously known as Kidicorp Ltd) is a large national organisation that owns early learning services across New Zealand. They provide opportunities for teachers to participate in a range of professional learning and development activities.
The previous ERO report identified areas requiring further development. These included: curriculum design; assessment; self-review processes; and understanding of Māori success as Māori.
The centre received targeted support through a Ministry of Education (MoE) funded programme, Strengthening Early Learning Opportunities (SELO). Montessori Rongotai developed a plan to address the key areas of practice requiring improvement. The MoE has monitored the service since that time. Steady progress has been made.
The centre’s philosophy and vision have been recently redeveloped with extensive input from family and whānau. Identified values are clearly evident in practice. Children are learning to explore and become more independent through a curriculum that is responsive, supportive and challenging.
Children experience warm and respectful relationships. Teachers know children well, working alongside them to effectively extend their learning and nurture social skills, resilience and persistence.
The principles of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, and the Montessori philosophy clearly underpin teaching and learning practice. Literacy, mathematics and science are woven through the programme. Teachers are well supported by leaders to plan and implement a curriculum responsive to children's emerging skills, interests and needs. There is a well-considered approach to supporting children with additional learning needs. External agencies are accessed when required.
Leaders are focused on improving the quality of education and care for all children. The centre manager has established a culture in which children are valued, celebrated and affirmed for who they are and what they bring to their learning.
Clear expectations for assessment, aligned to the service’s strategic plan, guide teacher practice. Improved systems and processes support teachers to better document learning and successfully notice, recognise and respond to the strengths and interests of children. A next step is for leaders and teachers to measure and evaluate the impact of their decision making and practices on children's learning.
Information about children’s growing capabilities is recorded through learning stories, as the centre's assessment tool. Teachers encourage parents and families to share aspirations for their child. Through their positive and thoughtful responses, parents are enabled to be part of their child's learning, successfully fostering partnership between home and the centre.
Te ao Māori is identified as a valued part of learning experiences and aspects are promoted throughout the programme. Children have opportunities to celebrate their identity and whakapapa through pepeha. A next step is to strengthen the bicultural programme through more consistent use of te reo Māori by teachers.
Cultural diversity is embraced and celebrated. Elements of Māori, Pacific and other cultures are incorporated well in the environment and programme. Leaders and teachers continue to develop their understanding of educational success for Māori and Pacific children.
Children’s sense of belonging is nurtured during and after transitions into and through the centre. Successful transitions to school are supported by well-established relationships with local schools.
The professional service manager and business manager provide good guidance about the curriculum in action that clearly identifies strengths and areas for development. Roles and responsibilities of leaders and managers are clearly identified and well understood. A comprehensive policy and procedural framework effectively guides the operation of the centre.
A clear framework guides the teacher appraisal process. This includes self and appraiser assessment and has a developmental focus. Formal observations of practice provide useful information about the quality of teaching. In addition, teachers and leaders are building their capabilities through regular inquiry and knowledge building to help improve positive outcomes for children.
ERO and the service have identified that the next key steps are to continue to strengthen:
Before the review, the staff and management of Montessori Rongotai completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
The next ERO review of Montessori Rongotai will be in three years.
Alan Wynyard
Deputy Chief Review Officer Central (Acting)
Te Tai Pokapū - Central Region
1 February 2018
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.
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Location |
Wellington |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
55364 |
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Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
29 children, aged over 2 |
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Service roll |
37 |
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Gender composition |
Boys 23, Girls 14 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
2 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
50-79% |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
December 2017 |
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Date of this report |
1 February 2018 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
October 2015 |
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Education Review |
January 2013 |
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Education Review |
September 2009 |
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ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.
A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.
For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes and the timing of the next review will depend on how well placed a service is to promote positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.
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Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
The lack of leadership in 2015 has impacted negatively on sustainability and improvements to the quality of teacher practices and curriculum. Many aspects of practice are still in the early stages of development.
Managers acknowledge the lack of progress in key areas and the impact of insufficient leadership in the centre. The appointment of a centre manager is an important step to ensuring improvements to curriculum, practice and centre operations.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Montessori@Rongotai provides early childhood education and care for up to 29 children between the ages of two and five years. The Montessori philosophy with the early childhood curriculum, Te Whāriki, informs programmes, practices and resources. Daily sessions are offered five days a week.
The service is owned by BestStart Educare Limited. They provide the governance, management and strategic direction for this centre. A professional service manager (PSM) and business manager provide curriculum and business support for teachers and leaders.
Teachers are fully qualified and two are Montessori trained. A centre manager has recently been appointed after an extended period without anyone in this position.
Areas for improvement identified in the January 2013 ERO report included self review, responding to whānau aspirations, and the curriculum. Limited progress has been made in addressing these areas for improvement.
Teachers endeavour to weave the Montessori philosophy and the principles of Te Whāriki into the curriculum. Children experience warm and respectful relationships from kind and caring teachers. The curriculum enables them to have a choice in their play and includes excursions into the community.
Rich, descriptive language is used by teachers to support children's oral language development. Families and whānau are encouraged be actively involved in their child’s learning by spending time at the centre and to use their home language. Teachers work hard to develop and sustain relationships with parents to support their child’s learning.
There is a process in place to help support children and their parents for transitioning into school. Leaders have identified that they need to develop relationships with local schools to support the sharing of information about children at this centre.
The bicultural curriculum is developing. Teachers and leaders have indentified the need to use Tātaiako, Cultural Competencies for Teachers of Māori Learners, to help improve and support their practice for working with Māori children. ERO agrees with this direction.
Teachers and leaders have identified the need to engage with whānau Māori and the Pacific community to develop their understanding of what success looks like for Māori and Pacific children. This should help teachers to celebrate and be responsive to children's culture, language and identity.
The services curriculum, assessment and teaching and learning practices require improvement to better support children's engagement and learning. Priorities include:
Assessment, planning and evaluation practices require improvement and would be enhanced if priorities for children's learning were established. Teachers, through this process, should show how they have:
Changes and improvements to curriculum and assessment practices should be regularly monitored and evaluated to support continuous improvements to practice.
Self review is at the very early stage of development. The PSM needs to continue to work with teachers to promote their understanding and use of self review to help improve practice. The service has an effective appraisal system that aligns to the Practising Teacher Criteria in place to support, develop and measure teacher’s performance.
ERO identified priorities for urgent attention include:
Before the review, the staff and management of Montessori@Rongotai completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
ERO identified areas of non-compliance relating to the curriculum and self review. To meet requirements the service needs to improve its performance in the following areas:
the service curriculum should be consistent with the prescribed curriculum framework and informed by assessment planning and evaluation that demonstrates children's learning, their interests, whānau, and life contexts
an ongoing process of self review that helps the service maintain and improve the quality of its education and care. [Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008, C1, C2, GMA 6]
ERO recommends that the service consult with the Ministry of Education and plan to address the key next steps and actions outlined in this report.
When is ERO likely to review the service again?
The next ERO review of Montessori@Rongotai will be within two years.
Joyce Gebbie
Deputy Chief Review Officer Central
27 October 2015
|
Location |
Kilbirnie, Wellington |
|
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
55364 |
|
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
|
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
|
|
Number licensed for |
29 children aged over 2 |
|
|
Service roll |
24 |
|
|
Gender composition |
Girls 12, Boys 12 |
|
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Ethnic composition |
Māori 1 Pākehā 11 Asian 6 Other European 5 Other ethnic groups 1 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
80% + |
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|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Over 2 |
1:10 |
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Review team on site |
September 2015 |
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Date of this report |
27 October 2015 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review January 2013 |
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Education Review September 2009 |
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Education Review July 2006 |
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ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.
A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.
For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes and the timing of the next review will depend on how well placed a service is to promote positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.