Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report
Background
This Profile Report was written within 12 months of the Education Review Office and Waiouru 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
Waiouru School is a Year 1 to 8 co-educational primary school located on the Waiouru army base. A new principal started in Term 2, 2021.
Waiouru School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:
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achievement for all ākonga is at the expected level, or they make accelerated progress, in literacy and numeracy
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every ākonga shows high levels of engagement, resilience and wellbeing
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every ākonga is taught te reo Māori, cultural histories and practices.
ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how effectively teaching practices support learners to accelerate their achievement and progress in literacy.
The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:
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the school wants to ensure that learners leaving school at the end of Year 8 are achieving at a level that allows them to access The New Zealand Curriculum in their secondary education
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data shows that achievement in reading and writing must remain a focussed priority
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further consistency of practice and understanding of effective literacy practice is considered a priority.
The school expects to see that:
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teachers and leaders know what is working, what is not working, for whom and what needs to change
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curriculum design and enactment ensure every learner makes sufficient progress to achieve curriculum expectations
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the classroom environment is managed so that learners are supported to participate and engage in their learning.
Strengths
The school can draw from the following strengths in its goal to evaluate to how effectively teaching practices are supporting students to accelerate achievement and progress in literacy:
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new leadership that is focussed on strengthening teaching and learning practices that impact positively on student achievement
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external schoolwide professional learning in literacy and assessment practice is underway.
Where to next?
Moving forward, the school will prioritise:
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identification of what is working, and what is not, in current literacy programmes
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establishing a shared understanding of acceleration in literacy
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developing a Waiouru school literacy statement to support effective teaching practice.
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.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region | Te Tai Pūtahi Nui
11 July 2022
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