An evaluation mindset

Published: 04 Sep 2017
Audience:
Education
Parents
Schools
Topics:
Video
Improvement in Action Te Ahu Whakamua

Summary

“We are constantly triangulating information…if something is not working we don’t want to find out in November.”

Senior leaders talk about the approach and processes associated with doing and using evaluation for improvement.

Key messages:

  • A comprehensive process of evaluation and reporting is carried out in curriculum areas each year
  • A wide range of quantitative and qualitative data contributes to the ongoing analysis of student outcomes
  • Ongoing triangulation of evidence (for example, academic and pastoral) enables a focused response to issues identified

Things to think about:

  • What systems and processes do you have in place to promote a coherent approach to evaluation, inquiry and knowledge building?

The evaluation indicators this video illustrates

  • Domain 6: Evaluation Inquiry and knowledge building for improvement and innovation
    • Evaluation indicator
      • Coherent organisational conditions promote evaluation, inquiry and knowledge building
  • Domain 2: Leadership for equity and excellence
    • Evaluation indicators
      • Leadership collaboratively develops and pursues the school’s vision, goals and targets for equity and excellence
      • Leadership ensures effective planning, coordination and evaluation of the school’s curriculum and teaching

This video is part of a series

This video is part of the series Improvement in Action Te Ahu Whakamua. We created this series to inspire schools with examples of success in action. These examples highlight the benefits of fulfilling the evaluation indicators we use to review schools.

(A woman sits in an office, looking into the camera. Behind her on a shelf sit a silver trophy, a piece of art and a pot plant. Several small, framed Māori-themed paintings hanging above. Text on the bottom of the screen reads “Anne Miles, Principal, McAuley High School”.)

 

Each HOD at the end of the year, in their report to the board of trustees, is given a format.

 

(Anne continues speaking in voice-over as the video shifts to show a room full of adults sitting around small round tables. Most of them turn to face a woman who is standing and reading from a piece of paper.)

 

And they have to evaluate their department. What were the results?

 

(The camera pans across the room.)

Why was this area a weak area?

 

(There are several shots of people at various tables speaking amongst themselves.)

 

What are they going to do about it? This was a very successful area. Why was it successful? How are we promoting achievement of, say, Māori students?

 

(The camera returns to Anne Miles in the office.)

 

What are we doing for our gifted and talented students? What are we doing for those who are struggling in the classroom?

 

(We return to the meeting, where a woman stands to speak while other people turn to listen.)

 

What support systems are we putting in place for that? Are we responding to our moderation reports? How are we responding to NZQA's comments?

 

(The camera returns to Anne Miles in the office.)

 

What are our future goals for our department? What are our needs regarding professional development for our department? What professional development has our department engaged in? What are our future directions for the next year?

So that happens at the end of each year for each department.

 

(We now see another woman looking into the camera. Text on the bottom of the screen reads, “Rachel Williams, Deputy Principal Curriculum, McAuley High School”.

As she says “throughout the year” the video changes to show Rachel with Anne in her office, discussing something as they write on papers in front of them.)

 

Although there are the formal reviews that are done at the end of the year, throughout the year, we're constantly looking at student outcomes.

And some of them, of course, are NCEA data. Some of them are softer, qualitative data.

 

But we're continuously looking at that information to see, are there ways that we can improve.

We're always triangulating the information between the curriculum, the pastoral side, what the deans are seeing, what the department's seeing.

 

(We return to Rachel Williams looking into the camera.)

 

We're continuously triangulating that information, so that we're trying to make sure that if something's not working, we don't find out about it in November.