842 Galatea Road , Lake Matahina, Whakatane
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.
Te Mahoe School is located in the area of Lake Matahina, approximately 30kms from Whakatāne and provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. The school roll is approximately 33 students. Māori learners make up 100% of the roll. Te Mahoe School provides a level one te reo Māori immersion option for learners in Years 1 to 8. There was a new principal appointed in term two, 2024.
ERO and the school worked together to evaluate how well responsive teaching, learning and assessment practices impacted equitable and excellent outcomes for learners.
The school expected to see:
During the course of the evaluation, it was found that progress and achievement outcomes for learners in reading, writing and mathematics has remained at similar levels over time.
There have been several staff changes within the school which has impacted the consistency of effective teaching, learning and assessment practices; improving the consistency and quality of teaching, learning and assessment practices across the school remains a priority focus for leaders and the board.
| How well are learners succeeding? | Improvements are required to ensure all learners are engaged, making sufficient progress and achieving well. |
| What is the quality of teaching and learning? | The school needs to improve teaching and learning. |
| How well does the school curriculum respond to all learners needs? | Learners have some opportunities to learn across the breadth and depth of the curriculum. There is a variable focus on supporting learners to gain skills in literacy and mathematics. Learners with complex needs require better support to achieve their education goals. |
| How well does school planning and conditions support ongoing improvement? | The school is establishing planning and conditions that support improvements in the quality of education for learners. |
| How well does the school include all learners and promote their engagement and wellbeing? | The school is taking steps to improve learners’ engagement, wellbeing and inclusion. |
| How well does the school partner with parents, whānau and its community for the benefit of learners? | The school needs to improve its reporting to parents / whānau about their child’s learning, achievement and progress. The school should improve its collection and use 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 | Less than a third of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Writing | Less than half of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Mathematics | A small majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners. |
Rumaki/Bilingual | |
| Pānui | A large majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Tuhituhi | A large majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners. |
| Pāngarau | A small majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners. |
The school is significantly behind the target of 80% regular attendance.
The school is yet to have a suitable plan to improve attendance.
Regular attendance is not yet improving towards or beyond the target.
Chronic absence is not yet reducing over time.
The school is not yet using an appropriate approach and reliable practices to accurately find out about achievement against the curriculum.
Teachers should improve their use of assessment information to adjust teaching practices to ensure ongoing improvement in teaching and student progress.
The school does not have good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.
The school has not improved achievement and progress for those learners most at risk of not achieving since the previous review.
The school has not extended achievement and progress for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.
The school is not making progress towards meeting Government reading, writing and mathematics targets and/or pānui, tuhituhi and pāngarau targets for 2030 and agrees this will need to be a key strategic priority.
During the course of this review ERO had concerns about the quality of education being provided and made recommendations for support to the Ministry of Education.
This section of the report provides more detail about the quality of teaching and learning through the provision of te reo Māori in rumaki/bilingual classroom/s within in English medium schools.
This section of the report provides more detail for the school to include in strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school.
The agreed next steps for the school are to:
The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.
Within three months:
Every six months:
Annually:
Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:
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 and the board have identified the following areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:
The board has since addressed the areas of non-compliance identified.
ERO will initiate conversations with the Ministry of Education about support to bring about the following improvements:
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)
2 May 2025
This website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home
Te Mahoe school is a small rural school located 30km from Whakatāne near Lake Matahina and provides education for students in years 1 to 8. Since April 2018 the school has been part of a longitudinal evaluation process with ERO, focused on improving capability for school operation.
On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement is that Te Mahoe School has made sufficient progress to address the priorities that were identified for review and development. This report will serve as the Profile Report as the school transitions to ERO’s School Evaluation for Improvement | Te Ara Huarau model.
The areas for review and improvement from the 2021 ERO report focused on:
The board of trustees have engaged support from The New Zealand School Trustees Association (NZSTA) and The Ministry of Education (MoE) financial services, to strengthen effective governance, school financial practices and responsibilities. The school has implemented an externally provided, comprehensive and regularly updated school policy framework. The framework includes a full cycle of review to ensure policies and procedures remain current.
There has been significant improvement in strengthening teacher understanding of curriculum levels and expectations. Leaders and teachers have developed and implemented systems and processes to strengthen practices for assessing, monitoring and reporting learner progress and achievement. These improvements are supporting leaders, teachers and trustees to more effectively plan, resource and implement programmes and practices in response to learner needs.
The principal, supported by local community, is leading development of the school’s local curriculum, focused on Te Mahoe’s history, tikanga and mātauranga Māori. This work is strengthening valued relationships and connections with whānau, community and iwi, and empowering learners’ sense of identity and belonging.
The school continues to prioritise the enhancement and robust monitoring of recent improvements, along with increasing levels of student attendance. The school’s strategic goals confirm the focus on these priorities for continued improvement.
Te Mahoe School’s priorities for improving outcomes of equity and excellence for all learners are to:
The school is now in a better position to sustain, improve and review its performance. Trustees, leaders, and teachers have established positive relationships and clear, well-understood processes to enable them to continue to improve and sustain student learning, progress and achievement. The board of trustees has developed confidence and capacity to govern the school effectively.
Before the review, the board of trustees 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:
During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student achievement:
The next public report on ERO’s website will be a Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region - Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
19 January 2023