Musselburgh School

1 Context

Musselburgh is an increasingly culturally diverse school providing education to children in Years 1 to 6. This has meant greater numbers of children are receiving specialist English language learning. The school has had an increasing roll over recent years and an enrolment scheme has been implemented. The school has stable staffing and an experienced principal. The board of trustees has some new trustees and a new board chair.

The school participates in two local clusters: the Peninsula School Cluster and the Dunedin Positive Education School Cluster. Through these, leaders, teachers and students benefit from shared practices, professional development and learning experiences.

Leaders and teachers have participated in a Ministry of Education professional development initiative focused on accelerating learning in mathematics and are currently involved in a programme aimed at promoting school-wide positive behaviour for learning.

2 Equity and excellence

The school's vision is for a `positive, safe, rich learning environment where tamariki are supported to grow socially, emotionally and academically to reach their full potential'. The school's mission is `learning to live, living to learn'. Children learn to demonstrate the school's values of being kind, respectful, responsible and a learner.

The school’s achievement information shows that in recent years, increasing proportions of Māori learners are achieving at or above the National Standards (NS) for reading, writing and mathematics. In 2015, 80 % or more of Māori children were achieving at this level. This proportion is even higher in reading.

Just over three quarters of all learners achieve at or above the NS in reading and more than two thirds achieve at or above NS in writing and mathematics. More children have made accelerated progress in mathematics in the last 18 months than in reading and writing. This reflects a sustained focus on professional development in mathematics for teachers over the last three years. Children receiving specific English language learning support are making good gains in reading.

Since the last ERO evaluation the school has:

• set specific targets to raise the achievement of children at risk of poor educational outcomes
• focused on engaging Māori and Pacific children and their families in partnership with the school
• improved systems for collating, analysing and reporting some learner achievement information
• improved the tracking of individual children's progress
• reviewed and strengthened the performance management process for teachers.

3 Accelerating achievement

How effectively does this school respond to children whose learning and achievement need acceleration?

This school very effectively responds to children whose learning and achievement need acceleration.

The school has effective systems for identifying children at risk of not achieving equitable outcomes. This includes good use of achievement information and other indicators of children's wellbeing. Teachers compile detailed profiles of children based on their own observations and conversations with parents and children. These profiles consider the `whole child' in terms of their wellbeing, engagement, learning and achievement.

The school has a wide range of high quality learning support programmes and initiatives, including many that are personalised to individual children. Staff work closely with a large number of external specialists, community groups and volunteers to support children and their families to achieve positive outcomes. The board employs skilled and knowledgeable staff (in specialist roles) to respond to the diverse needs of some children.

Achievement and progress information shows that the school is effective at accelerating the progress of children who are at risk of poor educational outcomes. In particular, almost all Māori children needing to make accelerated progress in 2015 did so. Leaders and teachers know the names and needs of those children who have yet to make accelerated progress and continue to provide the additional support these children need to achieve success.

Leaders and teachers are making improved use of high quality professional development and teacher reflection. They look closely at which teaching and learning practices and strategies make the biggest difference for individual children.

Leaders should extend their analysis and interpretation of children’s achievement and progress information (school-wide and for specific groups) to determine the progress (acceleration or not) made. This information will help determine the impact of some programmes and whether goals have been met.

4 School conditions

How effectively do the school’s curriculum and other organisational processes and practices develop and enact the school’s vision, values, goals and priorities for equity and excellence?

The conditions at this school very effectively develop and enact its vision for learners. This can be seen in the:

• inclusive, collaborative way the board and staff support all children and their families
• responsive, rich, personalised approach to children's learning
• very strong curriculum focus on positive education and supporting children’s confidence and wellbeing
• well-managed transitions in and out of the school supported by productive relationships with local schools and early childhood providers
• deliberate building of some children’s readiness to learn
• development of a culturally responsive curriculum and teaching where children can see their language, identity and culture being increasingly reflected and valued
• excellent opportunities for education outside the classroom and the strategic playground redevelopment (including a bike skills track).

The board and leaders prioritise professional learning and development for all staff demonstrating their strong commitment to achieving the best outcomes for all children. Ensuring all children have equitable opportunities to learn is a priority and evident throughout the school.

Children with special education needs are extremely well provided for. Capable and skilled staff collaborate with each other about how best to provide and adapt programmes to best meet children’s needs.

The principal provides strong strategic and ethical leadership. Children’s needs and learning are at the heart of all her decisions. Through her high quality professional leadership she is effectively building staff capacity and capability in evaluation.

The next step for leaders and teachers is to ensure children are fully aware of their part in the learning process. This should include understanding how well they are achieving and progressing and what they need to do to improve. The school has prioritised this as a focus for teacher development this year as part of future-focused learning.

5 Going forward

How well placed is the school to achieve and sustain equitable and excellent outcomes for all children?

Leaders and teachers:

• know the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated
• respond effectively to the strengths, needs and interests of each child
• regularly evaluate how well teaching is working for these children
• act on what they know works well for each child
• build teacher capability effectively to achieve equitable outcomes for all children
• are well placed to achieve and sustain equitable and excellent outcomes for all children.

The board, leaders, teachers, other staff and volunteers provide well for children. Learners benefit from a personalised approach to learning, achievement and success.

Leaders and teachers should:

• ensure children have explicit instruction in learning strategies to strengthen their ability to take control of their learning and to understand how well they are achieving and progressing
• strengthen the analysis of sufficiency of learner progress to better inform internal evaluation.

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

6 Board assurance on legal requirements

Before the review the board of trustees 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.

• 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.

• Processes for appointing staff.

• Stand down, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions.

• Attendance.

• Compliance with the provisions of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

7 Recommendation

To continue to promote equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners, ERO recommends the school acts on the next steps highlighted in this report.

Chris Rowe

Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern (Acting)

31 May 2016

About the school

1 Context

What are the important features of this school that have an impact on student learning?

Students’ learning, wellbeing and sense of belonging are underpinned by the school’s cornerstone values to ‘be kind’, ‘be respectful’, ‘be responsible’ and ‘be a learner’. Teachers have built a positive, inclusive culture for learning within the school that recognises students’ diverse backgrounds.

The school has experienced a number of changes since the 2010 ERO review. These include:

• roll growth from local school closures
• some new teachers
• the modernisation and reorganisation of some learning areas in response to students’ needs.

2 Learning

How well does this school use achievement information to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement?

The school is using achievement information well to make effective decisions that support students’ learning.

Area of strength

Students in all classrooms receive good quality teaching. Teachers know their students well and make an effort to provide experiences that students can relate to and use in their learning. Teachers make good use of achievement information to plan programmes that meet the needs of their students. They actively seek to help students understand how they learn.

Area for review and development

The principal and teachers are continuing to develop ways to show individual students' progress and achievement in relation to the National Standards more clearly in cumulative records.

3 Curriculum

How effectively does this school’s curriculum promote and support student learning?

The school has successfully created an environment that promotes and supports students’ learning.

Areas of strength

Teachers are responsive to students’ needs. For example, they have been proactive in:

• establishing a developmental programme to build oral language skills in the junior school
• providing a range of support programmes such as English Language Learners, special needs, and extension
• embedding a 'circle-time' programme that builds language, and social and emotional competence in students.

The school’s expectations for teaching and learning in all curriculum areas are supported by detailed guidelines. This has built consistent approaches across the school. For example, the school-wide positive education focus has succeeded in making a difference to students’ readiness to learn.

The recent science curriculum review follows a useful process for finding out how well learning programmes promote student achievement. This model is to be used for future curriculum reviews. A strength of the model is the way student and parent opinions are sought to inform the review.

An increasing number of Pacific students are enrolling at the school. Teachers are finding ways to ensure that these students feel they belong and that their language, culture and identity are valued. The Ministry of Education (MOE) Pacific Education Plan is a resource teachers are using to help promote success for Pacific students.

How effectively does the school promote educational success for Māori, as Māori?

The school has undertaken some significant development in acknowledging the importance of Māori students’ language, identity and culture. This includes forming meaningful relationships with the Māori students’ whānau. Local kaumatua, matua and whaea help support the school culture and enrich the learning of teachers and students.

The teachers are continuing to take opportunities to strengthen the ways they make Māori students feel that their language and culture is valued. They use Ka Hikitia (Ministry of Education Strategy for Māori Education) and Tātaiako to help them understand to the way Māori students learn and to promote success for Māori students.

4 Sustainable Performance

How well placed is the school to sustain and improve its performance?

The school is well placed to sustain and improve its performance.

Areas of strength

The trustees’ focus is on all students succeeding in their learning. They have employed a significant number of teacher aides and additional teachers to support students’ learning.

The principal is effectively leading the school. She:

• provides leadership opportunities for teachers
• works collaboratively with her staff, the board and other schools and agencies
• has established effective systems to enable efficient and consistent delivery of the curriculum.

The principal, senior leaders and teachers are committed to ongoing improvement. This is evident in the way:

• teachers’ professional development is responsive to students’ needs
• action research is carried out by teachers to improve teaching and learning
• teachers are open to trialling, implementing and reflecting on new ideas
• successful approaches to improving learning for a targeted group of students are being extended to all students.

Areas for review and development

The board trustees, principal and senior leaders have identified the many factors impacting on students' achievement, including transience and students with special learning needs. They will continue to develop the reporting of these trends and the effectiveness of the school's interventions to raise achievement.

The good practice in 2011 of including the needs of the priority learners in the principal’s and teachers’ appraisal goals should continue as part of the annual performance plan.

It would be more useful to the board, particularly new trustees, if curriculum and board reports contained a more specific explanation of what the learning information shows. This could include explaining identified trends and reasons for students’ progress in achievement or why progress has not reached expectations.

The board should ensure that its targets for achievement also include significant groups of students who have been identified as 'at high risk' in their learning.

Board assurance on legal requirements

Before the review, the board of trustees 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:

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

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

• emotional safety of students (including prevention of bullying and sexual harassment)
• physical safety of students
• teacher registration
• processes for appointing staff
• stand-downs, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions
• attendance.

When is ERO likely to review the school again?

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

Graham Randell

National Manager Review Services Southern Region

30 April 2013

About the School