Settlement Road , Kurow
View on mapTēnā 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.
Waitaki Valley School provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8. It is located in the rural town of Kurow in North Otago. The school’s roll is 106. The majority of learners are Pākehā, Māori learners comprise 16% of the roll. The school’s Mission is: Our Place – To Belong, To Learn, To Achieve; Tōu Mātou Tūrangawaewae – Ki te ako, Ki te tutuki.
ERO and the school evaluated the extent that changes in the approaches to teaching reading, writing and mathematics lead to:
During the course of the evaluation, it was found that a small majority of target learners experienced accelerated achievement and that achievement outcomes had improved for most learners across the school.
| How well are learners succeeding? | The school is working towards high levels of success and progress for all learners. |
| What is the quality of teaching and learning? | Learners benefit from high quality teaching practice that improves progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics. |
| How well does the school curriculum respond to all learners needs? | Learners have rich opportunities to learn across the breadth and depth of the curriculum. There is a consistent focus on supporting learners to gain skills in literacy and mathematics. Learners with complex needs are well supported to achieve their education goals. |
| How well does school planning and conditions support ongoing improvement? | School planning and conditions to support ongoing improvement to the quality of education for learners are well established. |
| How well does the school include all learners and promote their engagement and wellbeing? | The school successfully promotes learners’ engagement, wellbeing and inclusion. |
| How well does the school partner with parents, whānau and its community for the benefit of learners? | The school reports usefully and accurately to parents / whānau about their child’s learning, achievement and progress. The school responds well to a wide range of information gathered through community consultation, to inform strategic planning and curriculum decisions. |
| Student Health and Safety | The school board is taking reasonable steps to ensure student health and safety. |
This table outlines how well students across the school meet or exceed the expected curriculum level.
Foundation Skills | |
| Reading | Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Writing | Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Mathematics | Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners. |
The school is behind the target of 80% regular attendance.
The school is developing a suitable plan to improve attendance.
Regular attendance is not yet improving towards or beyond the target.
Chronic absence is not yet reducing over time.
The school uses an appropriate approach and reliable practices to find out about achievement against the curriculum.
Assessment information is used well to adjust teaching practices to ensure ongoing improvement in teaching and student progress.
The school has good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.
The school has to some extent improved achievement and progress for those learners most at risk of not achieving since the previous review.
The school has to some extent extended achievement and progress for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.
The school is making progress towards meeting Government reading, writing and mathematics targets and/or pānui, tuhituhi and pāngarau targets for 2030 and agrees this will need to be a key strategic priority.
This section of the report provides more detail for the school to include in strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school.
Most learners progress well to achieve academic success across the curriculum. Learners with particular needs are identified and well supported.
Teachers and leaders create an affirming learning environment and learners state that they enjoy being at school.
School leadership successfully focuses on creating a positive learning environment for all with an emphasis on partnering with the community to support learner wellbeing, progress and achievement.
Teachers prioritise learner achievement in reading, writing and mathematics. Learners experience a broad curriculum and extensive use of local resources and the community to create rich local learning opportunities.
Well-considered staff professional development is focused on the school’s strategic goals to enhance all learners’ wellbeing, progress and achievement. There is a specific emphasis on growing staff capacity in te reo Māori and tikanga Māori.
Staff collaborate well and use clear processes for self-reflection and professional growth to improve their teaching to lift learner outcomes.
The agreed next steps for the school are to:
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Within six months:
Every six months:
Annually:
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
All schools are required to promote student health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
During this review the Board has attested to some regulatory and legislative requirements in the following areas:
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
ERO has identified the following area of non-compliance during the board assurance process:
The board has since addressed the areas of non-compliance identified.
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 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
Sharon Kelly
Director of Schools (Acting)
6 May 2025
This website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
This Profile Report was written within twelve months of the Education Review Office and Waitaki Valley School 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
Waitaki Valley School is a Years 1 to 8 school located in the rural town of Kurow in North Otago.
Waitaki Valley School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are to:
inspire and engage our community to be an integral part of our students’ learning
lay the foundation enabling all children to realise their potential as life-long learners in our ever-changing world
fully utilize the local environment to enhance teaching and learning.
You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Waitaki Valley School’s website. ERO and the school are working together to evaluate to what extent changes in the approaches to teaching reading, writing and mathematics lead to accelerated achievement for target students and equity and excellence for all students.
The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:
a range of interventions to respond to learners at risk have been tried but have not resulted in the accelerated progress intended
to raise the achievement of boys in the three main learning areas of reading, writing and mathematics.
The school expects to see ongoing improvement in excellence and equity of student achievement in reading, writing and mathematics.
The school can draw from the following strengths to support the school in its goal to enhance student and staff wellbeing:
teachers effectively use research, different teaching approaches and regular evaluation to identify what initiatives have the greatest impact for students whose progress needs to be accelerated
there is a commitment to growing the capability of staff to support and promote student achievement and engagement.
Moving forward, the school will prioritise:
all students receiving high quality programmes which enable them to progress and achieve excellent and equitable outcomes
teachers receiving high-quality PLD to support classroom practice.
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
25 July 2022
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
As of March 2022, the Waitaki Valley School Board of Trustees has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
For further information please contact Waitaki Valley School Board of Trustees.
The next Board of Trustees 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
25 July 2022
The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Children from Years 1 to 8 attend Waitaki Valley School, located in the rural town of Kurow. The school is an integral part of the wider community. The school facilities include the adjacent community library, swimming pool and sports centre. The local early childhood centre is also located on the same site.
Children learn in five multi-age classes. This includes a large shared area adjoining the classrooms. The classes form two ‘hubs’, the tuakana hub for older children and teina hub for younger children. The school roll is becoming increasingly diverse.
The principal and most of the school trustees are new to their role. Staffing is currently stable.
The school has participated in the Ministry of Education's Accelerated Literacy Learning professional development programme and has received regular support from a facilitator in relation to curriculum development.
The vision and valued outcomes defined by the school for all children are for them to 'belong, learn, and achieve in their place'. The school has redefined its values as 'GREAT - good friends, respectful, engaged, aiming high and team work'.
The school's achievement information from 2013 to 2015 shows 66% to 72% of all children achieved at or above the National Standard in reading. The overall achievement in writing over the same period decreased from 70% to 55% achieving at or above. Achievement in mathematics over the same period was over 70%. End of 2016 information shows greater proportions of all children achieving at or above the National Standards.
Overall boys were not achieving as well as girls in relation to National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics between 2013 and 2015.
The school's 2013 to 2015 achievement information for Māori children shows that approximately 65% are achieving at or above the standard in reading. Over the same time period, over 50% of Māori children were achieving at, or above this level in writing. The proportion of children achieving at or above the National Standards in mathematics had decreased. End of 2016 information indicates increased proportions of Māori children are achieving at or above the National Standards, particularly in writing.
Since the last ERO evaluation, the school has focused on improving teaching and learning in reading and writing. Children whose progress needs to be accelerated have participated in targeted learning programmes in literacy. There has also been a deliberate focus on increasing children's collaborative learning opportunities.
In response to ERO's last report in 2013:
The school is effectively accelerating the achievement and learning of its Māori learners who need to make extra progress. There is good evidence that almost all these children made accelerated progress in relation to the National Standards in either literacy or mathematics in 2016.
The school has some evidence to show accelerated progress for other learners whose learning and achievement need acceleration. The progress of all of these learners has been a deliberate focus for school staff.
Leaders, teachers and the board have increased and deepened their analysis of children's achievement and progress with their learning. This has been done through:
The school has made a very good start in its deliberate focus to accelerate children's achievement. Leaders, teachers and the board are well aware of the need to continue this and fully evaluate the impact of their actions. This should include:
School leadership is building professional capability and collective capacity to strengthen teaching, learning and acceleration for learners. The principal has used a considered, consultative and collaborative approach to school development.
This approach has made good use of current educational research findings and other professional learning. Greater use is being made of ICT for teaching, learning, information sharing and communication.
Leaders and teachers have deliberately strengthened the home-school partnership focused around children's learning. This has included consultation with Māori whānau.
The school's charter is being redeveloped, after appropriate consultation. This should provide a useful basis for ongoing annual planning, monitoring and evaluation of progress towards meeting goals. Bicultural perspectives should be included in this planning.
Trustees have worked effectively together to build their collective capacity and knowledge of school governance. They have made a good start in reviewing the school's policies and procedures.
The school's internal-evaluation practices are improvement focused. A next step is to develop a framework to guide evaluations.
Staff have been focusing on increasing children's engagement with their learning. As a result, teachers know their learners and their needs well. To extend this, teachers should ensure that all children clearly understand how well they are learning, their learning goals and what they need to do to achieve these.
Teachers are working effectively together to moderate assessment judgements in relation to the National Standards. Provision for moderation of these beyond the school has been set up for 2017. ERO has identified and the principal agrees, it would also be useful for the school to have written guidelines and expectations for making overall-teacher judgements in reading, writing and mathematics.
Leaders and teachers:
Strong leadership, a committed board, focused professional learning and a collective desire to do the best for children are supporting improvement at Waitaki Valley School. Teachers acknowledge they have changed some of their teaching approaches that have improved learning outcomes for the children.
More systematic evaluation practices, and a continued focus on targeted teaching and learning, data analysis, charter and curriculum development will help progress the school to achieve its vision for its learners.
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
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 the following:
board administration
curriculum
management of health, safety and welfare
personnel management
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
processes for appointing staff
stand down, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions
attendance
compliance with the provisions of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.
ERO discussed with the board the need for the school to strengthen its behaviour-management guidelines and procedures for staff appointments and appraisal attestation.
The school should continue to focus on the areas for development described in this report.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern (Te Waipounamu)
17 February 2017
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Location |
Kurow |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
363 |
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School type |
Full Primary (Years 1 to 8) |
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School roll |
108 |
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Gender composition |
Girls: 51%, Boys: 49% |
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Ethnic composition |
Pākehā Māori Pacific Asian Other |
69% 16% 4% 6% 5% |
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Review team on site |
November 2016 |
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Date of this report |
17 February 2017 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review Education Review Supplementary Review |
November 2013 October 2010 June 2007 |