School Context
Omarama School provides education for 47 students from Years 1 to 8. Students from a wide catchment area in the Waitaki Valley attend the school. They learn in two multilevel classes. Over recent years the roll has been growing.
Since the last ERO review the school has a new principal and there have been changes to staffing and the board.
The school values and mission relate to the meaning of Omarama – ‘Learning and Thriving in the Place of LIGHT’ (Learners, Inclusive, Grow, Happy Helpers, Truthful). The vision is for students to be engaged, confident, connected life-long learners, comfortable in a bicultural setting, and who are academically, socially and emotionally competent.
To support these outcomes the current strategic goals are to:
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develop self-regulated learners
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develop an effective appraisal system
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improve student achievement
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support and grow the new principal’s leadership
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manage property upgrades.
Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, school-wide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:
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student achievement and progress/accelerated progress
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student progress/achievement in relation to school targets
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outcomes related to engagement and wellbeing for success
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outcomes related to identity, culture and language.
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?
Over the last two years achievement reports show that:
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most students (between 75% and 90%) are achieving at or above expectations in reading, writing and mathematics
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achievement levels for Māori students have lifted significantly in reading and writing.
Survey data of wellbeing shows that most students feel they have a sense of belonging and are cared for by other students and staff. Students who need extra support to succeed socially and academically are identified early, and given focused opportunities to develop and improve.
1.2 How well is the school accelerating learning for those Māori and other students who need this?
The school is effective in accelerating the learning for those students who need to make accelerated progress.
Students who are not achieving as expected are identified early and given extra expert support to accelerate their progress. Students who achieve highly are also given extra challenges to extend their learning. An increasing focus is on students knowing about themselves as learners and becoming self-managing.
Over the last two years most students needing to make accelerated progress did so.
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?
Trustees, leaders and teachers have an ongoing commitment for all students to have a sense of belonging, feel safe at school and succeed in their learning. Students learn in a positive and inclusive school environment. The board has made strategic appointments of staff that have impacted positively on the school culture and on raising student achievement. The key competencies and school values are interwoven into all aspects of students’ learning.
Students experience a rich curriculum that includes active use of the unique local environment and expertise. They benefit from effective teaching and education-beyond-the-classroom programmes that provide authentic and exciting opportunities for learning. Useful processes help students make smooth transitions into and beyond the school.
Teachers know the students and their families very well. Students told ERO that teachers care about them and that the school was like a family. Children with additional learning needs are well included in learning activities so that they can access the full curriculum.
Students are very well supported in their learning. Teachers plan in detail for individual students after their learning needs have been analysed and identified. Tailored programmes provide intensive learning support for individual and small groups of students, especially in reading and writing. Teachers discuss and monitor these students closely to ensure that accelerated progress is being made. Teachers are well supported by relevant professional learning and external expertise to understand and meet the particular needs of some students.
The principal is an effective professional leader. She is leading positive change, promoting bicultural awareness and is focused on continuous improvement. Along with all staff, she is building strong relational trust with families and the wider community.
The board is well informed about student progress and achievement and other school operations. It uses this information well to make strategic decisions aimed at improving student achievement at all levels. Trustees, the principal and teachers plan carefully and strategically to ensure students’ learning and wellbeing is the priority. The principal and teachers implement useful processes of internal evaluation for improvement at all levels of the school.
Appropriate practices and coherent systems are in place to support the school’s targets and goals.
2.2 What further developments are needed in school processes and practices for achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?
It is timely for the trustees, principal and teachers to make explicit the school’s valued student outcomes. This would help strengthen and make more focused the internal evaluation process.
The school has identified that the appraisal process needs to be strengthened.
Aspects of the strategic plan could be refined to better reflect the current direction and priorities of the school.
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:
During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student safety and wellbeing:
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emotional safety of students (including prevention of bullying and sexual harassment)
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physical safety of students
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teacher registration and certification
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processes for appointing staff
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stand down, suspension, expulsion and exclusion of students
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attendance
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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:
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school leadership and school-wide collaborative practices
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the strong focus on all students being given the opportunity to succeed through high quality teaching and learning programmes
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a rich curriculum using the local environment
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the positive and inclusive school culture.
Next steps
For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for further development are in:
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more clearly identifying and documenting the school’s valued student outcomes for success
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making reports to the board more evaluative and focused on measuring against the strategic goals
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fully developing and implementing the appraisal process.
ERO’s next external evaluation process and timing
ERO is likely to carry out the next external evaluation in three years.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern
Te Waipounamu - Southern Region
16 July 2018
About the school
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Location
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Omarama
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Ministry of Education profile number
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3789
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School type
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Full Primary (Years 1-8)
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School roll
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47
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Gender composition
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Girls: 28
Boys: 19
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Ethnic composition
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Māori: 6
Pākehā: 40
Other Ethnicities: 1
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Students with Ongoing Resourcing Funding (ORS)
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Yes
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Provision of Māori medium education
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No
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Review team on site
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May 2018
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Date of this report
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16 July 2018
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Most recent ERO reports
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Education Review: October 2014
Education Review: August 2012
Education Review: June 2009
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