Blenheim School

Summary

At the time of this review, Blenheim School’s roll was 70. This includes 22 Māori and 14 Pacific children. A number of these children have English as a second language. The school hosts nine Resource Teachers of Learning and Behaviour (RTLBs), one RTLB Cluster Manager, a Resource Teacher of Māori (RTM) and the Southern Regional Health School.

A new principal was appointed in Term 1, 2015. The chairperson is an experienced board member. All other trustees are new to the board. The school has made good progress in meeting the recommendation from the previous ERO report by strengthening partnerships with whānau and increasing the focus on bicultural perspectives and practices.

Senior leaders are aware that achievement, overall, is low. Achievement in writing and mathematics against the National Standards is lower than reading. The school’s achievement information shows examples of individual children’s accelerated progress in their learning. School leaders and teachers have strategies to support and monitor all children who need to make quicker progress in their learning over time.

The Ministry of Education provided Student Achievement Function (SAF) support to the school in 2016. This supported leaders and teachers to develop a broad range of strategies and practices to improve children’s progress and achievement in writing. Many of these approaches are used to more generally support children’s progress and achievement in other learning areas.

School leaders are actively involved in the Piritahi Kāhui Ako|Community of Learning (CoL) and a local cluster of collaborative schools.

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

The school is strongly focused on providing equitable outcomes for all children.

Leaders and teachers are purposefully focused on children’s wellbeing and strongly foster their sense of belonging within the school.

The school has a comprehensive range of systems and processes to guide practice and the provision of a safe environment for children to achieve equity and excellence. A number of well-considered initiatives have been introduced and are being embedded into school practices.

The school has capacity and capability to accelerate learning for all children. The school’s achievement information shows that disparity in achievement for Māori, Pacific and other children remains. Leaders and teachers:

• know the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated

• need to evaluate approaches that effectively meet the needs of each child

• need to continue to build teacher capability to accelerate children’s learning and achievement.

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 responds positively toMāori and other children whose learning, progress and achievement need acceleration.

School achievement information shows that children achieve best in reading. At least half of Māori children achieve at or above the National Standards in reading and mathematics.

The school’s achievement monitoring systems show several examples of children’s accelerated progress in reading, writing and mathematics. Leaders and teachers are aware of in-school disparity for some groups of children. They have implemented a number of interventions to address disparity for those whose learning needs acceleration.

Teachers use a good range of assessment processes and regularly moderate their judgements within the school. They benefit from targeted professional development which has supported their increased knowledge and use of assessment information, particularly in writing. This is helping teachers make more consistent judgements about children’s levels of progress and achievement. Mathematics moderation is yet to occur across the school. This is part of the targeted focus in 2017. Cross-school moderation of teachers’ assessment decisions is a goal for the CoL.

School conditions supporting equity and excellence

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

The school has many increasingly effective processes and practices for enabling achievement of equity and excellence.

The school’s shared vision and GRIT (Growing, Respect, Initiative, Tenacity) values are intentionally integrated into key documentation and many practices across the school. The values are well known by children and are effectively used to build their determination and confidence as learners.

Diversity and difference are highly valued. Teachers provide children with meaningful learning opportunities to add depth to their cultural understandings of Māori perspectives and other cultures represented at the school. The school’s culture is inclusive and helps children build a strong sense of belonging.

Teachers purposefully foster positive behaviour and have high expectations for children’s learning. Their pastoral care needs are well considered and provided for in sensitive ways.

Leaders, teachers and teacher aides work well together to ensure children benefit from the expertise likely to accelerate progress and decrease disparity. Teachers identify, regularly track and monitor all children, and in particular, those children at risk of not achieving. A number of children receive additional, targeted support. Specific, individualised programmes and approaches are identified to support these learners.

School leaders have high expectations for learning and teaching. Teachers work collaboratively to provide a broad curriculum. This is further enriched by the cultural knowledge shared by parents and the many opportunities children have to visit places of interest in their local community.

School leaders and trustees follow a clear strategic plan which is regularly monitored to show how goals are being achieved. Trustees are well informed and make careful decisions about resourcing the school to provide equitable learning opportunities for all children.

School staff maintain positive, respectful relationships with children, families and those involved at the school. The CoL is providing many opportunities for the sharing of good practice and expertise to ensure positive outcomes for children and their whānau.

Sustainable development for equity and excellence

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

A number of well-considered initiatives have been introduced and are being successfully embedded into school practices.

The agreed next steps are to:

• further accelerate children’s progress and achievement in mathematics, reading and writing to address in-school disparity
• continue to strengthen the board’s stewardship capacity to effectively scrutinise achievement and other information
• develop a strategic, systematic approach to internal evaluation.

In previous years, the board has undertaken a range of stewardship training. ERO recommends the board continues to build on this practice in order to ensure ongoing strengthening of board effectiveness.

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?

The school is well placed to accelerate the progress and achievement of children.

The school is focused on children’s wellbeing and strongly fosters their sense of belonging. The school is working towards achieving equity in educational outcomes, supported by many effective systems and practices.

The school has capacity and capability to accelerate learning for all children. However, disparity in achievement for Māori and other children remains.

Leaders and teachers:

• know the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated

• need to evaluate approaches that effectively meet the needs of each child

• need to continue to build teacher capability to accelerate children’s learning and achievement.

The school agrees to:

• develop more targeted planning to accelerate learning for children

• monitor targeted planning, improved teaching, and children’s progress

• discuss the school’s progress with ERO, and provide achievement progress reports to ERO over time.

The school has requested that ERO provide them with an internal evaluation workshop. 

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

Dr Lesley Patterson

Deputy Chief Review Officer - Southern (Te Waipounamu)

6 September 2017

About the school