Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated

Education institution number:
70347
Service type:
Education and Care Service
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
36
Telephone:
Address:

11 Craighead Street, Timaru

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Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated

1 ERO’s Judgements

Akarangi | 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 Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated are as follows:

Outcome Indicators

(What the service knows about outcomes for learners)


Whakaū Embedding

Ngā Akatoro Domains

 

Learning Conditions
Organisational Conditions

Whakawhanake Sustaining
Whakaū Embedding

2 Context of the Service

Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated is a small, not for profit, community-based kindergarten. It is governed by an elected parent board. Three qualified teachers share leadership responsibilities alongside the office manager. The service has made good progress in addressing some of the key next steps identified in the 2019 ERO report especially those relating to strategic planning and internal evaluation.

3 Summary of findings

Children experience a responsive curriculum that is consistent with Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, and the kindergarten’s priorities for learning. They make decisions about their own learning in well-resourced indoor and outdoor environments. Their sense of belonging is fostered through strong connections to the local community. Children with additional learning needs are well supported to fully participate in the curriculum. Teachers foster children’s wellbeing through inclusive, affirming teaching practices. 

Teachers regularly seek the views of whānau to support children’s diverse languages, cultures, and identities and meaningfully reflect these in the learning environments. Tikanga and te reo Māori are well integrated into daily teaching practice and teachers are exploring their localised bicultural curriculum. Internal evaluation focused on bicultural curriculum has led to ongoing improvements however this area requires further development

Useful assessment and planning for learning practices are informed by children’s interests and parent aspirations. Children’s learning and progress overtime is evident with clear links to Te Whāriki. Teachers consistently evaluate children’s learning and progress in relation to their planned learning goals. They are increasingly intentional in using the learning outcomes from Te Whāriki. However, there is not yet consistency in the evaluation of children’s progress in relation to these learning outcomes.

Distributed and collaborative leadership guides the service.  Purposeful and robust internal evaluation leads to continuous improvement to teaching and learning. Leaders actively seek opportunities to share their knowledge and practice with their learning community. Teachers take responsibility for their own professional learning and development that clearly aligns to their collective vision to continuously improve outcomes for children.  

Children and their learning are at the centre of decision making. Those in governance provide resourcing to support positive outcomes for children that align to the kindergarten’s philosophy. Some human resource systems and practices require strengthening.

4 Improvement actions

Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning. These are to:

  • in assessment documentation evaluate and consistently show individual and groups of children’s progress in relation to the learning outcomes of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum

  • further develop and implement the localised bicultural curriculum in consultation with whānau and mana whenua.

5 Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated 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:

  • 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; 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.

6 Actions for Compliance

ERO identified the following area of non-compliance:

  • every existing children’s worker must be safety checked every three years.

Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education & Care Services 2008, GMA7A.

7 Recommendation to Ministry of Education

ERO recommends the Ministry follows up with the service provider to ensure non-compliances identified in this report are addressed.

Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini

24 August 2022 

8 About the Early Childhood Service

Early Childhood Service Name

Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated

Profile Number

70347

Location

Timaru

Service type

Education and care service

Number licensed for

30 children

Percentage of qualified teachers

100%

Service roll

35

Ethnic composition

Māori 5, NZ European/Pākehā 25, Pacific 1, Other ethnic groups 4

Review team on site

17 May 2022

Date of this report

24 August 2022

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review, May 2019; Education Review, July 2015

Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated - 10/05/2019

1 Evaluation of Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated

How well placed is Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.

Background

Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated (the kindergarten) is a small, not for profit, community-based kindergarten. It provides sessional and full-day education and care for up to 30 children aged over 2 years.

The service philosophy highlights that they seek to nurture, encourage and grow lifelong learners who have a love of learning.

The kindergarten is governed by a board of elected parents. The board is currently establishing a new shared leadership team structure to manage all aspects of the kindergarten's day-to-day operation, programmes and teaching practices. At the time of the review the board was in the process of appointing a third teacher to join the leadership team, comprising the teachers and the office manager. The board has contracted the Canterbury Westland Kindergarten Association (trading as Kidsfirst) to provide teachers with teaching and learning professional support.

The July 2015 ERO report identified that improvement was required in the quality of planning, assessment and evaluation, bicultural curriculum and internal evaluation. Good progress has been made in all areas, however aspects of each remain as next steps for improvement.

The kindergarten is a member of the Timaru North Kāhui Ako | Community of Learning

The Review Findings

Children learn in a calm and caring environment. Relationships between children are positive and inclusive. Children are confident and demonstrate a sense of belonging. They have many opportunities for leadership. Tuakana teina learning is evident throughout the kindergarten.

Teachers value the knowledge, strengths and skills that children bring with them. They engage in intentional interactions with children to support and add complexity to their learning. They provide many activities and opportunities for children to choose, explore, problem solve and contribute.

Teachers have worked collaboratively with parents to identify what they value for children's learning: literacy, numeracy, self-determination, critical thinking, relating to others and creativity. They have a shared understanding of how to achieve these through their teaching practice. Planning and assessment records reflect the enactment of these priorities, and how children's learning is progressing over time. Teachers have identified that their next step is to develop parent/whānau partnerships focused on children's learning.

The language, culture and identity of all children needs to be valued and promoted through kindergarten experiences and activities, and clearly shown in planning and assessment for learning. Continuing to strengthen teachers' knowledge and understanding of kaupapa Māori principles and approaches to learning remains a priority.

The teachers are focused on improving programmes and their practices. They are well supported through the provision of external advice and guidance. A comprehensive appraisal process promotes their professional growth and development. Their inquiries into their own teaching practice are aligned to the kindergarten priorities. Teachers work well together as a team. They have begun to implement highly effective internal evaluation, such as the transition to school focus, which has benefited children, parents and whānau. They now need to continue to embed this internal evaluation framework.

The board and teachers have identified that planning, systems and processes need to be developed to support and guide the new shared leadership structure. The board needs to develop systems for the ongoing monitoring of the effectiveness of the leadership model in improving outcomes for children. Policies and procedures are being reviewed to align with the newly defined roles and responsibilities.

The board has a strong focus on enabling more confident learners and ensuring financial sustainability. They receive regular comprehensive reporting on the effectiveness of teaching and learning. The next step for the board is to further develop strategic and annual planning to guide their work as a board. These plans need to reflect the enactment of the Treaty of Waitangi principles and how Māori, as tangata whenua, are acknowledged. Systems to monitor, evaluate and report on the effectiveness of the plans, policies and procedures need to be developed. Members of the board would benefit from training to support them in their governance role.

Key Next Steps

Key next steps for improvement for governance are to:

  • enact the Treaty of Waitangi principles within all aspects of the kindergarten's operation
  • refine strategic and develop annual planning to guide the actions of the board
  • ensure greater parent voice is included in policy review
  • ensure human resource systems, policies and practices support the effective implementation of the new shared leadership structure
  • further develop and embed internal evaluation, to ensure systematic evaluations of centre developments and priorities inform decisions about effectiveness, improvement and sustainability.

ERO, leaders and teachers agree that teachers continue to develop and strengthen:

  • assessment for learning, that includes parent/whānau and children's language, culture and identity
  • specific planning to support treaty-based practices that promote educational success for Māori children
  • internal evaluation and use this to evaluate all aspects of the kindergarten operation over time.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Craighead Kindergarten Incorporated 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:

  • 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; 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.

Alan Wynyard

Director Review and Improvement Services Southern

Southern Region

10 May 2019

The Purpose of ERO Reports

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.

2 Information about the Early Childhood Service

Location

Timaru

Ministry of Education profile number

70347

Licence type

Education & Care Service

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

30 children aged over 2 years

Service roll

40

Gender composition

Girls 27, Boys 13

Ethnic composition

Māori
NZ European/Pākehā
Other ethnic groups

6
31
3

Percentage of qualified teachers

80% +

Reported ratios of staff to children

Over 2

1:10

Meets minimum requirements

Review team on site

February 2019

Date of this report

10 May 2019

Most recent ERO reports

Education Review

July 2015

Education Review

June 2012

3 General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

ERO’s Evaluation Framework

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.

ERO’s Overall Judgement

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.

Review Coverage

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.