Te Puawaitanga o Atareta Playcentre

1 Evaluation of Te Puawaitanga o Atareta Playcentre

How well placed is Te Puawaitanga o Atareta Playcentre to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.

Background

Te Puawaitanga o Atareta Playcentre opened in 2014. It operates as a family cooperative in a purpose-built building in Remuera. The centre is one of 16 centres in the Auckland Playcentre Association.

Centre practices are based on the Playcentre philosophy of families learning and growing together. The centre offers four sessions per week for up to 25 children including up to 15 under the age of two. In addition, the Association operates three SPACE sessions each week at the centre, for new parents and their infants.

The Association continues to provide a sound management framework and support personnel to assist centre members in managing their centres. It administers centres’ funding and provides an adult education programme for parents/whānau to achieve Playcentre qualifications.

The Association management team has a strong commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and to bicultural partnerships with whānau Māori. There is an expectation that adults and children will gain an understanding of te reo and tikanga Māori.

Playcentre Aotearoa is in the process of a national restructure. As a result, it is expected that a new regional manager and centre support personnel will be appointed towards the end of 2017.

This review was part of a cluster of six reviews in the Auckland Playcentre Association.

The Review Findings

The centre is welcoming and inclusive. Respectful and responsive relationships between families contribute to a shared purpose and a strong sense of community. Cultural diversity is valued and both parents and children use their home languages in play. There is a high level of trust and support between adults in their roles as parents and educators of all children.

Children are happy, eager learners, actively engaged in self-chosen play activities. They are confident and have a strong sense of belonging and ownership in the centre. They show care and respect for others, play well in groups and have fun at Playcentre. They are developing independence, friendships and self-esteem in an emotionally and physically supportive environment.

Centre members provide a thoughtfully presented, very well resourced environment that invites children’s engagement and sustained play. Infants receive nurturing care and toddlers explore freely and take an active part in the programme. Children have many choices, try things out and make discoveries. Aspects of literacy, mathematics and science are integrated into the programme in natural ways. Children's language development is well supported as is their increasing understanding of the world around them.

Enthusiasm for children’s creativity is reflected in good provision of art and messy play materials. Adults work alongside children, enthusiastically supporting their play with additional resources and timely suggestions. Centre members are developing ways to include te reo and tikanga Māori in everyday interactions. They are keen to continue to enhance their bicultural practices.

Centre members provide a good quality programme based on Playcentre philosophy and Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. They have worked collaboratively to develop documented assessment, planning and evaluation that show how children’s strengths and interests inform the programme. They regularly review the curriculum to ensure they meet the needs of all age groups of children, particularly infants and older children.

High levels of interest and involvement in Playcentre training reflect centre members' commitment to taking an active role in their children’s education and the operation of the centre. Experienced centre members share their knowledge and expertise with new parents. All members’ contributions are valued and emergent leadership is encouraged.

The Association management team takes responsibility for specific tasks relating to effective operations. The team is aware of the strengths and needs of each centre and provides strong professional leadership to sustain improvement and growth. Individualised and effective support helps each centre to continue fostering positive learning outcomes for children. The management team works collaboratively with centres as they respond to change, including the national restructure.

Key Next Steps

Key next steps for centre members are to continue to:

• extend the depth and scope of internal evaluation and strategic planning to guide continuous improvement in the programme and centre operations

• increase their bicultural understanding and integration of te reo and tikanga Māori

• make the extension of children’s individual interests and continuity of learning more evident in planning and evaluation records.

To enhance practices in all Auckland centres, the new regional manager and support personnel should consider ways to support centre members to:

• increase their bicultural understanding and integration of te reo me ōna tikanga Māori

• improve their understanding and use of internal evaluation as a tool to guide and improve practices.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Te Puawaitanga o Atareta 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.

Next ERO Review

When is ERO likely to review the service again?

The next ERO review of Te Puawaitanga o Atareta Playcentre will be in three years.

Violet Tu’uga Stevenson

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)

17 August 2017 

The Purpose of ERO Reports

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. 

2 Information about the Early Childhood Service 

3 General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

ERO’s Evaluation Framework

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.

ERO’s Overall Judgement and Next Review

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:

• Very well placed – The next ERO review in four years
• Well placed – The next ERO review in three years
• Requires further development – The next ERO review within two years
• Not well placed - The next ERO review in consultation with the Ministry of Education

ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.

Review Coverage

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.