Tawhero School

School Context

Tawhero school is a Years 1 to 6 school located in Whanganui. Currently 147 students attend the school and 66 % identify as Māori.

The school’s vision for learning is, ‘Learning for Life’. This is underpinned by the values of ‘trust, achievement, whānau, hauora, enjoyment, respect and our school: TAWHERO’.

Current school goals give priority to raising student learning and achievement and student and community engagement.

In 2019, professional learning and development in mathematics is focused on developing student agency.

Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, schoolwide information about outcomes for students in:

• reading, writing and mathematics.

A new principal was appointed in term two, 2019. An experienced board chairperson provides continuity on the board and is supporting new trustees.

The school is the host school for the Whanganui Resource Teacher: Learning and Behaviour Cluster and Resource Teacher: Literacy.

The school collaborates closely with an on-site satellite unit from Arahunga Special School.

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?

The school is not effective in achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all its students.

The school’s achievement data indicates a continuing pattern of low achievement for all groups of learners.

The school’s end of 2018 achievement data shows a low majority of students achieved at and above the school expectation in writing. The school data indicates that less than half of the school roll achieved at and above expectation in reading and mathematics.

Māori learners and girls achieved better than their peers in writing.

A slight upward trend for writing in 2018 has not been sustained in 2019.

1.2 How well is the school accelerating learning for those Māori and other students who need this?

The school is yet to develop a school wide picture of achievement and to use this information to show rates of expected progress or acceleration for those students who need it.

The school’s data indicates that of the small number of students who were part of focused interventions in 2018 , a few made accelerated progress in reading, writing and mathematics.

The school was unable to provide a picture of progress and acceleration for those students who need it in 2019.

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?

The new principal is developing practices and activities to promote students’ confidence in their culture, language and identity. This promotes a sense of belonging and connection to the school for students, staff, parents and whānau.

The school has sustained its focus on wellbeing and pastoral care of students. There continues to be a high level of community involvement in the school through a wide range of community resources and expertise. This enhances student wellbeing outcomes and provides a positive platform for learning.

Students are welcoming, respectful and settled. They learn in a positive, caring and collaborative learning environment where diversity is recognised and celebrated. Their successes are acknowledged and affirmed.

Teachers are collaborative and value the collegial support they receive from each other. They are focused on building positive relationships and connections with students. An increasing range of strategies are being used to communicate and engage with parents and whānau. This is beginning to contribute to strengthened partnerships in learning.

Parents and whānau are welcomed and actively involved in the life of the school. Their views and aspirations are sought which is contributing to future decision making.

Inclusive practices and collaboration with external agencies, parents and whānau enables students requiring additional learning support to learn alongside their peers. Appropriate use of resourcing for students with high needs further promotes their participation and engagement in the programme.

2.2 What further developments are needed in school processes and practices for achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

Some key organisational conditions are not yet sufficiently developed to build on the evident good practices and activities that support student wellbeing and engagement. To promote equity and excellence and accelerate learning, the continuing low pattern of achievement must be actively addressed.

Priority must be placed on:

• reviewing current assessment practices and tools to ensure consistent and purposeful assessment
• building assessment capability and data analysis of leaders and teachers
• consistently implementing systems and processes for tracking, monitoring and reporting the progress of all at risk learners.

This should enable leaders and teachers to identify school wide trends and patterns of achievement and set specific, relevant and appropriate annual achievement targets focused on acceleration of all at risk learners.

Better management and use of achievement information data and a clear school wide picture of achievement is necessary to enable the board to make informed decisions to improve learning outcomes for students. To know what is working or not working for whom and why.

The new board should seek training that is relevant to their needs. This should strengthen their understanding of the governance role.

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:

• board administration
• curriculum
• management of health, safety and welfare
• personnel management
• finance
• 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 Children’s Act 2014.

4 ERO’s Overall Judgement

On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of Tawhero School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Developing,

ERO’s Framework: Overall Findings and Judgement Tool derived from School Evaluation Indicators: Effective Practice for Improvement and Learner Success is available on ERO’s website.

5 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:

• the sustained focus on wellbeing and pastoral care of students that promotes engagement in learning
• the strong community involvement in the school that promotes a sense of belonging for students, parents and whānau
• the settled learning environment that celebrates students’ successes.

Next steps

For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for further development are in:

• strengthening assessment practices including data analysis and reporting
• building assessment capability and consistency of practices across the school
• strengthening trustees’ understanding of stewardship.

Areas for improved compliance practice

To improve current practice, the board of trustees should:

• ensure the Child Protection policy complies fully with the Children’s Act 2014.

Phillip Cowie

Director Review and Improvement Services Central

Central Region

20 December 2019

About the school

1 Context

Tawhero School is a Years 1 to 6 primary school in Whanganui. At the time of the review the roll was 169 students, of whom 73% identify as Māori.

The Tawhero values of trust, achievement, whānau, hauora, enjoyment, respect and our school are actively promoted and embedded throughout the school and its community.

Students are confident in their identity and have a sense of belonging. Their wellbeing is nurtured through a wide range of initiatives and support networks. These include the Tawhero Connections programme and Check In Check Out (CiCo) which monitors attendance and goals for those students who need additional support. Breakfasts, snacks during the day, lunches and sports are provided for children by the school community.

Whānau and volunteers are welcomed and active throughout the school. Volunteers and support staff are an integral part of the provision of children's learning. A community room is available for parents and whānau. The kura's kaupapa of hauora, whanaungatanga, manaakitanga and tautoko is highly evident.

2 Equity and excellence

The vision and valued outcomes defined by the school are that through the Tawhero values, the engagement of whānau, and the development of self-control and self-management, all children will become confident, connected, respectful, creative thinkers and good communicators, who are engaged in 'learning for life'.

The school’s achievement information shows that many students achieve below the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics. There has been limited progress in achievement over the last two years. Māori students' achievement has remained stable and at levels below that of their peers. Raising student achievement and improving equitable outcomes for learners at Tawhero School is an urgent priority.

In 2016, the school has introduced a more effective approach to track and monitor all students' progress and achievement. This is supported by teachers inquiring into their practice to better identify the strategies that meet the needs of groups of students. School reported data is showing that these initiatives are having a positive impact on outcomes for some students.

Assessment practices supporting overall teacher judgments in relation to National Standards continue to be strengthened. The recent development of the external cluster with other schools, to moderate writing, should assist further improvement. Extending these practices to all staff for reading and mathematics should help teachers' better use assessment to inform teaching and learning.

Since the 2013 ERO evaluation the school has:

• completed final training and entered the sustainability phase to ensure Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) is embedded
• worked with Student Achievement Function (SAF) practitioners in literacy, mathematics and transition to school
• built staff confidence and competence in culturally responsive strategies and approaches to teaching and learning using Tātaiako: Cultural Competencies for Teachers of Māori Learners
• developed assessment practices in writing
• introduced an innovative learning environment in the junior school.

3 Accelerating achievement

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

The school recognises that there is a critical need to more effectively respond to Māori children whose learning and achievement need acceleration.

Leaders and teachers know their students well. They regularly discuss their learners' needs. In 2016, the school has focused on deepening the use of data to better inform programmes to accelerate the learning of groups of students. Continuing to strengthen the appropriate selection and analysis of data should enhance the schoolwide approach.

Teachers identify focus groups and interventions to accelerate learning. There is a wide range of interventions, supported and undertaken by trained teacher aides and volunteers. The school sets broad achievement targets in reading, writing and mathematics. Developing a more explicit approach should support students' engagement, progress and acceleration of achievement. This should include identifying:

• expected measureable outcomes with appropriate progress points
• specific actions, including ways to build teacher capability, that support success.

Since the onsite phase of this review, the school has begun to develop such a plan.

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

Leaders and teachers participate in, and lead, a variety of professional learning and development (PLD) focused on raising student achievement. Staff should use key learnings from PLD and local community expertise, to review and reflect current strategies to inform more effective teaching and learning. This shared understanding will help to establish greater consistency schoolwide.

Leaders and teachers use a range of assessment tools to establish current achievement levels and track progress. A more considered approach to the selection of appropriate tools would enhance monitoring and analysis of individual and cohort progress over time. This should assist identification of the effective teaching and learning strategies for students at this school.

4 School conditions

How effectively do the school’s curriculum and other organisational processes and practices develop and enact the school’s vision, values, goals and targets for equity and excellence?

The school needs to develop and implement a systematic and coherent approach to raising student achievement.

The board of trustees is focused on maintaining and strengthening community relationships. Trustees are committed to all ākonga having equitable access to learning opportunities. They are highly visible in the school. This provides opportunities for communication with students, parents and whānau. There is an immediate need to develop more defined and measureable targets. This along with more frequent reporting should support the robust investigation and deeper conversations about student progress and achievement.

The principal and management team know their community of learners well. They are focused on building the capability and capacity of staff to better meet the learning needs of the students. To support this the leaders need to continue to strengthen the appraisal process. This should include:

• more explicit goal setting that is linked to outcomes for students
• deeper reflection on goals to demonstrate how teachers are accelerating achievement for those identified as their target students
• a clear annual summary document.

The school proactively identifies and draws on community resources to enhance student learning opportunities, achievement and wellbeing. School personnel work closely together to support and nurture effective transitions in and through the school. They continue to strengthen these overtime to enhance learning-centred partnerships with parents, whānau and students.

A collaborative and collegial approach to teaching and learning is highly evident. Teachers focus on enhancing students' wellbeing and enjoyment of learning. Continuing to build students' ownership and independence for learning is an ongoing emphasis. Their voice is highly valued. Students are nurtured through trust-based relationships that celebrate success.

The school has begun to establish an evaluation and inquiry approach for improvement. Further strengthening is required to ensure it is systematic, cohesive and appropriately informs change. This should support the review and development of an appropriate curriculum that recognises the effective teaching and learning practice that will bring about the desired acceleration of achievement and equitable outcomes for learners.

5 Going forward

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

Leaders and teachers:

• know the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated
• need approaches that effectively meet the needs of each child
• need to ensure the school is well placed to accelerate the achievement of all children who need it.

Action: The board, principal and teachers should participate in an internal evaluation workshop. They should use this workshop, ERO exemplars of good practice and the School Evaluation Indicators to address the findings of this evaluation and develop a Raising Achievement Plan that includes a significant focus on building teacher capability to accelerate learning and achievement.

As part of this review ERO will continue to monitor the school’s Raising Achievement Plan and the progress the school makes.

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

6 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 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

• provision for international students

• provision for students in school hostels.

Prior to 2016, Tawhero School was a signatory to, and attested to being compliant with, the Code of Practice for the Pastoral Care of International Students.

To improve current practice, the board of trustees should:

• appropriately record discussions of their meetings
• ensure they receive appropriate reports that meet the governance requirements outlined through the National Administration Guidelines, including achievement and progress towards targets
• update the appointments procedure and practice to ensure it meets the legislative requirements outlined in the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

7 Recommendation

ERO recommends that trustees, leaders and teachers deepen their understanding of effective data use and analysis. This should support more robust evaluation of initiatives and interventions to better inform changes urgently required to accelerate the achievement of those students most at risk. 

Joyce Gebbie

Deputy Chief Review Officer Central

12 September 2016

About the school