Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report
Background
This Profile Report was written within six months of the Education Review Office and Sacred Heart College (Lower Hutt) 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
Sacred Heart College is a Catholic Integrated Girls College in Lower Hutt, Wellington for ākonga in Year 9 to Year 13. The special character of the College fosters an environment in which the school community is proud to live Catholic values. The College takes a holistic approach to the care and growth of each ākonga.
Sacred Heart College (Lower Hutt)'s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for ākonga are:
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ensure ākonga are consistently well supported to achieve success as a result of an embedded culturally responsive pedagogy
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enhance cultural relationships to support ākonga language, culture, and identity.
You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and plan on Sacred Heart College (Lower Hutt) website.
ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the impact of using the growth observational tool on ākonga sense of belonging and inclusion at Sacred Heart College.
The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:
The school expects to see an increase in the sense of belonging and inclusion for all ākonga.
Strengths
The school can draw from the following strengths to support the school in its goal:
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strong Catholic character and school wide values providing a learning climate that is consistently positive with well-established respectful relationships promoting ākonga engagement
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embedded relational and restorative practices in which ākonga and whānau contribute to a range of contexts
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an established evaluation process using Rongohia te Hau and our Kāhui Waiako as foundations to support the school with observational evaluation and strategic planning.
Where to next?
Moving forward, the school will prioritise:
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professional development for all teaching staff, supporting teachers to grow their confidence and capability in te reo, tikanga and mātauranga Māori
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ongoing engagement with Rongohia te Hau and Kāhui Waiako to support evaluation, inquiry, and knowledge building
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strengthening meaningful, educationally significant connections with whānau, iwi and parents to develop greater collaboration on a responsive curriculum.
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.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini
23 June 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