Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School

Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 20 months of the Education Review Office and Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School 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

Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School provides education for students in Years 1 to 6 and is located in Flat Bush East Auckland. Since the previous ERO review in 2017, two school leaders have been appointed to the senior leadership team.

The school’s vision is to grow students with Catholic faith in their hearts, minds and actions, and who are confident, connected, collaborative and critically discerning. The school values aspire for students to be ‘Full of Grace, Obedient, Faithful, Compassionate, Thoughtful, Hopeful, Contented and Determined’.

Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are to:

  • provide authentic opportunities that will foster and nurture spiritual growth

  • strengthen and sustain capability so that teaching and learning is enhanced

  • design concept learning through a localised curriculum so that students become critical, confident and connected learners able to engage in a rapidly changing world

  • strengthen the partnerships within the South East Christian Kāhui Ako to empower all teachers to grow professionally

  • embrace and strengthen cultural efficacy in order to live the shared Catholic faith.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on the Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the impact of effective teaching on learner progress and achievement.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to promote equity and inclusion for all students to access learning and to develop teachers’ consistent use of effective teaching practices.

The school expects to see:

  • students who are achieving and progressing in their learning at expected levels

  • students engaging with their learning well

  • a shared vision and understanding of learning within the school’s learning community.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate the impact of effective teaching on learner progress and achievement:

  • strong school values that guide and support students

  • a positive and respectful school culture that promotes students’ love for learning

  • a responsive curriculum that focuses on meeting all students’ learning needs

  • committed teachers who are reflective of the school’s community

  • an engaged, supportive and collaborative school community.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

  • embedding and sustaining teachers’ use of effective literacy strategies to promote all students’ access to and expression of their learning

  • continuing to promote culturally responsive practices to develop students’ sense of belonging and mana as learners.

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.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

25 September 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

Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2023 to 2026

As of August 2023, the Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Yes

Personnel Management

Yes

Finance

Yes

Assets

Yes

Further Information

For further information please contact Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School, School 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.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

25 September 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

Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School - 29/05/2017

Summary

At the time of this review the school’s roll of 366 comprises five percent Māori children, seven percent Pākehā, 16 percent from the Pacific nations and 51 percent South East Asian and Chinese. In addition, there are children from Africa, India, the Middle East, other Asian nations and Latin America. The school celebrates diversity and caters very well for children who require additional learning support and for children who are learning English as an additional language.

Since the 2014 ERO review the school has continued to grow and it is now close to its maximum roll. As the school has grown, new leadership positions and structures have been introduced to support teachers and improve children’s learning outcomes. Throughout this period of growth the school has continued to focus on building children’s capacity to take greater ownership of their learning. The principle of ako, where everyone is empowered to learn from each other, is clearly evident in the school.

The school’s public achievement information shows that it is very effectively achieving and sustaining excellent educational outcomes for children. Close to 90 percent of children who leave the school at Year 6, achieve the National Standard in reading, writing and mathematics.

The board and senior leaders have responded well to the findings of ERO’s 2014 review.

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

The school is very effectively responding to Māori and other children whose learning and achievement need acceleration.

Leaders and teachers have introduced useful programmes to build the oral language and vocabulary of children for whom English is an additional language. They have also identified the need to continue developing strategies to accelerate the progress of boys, particularly in writing.

The school’s curriculum and teaching programmes are effectively supporting children to achieve the valued learner outcomes identified in the school’s charter and in TheNew Zealand Curriculum(NZC). Sancta Maria Catholic Primary School’s special Catholic charism and values underpin all school systems and processes and contribute towards the school achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all children.

Children are achieving well. The school demonstrates strong progress toward achieving equity in educational outcomes, supported by effective, sustainable processes and practices.

Agreed next steps are to: 

  • continue developing programmes and strategies to accelerate the progress of boys in writing and of children for whom English is an additional language
  • embed and deepen ‘student agency’ ensuring children are equipped to lead and manage their learning
  • continue to develop professional coaching and the role of the recently introduced ‘learning leaders’ to strengthen effective teaching and learning. 

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 responds very effectively to Māori and other children whose learning and achievement need acceleration. Children achieve understanding of the competencies, skills and values of The New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) and the charism of the school. The mission statement, “students who are educated, successful, and connected learners growing Catholic faith in their hearts and minds”, echoes both the school’s charism and the NZC principles. This mission is well communicated to children and the school community and actively promoted through leadership and teaching programmes.

The school’s public achievement information over the past three years shows that overall it is very effectively achieving excellent educational outcomes for children. Approximately 90 percent of children who leave the school at Year 6, achieve the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics. High achievement for Māori children in relation to the National Standards has been sustained over time.

Achievement information is used very well by leaders and teachers to shape programmes to accelerate children’s progress. Initiatives designed to respond to children’s specific needs in reading and mathematics are well designed and implemented. The school is able to show that almost all children benefit from these initiatives. Achievement information also shows that some children have made accelerated progress in reading and mathematics.

Senior leaders have identified disparity in achievement for children who speak English as an additional language and for boys in writing. They are responding effectively to challenges associated with increasing numbers of children entering school who speak languages other than English. A number of programmes to build oral language and vocabulary have been introduced. This is helping to ensure that children who speak languages other than English, receive equitable learning opportunities.

The school has effective internal processes for moderating assessment information and ensuring teachers’ overall judgements against the National Standards are dependable. The school has participated in moderation processes with other schools in the past, and leaders envisage more moderation with other schools in the future when a Community of Learning|Kāhui Ako (CoL) is formed.

School conditions supporting equity and excellence

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

The school’s high expectations, effective leadership, strong parent and community engagement and a responsive, meaningful curriculum are the key contributing factors supporting equity and excellence for all learners.

School leadership is highly effective and focuses on children learning in a caring and inclusive community. The position of ‘learning leaders’ has been established along with coaching to enhance teachers’ collaborative practice and their capacity to deliver the curriculum.

Very strong learning-centred relationships are evident between the school and parents. The board, senior leaders and teachers have built trust with the school’s diverse communities. There is active collaboration between the school and community groups to enhance children’s learning outcomes. Curriculum workshops for parents are a special feature of the school and are highly valued by parents.

A broad, responsive, and connected curriculum effectively builds on children’s interests. This collaboratively developed curriculum is increasingly promoting ownership by children of their own learning. There are very clear and coherent systems to guide teachers’ effective planning and delivery of the curriculum, and for children to focus on and engage in learning.

Sustainable development for equity and excellence

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

The school has many good quality processes that are helping it to achieve equity and excellence for children.

The school has identified that it is necessary to continue to address disparity in boys’ writing achievement. Accelerating learning progress for boys in writing is a priority so that they can fully access the curriculum and record and communicate their ideas across the learning areas. In addition, deepening and further developing children’s understanding of their own learning would give them a greater sense of control and involvement in their learning and build their self-confidence as learners.

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.

Going forward

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

Children are achieving well. The school demonstrates strong progress toward achieving equity in educational outcomes, supported by effective, sustainable processes and practices.

Agreed next steps are to: 

  • continue developing programmes and strategies to accelerate the progress of boys in writing and of children for whom English is an additional language
  • embed and deepen ‘student agency’ ensuring children are equipped to lead and manage their learning
  • continue to develop professional coaching and the role of the recently introduced ‘learning leaders’ to strengthen effective teaching and learning. 

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

Steffan Brough

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)

29 May 2017

About the school

Location

Flat Bush, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

618

School type

Contributing (Years 1 to 6)

School roll

366

Gender composition

Boys 51% Girls 49%

Ethnic composition

Māori

Pākehā

South East Asian

Samoan

Chinese

Indian

Tongan

African

Middle Eastern

Latin American

other Asian

other

5%

7%

43%

11%

9%

5%

5%

4%

3%

2%

2%

4%

Provision of Māori medium education

No

Review team on site

March 2017

Date of this report

29 May 2017

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

Education Review

April 2014

June 2011