Parklands School (Motueka)

Parklands School (Motueka)

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 18 months of the Education Review Office and Parklands School (Motueka) working in Te Ara Huarau, an improvement evaluation approach used in most English Medium State and State Integrated Schools. For more information about Te Ara Huarau see ERO’s website. www.ero.govt.nz

Context 

Parklands School (Motueka) - Te Kura o Pakarana is in the centre of Motueka, a township in the heart of the Tasman Province and 50km from Nelson City. Parklands is a full primary school offering both English and Māori Medium classes to students in Years 0 - 8. The rumaki is known as Taumata Kahuki.

The current Principal has been the tumuaki of Parklands School since January 2020. The school also is home to the district's Technology Education Centre which offers learning for students in Years 7-8 from 13 contributing schools from around the Motueka area.

Parklands School (Motueka)’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are for:

  • all tamariki to meet their full potential through a creative and responsive curriculum underpinned by evidence based teaching and learning practices

  • a strong sense of community with a strong culture which is healthy, inclusive and restorative

  • its commitment to te reo and tikanga Māori to be promoted through the safe, attractive learning spaces and grounds.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Parklands School (Motueka)’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how effectively the school’s approaches to teaching and assessing reading responds to the needs of students in Years 4-6.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

  • the school has identified that there are groups of students achieving less well in reading than other groups in this age range

  • strengthening teacher capability in teaching and assessing reading will support consistency of best practice in literacy across the school

  • to strengthen coherence in evaluating other priorities, including positive school culture, local curriculum and building partnerships with whānau.

The school expects to see equitable and excellent outcomes in reading as students move through the school.

Strengths

The school has made progress towards its priorities in the time it has been in Te Ara Huarau. It can draw from the following strengths to support the school in its goal to improve outcomes for learners in reading:

  • early indications of progress towards equity in outcomes for learners across the curriculum as students build social resilience in changing times

  • increased opportunities to engage with reading across the curriculum and in a range of settings

  • the provision of quality resources and the commitment of teachers to improve capability to teach reading through increased collaborative learning and planning practices.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

  • strengthening teacher practice through implementing its plans for professional learning in literacy

  • developing and implementing a school-wide understanding of how reading is taught at Parklands School through the introduction of a bespoke reading progressions framework

  • continuing to accelerate the progress of its diverse groups of learners through targeted actions and resourcing.

ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. ERO will support the school in reporting their progress to the community. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.

Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini

27 January 2023 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement.  educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Parklands School (Motueka)

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2022 to 2025

As of July 2022, the Parklands School (Motueka) Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Ye

Personnel Management

Yes

Finance

Yes

Assets

Yes

Further Information

For further information please contact Parklands School (Motueka) Board.

The next School Board assurance that it is meeting regulatory and legislative requirements will be reported, along with the Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report, within three years.

Information on ERO’s role and process in this review can be found on the Education Review Office website.

Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini

27 January 2023 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Parklands School (Motueka)

Provision for International Students Report

Background

The Education Review Office reviews schools that are signatories to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020.

Findings

The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020.  The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code.

No international students were enrolled at the time of the ERO review.

Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini

27 January 2023 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Parklands School (Motueka) - 28/09/2017

Summary

At the time of this review, the Parklands School roll was 240, including 76 Māori children.

Special features of the school include a Māori bilingual class and an attached technology centre for Years 7 to 8 children in the district.

A new principal was appointed to the school in Term 3, 2016. Staffing is stable with many long-serving leaders and teachers. The board is a mix of experienced and recently-elected trustees.

A Ministry of Education (MoE) advisor has worked with the school and some teachers have participated in MoE programmes to improve learning and teaching.

The school is a member of the Motueka Kāhui Ako| Community of Learning (CoL).

How well is the school achieving equitable outcomes for all children?

The school has yet to achieve equitable outcomes for all children.

Since the beginning of 2017 the school has been strongly focused on accelerating the achievement of students who are at risk of underachievement. The school leaders have made effective use of internal evaluation to develop and implement a new organisational structure. This includes systems and practices to improve the quality of learning and teaching. These developments have been well accepted by staff and children. The school needs more time to embed and evaluate the effectiveness of these new approaches in accelerating student achievement, particularly for Māori and Pacific children, and for boys.

Leaders and teachers:

  • know the learners whose progress and achievement need to be accelerated

  • need to embed recent initiatives to improve the school conditions that support the acceleration of learners’ progress and achievement

  • need to build teacher capability to accelerate learners’ progress and achievement.

The school agrees to:

  • develop more targeted planning to accelerate progress for learners

  • monitor targeted planning, improved teaching, and learners’ progress

  • discuss the school’s progress with ERO.

ERO will:

  • provide feedback and resources to support the development of more targeted acceleration of student achievement.

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

Equity and excellence

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

The school has yet to effectively respond to Māori and other children whose learning and achievement need acceleration.

Māori and Pacific children and boys are achieving less well than their peers against National Standards in reading and writing. Children are making similar progress in the National Standards in mathematics.

Children with additional learning needs are well supported in their learning and the school environment. Their parents are kept well informed about their learning and wellbeing.

The school has made effective use of internal evaluation and external support to put in place systems and practices to accelerate children’s progress. These systems and practices identify, plan for and closely monitor the progress of children who need their progress accelerated.

Significantly more accurate and consistent assessment and moderation processes had been achieved by the end of 2016. This is due to school leaders’ effective use of internal evaluation, targeted professional development and robust monitoring practices. Some teachers are beginning to use a national evaluation tool to further strengthen their judgements. The school has yet to establish regular moderation with other schools to improve consistency across schools.

School conditions supporting equity and excellence

What school processes are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence?

The school has a number of new processes that are in the early stages of implementation. It is too early to make judgements on their effectiveness in enabling equity and excellence.

The board and senior leaders have set a strong goal to improve student achievement and accelerate the progress of children at risk of not achieving success in their learning. The new operational structure is well aligned to achieving this goal and ensuring that the quality of learning and teaching significantly improves. Teachers support the implementation of the new structure. They are beginning to identify the ways changes to their teaching practices are improving outcomes for children.

Internal evaluation is effectively used to gather opinions from the many groups involved in the school, and to identify what is going well and where change needs to occur. The strategic plan goals are closely linked to the school’s vision and values, professional development and staff appraisal. Action plans are actively monitored and progress in implementing the plans is regularly reported to the board.

School leaders work together effectively. They share the same vision and goals for improving student achievement. They have put in place robust systems and practices to support teachers to improve their practice. Leaders closely monitor progress in teaching practice and children’s achievement.

The board, school leaders and teachers place a high priority on children’s wellbeing and physical safety. Children are well supported to develop strategies to help them manage their behaviour, work cooperatively with others and respect individual differences. Leaders and teachers know the children and their families well. They provide the resources for children to participate fully in the curriculum. Classrooms are calm and children are actively involved in their learning.

Te āo Māori is highly evident in classrooms and at school events. Many teachers have considerable skills in this area. They support the integration of te reo and tikanga Māori into all aspects of school life. Māori children are proud to be Māori. All children have many opportunities to understand and enjoy New Zealand’s bicultural heritage.

Sustainable development for equity and excellence

What further developments are needed in school processes to achieve equity and excellence?

The board and school leaders have put a number of new systems and practices in place. It is too early for ERO to evaluate how well these systems and practices are supporting the school to achieve equity and excellence for all children.

Leaders need to extend internal evaluation practices to evaluate the impact of the new operational structure in improving student achievement, and the quality of learning and teaching.

The board, school leaders and teachers must improve student achievement and accelerate the progress of those children at risk of not achieving successful learning outcomes.

Leaders need to continue to build teachers’ capability so that children take more responsibility for their learning. In particular children need to be more involved in setting their own learning goals and contributing to curriculum decisions.

Leaders need to review the school curriculum document to ensure it provides sufficient guidance and clear expectations for teaching and learning. The school curriculum document also needs to reflect the school’s strong commitment to te reo and tikanga Māori.

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

  • 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.

Provision for international students

The school is a signatory of the Education (Pastoral Care of International Students) Code of Practice 2016 established under section 238F of the Education Act 1989. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code.

No International students were enrolled at the time of the ERO review.

Going forward

How well placed is the school to accelerate the achievement of all children who need it?

The school is not yet well placed to accelerate the progress of children who need it. The school is developing capacity and capability to accelerate learning for all learners. However, disparity in achievement for Māori and/or other learners remains.

Leaders and teachers:

  • know the learners whose progress and achievement need to be accelerated

  • need to develop and implement approaches that effectively meet the needs of each learner

  • need to embed recent initiatives to improve the school conditions that support the acceleration of learners’ progress and achievement

  • need to build teacher capability to accelerate learners’ progress and achievement.

The school agrees to:

  • develop more targeted planning to accelerate progress for learners

  • monitor targeted planning, improved teaching, and learners’ progress

  • discuss the school’s progress with ERO.

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

The principal has advised ERO that the school will continue to work with the Ministry of Education (MoE) to:

  • embed recent improvement initiatives
  • address key priorities for further development such as strengthening internal evaluation practices, including curriculum and charter review.

ERO acknowledges and supports this ongoing improvement partnership between the school and MoE.

ERO also requires the school to report progress regarding achievement and other key priorities at identified times over the next 18 months.

Dr Lesley Patterson

Deputy Chief Review Officer – Southern (Te Waipounamu)

28 September 2017

About the school

Location

Motueka

Ministry of Education profile number

3213

School type

Full Primary (Years 1-8)

School roll

240

Gender composition

Boys 55% : Girls 45%

Ethnic composition

Māori 32%

Pakeha 53%

Pacific 4%

Other 11%

Provision of Māori medium education

Yes

Number of Māori medium classes

1

Total number of students in Māori medium (MME)

11

Number of students in Level 2 MME

2

Review team on site

July and August 2017

Date of this report

28 September 2017

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review June 2014

Education Review October 2010

Education Review January 2008

Parklands School (Motueka) - 11/06/2014

1 Context

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

Parklands School (Motueka) is a full primary school for students in Years 1 to 8. Thirty percent of the students identify as Māori, and there is an increasing multicultural student roll. Students come from a range of backgrounds.

Special features of the school include a Māori bilingual unit made up of three classes and an attached technology centre for Years 7 to 8 students in the district. A family service centre, playcentre, early childhood centre and community oral health clinic are also located on the school site. A school social worker, strengthening families' coordinator, a resource teacher of Māori and a highly respected kaumatua kuia (Māori elder) are also based at the school.

Staff members know the students and their families well. Many teachers have been at the school for a long time, or have chosen to return to the school.

The highly visible shared vision and well-understood bicultural values are evident in the positive culture and good relationships at all levels of the school.

Teachers have high expectations for learning and behaviour. They are seeking different ways that they can help parents to be more involved in their children’s learning.

The board and senior managers have made good progress towards meeting the recommendations outlined in the 2010 ERO report.

2 Learning

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

The school is improving its use of student achievement data to make positive changes for learners. The 2013 data shows the school has been successful in promoting student achievement and progress in literacy and mathematics for most targeted groups. The information shows that as students move through the school their achievement against National Standards improves.

Since 2012, school leaders and teachers have improved their understanding, and use of national standards and the Māori achievement standards. They have developed broad targets for groups of priority students who do not meet the National Standards in literacy and mathematics. These priority students include Māori, Pacific, and groups of boys.

ERO identified, and the board and the school leaders agree that the annual achievement targets need to be more specific, measurable and achievable for students.

The school has effectively used a range of professional development to upskill leaders and teachers. This has helped teachers to:

  • establish clearer expectations for learning, teaching and student engagement
  • more accurately assess, and use student achievement data effectively
  • evaluate the best ways to plan, teach and implement programmes to lift student achievement.

Students’ success in literacy and mathematics, and physical education and sport is actively promoted, and celebrated by teachers and the school community. Students regularly achieve well in outside competitions. The school has good procedures in place to provide for students' pastoral care.

Leaders have established systems that are helping teachers to improve students’ engagement in learning. The prominent use of the school’s values and a programme that promotes positive behaviour for learning has resulted in improved student behaviour and engagement across the school.

ERO identified, and the senior leaders agree, that students’ written reports need to be written in plain language so they are easily understood by parents.

3 Curriculum

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

The school’s curriculum provides a wide range of learning experiences through contexts that are relevant to students. It provides opportunities for students to explore and learn te reo me ngā tikanga Māori (the Māori language and culture), health and nutrition and caring for the environment.

Leaders and teachers have a planned approach to reviewing curriculum areas. This includes useful guidelines for teachers. This is particularly evident in the mathematics and literacy programmes.

The school’s integrated theme enables teachers to plan together and provide suitable experiences for different age groups. Students from different year levels work together in buddy programmes. Students' opinions about events and activities are regularly sought within the student council.

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

The school is effectively promoting educational success for Māori as Māori. The Māori curriculum for the bilingual unit strongly reflects Māori values and aspirations for learning and achievement. Māori perspectives are being integrated across the school’s curriculum.

Students and staff in the bilingual classes are well supported by a kuia who is the kaiarahi i te reo (language assistant). They also greatly benefit from the immense cultural knowledge of the kuia. The physical environment strongly reflects the bicultural commitment of the school. A korowai (cloak), tukutuku panels and whakairoiro (carvings) are highly visible in the school environment.

Students are proud of their performance at the school’s cultural festival. This festival was part of a school-wide learning topic called Tūrangawaewae (our place in the world, our home).

Staff across the school are committed to developing their own knowledge of te reo me nga tikanga Māori.

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.

The board is committed to ensuring effective governance. Trustees have high expectations of the leaders and are committed to supporting professional development that will improve achievement for students. Trustees have a useful mix of skills. The board engages the services of a cultural adviser and a financial/executive officer.

The school leaders are developing useful systems and practices to get consistency across the school in the key learning areas. They have focused on developing the leadership capability of teachers who lead the key curriculum areas.

The leaders and teachers have a growing shared understanding of ways to effectively use student achievement information and to make changes to improve outcomes for students (self review).

Since the 2011 ERO review, the board and school leaders worked with a student achievement facilitator from the Ministry of Education to develop an action plan to improve student achievement. This plan and the school’s charter clearly set out the school’s strategic direction, current priorities and next steps.

Annual targets are based on student achievement data, and are then linked to teacher appraisal goals. The senior managers have developed a new, more robust, appraisal process which has yet to be fully implemented. Teachers are in the early stages of linking their practices to improved outcomes for students’ learning.

ERO, the board and school leaders agree, that aspects of self review should be strengthened. This includes:

  • having indicators that clearly define what success looks like for students’ learning
  • seeking the opinions of students, whānau and employees anonymously, to review emotional and physical safety.

The board and leaders agree that the school needs to consolidate and embed practices and processes that have been introduced since the 2011 ERO review, to ensure a greater number of students progress and achieve the school’s expectations and National Standards.

Provision for international students

Parklands School (Motueka) is a signatory to the Code of Practice for Pastoral Care of International Students (the Code) established under section 258F of the Education Act 1989. Parklands school has attested that it complies with the Code.

At the time of this review, there was one international student attending the school. The school effectively meets this student’s learning and pastoral care needs.

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

11 June 2014

About the School

Location

Motueka

Ministry of Education profile number

3213

School type

Full Primary (Years 1 to 8)

School roll

281

Number of international students

1

Gender composition

Boys 142; Girls 139

Ethnic composition

NZ European/ Pākehā

Māori

Pacific

Asian

Other ethnicities

53%

32%

5%

5%

5%

Special Features

Māori immersion unit Attached technology centre

Review team on site

April 2014

Date of this report

11 June 2014

Most recent ERO reports

Education Review

Education Review

Education Review

October 2010

January 2008

March 2005