Tapawera Area School

School Context

Tapawera Area School is located in Tapawera, near Nelson, and provides education for students in Years 1 to 13. Junior students move to the senior school in Year 9. There are 193 students and a small number of adult students enrolled.

The school’s vision is to ‘empower capable, confident learners’. Its values of friendship, integrity, respect and effort underpin its vision.

The current aims for improvement and learner success include:

• raising achievement in mathematics
• raising achievement and engagement in writing
• striving for the highest leaver NCEA qualification level.

Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board schoolwide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:

• school leaver qualifications
• outcomes related to wellbeing for success
• student achievement in relation to school assessment guidelines
• achievement within the NZQA framework.

The whole school has taken part in three Ministry of Education funded programmes in the last three years for writing, mathematics and student wellbeing.

Since the last review in August 2015, the Board of Trustees and Senior Management team have been stable. There has been several changes in the teaching staff.

Evaluation Findings

1 Equity and excellence – achievement of valued outcomes for students

1.1 How well is the school achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all its students?

The school achieves positive outcomes for most students as school leavers. Overall the school has a good retention rate of students to age 17. Almost all students leave with a qualification, most with NCEA Level 2. Almost all Māori school leavers in the last five years have gained a minimum of NCEA Level 2.

In Years 9 and 10 standardised assessment in aspects of reading shows that the majority of students achieve at expected levels. Standardised assessment in mathematics shows that less than half of all students achieve at expected levels.

In Years 0 to 8, school achievement information shows most students, including Māori, achieve well in reading. In writing, standardised assessment for 2016/2017 shows overall low achievement across the school, particularly for boys. There was overall low achievement in standardised assessment for mathematics across the school in 2016/2017.

Children with additional learning needs are well supported to make progress in their learning.

The school reported that improved behaviour has led to a greater engagement in learning.

1.2 How well is the school accelerating learning for those Māori and other students who need this?

Intensive schoolwide professional development for literacy over two years from 2017-2018 has resulted in significant shifts in writing achievement in 2018. At the time of this review, further analysis of data was required for the school to know who had made accelerated progress and which groups of students had made the most improvement in their learning, including Māori students.

At the time of this review leaders could not show schoolwide improvements in mathematics achievement over the last two years. However, leaders report schoolwide professional development for mathematics in 2018 has improved student motivation and engagement in their learning.

2 School conditions for equity and excellence – processes and practices

2.1 What school processes and practices are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

The school has a well-formed vision and strategic direction which is understood by trustees, leaders and teachers. The vision and goals:

• effectively guide decision making and practice to improve student learning and wellbeing in identified areas
• are aligned to professional development priorities and related systems such as appraisal and teaching as inquiry.

As a result of sustained schoolwide involvement in a programme for student wellbeing, the school has clear expectations for student engagement and participation based on the school values. These are visible throughout the school environment, and are well known, understood and enacted by students and teachers, leading to improved behaviour and an increasingly positive school culture.

Two years of schoolwide involvement in professional development for literacy has led to an increased focus, engagement and achievement in literacy at all levels of the school. In the senior levels of the school there is a greater integration of literacy into other curriculum areas. There have been shifts in teacher practice resulting in greater confidence and collaboration amongst teachers and leaders. Leaders and teachers have developed clear expectations and shared understandings of effective literacy practices and student progress.

Teaching as inquiry is becoming an effective tool for targeted action to accelerate the learning of those who need it. This collaborative approach is helping leaders and teachers focus on improving teaching and learning and student outcomes in other curriculum areas.

Students’ learning benefits from a localised curriculum which is responsive to their interests and strengths within the school and local community contexts. There are a variety of individualised educational pathways for senior students including academic, supported learning, vocational and trades options.

All students with additional learning or pastoral care and wellbeing needs are closely tracked and monitored throughout the school. They are well supported by a wide range of individualised interventions and support.

2.2 What further developments are needed in school processes and practices for achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

The principal and senior leaders need to continue to focus on sustaining changes in teaching and learning across all curriculum areas as demonstrated in the progress made in building literacy practices and improving outcomes.

Teachers are increasingly reflective. They inquire into how new learning about effective literacy impacts on classroom practice and programmes. A key next step would be to develop this practice further to understand how changes in their classroom practice impact on student outcomes.

The principal and senior leaders need to set clear targets to accelerate the learning of students at risk of underachievement. A stronger focus on measuring and documenting the impact of actions and initiatives should further enhance leaders’ capability to evaluate practice and inform decision making.

Trustees require information from the principal about student progress and achievement that is easy to access and interpret. Better analysed learning information, and effective internal evaluation practices should enable the board to better monitor the progress and achievement of groups and cohorts of students. This information will assist the board to make well-informed decisions.

Trustees, leaders and teachers have made little progress in addressing the recommendation in ERO’s 2015 report, which identified that the school needed to undertake further work to better support Māori students and their families. The school needs to review current programmes and practices regarding Māori success to evaluate their effectiveness and develop planning to prioritise goals for improvement. These goals need to be included in the school’s strategic and annual planning.

3 Board assurance on legal requirements

Before the review, the board 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 the following:

• board administration
• curriculum
• management of health, safety and welfare
• personnel management
• finance
• asset management.

During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student safety and wellbeing:

• emotional safety of students (including prevention of bullying and sexual harassment)
• physical safety of students
• teacher registration and certification
• processes for appointing staff
• stand down, suspension, expulsion and exclusion of students
• attendance
• school policies in relation to meeting the requirements of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

4 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:

• a positive collaborative culture that supports student wellbeing
• new learnings for teachers and improved teaching practice that is improving literacy levels across the school
• clear direction setting by the trustees and leaders that is focused on improving student learning and wellbeing.

Next steps

For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for further development are in:

• building effective teaching practice, to enable greater consistency in practice across the school
• improving bicultural practice through consultation with Māori students and whānau to ensure Māori students’ wellbeing and learning needs are identified, planned for and met
• improving schoolwide analysis, use and reporting of data to better understand and respond to students’ learning needs
• building evaluation capability to better know the effectiveness of learning programmes and targeted actions to raise achievement.

ERO recommends that the school seek support from the Ministry of Education in order to bring about improvements in:

• the use of achievement information.

ERO’s next external evaluation process and timing

ERO is likely to carry out the next external evaluation in three years.

Alan Wynyard

Director Review and Improvement Services Southern

Southern Region

1 February 2019

About the school