Our research

New Zealand schools have one of the highest rates of bullying among OECD member countries. In this evaluation, ERO looked at the extent to which schools were effectively working towards an environment in which students feel safe and free from bullying.

A companion report to this one, Bullying Prevention and Response: Student Voice focuses on ERO’s survey of students on their experience and understandings of bullying and effective bullying prevention and response.

This report presents our findings from a student survey about how well their schools prevent and respond to bullying.

This report provides findings from ERO's evaluation of how well schools were promoting and supporting student wellbeing through sexuality education.

It includes high-level findings, examples of good practice and recommendations for schools and policy audiences. It is accompanied by a series of short publications for whānau, students, and trustees.

Brochures aimed at students, whānau and Boards of Trustees are also available.

This document is a separate report from the effective practice report, Food, nutrition and physical activity in New Zealand schools and early learning services intended to provide an overview of ERO's findings.

ERO has written this booklet for boards of trustees. It is one of many tools available to help you in your role as a trustee. It focuses on student achievement and wellbeing, and the role the board plays in these two areas. The booklet includes questions and information that will guide you in your discussions with school leaders and as a trustee.

Until recently children with behavioural and social needs were referred to and attended one of six health camps situated across New Zealand. Each of the six health camps had an associated school attached. In 2008 ERO evaluated the quality of provisions for children at the health camps and identified significant areas that needed to improve. ERO recommended that the Ministry of Education examine the role of health camps and their schools within the wider network provision of services for students with moderate to severe behaviour difficulties. 

In 2014, the Education Review Office (ERO) undertook an evaluation of the extent to which schools were promoting and responding to student wellbeing in primary and secondary schools. This 2016 effective practice report provides further detail about practices in selected schools that promote wellbeing for all students, and describes how these schools respond when concerns, issues or events require more targeted support.

Wellbeing for success: a resource for schools has been developed to help schools evaluate and improve student wellbeing. It highlights the importance of schools promoting the wellbeing of all students as well as the need for systems, people and initiatives to respond to wellbeing concerns for students who need additional support.

This report highlights how early childhood services keep up to date with changing regulations and legal requirements in order to effectively manage for children’s safety and wellbeing.

This report presents the findings of ERO’s evaluation of how well 68 secondary schools in Term 1 2014 promoted and responded to student wellbeing.

This report documents the findings of ERO's evaluation of how well 159 primary schools reviewed in Term 1 2014 promoted and responded to student wellbeing.

This report presents the findings of ERO’s evaluation of the Ministry of Education's initiative, Achievement 2013-2017.

This national report gives an insight into what Canterbury schools and early childhood services experienced during and after the earthquakes. It tells their stories and gives good advice about emergency planning for others in the education sector.

This report is the second in our Evaluation at a Glance series. It is a synthesis of material from 15 national evaluations and reports of good practice published in the last four years that, taken together, reveal three key issues facing New Zealand’s education system. 

This evaluation looked at how effectively schools use literacy and mathematics achievement information to improve learning for Years 9 and 10 students. The evaluation found that improvements are needed in most secondary schools’ practice with these students. It identifies the actions which school leaders, boards of trustees and teachers can take to help Years 9 and 10 students to be engaged, active and successful learners.

In late 2015, the Cabinet Social Policy Committee asked ERO to assess ‘the current status of food, nutrition and physical activity in schools and early childhood services’ and to report on Health Promoting Schools that were included in the sample. We visited 202 early learning services, 46 primary schools and 29 secondary schools in the first half of 2016.

We asked: How well does the service/school promote positive attitudes to physical activity, and food and nutrition to benefit children?

This 2010 report evaluates how schools have promoted success for Māori students since ERO’s previous national report in 2006. The success of Māori students at school is a matter of national interest and priority. ERO has published five national evaluation reports on this topic since 2001. These have identified system-wide issues and recommended steps to be taken by schools and by the Ministry of Education to promote success for Māori in education.