Takapuna Grammar School

Education institution number:
36
School type:
Secondary (Year 9-15)
School gender:
Co-Educational
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
2099
Telephone:
Address:

210 Lake Road, Takapuna, Auckland

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Takapuna Grammar School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within seven months of the Education Review Office and Takapuna Grammar 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 

Takapuna Grammar School is a large co-educational secondary school on the North Shore of Auckland which caters for students in Years 9 to 13. It provides a dual qualification pathway, offering students a choice of the National Certificates of Educational Achievement (NCEA) and the International Baccalaureate (IB). The school’s vision is: Teaching that engages, Culture that empowers, Resources that enable, and Achievements that are worthwhile.

Takapuna Grammar School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are to:

  • provide world-class education with a personalised, dynamic curriculum, enabling aspirational outcomes for all

  • strengthen connections; provide opportunities and support for students’ learning and future options.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Takapuna Grammar School’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how well relationships and whanaungatanga between staff and students enable them to engage in and strive for excellence in all areas of schooling.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to:

  • deepen the school’s culture of aspirational outcomes for all by embracing the NZ

Curriculum and NCEA changes

  • provide more opportunities that equip students to have open minds and resilience combined with good values and an understanding of who they are, that they utilise for personal and community benefit.

The school expects to see an enhancement of turangawaewae and an increase in active leadership by students and staff to support a wider range of ways to learn and succeed. This will enable more students to develop the values, skills and attributes for success and resilience in life.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate how well relationships and whanaungatanga between staff and students enable them to engage in and strive for excellence in all areas of schooling:

  • consistent, high quality educational outcomes across academic and extra-curricular activities

  • a safe, inclusive environment built on traditions, manaakitanga and ako, enhanced by valuable insights provided through the well-established Special Education Unit and Tū Tangata programme

  • effective stewardship and leadership that promote accessibility to a wide range of programmes.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

  • continuing to foster whanaungatanga in the school and wider community so students can embrace their heritage, establish their identity and connect with those who can help them

  • enhancing tracking and evaluation to improve equity for excellent learning outcomes for all learners, including those with diverse learning needs.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

21 July 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

This school has a Special Education Unit.

Takapuna Grammar School

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2023 to 2026

As of March 2023, the Takapuna Grammar 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 Takapuna Grammar 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

21 July 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

Takapuna Grammar School

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 and has completed an annual self-review of its implementation of the Code. At the time of this review there were 112 international students attending the school, and no exchange students.

Takapuna Grammar School provides a welcoming, inclusive environment for international students. Thorough policies and processes for monitoring and responding to student wellbeing, academic progress and achievement are in place. Students are well supported to integrate into the school’s community. They receive good English language support to complement classroom teaching and learning programmes. Students appreciate the opportunities they have to participate in a range of leadership and co-curricular activities at school and in the community. Effective internal evaluation in the international department informs ongoing improvement of processes, practices and systems to enhance students’ experiences.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

21 July 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

Takapuna Grammar School - 25/05/2017

Findings

Students at Takapuna Grammar School are highly engaged in learning and value the rich opportunities they have to develop personally and academically. School leaders and teachers work in partnership with students to think, inquire and learn. NCEA, Scholarship and IB qualifications in the school continue to reflect students' very high levels of success. The school has a strong commitment to student wellbeing for learning, supported by specialists and peer support systems.     

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

1 Context

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

Takapuna Grammar School is a large co-educational secondary school catering for students from Years 9 to 13. It is located on Auckland's North Shore, servicing the peninsula communities of Takapuna and Devonport. The diverse student roll is predominantly Pākehā, with Māori as a significant group of seven percent.

The school aspires to offering young people inclusive and equitable educational opportunities. Students are challenged to discover and develop their own personalised learning that will lead to the choice of a successful tertiary education or employment pathway. The school fosters a culture of high expectations for academic achievement balanced with a caring focus on student wellbeing. The vision statement affirms students as being inherently capable of achieving personal excellence.

Since the 2011 ERO evaluation there has been a change of principal and a new senior leadership team has formed. The current principal has the confidence of the wider school community to lead the Devonport Community of Learning|Kāhui Ako (CoL). This CoL includes one secondary, one intermediate and five contributing primary schools.

The board of trustees has sustained good governance practice, including frequent consultation with parents and whānau. Strategic and annual planning is informed by purposeful evaluation that seeks out multiple points of view from teachers, students, parents, whānau and the community.

Trustees are representative of the diverse school community. They bring considerable expertise to their stewardship roles. Their skills are particularly useful at present for the school’s building project, which will provide innovative new learning environments, strengthen the older buildings and recreate the main entrance to the school.

A dual qualification pathway has been implemented in the school since the previous ERO review. This offers students a choice of the National Certificates of Educational Achievement (NCEA) and the International Baccalaureate (IB). A number of responsive teaching and learning initiatives to keep pace with best professional practice, have further up-skilled the teaching staff. Initiatives include a focus on biculturalism, whānau learning relationships, digital technology to enhance learning and the fostering of student voice and agency within the school’s organisation and curriculum design.

The school has a positive reporting history with ERO and this review finds that professional capacity and improvements to school systems and operations have continued to develop positively.

2 Learning

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

The school makes highly effective use of student achievement information to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement. The leaders of each learning area together with their teachers, modify programmes and teaching approaches to tailor learning for different student groups and individuals.

School achievement information shows that most students are highly successful in NCEA and the IB qualifications. In 2015/2016 the pass rates at Level 1 and 2 NCEA showed parity for Māori and Pacific learners. There is a current school-wide leadership inquiry to evaluate and strengthen parity for Māori students at Level 3 NCEA and for University Entrance. The school is already exceeding the 2017 government targets of 85 percent of students achieving NCEA Level 2 or above when they leave school. In 2016, NCEA Scholarship candidates achieved the school’s second highest total of successful passes. A strategic goal for the next phase of school development, is to continue to sustain the school's high percentage of quality pass rates.

Teachers work intensively with older students in Years 11, 12, and 13 to support pathways success. They do this by effectively tracking, monitoring and supporting each student’s progress towards achievement. Whānau or form class teachers act as the ‘significant’ adult carrying the learning profile of each student through a four to five year learning journey. Pathways planning is a significant part of the school’s systems. Each student benefits from personal counselling for subject choices, career selections and university preferences. Careers and Gateway staff contribute to individualised learning pathways. The school’s self review indicates that personalising learning is increasingly effective in promoting achievement. It has been particularly effective for students who have different and specific learning needs and who need continuing support through targeted action.

Achievement information is used very well to help engage Year 9 and 10 students. They are tracked and monitored from baseline data collected on entry. This gives teachers the opportunity to get to know learners well as they begin their pathway through the junior school. Student progress is monitored using information about students, about their literacy, numeracy and reasoning knowledge and skills, and movement through curriculum levels.

Students and teaching staff benefit from learning relationships that are respectful and reciprocal. Students at all levels of the school demonstrate a strong work ethic and a high level of cognitive engagement with learning. The cohesion and responsiveness of student support services, further reflects the commitment of the board, leadership team and teachers to ensuring all students are successful, engaged learners.

School leaders, trustees and ERO agree that a key step for the school is to define and embed acceleration pedagogy for priority learners. This should help to ensure that all students are progressing towards achievement within an expected time frame. 

3 Curriculum

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

Takapuna Grammar School’s curriculum is aligned to The New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) and promotes and supports student learning very effectively. The school's vision, mission and values inform and influence the eight learning areas. Developing students' key competencies for lifelong learning are prioritised alongside qualifications success. Learning associated with social competencies, social ethics and integrity is evident within curriculum delivery.

The curriculum is designed to be inclusive and culturally responsive. It also challenges students to develop and grow academically and personally. Bicultural content in learning programmes is significantly evident. This has been a main area of development since the 2011 ERO review. There is a focus on manaakitanga throughout the school. This is foundational to the way that pastoral care is effectively carried through the whānau classes. The focus on wellbeing for learning is a marked strength of the school.

The school’s learning culture is highly focused and purposeful. Teachers have benefitted from training in areas such as formative learning practice, growth mind set and developing learners’ dispositions. Teachers provide a variety of approaches so that students have small group and individual learning opportunities. Learners who require special and different programmes are catered for in a flexible, responsive way and enjoy mainstream learning opportunities where they are useful and relevant. Student peer supporters are involved in these inclusive processes to support learning.

Consistent teaching approaches and highly effective learning strategies developed by staff are enabling authentic, relevant and innovative learning. Students are encouraged to explore through inquiry and investigation across the eight learning areas of NZC. Various courses, experiences and projects allow students to deepen their learning and to develop key skills such as problem solving, critical and creative thinking. The akonga principle where both adults and young people learn together is evident in classrooms, particularly in relation to digital learning. Student voice is used well to engage and connect learners to their chosen interests and pathways. Parents are actively encouraged to contribute to planning their children's pathways and selecting courses.

Digital technologies support and enhance student learning and are currently a key element in teachers’ professional development. The board and school leaders plan initiatives and opportunities for effective teacher professional learning. The expertise of teachers within the school is used well to promote different teaching approaches. Leadership is frequently grown and distributed from within the school.

Students reported to ERO that they value the opportunities they have in curriculum programmes to make meaningful choices about their learning and to understand themselves as learners. Rich tasks, linked to authentic learning, are being further extended for Year 9 and 10 students to engage in deeper learning.

The college offers an enriching range of co-curricular activities. There are many opportunities for students to experience success and build leadership capability and social competencies. A variety of cultural, academic and sporting events celebrate student achievement. 

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

The school is becoming increasingly effective in promoting successful educational outcomes for Māori students as Māori. Māori student achievement in NCEA Level 1 and 2 has improved steadily. Māori students' high pass rates are now comparable with the rest of the school cohort.

The school is working effectively to affirm te reo me ōna tikanga Māori. The charter vision for the Tu Tangata programme is “to aspire to excellence”. This highly effective programme is focused on supporting learners to achieve positive levels of success as Māori within a whānau-centred environment. It aims to use Māori values to nurture students and to affirm Māori identity, language and culture. Since the 2011 ERO evaluation, the Tu Tangata programme has expanded. An in-depth review was undertaken of Tu Tangata to set further expectations at high levels for Māori student engagement and achievement. Māori learners value the leadership roles associated with this key initiative. They demonstrate a strong sense of responsibility and care for other students, especially juniors.

Effective leadership from key Māori staff is enhancing the school’s cultural responsiveness. Professional learning and development for teachers on bicultural practices over several years has effectively supported the integration of biculturalism into other curriculum areas. Staff are showing considerable openness and receptiveness to personalised professional development that is building their bicultural capability.

The school has iwi partners who are present for significant events in the school calendar. There is a school kaumātua who advises and guides school tikanga. The naval marae, Te Taua o te Moana, has a very important relationship with the school. This influence is becoming increasingly significant as the CoL establishes. Whānau are meeting for regular hui and discussing aspirations for their young people.

4 Sustainable Performance

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

The school is very well placed to sustain and improve its performance. The board clearly has an ongoing commitment to education that promotes excellence and equity. There is an ethos in the school of collective responsibility for the achievement of all.

The school vision, mission and values are shared, understood and supported by the school community. Parents, whānau, the business community and local stakeholders give considerable time and expertise to the school. This results in some outstanding specialist learning that is richly beneficial for young people.

The importance of leadership and knowledge-building for local, national and global citizenship is reflected in the mission statement. This dimension of the School Charter was recently refreshed through community consultation.

Senior and middle leaders in the school are focusing effectively on capacity and capability building. Their planning is underpinned by leadership inquiry and informed by ongoing research into best practice.

Teachers’ success in effectively engaging learners is supported through high quality performance management. This includes the well integrated use of 'teaching as inquiry', robust appraisal processes and tailored, strategic, professional development programmes.

School leaders, trustees and ERO have identified some useful considerations for the next phase of school development including:

  • using the opportunities afforded through the Devonport Community of Learning|Kāhui Ako to further accelerate the progress of all Year 9 and 10 students in writing and mathematics
  • continuing to strategically build Māori language, culture and identity with direction and leadership from iwi, hapū and whānau
  • continuing to develop definition and clarity in valued student outcomes that express the depth of the NZC already evident in the school’s curriculum
  • increasing authentic contexts for students to engage in, experience and build their possible future pathways.

Provision for international students

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

At the time of this review there were 221 international students attending the school, including exchange students.

International students at Takapuna Grammar School are provided with high levels of pastoral care. They are effectively supported to achieve educational success and to integrate into the school community. Students are very involved in a range of student led initiatives and leadership roles, and participate in the wider life of the school.

Very effective systems are in place to monitor compliance with the Code, and to review the quality of pastoral care and educational achievement. Establishing a system for regular reporting to the board of trustees should strengthen internal evaluation of the school’s provision for international students. This would ensure systems and approaches continue to develop according to best practice.

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.

Conclusion

Students at Takapuna Grammar School are highly engaged in learning and value the rich opportunities they have to develop personally and academically. School leaders and teachers work in partnership with students to think, inquire and learn. NCEA, Scholarship and IB qualifications in the school continue to reflect students' very high levels of success. The school has a strong commitment to student wellbeing for learning, supported by specialists and peer support systems.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

Steffan Brough

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)

25 May 2017

About the School 

Location

Takapuna, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

36

School type

Secondary (Years 9 to 13)

School roll

1500

Number of international students

221

Gender composition

Boys 53% Girls 47%

Ethnic composition

Māori

Pākehā

Chinese

Pacific

Indian

other European

other Asian

other

6%

53%

6%

3%

2%

10%

4%

16%

Special Features

Special Education Unit

Review team on site

March 2017

Date of this report

25 May 2017

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

Education Review

September 2011

September 2008