ERO Reviews in 2011 - A message from the Chief Review Officer to all schools

10 March 2011

Tēnā koutou

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou

Christchurch has been foremost in our minds for the past couple of weeks, of course. On behalf of the Education Review Office I would like to express my deep sympathy and concern for what people in Christchurch have endured, and indeed what they must continue to endure for some time. Many schools and early childhood services in the city have worked tremendously hard to get up and running, despite all kinds of obstacles. Others from schools and services all over the country have given willing and prompt help at a very difficult time. ERO has suspended all scheduled reviews of schools and services in the affected areas in and around Christchurch for the remainder of Term 1 and, in the worst-affected areas, for Term 2, 2011. We will talk to schools individually.

ERO Reviews and Evaluation Indicators for State Schools

In 2010 we began work on revising our Evaluation Indicators. During the year we published a draft of our revised Evaluation Indicators for School Reviews, and asked for your comments and suggestions. Thank you for these, which have contributed to the final document, which is now ready for printing. Shortly we will send a copy to all state schools and kura. Schools and kura having a review will also be given a revised Framework for School Reviews when they are notified of the timing of their reviews. Both of these will be on ERO’s website. If you would like more hard copies please email us.

ERO is also working with Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori on the methodology for reviews of Te Aho Matua kura kaupapa Māori.

The nature of our reviews has changed in the past year. The review process uses findings from a combination of a school’s internal review and ERO’s external review. Your school’s discussions with the review team will allow you to reflect on what is going well, and your next steps for review and development.

In 2011, we are also introducing a shorter written report that will include the key review findings. Our intention is that the report will be easy for parents and communities to read. We will ask for comments on the new report format from schools that have a review in the next few months.

For information about ERO reviews please go to our web page for schools and kura kaupapa Māori (via Review Process). This is also where you will find information on the current National Evaluation Topics.

Other news

• We have introduced a list of forthcoming reviews on our website. This list is already popular with parents and education organisations.
• A new ERO publication, Evaluation at a Glance: What ERO Knows About Effective Schools, draws on key findings from ERO’s national reports to make comments on broader educational issues.
• As always, ERO managers and I are pleased to speak to groups of boards of trustees, school staff or others. Please send us an invitation and we will find a time to suit. In addition, we are currently setting up our annual programme of liaison meetings with national education sector groups, where all manner of topics can be raised by members and discussed informally. Through our reviews, presentations and meetings we hope to meet many of you and to have good discussions on education in New Zealand.

Nāku noa, nā

Graham Stoop
Chief Review Officer

Ko te Tamaiti te Pūtake o te Kaupapa - The Child, the Heart of the Matter