Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui

Education institution number:
5444
Service type:
Free Kindergarten
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
36
Telephone:
Address:

57 Bellvue Avenue, Papanui, Christchurch

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Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui - 04/05/2018

1 Evaluation of Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui

How well placed is Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

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

Background

Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui is one of 72 early learning services governed and managed by Canterbury Westland Kindergarten Association Incorporated, trading as Kidsfirst Kindergartens.

The kindergarten caters for the education and care of young children from two to six years old. All teachers/kaiako are qualified and certified early childhood education teachers/kaiako.

The association education manager (EM) provides consistent professional advice and guidance to support the effective operation of the service.

Since the 2013 ERO review the education manager and teaching team have continued to develop assessment, planning, evaluation processes and bicultural perspectives.

Teachers/kaiako have established purposeful links to the local community. This includes being part of a cluster of Burnside schools and early learning services, participating in shared professional development in 2017.

This review was part of a cluster of 11 kindergartens governed and managed by the Canterbury Westland Kindergartens Association.

The Review Findings

Teachers/kaiako are committed to the kindergarten vision and values. They use these to guide their professional practice. This includes warmly welcoming families and promoting a sense of belonging and wellbeing for children. Transitions into the kindergarten and onto school are personalised to the needs of each child.

Teachers/kaiako foster positive and reciprocal relationships with children, parents and whānau. Teachers/kaiako work very well together and support one another. The head teacher/kaiako values and makes good use of the individual strengths of teachers/kaiako including distributing leadership roles to further build capability.

Children with additional needs are well supported. Teachers/kaiako work closely with children, parents, whānau and external experts to help children achieve their personal best.

Teachers/kaiako are responsive to the interests, strengths and capabilities of children. They work effectively together to promote a strong focus on building children's social skills, including the ability to develop positive relationships and friendships with others.

Science, literacy, art and creativity are integrated into the curriculum in ways that encourage children to explore and develop their ideas and thinking. A spacious, natural outdoor area provides opportunities for children to be involved in physical play and to learn about caring for the environment. Visitors to the kindergarten enhance learning experiences for children.

Parents and whānau are well informed about their children’s participation in interesting learning experiences through a range of informative learning records and displays.

Teacher/kaiako successfully implement a collaborative and systematic process of internal evaluation that is focused on continually improving teaching practices and opportunities for children to learn.

The Canterbury Westland Kindergarten Association has a well-developed and clearly understood vision. It is underpinned by targeted strategic and annual planning systems. There are close links between the kindergarten plans, internal evaluation, appraisal and professional development. The teachers/kaiako are well supported by association managers and leaders to achieve the priorities of the kindergarten and to promote high quality learning outcomes for all children.

The board that governs the organisation is highly skilled and committed. The association has a very strong commitment to providing high quality professional development to build on leadership capacity and teacher/kaiako capability. It has high expectations for teaching and learning and equitable outcomes for all children. This includes a strong focus on promoting understandings of and respect for te ao Māori (the Māori world) at all levels of the organisation. The association's internal evaluation and assurances practices are being well used to inform decision making and support the strong focus on continuous improvement.

Key Next Steps

The education manager and teaching team have identified, and ERO’s evaluation has confirmed, that the key next steps are to:

  • build on understandings of te ao Māori
  • further develop culturally responsive practices to support the language, culture and identity of diverse learners
  • strengthen assessment and planning and evaluation practices
  • review the impact of routines on learning outcomes for children, including the provision for supporting children to lead their own learning.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui 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/kaiako 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 Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui will be in three years.

Dr Lesley Patterson

Deputy Chief Review Officer

Te Waipounamu - Southern Region

4 May 2018

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

Christchurch

Ministry of Education profile number

5444

Licence type

Free Kindergarten

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

40 children, over the age of 2 years

Service roll

43

Gender composition

Girls 23; Boys 20

Ethnic compositions

Māori
Pākehā
Pacific
Asian
Other ethnicities

1
26
3
7
6

Percentage of qualified teachers

0-49% 50-79% 80%+

Based on funding rates

80% +

Reported ratios of staff to children

Over 2

1:10

Meets minimum requirements

Review team on site

February 2018

Date of this report

4 May 2018

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

February 2013

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.

Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui - 20/02/2013

1 Evaluation of the Service

How well placed is the service to promote positive outcomes for children?

This kindergarten is well placed to promote positive outcomes for children. Increasing teachers’ focus on the teaching practices that best support children’s learning progress, should put this kindergarten in an even stronger position to extend children’s interests and learning.

Context

Kidsfirst Kindergartens administers 62 kindergartens and one early learning centre in Canterbury and the West Coast. An education services manager (ESM) works with each kindergarten giving feedback and professional support. This kindergarten has a stable staff, with some long-serving teachers, who provide continuity for children and families. All teachers employed by Kidsfirst Kindergartens are fully qualified and registered early childhood teachers.

A new entrance, built in response to the 2007 ERO report, has helped to improve children’s supervision and safety.

The kindergarten has been relicensed under the 2008 Early Childhood Regulations.

This review was conducted as part of a cluster approach to reviews in nine kindergartens within the Kidsfirst Kindergartens umbrella organisation.

Areas of strength

Relationships between teachers and children and among children are positive, sensitive and caring.

Teachers involve themselves fully in children’s play and take an interest in children’s lives.

Children confidently begin conversations with teachers and other children. They play together well for long periods of time.

Relationships with parents are supportive and encouraging. Parents and teachers regularly share useful information about children’s participation in the programme and their needs and interests. Teachers make good use of the skills and expertise of parents and whānau in the programme to extend children’s experiences.

Children benefit from a learning environment that is well resourced and attractively presented to motivate and engage them. This is most evident in:

  • the children’s greater use of information and communication technologies (ICT) such as computers, iPads and digital cameras
  • the practical science resources, the focus on gardening and other healthy living practices
  • the way teachers continue to provide different resources to support children’s changing interests and strengths
  • the good use children make of the outdoor area to extend their physical skills and play ideas.

The teachers make effective use of the local community and specialist resources to extend children’s experiences and understandings of the wider world. For example, a feature of the current programme is a weekly drama session led by a specialist teacher.

Teachers have improved the way they assess children’s learning. Children’s individual interests and strengths are now identified more consistently. Teachers are also more focused on recognising children’s attitudes towards learning. Wall displays show children’s involvement in the programme, making this known to children and parents.

Teachers have made some good progress in self review. They now have a clearer and shared understanding of the review process. This is contributing to more useful reflection on the programme and identifying how it could be improved.

Kidsfirst Kindergartens Association has a well developed policy and practice framework to support the daily and long-term operation of the kindergarten. The association is kept well informed about the work of the kindergarten by the ESM and head teacher. Kidsfirst Kindergartens’ managers have recently developed a new process for reviewing and reporting kindergarten information. This process is likely to help them further target their support for improving learning outcomes for children.

Areas for development and review

The teachers have identified, and ERO agrees, that programme planning, assessment and evaluation could be improved further. Teachers need to more clearly identify in planning records:

  • what they want children to learn
  • the teachers' role in supporting this learning
  • how successful these teaching practices have been in extending children’s learning.

In assessment, teachers need to show how children’s learning is progressing over time. They should also more clearly show how they are responding to parents’ aspirations for their children’s learning. Children could be more fully involved in their own assessments. Children’s assessment information should be linked clearly to programme planning.

Aspects of self review need further development. Recent reviews have focused mainly on the teachers' role in providing resources for children. Teachers should give greater emphasis in reviews to identifying a broader range of teaching practices that are most effective or may need changing to improve outcomes for children.

Extending bicultural learning, identified as an area for improvement in the 2007 ERO report, continues to be an area for further development. Teachers recognise the need to gain a deeper understanding of the best ways to promote success for Māori children as Māori. Teachers should extend their knowledge and use of te reo and tikanga Māori so that these become a regular part of the programme.

2 Legal Requirements

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Kidsfirst Kindergartens Papanui 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.

3 Next Review

When is ERO likely to review the early childhood service again?

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

Graham Randell National Manager Review Services Southern Region

20 February 2013

Information about the Early Childhood Service

Location

Christchurch

Ministry of Education profile number

5444

Licence type

Kindergarten

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

40 children over the age of two yearsnumber

Service roll

53

Gender composition

Girls 25; Boys 28

Ethnic composition

New Zealand European/Pākehā

Māori

Asian

Other ethnicities

35

8

9

1

Percentage of qualified teachers

80%

Reported ratios of staff to children

     
 

Over 2

1:10

Meets minimum requirements

Review team on site

November 2012

Date of this report

20 February 2013

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

Education Review

Accountability Review

October 2007

June 2004

November 1998

General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

About ERO Reviews

The Education Review Office (ERO) is the New Zealand government department that reviews schools and early childhood services throughout New Zealand.

Review focus

ERO's education reviews in early childhood services focus on the factors that contribute to positive learning outcomes for children. ERO evaluates how well placed the service is to make and sustain improvements for the benefit of all children at the service. To reach these findings ERO considers:

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 self review and partnerships with parents and whānau.

Review Coverage

ERO reviews do not cover every aspect of service performance and each ERO report may cover different issues. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.