Te Oraka

Education institution number:
3503
School type:
Intermediate
School gender:
Co-Educational
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
193
Telephone:
Address:

60 Shirley Road, Shirley, Christchurch

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Shirley Intermediate

1 Findings

Shirley Intermediate has made significant progress in relation to the priorities identified in this report. Leaders, staff, and the board are aware of the need to sustain momentum for improving the school’s performance for its learners and their community.

2 Background and Context

What is the background and context for this school’s review?

Shirley Intermediate is situated in Christchurch and has a roll of 173 students, 97 who are New Zealand European/Pākehā, 48 Māori, 8 Pacific and 20 learners from a range of ethnicities.

The Education Review Office has been working alongside Shirley Intermediate since 2018. ERO’s focus was designed to promote increased improvement for the school in providing better outcomes for students.

Over this period ERO engaged with the school’s leadership team and board to support and bring about necessary changes in the following areas: effective teaching, curriculum development and supporting leadership, staff and board governance. The school had support from the Ministry of Education through the appointment of a Limited Statutory Manager in December 2019. This intervention ended September 2022.

The school has gone through recent building developments with the addition of new facilities. Changes in personnel occurred in 2022 when the deputy principal was appointed as principal, several new staff joined the school and new trustees were elected to the board. Since 2019, the school has steadily addressed the areas identified for improvement.

The school and community acknowledge the importance of education for their children and how this taonga can make a difference to their children’s lives. Ko te manu e kai ana te miro nōnā te ngahere. Ko te manu e kai ana te mātauranga nōnā te ao. The bird that feasts on the miro berry, theirs is the forest. The bird that feasts on knowledge, theirs is the world.

Review and Development

How effectively is the school addressing its priorities for review and development?

Overall, the school has made substantial progress in addressing the priorities identified for improvement, particularly over the last two years. The principal, senior leadership team and staff are enthusiastic about the future direction the school is progressing towards. They are committed to ensuring students are provided with positive learning outcomes within their two years at Shirley Intermediate.

Priorities identified for review and development.

ERO identified four terms of reference to evaluate the progress and performance of the school in relation to supporting and improving student outcomes. These are:

  • school climate and student wellbeing

  • learner outcomes - attendance, progress and achievement

  • teaching effectiveness and curriculum development

  • effective leadership and stewardship.

Progress
School climate and student wellbeing

The school’s climate and student wellbeing were a concern five years ago, with a high number of behaviour issues occurring at that time. Teaching practices and strategies were not effective in supporting learning and engagement. These areas have significantly improved, most noticeably since 2022.

The school has a positive tone and culture. A new leadership team, new staff, and a clearly articulated forward direction for all in the school have helped create a culture that is calm and conducive for learning. Student wellbeing, provided from within the school and through external agencies, is benefitting from clarity of expectations, the setting of high standards, and numerous support processes.

Teaching is focused on the quality of learning provided for students, resulting in increased engagement and learning. A more vibrant and positive tone is evident in classes. Through participating in the Kahui Ako Community of Learning wellbeing surveys, the school has been able to analyse aspects which apply to Shirley Intermediate school to inform its decision making.

New systems support staff in building their capacity and manage their responsibilities more effectively. Team building, localising curriculum design and engaging the community have impacted positively on the school. Interactions with the Shirley Village Project in relation to the attendance strategy have strengthened these initiatives. The access to counsellors and youth workers who provide targeted support for students in better managing their own behaviours and emotions is enabling more cohesive learning to occur.

There is now a sense of ownership, belonging and pride across those who have contact with the school from students to staff, board members, parents, and community. New buildings have significantly improved the physical and learning environments. However, playground areas have not yet been repaired following the new build and older school buildings require ongoing health and safety management.

Learner outcomes - attendance, progress and achievement

The school reports that the majority of students enter the school at Year 7 are below or well below their curriculum levels in most subjects. It is an ongoing challenge to raise students’ achievement outcomes during their two years at the school.

The Progress and Consistency Tool (PaCT) along with the Learning Progression Framework (LPF) introduced through targeted professional development focused on moderation, has improved teachers’ validation of assessment. The reset and recalibration of PaCT at the beginning of 2023 is helping embed these improvements.

Attendance from 2020 through to 2022 was interrupted significantly due to the impact of COVID-19. Staff were also affected causing major disruptions for students and parents. School leaders have good monitoring systems in place to identify attendance issues requiring a targeted approach. While 2020 data showed that attendance had declined significantly, the 2022 analysis showed better attendance in Term 4 than the previous year. Lifting attendance remains an ongoing priority.

Teacher effectiveness and curriculum development

Students are being encouraged to engage in their learning through teachers’ redesign of the localised curriculum, their recognition of student learning needs, parental aspirations and improved teaching strategies. An effective, consistent schoolwide approach to planning and resourcing is being embedded.

Curriculum design is becoming more culturally responsive through teachers’ active exploration and acknowledgement of cultural narratives and histories. Deliberate acts of teaching scaffold and develop students’ awareness of their learning and includes their voice in this process, engaging the learner, mitigating barriers and developing pathways for students to succeed.

Targeted professional development around key school priorities including the alignment of teachers’ professional growth cycles with the charter, strategic plans and their teaching practice have all lifted an expectation by the principal for accountability.

The redevelopment of learning support systems continue to be a priority. Many students come to Shirley Intermediate with issues that impact on learning. The school works well with external agencies to support students in liaison. Learning support is an area of school strength and of benefit to students engaged in its programmes.

Effective leadership and governance

The current senior leadership team has been together for less than a year. The team has worked cohesively to bring about the changes and expectations they have for the school. They have a strength-based united approach to support students achieve better outcomes through addressing teaching practices, curriculum development and design, student underachievement and professional development. The principal and leadership team are clear about their priorities and how they will further address these over the next year. The building of a reflective culture and internal evaluative processes have significantly improved the culture of professionalism across the school.

Since September 2022 when the Limited Statutory Manager was removed, the board has continued to develop its capacity and capability to govern and manage the school. Improvement in reporting across all curriculum areas by the leadership team has occurred and enables the board to have robust discussions about school matters. Three of the current trustees are parent representatives. Historically the school has not had parent representatives. Board members have been involved in relevant professional learning and have attended conferences to support their governance responsibilities. They have reviewed the restraint processes and policy and have had support from the New Zealand School Trustees Association (NZSTA) over the last few years.

3 Sustainable performance and self review

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

Shirley Intermediate has made considerable progress over the past five years.

The leadership team led by its principal has set the groundwork with high expectations for staff to pursue the best for students within their two years at the school. A settled staff with a clear sense of direction and continued professional learning and development has set the school on a forward pathway.

The board has established goals for improved governance. Trustees are focused on understanding how internal evaluative processes can raise their knowledge of student improvement.

Key Next Steps

The leadership team will need to:

  • continue improving students’ confidence, capability and capacity to ask questions, debate, explore and lead their learning

  • support teachers better facilitate these skills in an environment that enhances and informs students’ ability to navigate their learning more successfully

  • develop teacher capacity in assessment moderation to sustain and support valid assessment outcomes

  • embed the new curriculum design and expectations for effective teaching across the school

  • evaluate the effectiveness of initiatives and strategies, including teachers’ internal evaluative capacity.

The board should seek further professional development focused on strengthening and sustaining stewardships practices. This includes improving regular monitoring of annual improvement targets and using internal evaluation processes to judge the board's impact on lifting valued learner outcomes.

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

  • school policies in relation to meeting the requirements of the Children’s Act 2014.

Conclusion

On the basis of these findings Shirley Intermediate will transition to Te Ara Huarau: ERO’s approach for school evaluation for improvement.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

27 October 2023

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement.

Shirley Intermediate - 12/12/2019

1 Background and Context

What is the background and context for this school’s review?

ERO’s 2015 and 2017 reviews identified a lack of progress in addressing significant student underachievement.

The 2017 ERO report recommended that the Ministry of Education and the New Zealand School Trustees Association provide support in relation to:

  • student progress and achievement
  • planning, evaluating and reporting.

A Ministry of Education student achievement function practitioner (SAF) and senior advisor began working with school leaders in 2017.

School leaders and teachers have participated in whole school professional learning in mathematics. Staffing has remained steady since the 2017 ERO review. The composition of the senior leadership team is unchanged. Two middle leader positions have been established to lead professional learning in literacy and numeracy.

2 Review and Development

How effectively is the school addressing its priorities for review and development?

Priorities identified for review and development

The following priorities were established in 2018 to guide school improvement and form the basis of ERO’s involvement with school leaders and teachers:

  • student achievement
  • assessment and planning
  • leadership and governance.

This report summarises progress in relation to these priorities.

Progress

School leaders are planning more strategically to address student underachievement. There are now more appropriate systems in place to identify, monitor and report students’ progress and achievement.

Student wellbeing is monitored, and any issues identified are systematically followed up by senior leaders.

Despite significant external support from the Ministry of Education, achievement remains at risk for Māori learners and Year 8 students. Year 7 achievement, while slightly better than Year 8, remains at risk for a significant number of students.

The school’s 2018 data shows that:

  • in Year 7, a small majority of students are at or above curriculum expectations in reading, writing and mathematics
  • Year 7 Māori learners achieve less well than other students in mathematics
  • in Year 8, less than half of students are at or above curriculum expectations in reading, writing and mathematics
  • overall Year 8 students achieve less well than Year 7
  • Year 8 Māori learners achieve less well than other students in reading, writing and mathematics.

Mid-year data for 2019 shows that, to date:

  • Year 7 achievement is better than Year 8 achievement in reading, writing and mathematics
  • Year 7 students are making gains in reading, writing and mathematics
  • Year 8 students’ progress appears to have stalled in mathematics and there is a slight regression in writing.

In relation to accelerating learning for those students who need this, the school’s 2018 data shows that the school is more successful in accelerating learning for Year 7 students than Year 8 students in mathematics and writing:

  • approximately one half of targeted Year 7 and Year 8 students made accelerated progress in reading
  • approximately one half of Year 7 students made accelerated progress in mathematics and writing compared with one third of Year 8 students.

Teachers have participated in whole-school professional learning to develop formative assessment practices. This has extended the range of assessment tools that teachers use. Teachers now receive analysed achievement information to assist with classroom planning. Student agency, in relation to goal setting and self-management of learning, is in the early stages of development. A whole school mathematics programme is in place and well supported by school leaders but its impact on student learning is yet to be evaluated.

School leaders and the board have rationalised strategic planning appropriately to identify two main priorities for improvement. Actions for improvement align with the two priorities and are reported to the board. Internal evaluation is used to identify areas of teaching practice requiring further development. An external appraiser has been engaged by school leaders to provide advice about improving classroom practice.

School leaders are promoting collective ownership and accountability for student progress and achievement. This remains a work in progress. Two curriculum leader positions have been created to develop leadership and distribute responsibility for developing professional practice in mathematics and literacy.

Many of the changes and actions introduced over the past 18 months are developing teacher professional capability but are not yet having a significant impact on student learning outcomes.

Key next steps

To further support student progress and achievement school leaders need to:

  • scrutinise learning progress for all students, and put targeted actions in place to urgently address the underachievement of Year 8 students, a significant number of Year 7 students and Māori learners
  • document learning expectations so that teachers can identify progress and achievement in relation to New Zealand Curriculum expectations
  • continue to develop teacher professional capability in assessment for learning and effective pedagogy, including culturally responsive pedagogy
  • implement the planned professional learning for reading, ensuring that effective reading strategies, planning and assessment form part of this professional development programme
  • ensure that action planning has clearly articulated and measurable outcomes for teachers and students, as well as specific strategies which are evaluated for their impact on teaching and learning
  • develop robust quality assurance processes, across all areas of the school, to monitor the quality and consistency of teacher practice in assessment, planning and analysis of learning information.

3 Sustainable performance and self review

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

The school is not well placed to sustain and continue to improve and review its performance. School leaders and teachers have significant work to complete in order to make and sustain improvements to teaching and learning.

Internal evaluation is being used to better understand current processes and teaching practices across the school. Many improvements, as a result of review, are in the early stages of implementation and not yet ready to be evaluated. Action planning for change and improvement needs to identify outcomes for teachers and learners, and be evaluated in relation to the intended outcomes.

Curriculum leaders need support to develop leadership skills, pedagogical knowledge and the use of data to inform decision-making.

4 ERO’s Overall Judgement

On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of Shirley Intermediate performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Needs development.

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.

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
  • school policies in relation to meeting the requirements of the Children’s Act 2014.

5 Recommendations

Recommendations, including any to other agencies for ongoing or additional support.

ERO recommends that the Secretary for Education considers intervention under Part 7A of the Education Act 1989 in order to bring about improvement in:

  • student achievement across the school
  • leadership and governance
  • assessment, planning and data capability
  • continuing to raise the quality of teaching and learning
  • internal evaluation.

Dr Lesley Patterson

Director Review and Improvement Services Te Tai Tini

Southern Region

12 December 2019

About the School

Location

Christchurch

Ministry of Education profile number

3503

School type

Intermediate (Years 7 to 8)

School roll

151

Gender composition

Boys 51%; Girls 49%

Ethnic composition

Māori
NZ European/Pākehā
Other ethnicities

18%
77%
5%

Special features

Bilingual class, Level 2 MME

Review team on site

September 2019

Date of this report

12 December 2019

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review
Education Review

May 2017
September 2015

Shirley Intermediate - 24/05/2017

Summary

Shirley Intermediate School has a roll of 175 children. This includes 45 Māori children and 25 Pacific children. Since the last ERO review (2015) new trustees and a new board chairperson have been appointed. The school has a Limited Statutory Manager in place to support the board in financial and property matters.

Since 2015 the school has focused on building teaching practice and middle leadership capability. Although this has raised the professionalism of teachers, this focus has not led to improved achievement for all children. The school’s appraisal process has been significantly improved and is being implemented in 2017.

End of 2016 achievement information shows low levels of achievement in reading, writing and mathematics. School information shows that these low levels of achievement have been persistent over the last three years.

How well is the school achieving equitable outcomes for all children?

The school is not achieving equitable outcomes for all children. Trustees, leaders and teachers need to take more responsibility for and have a greater sense of urgency for raising the achievement and progress of all children.

The school does not have effective practices to evaluate the implementation and the impact of goals, actions and programmes to raise children’s achievement.

At the time of this review, this school was not well placed to provide conditions for children to achieve educational excellence, or to address in-school disparities. The main area of concern is the lack of school-wide focus on lifting achievement levels, especially of those children at risk of poor educational outcomes.

ERO intends to carry out a process of ongoing evaluation to support development over the course of one-to-two years.

Equity and excellence

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

The school is not effectively responding to Māori and other children whose learning and achievement need acceleration.

Over the last three years children’s achievement in reading, writing and mathematics in relation to National Standards has continued to be low. The school is yet to meet the needs of:

  • Māori learners in mathematics and writing

  • Pacific learners in reading

  • boys in reading and writing.

In 2016 some children were targeted to make accelerated progress in literacy and mathematics. About two thirds of the children targeted made accelerated progress in writing and mathematics, and one third in reading.

The same assessment tools are used school wide to provide reliable achievement information. The school’s expectations for moderation practices are not always used consistently across the school. This means that some assessment information may not be reliable.

The learning of the children in the bilingual class is based on the New Zealand Curriculum, including the related National Standards.

School conditions supporting equity and excellence

What school processes are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence?

ERO found evidence of some practices that have been effective in supporting the progress and achievement of children.

Practices that have had a positive impact on children’s learning include:

  • the support that class teachers receive from curriculum leaders

  • teachers and leaders having a greater focus on learning and professional conversations

  • teachers providing children with more authentic writing topics through the meaningful integration of writing into class inquiry-topic studies.

Sustainable development for equity and excellence

The school does not consistently use effective practices to plan and implement goals, actions and programmes to raise children’s achievement. Nor does it effectively evaluate the outcomes of actions taken.

What further developments are needed in school processes to achieve equity and excellence?

Children’s achievement, progress and learning is not sufficiently prioritised. This is evidenced by:

  • targets not responding sufficiently to all children at risk of underachievement

  • action plans and expectations not being well monitored for leaders and trustees to be assured of consistent implementation

  • leaders and teachers not building strong enough educational relationships with parents and whānau to support children’s learning outcomes

  • leaders not setting and relentlessly pursuing a manageable number of goals and actions that directly relate to accelerating the learning of children at risk of underachievement

  • the board of trustees not receiving school-wide information that clearly shows the sufficiency of progress for all children.

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

  • 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 Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

Going forward

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

At the time of this review, this school was not well placed to provide conditions for children to achieve educational excellence, or to address in-school disparities. The main areas of concern are the lack of:

  • school-wide focus on lifting achievement levels, especially of those children whose progress and achievement are at risk

  • sustainability of systems and processes.

Leaders and teachers:

  • have not yet adequately built their knowledge of the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated

  • have not yet adequately established necessary conditions to effectively accelerate learning and achievement

  • are not well placed to achieve and sustain accelerated achievement for all children who need it. 

ERO intends to carry out a process of ongoing evaluation to support development over the course of one-to-two years.

Recommendations

ERO recommends that the Ministry of Education and New Zealand School Trustees Association consider providing support for the school in order to bring about the following improvements:

  • achievement and progress of children

  • planning, evaluating and reporting.

Dr Lesley Patterson

Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern (Te Waipounamu)

24 May 2017

About the school 

Location

Christchurch

Ministry of Education profile number

3503

School type

Intermediate Years 7 & 8

School roll

175

Gender composition

Boys: 54% Girls: 46%

Ethnic composition

Māori: 26%
Pākehā: 49%
Pacific: 14%
Other: 11%

Provision of Māori medium education

Yes

Number of Māori medium classes

1

Total number of students in Māori medium (MME)

26

Total number of students in Māori language in English medium (MLE)

 

Number of students in Level 1 MME

 

Number of students in Level 2 MME

26

Number of students in Level 3 MLE

 

Number of students in Level 4a MLE

 

Number of students in Level 4b MLE

 

Number of students in Level 5 MLE

 

Review team on site

March 2017

Date of this report

24 May 2017

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Reviews:
September 2015
May 2014
April 2011