Our research

In 2020, Auckland students were particularly affected by Covid-19 and extra support was provided to them. Following this, ERO undertook an evaluation of three Te Kura programmes aimed at supporting Auckland NCEA students. This report outlines the findings of this evaluation - including the reach and impact of the programmes, and lessons for future responses.

This short summary accompanies the full report Responding to the Covid-19 crisis: Supporting Auckland NCEA students. It outlines the key findings from ERO’s evaluation of three Te Kura programmes aimed at supporting Auckland NCEA students following the lockdowns in 2020. This summary briefly lists who these targeted programmes reached, their impact, and lessons for responding to future lockdowns.  

I roto i Te Kura Huanui: Ko ngā kura o ngā ara angitu, ko ngā uiui me ngā whānau Māori, kaiārahi, kaiako, kaimahi, kaumātua hoki e tūhura ana i te ngākau titikaha o ngā hapori ki te whakarauora, ki te whakapakari hoki i te reo Māori me ngā tikanga Māori mō ā rātou mokopuna, tamariki, uri whakatupu anō hoki. 

Te Kura Huanui: The treasures of successful pathways and supporting documentaries explore the Māori-medium education pathway, through a rich collection of interviews and research conducted in partnership with early founders, whānau, leaders, graduates, kaiako, kaimahi and kaumatua.

ERO was approached by principals from Kahukura to document and evaluate their community of practice in Christchurch. This report identifies what is working well for this community of practice, areas where they might consider further enhancements, and lessons and insights into practices which could be shared with others.

This short report accompanies our report Exploring Collaboration in Action: Kahukura Community of Practice.  It looks at the lessons that can be learnt from the Kahukura community of practice, drawing out key lessons on collaboration and providing seven key implications for schools who are interested in collaborating to consider.

This case study explores the impact of the 2020 Covid-19 events on Māori learners in English-medium schools, and the response of leaders, schools and communities in the Bay of Plenty and East Coast regions.

Principals and school leaders have taken on a lot of responsibility during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Education Review Office interviewed principals and board chairs and surveyed 1777 principals across the country from May through to September 2020 to understand how they have responded. This summary highlights how those school leaders rose to the challenge.

ERO’s final report in the Te Whāriki series summarises the findings of previous reports and includes the last two focus areas for the curriculum – how services decide ‘what learning matters here’ and how well they were developing learning-focused partnerships with parents and whānau.

How well were school leaders determining Professional Learning and Development priorities and evaluating its impact?

ERO spoke with school leaders responsible for planning Professional Learning and Development (PLD) and looked at a variety of documents in 242 state or state-integrated schools (excluding kura) reviewed in Terms 3 and 4, 2018. ERO made an overall judgment about how well school leaders were determining PLD priorities and evaluating the impact of PLD.

This is a companion report to Developing Key Competencies in Students Years 1 to 8. It explores current thinking about the importance of building the capabilities of young people. It outlines what the Key Competencies (KCs) are, why they are important, New Zealand’s journey with thinking about the nature and potential uses of KCs, and where this development fits in the international context.

This evaluation studies effective practice in schools’ senior curriculum. It contributes to the review being undertaken by the Ministry of Education (the Ministry) of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA). The Ministry-led review focuses on the implementation of NCEA as the national assessment system for the senior years of secondary schooling. 

Improvement in Action brings to life ERO’s School Evaluation Indicators and illustrates what works to achieve successful outcomes for all children and young people in the education system.

The case studies complement the video sequences in Improvement in Action.

Auckland is New Zealand’s most culturally diverse city, with over 100 ethnicities and more than 150 languages spoken on a daily basis. How are schools and early learning services in Auckland responding to this increasing cultural and language diversity? This question was the basis for a new evaluation published by ERO Responding to Language Diversity in Auckland. 

This article originally appeared in ERO Insights - Term 1, 2018 and explores how the ethnic diversity of the primary and secondary school roll has changed in New Zealand since 2009, and whether these changes are leading to more diverse or more segregated schools.

Clarity of expectations within a supportive environment are key to scaffolding children into the behaviours of effective learners. Those expectations are realised through structures and processes that ensure everyone knows what to do to achieve success.

The team structure in this school supports the professional learning and development of leaders and teachers. Team members discuss their roles, responsibilities and the reciprocal nature of their interactions.

This evaluation report illustrates the leadership domain of ERO’s School Evaluation Indicators in practice by:

This retrospective study synthesises findings from 17 national reports about curriculum implementation in early learning services, published over the last 10 years.

This national report is ERO’s seventh report about international students. This evaluation included 95 schools (both primary and secondary) and focused on five aspects in relation to international students – integration, progress and achievement, education programme, pastoral care, overall approach and self review.