23 Strathmore Drive , Rototuna, Hamilton
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.
Rototuna Primary School provides education for learners in Years 1-6. There are 735 students on the roll. Students who identify as Asian make up the largest proportion of all learners at 48 percent. 38 percent of learners identify as European and Pākehā, and 14 percent identify as Māori. The school’s vision is ‘Kia Manawanui – Be Strong of Heart’.
| How well are learners succeeding? | Success and progress for all learners is increasing. |
| 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 | A large majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Mathematics | Most learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are equitable for all groups of learners. |
The school is approaching the target of 80% regular attendance.
The school has a suitable plan in place to improve attendance.
Regular attendance is improving towards or beyond the target.
Chronic absence is 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 for 2030.
This section of the report provides more detail for the school to include in strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school.
Learners have a strong sense of belonging, wellbeing and pride in their school; they experience a positive and inclusive learning environment that supports their interests and cultures.
School leaders provide cohesive, focused leadership that increasingly strengthens school conditions to support student success and wellbeing. Strategic planning ensures a clear direction for priorities and targets to improve student outcomes.
The school has embedded the curriculum to increase student engagement, providing authentic and meaningful learning opportunities linked to local contexts and connecting with iwi.
Leaders and teachers have integrated a structured approach to literacy schoolwide; the implementation of structured mathematics is a focus for 2025.
A strong culture of inquiry is evident. Leaders use good quality data to inform strategic decision making, ensuring that professional development effectively builds teacher capability and aligns with the goals of the school.
Teachers work collaboratively and regularly use achievement information and evidence to inform teaching and monitor the impact of their practice.
The agreed next steps for the school are to:
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Every six months:
Annually:
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
The Education Review Office reviews schools that are signatories to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020.
The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code and has completed an annual self-review of its implementation of the Code.
At the time of this review there was one international student attending the school.
The school has good systems and processes in place for monitoring the wellbeing and progress of international students. Students are actively included in the school community and have the opportunity to participate in a range of learning experiences.
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’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)
14 May 2025
This website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Rototuna Primary School, located in northern Hamilton, caters for students in Years 1 to 6. The current roll is 939, of whom 15% are Māori. There are 12 international students and a significant number of English Language Learners.
The school’s vision is ‘He Rawe mō Āke Tonu – Our Best Always. The vision is embodied through learning dispositions: ‘The Rototuna learner is a communicator/kaiwhakawhiti kōrero, a researcher/kairangahau, a thinker/kaiwhakaaro, a risk taker/kaikōkiri, a team player/kaimahi-a-rōpū, and a self-manager/kaimahi takitahi’
The school’s strategic goals focus on: rangatiratanga, student progress, achievement and agency; hauora, wellbeing for success; culturally responsive pedagogy and whanaungatanga, educationally powerful partnerships with parents.
Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, schoolwide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:
A new principal joined the school in term two, 2019. From 2017 to 2019, schoolwide professional learning and development (PLD) has focused on teaching writing and strengthening cultural responsiveness. PLD for teachers in the use of restorative practices began this year.
The school is a member of Te Pae Here Kāhui Ako I Community of Learning.
Achievement data from the end of 2017 and 2018 showed that most students achieved at and above The New Zealand Curriculum expectations in reading, writing and mathematics However there was underachievement for boys in writing.
In 2018 most students achieved at or above expectations in science, health and social sciences. Other data from 2017 and 2018 showed that most students achieved at or above expectations in the arts and technology.
Teachers identified at mid-year 2019 that almost all students were engaged and demonstrated effort in achieving their individual learning goals in reading, writing and mathematics.
The school tracks the progress of priority learners, including boys, Māori students, Pacific students, English language learners and individuals. These students are involved in specific initiatives to accelerate their progress. Leaders have tracked the achievement of priority learners since the end of 2017 to ‘close the achievement gap’. Three quarters have made accelerated progress in mathematics, two thirds in reading and just under half in writing.
In 2019, most students involved in the Ako Whakatere and reading support initiatives made accelerated progress.
Students are well supported to see themselves as successful, and become independent, actively engaged learners. They talk confidently about their learning, the strategies they use to achieve their goals and what they need to learn next. Teachers promote effort and perseverance as key learning skills. Students’ goals are individualised and achievable. Children are supported to develop independence and agency through a levelled programme of learning progressions.
A thoughtfully-designed conceptual curriculum provides a highly-effective framework that extends and supports the learning and agency for all children. Rototuna learner competencies and bicultural practices are integral to the framework. Links across learning areas are deliberately integrated to enrich the programme.
Effective use of school systems to track and monitor schoolwide student progress and achievement is well established. Leaders and teachers have a very clear picture of achievement for individuals and groups of students over time in all learning areas of the curriculum. A useful online portal enables leaders, teachers, students and whānau to access individual student information. This supports students to track their own learning success. The school has deliberately designed instructional videos and learning resources for students and parents to use at home and at school.
Student wellbeing is a priority that is actively promoted through a wide range of deliberate strategies. Restorative practice is an area of professional development and focus across the school. Wellbeing progressions are used for self review, identifying strengths and next steps. Student feedback informs ongoing development. Leaders and teachers promote a schoolwide environment of caring and collaboration.
The new principal is focused on building relationships and an understanding of school systems and processes. The senior leadership team use a well-considered, highly systematic approach to support coherence and alignment of teaching and learning across the school. They purposefully maintain a culture of improvement, collaboration, innovation and high expectations.
The cohesive senior leadership team provide highly effective guidance and support for staff. Well-developed systems and processes are in place to promote teachers’ professional growth. Comprehensive appraisals, professional learning and development, and teacher inquiries:
The development of cultural responsiveness has been a priority focus for leaders and teachers. Local kawa and iwi relationships underpin the school’s strong bicultural curriculum. Highly effective leadership supports the school’s journey and drives continual improvement and deepening of Treaty-based practices. Targeted culturally responsive practices promote Māori success as Māori.
Cultural diversity is valued and celebrated. Children and their families for whom English is an additional language are supported with English language learning through a range of initiatives.
Those children with additional learning needs are very well supported. Knowledgeable staff and sound processes enable teachers to effectively monitor and report students’ progress and wellbeing. Characteristics and descriptors to identify gifted and talented students are well documented and useful for decision making about teaching and learning.
Review and internal evaluation processes are robust, well developed and focused on improving student outcomes. A strong understanding of the purpose and process of outcomes-focused evaluation is evident. Leaders and teachers make good use of clear, measurable evidence from multiple perspectives to make judgements about the impact of their strategies. This supports them to make targeted refinements to practice that successfully promote positive outcomes for learners. Trustees use review effectively to guide the future direction of the school, seeking input from students, parents and teachers. Resourcing and property decision making is guided by students’ achievement and wellbeing.
School leaders have identified, and ERO agrees, the following areas for continued development are to:
The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of International Students) Code of Practice 2016 established under section 238F of the Education Act 1989. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code. Twelve international students were enrolled at the time of the ERO review.
The school gathers information from students, parents and teachers to regularly review its provision for international students. Effective pastoral care supports students’ wellbeing. Their progress and achievement is closely monitored and reported to parents and the board. Thorough induction processes support the transition of international students into school.
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:
During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student safety and wellbeing:
On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of Rototuna Primary School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Strong.
ERO’s Framework: Overall School Performance is available on ERO’s website.
For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:
For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for continued development are in deepening:
To improve current practice, the board of trustees should:
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services Te Tai Tini
Southern Region
1 November 2019
| Location | Hamilton |
| Ministry of Education profile number | 6976 |
| School type | Contributing (Years 1 to 6) |
| School roll | 939 |
| Gender composition | Boys 50%, Girls 50% |
| Ethnic composition | Māori 15% NZ European/Pākehā 32% Other Asian 16% Chinese 15% Indian 8% Middle Eastern 4% Other ethnic groups 10% |
| Students with Ongoing Resourcing Funding (ORS) | Yes |
| Provision of Māori medium education | No |
| Review team on site | August 2019 |
| Date of this report | 1 November 2019 |
| Most recent ERO report(s) | Education Review September 2015 Education Review February 2011 |