Kilgour Street, Waihola
View on mapWaihola District School provides children from Years 1 to 8 with a rich range of learning in a supportive environment. The school's two classrooms have small numbers of children. These are being upgraded to provide increased flexibility for teaching and learning. The school has an experienced principal. Most school trustees are experienced in their role. Changes to teaching staff are planned for 2017. The school maintains close connections with its parents and local community. This includes sharing its buildings and resources, and housing an after-school programme.
The vision and valued outcomes defined by the school for all children are to be the best they can be, capable, confident and caring, who work and learn together and contribute to their community. The school's values of innovation (hautūtanga/auahatanga), integrity (pono), respect (manaakitanga) and community (whakawhanaungatanga) have been a focus strategic development focus for children and staff.
The school’s information shows that against the National Standards for reading, writing and mathematics, achievement has risen in recent time. Achievement improved in 2015 and again by mid-year 2016, when children were achieving well against the National Standards.
Teachers are using a useful variety of assessments to inform teaching and learning and to make overall teacher judgements about achievement against the National Standards. They work to ensure that assessment is reliable by comparing judgements about learning and achievement with each other and with teachers in other schools.
Since the last ERO evaluation, the school has addressed most of the recommendations in the 2013 ERO report. Teachers are building their knowledge, skills and confidence in the use of te reo and tikanga Māori. Aspects of internal evaluation require ongoing development.
The school identifies and effectively supports children needing extra help to accelerate their progress. Teachers have well-developed strategies for meaningfully engaging these children in the learning. Teachers know the children well. They carefully inquire into their teaching and the child's learning. Most children, including most Māori children, make accelerated progress in their achievement. Each child's learning is closely monitored and regularly reported on. Children continue to be monitored to ensure that accelerated progress is sustained. The principal provides very well analysed reports to the board that clearly show the progress and achievement of children requiring extra support in their learning.
The school’s curriculum in action effectively enacts the school's vision and values.
The curriculum is broad, relevant and effectively uses the local environment as a context for learning. Children benefit from a wide range of engaging experiences to help them achieve in their learning. Children are encouraged to offer ideas about topics for learning and many aspects of school life. Parents and the community are often involved in the life of the school giving children a strong sense of belonging. The school makes good use of the local environment and community. This helps make learning meaningful and relevant for children, parents and whānau.
The vision and values are well understood by children and staff, and are clearly evident in the school. The curriculum is designed with a focus on shared learning where everyone learns together. The school has identified as a priority the need for children to become self-directed learners. Children are increasingly knowledgeable about their own learning and what they need to do next to improve.
The curriculum plan for 2016 incorporates well thought-out strategies and resources to help build children's self-directed learning dispositions and skills. These are included within recently developed curriculum guidelines for the teaching of mathematics and writing. To continue to guide and strengthen this work, the school needs to develop similar guidelines, including school-wide learning progressions, for other essential learning areas.
The principal and teachers work collaboratively to make ongoing improvements to teaching that support children's achievement and progress. They actively involve parents and whānau in learning-centred relationships to support their children's learning. They use digital technology well to support teaching and learning and to involve parents in their child's learning. Staff and ERO identify the need to continue to develop the integration of te reo and tikanga Māori in children's learning.
The board is committed to providing high quality learning experiences and environments for all children. Trustees are well informed about children's progress and achievement and use this information to help guide them in their decisions. The board has effective processes to support continuity of school governance.
The board and principal need to:
Leaders and teachers:
The school is successfully lifting overall levels of achievement in relation to the National Standards for reading, writing and mathematics. This is the result of focused teaching and meaningful learning provided by the experienced teachers and principal. In 2017 there is likely to be a change in teaching staff. A challenge will be to maintain and continue to improve overall levels of achievement and high levels of children's engagement and involvement in learning.
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
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.
To improve current practice, the board of trustees should update the appointments policy and procedures to ensure that all requirements are met.
ERO recommends:
Dr Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Te Waipounamu Southern
7 March 2017
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Location |
Waihola |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
3850 |
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School type |
Full Primary (Years 1 to 8) |
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School roll |
27 |
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Gender composition |
Boys: 15 Girls: 12 |
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Ethnic composition |
Pākehā Māori |
20 7 |
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Review team on site |
November 2016 |
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Date of this report |
7 March 2017 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review Education Review Education Review |
October 2013 August 2010 June 2007 |
Waihola District School is a small semi-rural school overlooking Lake Waihola.
Students benefit from being in small classes where the strengths the strengths and expertise of the teachers are well used to provide a range of interesting learning experiences, events and activities. Students’ learning is enriched by the daily interactions with more than one teacher.
Students learn in a supportive and inclusive environment that fosters respectful relationships between adults and students. Students confidently talk about and know the school’s vision and how it applies to them and their learning. There is a strong focus on the school values and these are seen being used in the daily life of the school. The principal and teachers encourage parents' involvement and support in their children’s learning.
Many significant local features provide interesting learning experiences for students. Students are able to readily access learning experiences beyond the school, for example, city educational programmes, education outside the classroom (EOTC) in the local area. There are high levels of community support and involvement in school activities, events and the maintenance of the very attractive school environment.
Recently the school and community worked together to build a large multi-purpose building that houses a community library and is used for school and community functions and activities.
Teachers and trustees make good use of achievement information to raise levels of student progress and achievement. A significant number of students achieve very well in mathematics, reading and writing against the National Standards. Teachers assess students in all the essential learning areas over time and report meaningful learning information to parents and the board. Students are given opportunities to self assess and self manage in aspects of their work. ERO observed students that were very engaged in their learning.
Students benefit from the way the learning information is used to:
Teachers use learning information to:
Teachers identify students that need extra support in their learning and develop programmes for them. They closely monitor these students and ensure they make good levels of progress. Teachers know their students well and regularly adapt programmes to meet students’ interests, needs and abilities.
The principal collates, analyses and reports useful learning information about how well students are progressing and achieving to trustees and parents.
The board uses this information to guide its strategic and annual planning and target setting. Trustees make resourcing decisions based on the learning information they receive.
The school’s curriculum effectively promotes and supports student learning. The principal and teachers have designed the curriculum to closely link to the vision and values of the school. A strong feature of the curriculum is the flexibility to respond to students’ immediate interests and the use of local expertise. There is a focus on shared learning where everyone learns together.
Students’ learning is enriched by the extensive range of learning experiences and interesting programmes they engage with during the year. Some students are motivated to extend their learning beyond the classroom.
Students benefit from the good use teachers make of the local environment. There is an emphasis on developing students’ knowledge and understanding of environmental issues.
Students are given opportunities to use a range of technologies to support their learning. Teachers work together to extend their knowledge and expertise in Information Communication Technologies (ICT) to enhance students’ learning. Teachers have identified that they need to increase their levels of knowledge and understanding about te reo and tikanga Māori and incorporate these into their programmes.
ERO observed consistently good teaching practices across the school. Teachers have high expectations and a belief that all students can achieve.
The principal and teachers need to continue to develop:
Most Māori students experience high levels of success, when measured against the National Standards. Māori students told ERO that they felt they were valued. Some students said they would like to know more about their culture. The principal and a trustee have begun a consultation and planning process with the families of the Māori students to gather information about what they want for their children.
The school is well placed to sustain and improve its performance. The strategic and annual plan provide good guidance for the direction of the school. The trustees and the principal follow the annual plan and record information on the achievement of the annual objectives.
The board has useful systems for ensuring the effective governance of the school. Trustees are well-informed in relation to their roles and responsibilities and they carry these out in a very committed manner. Trustees work well as a proactive board.
The principal keeps the board well-informed about student progress, achievement and curriculum developments. Trustees use a variety of successful ways to encourage community engagement and participation in the life of the school.
The board has a useful process for appraising the principal and teachers. The principal follows the process to support teachers to improve their teaching practice. Teachers are developing ways to formalise their reflection on their teaching practice and the impact it is having on student learning.
The school has an ongoing cycle of self review. There are no procedures or guidelines for teachers to follow when reviewing teaching and learning. The current documentation of curriculum reviews does not show formal evaluation of the effectiveness of curriculum programmes against curriculum goals and expectations for teaching and learning.
The principal is in the process of reviewing the school’s self-review processes and guidelines.
The board and principal need to:
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:
During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student achievement:
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
Graham Randell
National Manager Review Services
Southern Region
22 October 2013
|
Location |
Waihola |
|
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
3850 |
|
|
School type |
Full Primary (Years 1 to 8) |
|
|
School roll |
30 |
|
|
Gender composition |
Boys: 21 Girls: 9 |
|
|
Ethnic composition |
NZ European/Pākehā Māori |
20 10 |
|
Review team on site |
August 2013 |
|
|
Date of this report |
22 October 2013 |
|
|
Most recent ERO reports |
Education Review Education Review Education Review |
August 2010 June 2007 May 2004 |