Country Village Preschool

Education institution number:
46559
Service type:
Education and Care Service
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
63
Telephone:
Address:

1070 Paerata Rd, Pukekohe West, Auckland

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Country Village Preschool

1 ERO’s Judgements

Akarangi | Quality Evaluation evaluates the extent to which this early childhood service has the learning and organisational conditions to support equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners. Te Ara Poutama Indicators of quality for early childhood education: what matters most are the basis for making judgements about the effectiveness of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. Judgements are made in relation to the Outcomes Indicators, Learning and Organisational Conditions. The Evaluation Judgement Rubric derived from the indicators, is used to inform ERO’s judgements about this service’s performance in promoting equity and excellence.

ERO’s judgements for Country Village Preschool are as follows:

Outcome Indicators

(What the service knows about outcomes for learners)

Whakaū Embedding

Ngā Akatoro Domains

 

Learning Conditions
Organisational Conditions

Whāngai Establishing

Whakaū Embedding

2 Context of the Service

Country Village Preschool is a privately owned service and the owners are actively involved in the daily running of the service. The manager provides professional leadership. The philosophy prioritises outdoor learning experiences for tamariki. The roll includes a small number of Māori learners and children attend from a range of other ethnicities.

3 Summary of findings

Tamariki form trusting relationships with kaiako. Oral language development is well supported through responsiveness to infants' and toddlers' verbal and non-verbal cues. A calm, slow pace, and predictable routines, build younger tamariki sense of security.

Older tamariki ways of learning and understandings of the world around them are well supported through:

  • weekly excursions to the local forest

  • well-resourced learning environments

  • regular play-based literacy and numeracy experiences

  • opportunities to lead their own learning.

Tamariki with additional learning needs experience an inclusive environment. Professional learning supports teachers to grow their capacity in response to tamariki needs. Networked relationships with agencies, and partnership with whānau, support tamariki learning and development.

The service is at an early stage of developing cultural responsiveness. Māori tamariki hear some te reo and experience some tikanga. Pacific culture is acknowledged through celebrations. Tuakana-teina relationships support younger learners. There are some aspects of localised curriculum in place and the service is developing ways to effectively respond to the culture, language, and identity of all tamariki.

The learning outcomes from Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, are the basis for planning and assessment. Whānau aspirations are gathered and are beginning to be utilised. Assessments enhance tamariki as capable learners.

Coherent organisational conditions enable governance and kaiako to do and use evaluation for improvement. Relational trust is in place. Professional growth cycles are established. Leaders align resources to the service’s philosophy and priorities for learning. The service has yet to monitor the impact of improvement actions against learning outcomes for tamariki.

4 Improvement actions

Country Village Preschool will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:

  • Strengthen a localised curriculum which includes the history, protocols, and legends of the local area in partnership with mana whenua, hapū and iwi to better support the cultural identity of tamariki Māori.

  • Build teacher capability around recognising and responding to the identities, languages, and cultures of all tamariki and their parents and whanau.

  • Strengthen internal evaluation processes to enable leaders and kaiako to monitor how improvement actions are impacting on learning outcomes for tamariki over time.

5 Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Country Village Preschool 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.

Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region | Te Tai Pūtahi Nui

1 September 2022 

6 About the Early Childhood Service

Early Childhood Service Name

Country Village Preschool

Profile Number

46559

Location

Pukekohe West

Service type

Education and care service

Number licensed for

72 children, including up to 20 aged under 2

Percentage of qualified teachers

100%

Service roll

76

Review team on site

June 2022

Date of this report

1 September 2022

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review, August 2017

Country Village Preschool - 10/08/2017

1 Evaluation of Country Village Preschool

How well placed is Country Village Preschool to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

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

Background

Country Village Preschool is a privately owned and operated centre in Paerata, just north of Pukekohe. It opened in 2014 and provides all-day care and education for children from two years to school age. The centre is licensed for 27 children and the current roll of 31 includes 10 Māori children. A centre manager provides overall professional leadership and is supported by a head teacher.

The centre's philosophy promotes an environment where children can freely explore, create and connect with the outdoors. There is a commitment to get to know families and build children's self-esteem to become confident and capable learners. The centre is welcoming to children and their families.

The Review Findings

Children experience a broad curriculum with a particular emphasis on the natural environment. There is a focus on teaching sustainable practices which includes helping to care for the gardens and centre animals. The programme is a combination of teacher-led and child-initiated activities. Literacy and mathematics are naturally integrated into children's play.

The centre manager is continuing to build positive partnerships with local schools to support children as they transition to school. Children learn in a well-resourced and settled environment where parents are encouraged to participate and share their knowledge. Relationships are cooperative and respectful between older and younger children. There is a strong sense of well-being and belonging for children and their families.

Teachers know the children well. They actively work alongside children, supporting them to persist with their play and learning. Children's interests are followed and extended through teachers valuing what they bring to their learning. Teachers regularly refresh the learning environment making it attractive and interesting for children. They are committed to integrating te reo and tikanga Māori into their daily programmes and have set goals to deepen their understanding of te ao Māori. Teachers use appropriate teaching strategies to identify and assist children who need extra support to make progress. These responsive teaching practices contribute to children's development as capable learners.

Children's individual portfolios provide an attractive record of their experiences and are readily available for them to revisit and share with their parents. Teachers are continuing to develop their assessment capability to show children's progress over time.

The centre manager is experienced and knowledgeable. She provides very effective guidance and professional support to teachers, in particular modelling effective teaching practice. There is a strong focus on building teacher capability. Internal evaluation systems are well established and inform teaching and learning and centre operations. It is a safe environment for children. The centre's comprehensive strategic plan is providing clear direction for the service. It is strongly focused on developing systems to meet the centre's philosophy. The plan underpins the provision of a quality learning programmes for children.

Key Next Steps

ERO and the centre leader agree that the key next steps are to:

  • consolidate shared understandings around effective teaching, including assessment practices to show children's learning and progress over time

  • increase the visibility of children's language, culture and identity.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Country Village Preschool 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 Country Village Preschool will be in three years.

Lynda Pura-Watson

Deputy Chief Review Officer Waikato/Bay of Plenty

10 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 

Location

Pukekohe

Ministry of Education profile number

46559

Licence type

Education & Care Service

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

28 children, including up to 0 aged under 2

Service roll

31

Gender composition

Boys 16 Girls 15

Ethnic composition

Māori
Pākehā
Other

10
18
3

Percentage of qualified teachers

0-49% 50-79% 80%+

Based on funding rates

80% +

Reported ratios of staff to children

Over 2

1:8

Better than minimum requirements

Review team on site

July 2017

Date of this report

10 August 2017

Most recent ERO report(s) 

No previous ERO reports

 

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.