2 Cate Road, Rototuna
View on mapAkarangi | Quality Evaluation evaluates the extent to which this early childhood service has the learning and organisational conditions to support equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners. Te Ara Poutama Indicators of quality for early childhood education: what matters most are the basis for making judgements about the effectiveness of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. Judgements are made in relation to the Outcomes Indicators, Learning and Organisational Conditions. The Evaluation Judgement Rubric derived from the indicators, is used to inform ERO’s judgements about this service’s performance in promoting equity and excellence.
ERO’s judgements for Chapel Hill Kindergarten are as follows:
Outcome Indicators(What the service knows about outcomes for learners) |
Whāngai Establishing |
Ngā Akatoro Domains |
|
Learning ConditionsOrganisational Conditions |
Whakaū Embedding Whāngai Establishing |
This not-for-profit Christian service is located on the grounds of Chapel Hill Community Church. Governed by a board of trustees, the centre manager oversees daily operations and curriculum. Located within a multicultural community, a small number of enrolled children are identified as Māori. There have been improvements to curriculum planning since ERO’s 2019 review.
Children experience an inclusive curriculum that intentionally promotes faith-based values. Teachers actively foster positive attitudes through social interaction. The learning environment is print-rich, advancing children’s decision making, creativity and thinking skills. A range of literacy experiences, including bible and local stories, enhance children’s understanding of the world around them. The growing bicultural curriculum supports some exploration of things and places of importance to mana whenua. Te reo Māori is used within centre routines.
Learning-focused partnerships with parents are well established. Parent aspirations are gathered. Whānau Māori are supporting teachers’ understanding of children’s whakapapa. Children hear their home languages as they play together and through teachers’ use of greetings and simple words. Those children with additional health needs are well supported, through teachers working alongside parents and external agencies. Children and their families demonstrate a strong sense of belonging.
Evidence of children’s learning and progress over time in assessment is variable. Individualised planning for children’s learning recognises their interests and strengths. The service has begun to explore the learning outcomes in Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, and has some evidence about children’s developing capabilities in relation to these.
Those responsible for governance have established organisational conditions that prioritise children’s physical and emotional wellbeing. Strategies are in place to promote inclusion and equity of access to learning. Systems for strategic planning, professional growth and evaluation for improvement are evident. Relational trust at all levels supports openness to change. The service is not yet documenting the impact of curriculum decisions, and changes made, on children’s learning outcomes within evaluation.
Chapel Hill Kindergarten will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:
Increase the opportunities children have to hear meaningful te reo Māori across the breadth of the curriculum.
Strengthen the consistency of assessment practices to capture the continuity of children’s learning and progress over time.
Intentionally integrate the learning outcomes from Te Whāriki through assessment for learning and evaluation for improvement. This would enable leaders and teachers to understand the impact of curriculum decisions on outcomes for children.
Before the review, the staff and management of Chapel Hill Kindergarten completed an ERO Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
curriculum
premises and facilities
health and safety practices
governance, management and administration.
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)
physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)
suitable staffing (including qualification levels; safety checking; teacher registration; ratios)
relevant evacuation procedures and practices.
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
Since the onsite phase the service provided ERO with evidence it has addressed following non-compliance:
Ensuring kitchen facilities are checked for hazards to children on a daily basis (HS12).
Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)
13 September 2023
|
Early Childhood Service Name |
Chapel Hill Kindergarten |
|
Profile Number |
30149 |
|
Location |
Rototuna |
|
Service type |
Education and care service |
|
Number licensed for |
40 children aged over 2 |
|
Percentage of qualified teachers |
100% |
|
Service roll |
44 |
|
Review team on site |
July 2023 |
|
Date of this report |
13 September 2023 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review, November 2019 |
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Chapel Hill Kindergarten is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Chapel Hill Kindergarten is located in the north east of Hamilton and provides education and care for children from two years to school age. It is licensed for 40 children and provides morning and afternoon sessions. At the time of this review there were 44 children enrolled.
The kindergarten is a ministry of Chapel Hill Community Church and the programme includes Christian teaching. The kindergarten is overseen by a board of trustees appointed by Chapel Hill Community Church. The centre manager is responsible for the day-to-day running of the kindergarten. The core team of teachers are all qualified.
The kindergarten's vision is to inspire, to empower, and to grow faith. Its philosophy is to provide a stimulating holistic programme, encouraging an appreciation and understanding of biblical values. The board and leadership are currently reviewing the kindergarten's vision.
Since the previous Education Review Office report in 2016, a new centre manager and teaching team have been appointed.
Effective teaching interactions support children’s confidence and competence. Teachers are responsive to children’s interests and are skilled in using questioning to model and support literacy and mathematics, and to extend learning. Children are supported and encouraged to self manage. They have opportunities to lead their own learning and engage in sustained play. There are positive and affirming relationships developed between teachers and children. Children are viewed as capable and are supported to develop skills and dispositions through meaningful interactions and play.
The kindergarten has an inclusive curriculum that promotes positive learning outcomes for children. The special Christian character is a key feature of the curriculum, and the philosophy and values are visible in learning and play. Aspects of te ao Māori are intentionally integrated in curriculum planning. The language, culture and identity of all children is recognised and celebrated through a range of planned activities. Parent and community partnerships support broad learning opportunities. Children with additional needs are supported to participate in all activities. Children and their families have a strong sense of belonging.
Trustees and leaders are working collaboratively to develop the vision and strategic direction of the kindergarten. Trustees have sought guidance from an external provider to support the review and enactment of the kindergarten's strategic plan. Leaders have implemented a clear framework for internal evaluation based on improving current practices and outcomes for children. They should consider ways to increase formal opportunities for professional collaboration among all staff to support the further development of shared expectations and practice.
Centre leadership and teachers have recognised the need to improve aspects of planning and assessment. This should include:
Before the review, the staff and management of Chapel Hill Kindergarten completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)
physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)
suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)
evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
For improved practice, centre leadership need to ensure that earthquake and lockdown drills are regularly practised and recorded in line with the kindergarten's policy.
Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services Central
Central Region
26 November 2019
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.
|
Location |
Rototuna, Hamilton |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
30149 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
40 children aged over 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
44 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Female 29 Male 15 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
1 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
|
Review team on site |
October 2019 |
||
|
Date of this report |
26 November 2019 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
November 2016 |
|
|
Education Review |
August 2013 |
||
|
Education Review |
March 2010 |
||
ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:
Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children
Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children
Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children
Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.
A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.
For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes will depend on how well the service promotes positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
Very well placed
Well placed
Requires further development
Not well placed
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Chapel Hill Kindergarten, located in the north east of Hamilton, provides education and care for children from two years to school age. The kindergarten operates under the umbrella of a charitable trust and is licensed for 40 children. The roll of 89 includes nine Māori children. The kindergarten's roll is multicultural with over ten different nationalities represented. It operates flexible hours with a combination of full day, morning or afternoon sessions. Many children attend the kindergarten on a part-time basis.
Since the 2013 ERO review leadership and staffing at the kindergarten have remained consistent. A new supervisor has been appointed to work alongside the experienced kindergarten manager to manage the kindergarten and provide professional leadership for the staff. At the beginning of 2016 the governance structure of the kindergarten changed. The management committee was disbanded and overall governance of the kindergarten is now provided by the trust. The trust continues to employ qualified and registered teachers.
The kindergarten's mission is to provide a programme that is based on Christian teaching values. Its philosophy is for children to be confident, competent life-long learners who are inquisitive about the world around them.
The kindergarten has a positive ERO reporting history. Staff have responded to the area for development in the 2013 ERO report relating to the multi-cultural nature of the kindergarten community.
Chapel Hill Kindergarten is well placed to provide positive learning outcomes for children.
Children benefit from positive and caring relationships with their teachers. These relationships contribute to their wellbeing and belonging. Their sense of confidence and competence is supported by teachers' use of a wide range of effective teaching strategies. Māori children's language, culture and identity is recognised and acknowledged through teachers increased use of te reo Māori in their daily interactions, karakia at meal times, and the regular use of waiata. Well-known values that reflect the kindergarten's Christian philosophy contribute to children's growing self-management and self-help skills.
The kindergarten's programme strongly reflects its Christian special character. Leaders are considering implementing a more child-initiated programme that is more flexible and responsive to children's emerging interests. The current programme includes many teacher-led routines and activities. Positive features of the programme experienced by children include:
ready access to a wide range of good-quality resources and equipment
opportunities to interact with the natural world especially the kindergarten's pets
frequent visits into the local and wider community
regular celebrations that reflect the multi-cultural nature of the kindergarten community.
The kindergarten has an inclusive approach for children with diverse learning and behaviour needs. Leaders seek appropriate external support where required and work in collaboration with families to achieve positive outcomes.
Parents are actively included and involved in the life of the kindergarten. They have opportunities to meet formally with teachers twice a year to discuss their children's learning and progress. These partnerships are further strengthened by ready access to online portfolios that capture children's involvement in the programme. These individual digital portfolios effectively identify children's emerging interests, learning and development. Teachers should give consideration to how children can more readily access and revisit this valuable record of their learning.
Children and their families benefit from flexible, well-managed transition processes into the kindergarten. Leaders and teachers have established useful relationships with the local primary school that support children as they move on to school.
The well-respected kindergarten manager and supervisor provide an informed approach to leadership of the kindergarten. They have focused on building teacher capability to provide a more child-initiated programme. Leaders demonstrate their commitment to the kindergarten's special Christian character. They promote positive relationships with staff, trustees, families and children that contribute to the kindergarten's positive culture for learning. Leaders are continuing to develop useful self-review practices to inform decision making and ongoing development.
Trustees are continuing to provide supportive governance for the kindergarten focused on positive outcomes for children. They are also strongly committed to the kindergarten's special Christian character and providing equitable outcomes for all families. Trustees fund generous professional learning opportunities for teachers and employing registered and fully qualified teaching staff. Trustees and leaders should consider consulting with parents and teachers to develop a more specific strategic plan to guide ongoing kindergarten development and self review.
The key next steps for kindergarten leaders are to:
access centre-wide ongoing professional learning for teachers to develop an agreed understanding of effective teaching practices within a child-initiated curriculum
strengthen appraisal processes to ensure teachers receive regular and robust feedback about the effectiveness of their teaching practices and meet Education Council requirements.
The trust and kindergarten leaders access external professional development for teachers to strengthen their shared understanding of effective teaching practice within a child-initiated programme.
Before the review, the staff and management of Chapel Hill Kindergarten completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:
During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:
emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)
physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)
suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)
evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
The next ERO review of Chapel Hill Kindergarten will be in three years.
Lynda Pura-Watson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Waikato/Bay of Plenty
11 November 2016
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.
|
Location |
Hamilton |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
30149 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
40 children, including up to 0 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
89 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Girls 45 Boys 44 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā Indian South African Chinese Other |
9 58 5 5 3 9 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
|
Review team on site |
October 2016 |
||
|
Date of this report |
11 November 2016 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
August 2013 |
|
|
Education Review |
March 2010 |
||
|
Education Review |
February 2007 |
||
ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:
Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children
Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children
Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children
Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.
Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.
A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.
For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes and the timing of the next review will depend on how well placed a service is to promote positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.