Aria School, Aria
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Aria Playcentre is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Aria Playcentre is licensed to provide mixed-age sessional education and care for 25 children once a week. This includes 15 children up to the age of two years. At the time of this ERO review, there were 10 children enrolled, and two who identify as Māori. The centre is located on the grounds of Aria Primary School.
The Playcentre Aotearoa philosophy, ‘whānau tupu ngātahi – families growing together’, is to empower parents and children to learn, play and grow together.
Since the June 2016 ERO report, the New Zealand Playcentre Federation has restructured by amalgamating all associations to form Playcentre Aotearoa. Aria Playcentre is part of the Central North Island Region and is supported by a regional manager and support persons.
Whānau and families share responsibility for the curriculum. Day-to-day operation is undertaken by session support personnel and centre-elected office holders. A centre support worker and centre administrator regularly visit playcentres to provide professional support, strengthen practice and promote improvement.
This review was part of a cluster of eight reviews in the in the Playcentre Aotearoa Central North Island Region.
Responsive and engaged interactions promote rich learning opportunities for children. They are encouraged to be independent, confident and competent learners. Children’s language, culture and identity is visible in displays around the walls of the playcentre. Parents as first teachers have developed good strategies to support positive behaviour and social competence. Children under the age of two years enjoy a calm and responsive learning space. It is age appropriate and allows for free movement, fostering curiosity and independence. Children develop a strong sense of belonging.
The centre's programme of education and care is planned in response to children’s ideas and interests. Children choose from a wide range of resources and activities and are well supported by parents who notice and extend their learning and play. There are many opportunities for children to express and explore their creativity. They are involved in sustained play and making decisions about their learning. Strong relationships with the local school are supporting children to transition successfully. There is a focus on building the capability of members to use te reo and te ao Māori during the session. This should be embedded into centre documentation including assessment for learning.
There are examples of assessment practice in children’s individual portfolios where parents notice and document children’s learning and show their progress over time. New members are encouraged and supported to recognise and record their child’s learning. The current self-review process requires strengthening. An evaluation framework should be developed with a focus on raising learning outcomes for children.
Positive and respectful relationships are promoted across the playcentre between leaders and members. All roles and responsibilities have been allocated and are well established. There is a process in place for knowledge sharing between experienced members and new members, and opportunities for professional learning and development.
The revised parent education programme is becoming more accessible to centre members. Many adults are engaged in adult education. Appraisal processes for session support staff have recently been strengthened to better evaluate performance in relation to specific roles and responsibilities, identify professional learning and development needs, and focus on achievement of goals.
The national restructuring process continues to require significant attention and support to implement an extensive range of systems and processes. Regular communication from Playcentre Aotearoa seeks to keep parents informed of progress, changes and upcoming requirements. National policies and procedures have recently been introduced and parents are in the process of aligning practices to these. Ongoing support is required to enable parents to understand and implement these procedures to meet licensing requirements.
The next steps for Aria Playcentre, leaders and members are to develop:
a self-review framework with a focus on learning outcomes for children
the capability of members understanding of te ao Māori, and centre documentation in assessment for learning.
Playcentre Aotearoa should continue to build knowledge and understanding of policies and procedures to ensure licensing requirements are upheld.
Before the review, the staff and management of Aria Playcentre completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)
physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)
suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)
evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
ERO identified an area of non-compliance relating to premises and facilities. To meet requirements the service needs to improve its performance in the following area:
securing items on shelves that could topple and fall on children and cause serious injury.
Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood and care Centres 2008, HS6.
Since the on-site phase of the review, members have provided ERO with evidence of action taken in securing furniture (HS6).
Darcy Te Hau
Acting Director Review and Improvement Services
Central Region - Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
19 March 2020
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.
|
Location |
Pio, Waikato |
|
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
31001 |
|
|
Licence type |
Playcentre |
|
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
|
|
Number licensed for |
25 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
|
|
Service roll |
10 |
|
|
Gender composition |
Male 3 Female 7 |
|
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
2 |
|
Review team on site |
November 2019 |
|
|
Date of this report |
19 March 2020 |
|
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
June 2016 |
|
Education Review |
January 2013 |
|
|
Education Review |
December 2009 |
|
ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:
Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children
Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children
Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children
Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.
A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.
For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes will depend on how well the service promotes positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
Very well placed
Well placed
Requires further development
Not well placed
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Aria Playcentre is a parent-led centre located in a remote rural community near Piopio. It operates under the umbrella of King Country Playcentre Association to provide education and care for children from birth to school age. Since the 2013 ERO review, the association has undergone a restructuring and, in conjunction with the New Zealand Playcentre Federation, is providing strategic direction that is guiding playcentres to focus on significant areas for development. Centre members receive ongoing support and advice from a centre support staff member employed by the association.
The centre is licensed for 25 children, including a maximum of 15 children aged up to two years. At the time of the ERO review, 20 children were enrolled, including two who are identified as Māori. This is a significant increase in roll numbers since the previous ERO review.
The centre is located on the Aria School site, and has long-term cooperative relationships with the school. The playcentre continues to be led and managed by committed parents, who collaborate to provide one morning session each week. Older children are able to attend a weekly supervised session at Piopio Playcentre. Previous ERO reports indicate that children attending Aria Playcentre have benefited from positive, trusting and responsive relationships in a well-prepared learning environment.
Aria Playcentre follows playcentre philosophy, which gives parents shared responsibility for centre management and leadership. The philosophy strongly prioritises helping parents to further develop their ability to nurture and extend children's self-initiated play and learning. The association provides parent education and professional development programmes to support the quality of playcentre programmes and centre leadership.
Since the previous ERO review the centre has made extensive changes to the outdoor playground in order to improve safety. Further planned improvements, which are scheduled for completion in the near future, have the potential to provide greater challenge and more learning opportunities, especially for older children.
This review was part of a cluster of four playcentre reviews in the King Country Playcentre Association.
Children are highly engaged in a wide range of interesting activities. They enjoy positive relationships with other children and parents. The mixed-age group allows for older children to interact in a caring way with younger children. Babies and toddlers are well catered for and included as active participants in play and exploration. Children and parents have fun together, value the time they spend at the centre, and the relationships they develop.
Parents prepare the learning environment each session to stimulate children's interest in a variety of active and creative play opportunities. They interact extensively with children, supporting the development of their oral language and social skills. Literacy experiences are provided through stories skilfully read by parents to groups of children as well as to individuals. Puzzles and construction equipment contribute to children's understanding of mathematical ideas of shape, size, colour, and proportion. The outdoor environment supports children to have experiences of the natural world and develop scientific knowledge.
Te reo and tikanga Māori is being included in the centre, and is increasing as parents build their knowledge and gain confidence in their ability to use the language correctly. Children hear karakia being said at kai time. Books, puzzles and displays feature Māori culture and language. It would be appropriate for the centre to introduce pepeha as a way of celebrating the identity of children and their families.
Parents are benefiting from their participation in playcentre parent education. Parents have completed Course One, and have begun to undertake Course Two. A more experienced parent is participating in Course Three. They are supported by the association, a long-serving experienced member and an experienced supervisor employed by the centre. Parents are building their capability to implement a soundly-based programme and recognise children's learning. By developing more focused planning and assessment practices, parents would be better placed to recognise and extend children's interests, skills and understandings.
A long-serving, well-qualified member has provided ongoing expertise and leadership for centre operations and decision making. The centre has worked to build the number of families attending to improve its sustainability. There has been a strong emphasis on developing the parent cooperative culture of the service and the capacity of new members to contribute their skills. Parents are beginning to take on roles and responsibilities and develop their relationships with the governing association.
The centre has undertaken useful self review that has identified strategies to improve aspects of planning and the quality of the environment for babies and toddlers. It has also developed a strategic plan to guide ongoing development and improvement. The centre needs to use this plan to guide their decisions and actions, and regularly track progress in reaching their goals.
The New Zealand Playcentre Federation and the King Country Playcentre Association continue to provide effective governance and management for this centre. The association provides comprehensive policies and guidelines, and employs a centre support person who assists families to operate the service in the best interests of children and their parents/whānau. The benefits of this support could be made more evident if a process of formal reporting on the quality of centre programmes was introduced.
Parents in the centre have become increasingly involved in training programmes provided by the association to support them in their role as educators. Professional development opportunities are available to further develop leadership skills that contribute to the ongoing sustainability of the centre.
The centre and ERO have agreed that a next step for the centre is to develop a schedule of planned self review. These self reviews should follow the existing guidelines, which are to identify any actions needed for improvement, develop a plan to implement these actions, and monitor progress with a record of how well the desired outcomes were achieved or further changes needed.
The centre has identified the need to build parents' capability to contribute to children's portfolios by:
including individual children's learning stories more frequently
increasing the visibility of children's learning, development and progress
deciding what content is appropriate, relevant and valuable
using the information in the portfolios more effectively to guide future planning for children's learning.
Before the review, the staff and management of Aria Playcentre completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
curriculum
premises and facilities
health and safety practices
governance, management and administration.
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)
physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)
suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)
evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
ERO found areas of non-compliance that could affect children's safety, especially if an earthquake should occur. Heavy furniture, fixtures or equipment that could fall or topple and cause serious injury or damage need to be secured.[Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008, HS6]
The next ERO review of Aria Playcentre will be in three years.
Lynda Pura-Watson
Deputy Chief Review Officer
9 June 2016
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.
|
Location |
Piopio, Waikato |
|
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
31001 |
|
|
Licence type |
Playcentre |
|
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
|
|
Number licensed for |
25 children, including up to 15 aged under 2 |
|
|
Service roll |
20 |
|
|
Gender composition |
Girls 15 Boys 5 |
|
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā |
2 18 |
|
Review team on site |
April 2016 |
|
|
Date of this report |
9 June 2016 |
|
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
January 2013 |
|
Education Review |
December 2009 |
|
|
Education Review |
February 2007 |
|
ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:
Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children
Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children
Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children
Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.
A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.
For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes and the timing of the next review will depend on how well placed a service is to promote positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.