Bridge Pa School

School Context

Bridge Pa School, located in the Bridge Pa community on the outskirts of Hastings, has students in Years 1 to 8. The school and Bridge Pa community have long established connections to Ngāti Kahungungu. All of the 59 students identify as Māori. There is ongoing roll growth.

The school states that its vision is ‘E anga whakamua ai – me titiro whakamuri, Connect to the Past- Prepare for the Future’. The school’s values of ‘Kaha (strong, strength), Pono (integrity, truth) and Aroha (love)’ are currently being reviewed.

Valued outcomes for students are articulated in a graduate profile that states an ambition for students to be confident, respectful, connected members of society who value and demonstrate knowledge of their cultural heritage. Achievement in all areas of the curriculum is also an expectation that is valued for all students.

Current goals and targets for improvement in student outcomes are linked to upholding the culture, language and identity of students, improved consistency of teaching, learning and behaviour management and increased whānau involvement in students’ learning.

Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, schoolwide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:

• reading writing and mathematics

• curriculum enrichment opportunities

• wellbeing and attendance

• Kāhui Ako activities and implications for student outcomes.

There have been substantial changes in staffing since the November 2015 ERO report. A period of change occurred with acting leadership from 2016 to mid-2017. Three new teachers have been appointed with one of these appointed as principal mid-2017 after acting as principal for six months.

The School is a member of the Te Waka o Māramatanga Kāhui Ako.

Evaluation Findings

1 Equity and excellence – achievement of valued outcomes for students

1.1 How well is the school achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all its students?

School leaders report that in 2017 a large majority of students achieved school expectations in reading, writing and mathematics. Girls achieve at slightly higher levels than boys in writing and mathematics.

1.2 How well is the school accelerating learning for those Māori and other students who need this?

Newly implemented practices and processes for accelerating achievement and monitoring of the progress of ‘students at risk of low achievement’ were introduced in 2017. Targeted students are given sufficient opportunities to revisit and consolidate learning overtime. These are beginning to impact positively on student achievement.

Most students make expected progress. The 2017 data shows that acceleration is evident for many students in mathematics and writing.

2 School conditions for equity and excellence – processes and practices

2.1 What school processes and practices are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

Leaders collaborate well. They set clear expectations for improvement and success for both teachers and students. The holistic wellbeing of students is actively promoted and supported. Academic progress is well monitored. They have identified student agency, increased whānau involvement in students’ learning and integration of te ao Māori as keys to raising overall student achievement. They have also identified consistency of teaching, learning and behaviour management as areas for ongoing improvements in teacher practice. Targets are set and actions identified to investigate these.

Trustees are strongly focused on student achievement and wellbeing and responsive to both the needs of students and the wishes of parents. They engage regularly with their community and represent their views. They are supportive of teachers. A range of useful and appropriate processes and systems have been developed to guide school operation.

Students experience a broad and active curriculum. Te reo me ngā tikanga Māori are effectively woven throughout school activities. Students have appropriate opportunities to grow academically and to celebrate who they are. Their views inform decision making. Coherent curriculum documentation provides guidelines and clear expectations for teaching, learning and assessment. Student achievement data is analysed and used to identify students requiring additional support and to inform teachers’ planning.

Staff are focused on improving their teaching practice and raising student achievement. A clear and comprehensive appraisal framework builds and supports professional practice. New approaches to learning and changes to delivery of the curriculum are made as the result of reading current research and targeted professional development that is clearly linked to school priorities and improved student outcomes.

Students with additional needs participate in learning opportunities with appropriate support. External agency support is accessed as required.

2.2 What further developments are needed in school processes and practices for achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

Leaders and teachers are reflective. A shared understanding of the process for internal review is developing. Improving the depth of analysis, together with clearer steps for actions to be taken in response to findings, should further enhance leaders’ evaluative practice. Outcomes of actions taken should be clearly articulated to trustees, whānau and students.

3 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
• finance
• 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.

4 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:

• partnerships with local iwi, community and families that support positive integration of te ao Māori throughout the curriculum

• leadership and stewardship that focus on positive learning and wellbeing outcomes for all students

• well established school values that underpin school expectations and operation.

Next steps

For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for further development are in:

• clearer actions and deeper analysis of a range of data to better understand the impact of actions and initiatives

• communication of evaluation findings to better inform trustees, whānau and students about what is working well and what could improve.

ERO’s next external evaluation process and timing

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

Alan Wynyard

Director Review and Improvement Services

Te Tai Pokapū - Central Region

24 October 2018

About the school

1 Context

What are the important features of this school that have an impact on student learning?

Years 1 to 8 students learn in the semi-rural environment of Bridge Pa, located 10 minutes south of Hastings. Students are drawn from the community’s two marae, with some travelling a small distance from Flaxmere and Hastings in a board-funded van.

The 100% Māori roll comprises students of mainly Ngāti Kahungunu descent. The school has liaised with the iwi to incorporate aspirations from the iwi education plan within its localised curriculum.

The school currently operates three classrooms. A long-standing principal and deputy principal are supported by two newly-appointed staff in 2015. The board intends to initiate discussion with the community about future school make-up and direction, as the roll is predicted to fall in 2016.

2 Learning

How well does this school use achievement information to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement?

A key strategic priority for the school is to raise student achievement. About half of all students are not achieving in relation to National Standards in mathematics and writing. Processes for assessment and moderation are in place and useful individual records of progress are kept.

Teachers seek professional advice and training to support their assessment practice. Providing clearer schoolwide guidelines about assessment and moderation should help support consistency and reliability of overall teacher judgements about students' achievement in relation to National Standards.

Students at risk of poor outcomes are well identified through standardised testing. Teachers use their knowledge of students’ strengths and learning needs to match their teaching approach.

Teachers are beginning to inquire into the effectiveness of their practice. They adapt teaching for groups of students at risk of not achieving. They are starting to share ideas and strategies to support accelerated progress. Ongoing professional development and teacher reflection take place.

Mid year 2015 assessment data, shows that as a result of targeted action, student achievement is improving.

3 Curriculum

How effectively does this school’s curriculum promote and support student learning?

There is a clear focus within the curriculum on representing students’ language, culture and identity as Māori. A vision for students to know themselves and make links to their past is supported by programmes that are responsive, inclusive and centred on the local environment. Students have opportunities to learn through authentic world contexts.

Teachers actively work to build and maintain positive and orderly learning environments. The school intends to adopt a behavioural approach in 2016 aimed at strengthening understanding of the school’s values and goals for a collaborative learning community.

Many initiatives support individual students’ wellbeing, health and safety as a platform for achievement and success.

The school has developed its systems to support students with special needs. A newly established special education needs coordinator role has been established and appropriate professional development resourced. External agency advice and guidance is valued and acted on.

New entrants who enrol with oral language difficulties are well supported through focused teaching. An inquiry-based, responsive curriculum approach is used to develop their capabilities. Individual Year 1 and 2 students at risk have their progress in language development closely monitored. An agreed next step is to more deliberately plan to regularly evaluate the outcomes of the programme for all learners.

Aspects of teacher practice foster development of ‘learning to learn’ capabilities. Practice is not yet consistent schoolwide. Students vary in their ability to recognise the kind and quality of work required to achieve success.

Providing clearer expectations about expected and effective teaching practice in all curriculum areas is an important next step.

How effectively does the school promote educational success for Māori, as Māori?

Te reo me ngā tikanga Māori are highly valued and promoted within the school. Students have many opportunities to increase their understanding of te ao Māori.

A graduate profile has been developed to define what success looks like for students as they transition to secondary education. Leaders have identified the need to engage with whānau and community, to share the graduate profile and adapt it in response to community aspirations. ERO's evaluation affirms this as a useful next step. 

4 Sustainable Performance

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

The school is developing its capability to sustain and improve its performance.

Data is being collated more regularly to look at the progress made by targeted groups of students. The next step is to more thoroughly analyse this data, and more regularly evaluate and report to the board about the effectiveness of the targeted actions.

Self review is developing. A useful template for emergent review helps guide practice in this area. The charter outlines important student outcomes, which should help frame evaluation of school effectiveness.

The school should consider a more in-depth evaluation of how effective writing programmes are across the school. To strengthen evaluative practice, more depth and time should be spent on the investigative phase of review. Information from parents, students’ feedback and writing samples, classroom observation, documentation, teachers and research findings should be gathered to inform emergent judgements about quality, prior to decision making and action planning.

The appraisal process is a useful model that affirms teachers’ strengths and provides constructive suggestions to improve future professional practice. Teachers are beginning to collect digital evidence in relation to meeting Practising Teacher Criteria for registration.

The school has embarked on a collaborative initiative to strengthen community partnership and raise student achievement. Whānau are actively involved in providing ideas and setting action plans for change. Empowering all parents to be fully involved in partnerships for learning is an important area for development.

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.

Conclusion

Students learn in a supportive learning environment that affirms their Māori language, culture and identity. Raising student achievement remains a key priority. Teachers are beginning to inquire into the effectiveness of their practice and adapt their teaching to accelerate the progress of students at risk of poor outcomes.

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

Joyce Gebbie

Deputy Chief Review Officer Central

5 November 2015

About the School