Summary
Balmacewen Intermediate has a roll of 513 children. This includes 54 Māori children and 37 Pacific children. Overall there is stability in the teaching staff and leadership team. All trustees are new since the last ERO review in 2012.
Since the previous ERO review, the school has placed a priority on establishing learning environments and practices to help achieve its vision of ‘Learning for Life’. Care has been taken to ensure these meet the unique needs of intermediate-age children. The school also continues to cater for the needs and abilities of all children, in particular Pacific students, and lifting achievement levels of boys’ writing.
How well is the school achieving equitable outcomes for all children?
The school is effectively responding to children whose learning and achievement need acceleration. It has effective processes and practices to support and challenge learners. School-wide review practices are effective in identifying what can be enhanced in teaching and learning programmes to improve outcomes for children.
Children benefit from a wide, rich and engaging curriculum. Teachers are innovative, including in their use of digital technologies to enhance their teaching and support children’s learning. Children work in environments that encourage both collaborative and independent learning.
With reference to the National Standards, end of 2016 information shows very high levels of achievement in reading, and high levels of mathematics achievement. Achievement levels in writing were lower than those for reading and mathematics. Māori learners were achieving at high levels.
The school demonstrates strong progress towards achieving equity in educational outcomes, supported by effective, sustainable processes and practices.
Agreed next steps are to:
- develop charter targets that focus more clearly on accelerating the progress of students who have not reached the National Standards
- deepen the analysis of school-wide achievement information to be better assured of the amount of progress learners are making.
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
Equity and excellence
How effectively does this school respond to Māori and other children whose learning and achievement need acceleration?
The school is effectively responding to children whose learning and achievement need acceleration.
Achievement information for the last five years shows:
- an increasing proportion of Māori learners are achieving at or above the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics, culminating in high levels of achievement for Māori learners in the last two years, especially for reading and writing
- Pacific learners’ achievement has been variable, with increased numbers of learners achieving at and above the National Standards in 2014 and 2015 in reading, writing and mathematics.
For the whole school, over the past five years:
- very high levels of reading achievement have been maintained
- there has been a steady increase in mathematics achievement to the current high level
- there have been variable levels of writing achievement, with improved levels reported in 2013 and 2014, though writing achievement is lower than mathematics.
The school has had a long-term focus on lifting the achievement levels of boys’ writing. Achievement information indicates improved outcomes in boys’ writing from one year to the next.
Teachers and leaders use effective processes to ensure the consistency of judgements in relation to the National Standards across the school.
School conditions supporting equity and excellence
What school processes are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence?
The school has effective processes to enable equity and excellence for learners.
Children are very well engaged in their learning and benefit from:
- their active involvement in the learning process
- a wide, rich and well-integrated curriculum that provides challenge and opportunity for all to be successful in their learning
- effective use of digital technologies by them and their teachers
- having genuine choice in their learning.
The principles of manaakitanga/caring, whanaungatanga/inclusion and relationships, mahi tahi/working together, and ako (where all are both teachers and learners) are strongly evident within the school community.
Teachers know their learners well and they establish good relationships with them and their whānau. They keep children’s interests, needs and abilities at the centre of class programmes and learning. Learner achievement is tracked throughout the time children are at the school.
Well-considered support is in place for very able learners and those at risk in their learning. This includes:
- a range of specific interventions and programmes
- early identification and sharing of information between the teachers and with contributing schools
- effectively working in partnership with the Pacific community
- specific support for children whose first language is not English
- extensive funding from the board of trustees for additional teacher-aide hours.
Teachers are well supported to meet the principal’s expectations of high-quality teaching. There is a high level of collaborative practice, purposeful professional learning and development for staff, and meaningful support for new teachers.
School leadership contributes greatly to the culture of ongoing improvement among teaching staff. This is evident in the use of innovative learning practices and strategies to teach boys successfully in writing. Leaders have established good relational trust with all groups of staff, and staff feel well supported.
Sustainable development for equity and excellence
School-wide review practices are effective in identifying what can be enhanced in teaching and learning programmes to improve student outcomes.
What further developments are needed in school processes to achieve equity and excellence?
Currently targets are expressed as goals for overall achievement. They do not focus sufficiently on the groups of learners whose progress needs to be accelerated. Refocused charter targets would formalise at the strategic level a reason for the good practices already in place.
School leaders are not analysing the achievement information in enough detail to be assured of the sufficiency of progress of all students.
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.
Provision for international students
The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of International Students) Code of Practice 2016 (the Code) established under section 238F of the Education Act 1989. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code. At the time of this review there was one international student attending the school. The school provides very good quality education and pastoral care for its international students. The students are well integrated into the life of the school, in class and through a wide variety of sports and other activities. The principal has oversight of provision for international students and regularly considers how well the school meets the expectations of the family of any enrolled international student.
Action required
To improve current practice, the board of trustees should review and improve the school’s appraisal process to better meet the Education Council requirements.
Going forward
How well placed is the school to accelerate the achievement of all children who need it?
Children are achieving well. The school demonstrates strong progress toward achieving equity in educational outcomes, supported by effective, sustainable processes and practices.
Agreed next steps are to:
-
develop charter targets that focus more clearly on accelerating the progress of students who have not reached the National Standards
-
deepen the analysis of school-wide achievement information to be better assured of the amount of progress learners are making.
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern (Te Waipounamu)
10 July 2017
About the school
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Location
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Dunedin
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Ministry of Education profile number
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3711
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School type
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Intermediate (Years 7 & 8)
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School roll
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513
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Gender composition
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Boys: 55% Girls: 45%
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Ethnic composition
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Māori: 11%
Pākehā: 79%
Pacific: 7%
Asian: 8%
Other: 9%
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Provision of Māori medium education
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No
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Review team on site
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May 2017
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Date of this report
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10 July 2017
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Most recent ERO reports
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Education Review March 2013
Education Review September 2009
Education Review August 2006
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