6 Elsie Street, Gore
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Elsie Street Kindergarten is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Elsie Street Kindergarten offers early childhood education for children aged two years to school age. Education programmes run six hours a day, five days a week, with places for up to 30 children.
Through the curriculum and teaching practices, teachers aim to support all children to grow in confidence and competence. This includes emotional, social and physical competence, critical thinking and creativity. Building children's connections to, and knowledge of, the local community, the natural environment and New Zealand's bicultural heritage, are also valued outcomes.
Since its last ERO review in 2017, there has been a change of head teacher and some teaching staff. The kindergarten has made significant progress in addressing the areas for development identified in its last review.
This kindergarten is one of 23 kindergartens governed by the Kindergarten South Association. A general manager oversees each kindergarten within the association, under the governance of a board. Senior Teachers provide ongoing professional advice, guidance and support to each kindergarten for teaching and learning.
Children benefit from a rich and responsive curriculum that effectively supports the kindergarten's intended learning outcomes for children. Strengths of the curriculum include the way it:
Processes for planning for individual children and groups have been reviewed and strengthened. These include a range of strategies for supporting children to describe and illustrate their own learning. Teachers' planned strategies to extend children's learning are well documented in group planning. These could be better documented for individuals. Assessment and planning reflects and responds well to children's family cultures and aspirations. Teachers could now extend this planning to show how they will support children to become increasingly proud and confident in their ethnic identities.
Children learn in an unhurried and well-resourced learning environment. The environment is thoughtfully set up to encourage children to explore, be active, be creative and to build their early literacy and numeracy skills.
Teachers see children as inherently competent. They effectively support and enable children to make decisions about and lead their own learning. Teachers are respectful and responsive in their interactions with children and positively affirm all children's dispositions and individual identities. Teachers make good use of professional learning to build their capability to meet the needs of children with additional needs and to deepen and extend the kindergarten's curriculum.
Parents and whānau have increasing opportunities to be involved in their children's learning. Parents feel welcome to spend time alongside their children in the kindergarten's programme and participate in and support children's regular outings in the local community and environment. Teachers work closely with families to develop deep understandings of family values and traditions and how they can reflect and support these in teaching and learning experiences in the kindergarten.
Kindergarten leadership has worked collaboratively with teachers to develop a clear, coherent and aligned strategic framework, which includes long and short term plans and a vision for teaching and learning. These are effectively guiding operations, curriculum design and delivery, and teaching practice. Leadership is actively promoting and enabling collaboration between teachers, with families and with community personnel and organisations to enhance learning outcomes for children.
Leaders and teachers have developed their understandings and capability to undertake internal evaluation for improvement. This is now systematic, based on a range of evidence and focused on equity of outcomes for children. Internal evaluation is being well used to identify next steps and changes that support positive learning outcomes for all children.
Since ERO’s 2017 reviews of Kindergarten South's kindergartens, there have been significant changes within the association management and leadership team. Many of the good practices in place to support the kindergartens have been sustained. However, ERO found that the board needs better information to know how well kindergartens are improving outcomes for children. The board also needs to review its own performance and review the roles and responsibilities within the association leadership and management team.
For teachers to build on existing good assessment, planning and evaluation practices by:
Following a recent cluster review of seven Kindergarten South kindergartens the following next steps were identified for the association board and leadership. These are to:
Before the review, the staff and management of Elsie Street 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:
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 Elsie Street Kindergarten will be in three years.
Alan Wynyard
Director Review and Improvement Services Southern
Southern Region
19 February 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.
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Location |
Gore |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
5515 |
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Licence type |
Free Kindergarten |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
45 children aged over 2 years |
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Service roll |
40 |
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Gender composition |
Girls: 22 Boys: 18 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
6 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers |
80% + |
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Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
November 2018 |
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Date of this report |
19 February 2019 |
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Most recent ERO reports |
Education Review |
August 2017 |
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Education Review |
December 2013 |
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Education Review |
September 2010 |
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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:
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.
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Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
The kindergarten needs further support to improve the quality of leadership and the quality of the programme and practices.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Elsie Street Kindergarten is located in Gore. The kindergarten is licensed for 45 children aged from two years to school age. Up to 40 children attend six hour sessions.
The kindergarten is led by a head teacher and five teachers, including two teachers who have been appointed since the last ERO review.
The kindergarten is governed by Kindergartens South (KS). The kindergarten receives regular support from KS senior teachers. After the 2013 ERO review senior teachers supported the head teacher and teachers to develop action planning to address the key next steps in ERO's report. Since this time there has been limited progress on these next steps.
This review was part of a cluster of fourteen kindergarten reviews in the Southland Kindergarten Association (trading as Kindergartens South).
Teachers provide children with a variety of experiences, including a weekly outing for older children to experience nature in a local reserve. Children have opportunities to:
develop skills to be a friend
join in active-movement programmes
learn about their local community through outings and visitors to the kindergarten.
Teachers are involved in a local cluster of schools and early childhood services to strengthen transitions to school. However, the formal transition to school programme at this kindergarten does not reflect current best practice.
Leadership has not been effective in sustaining progress since the 2013 ERO report. The 2013 ERO report identified that teachers needed to:
be more intentional in their teaching by identifying the strategies they were going to use to extend children's learning
evaluate the impact the planned teaching strategies had on children's learning, for groups and individual children.
ERO found that systems for planning, assessment and evaluation are not effective in promoting positive outcomes for children's learning. Planning does not support the provision of a rich curriculum. Documentation does not give sufficient guidance to teachers to intentionally plan for groups and individual children. Planning does not show how teachers respond to children's language, culture and identity.
The 2013 ERO report identified that the head teacher and teachers needed to:
identify key Māori concepts that are important to the kindergarten community and make these explicit in their philosophy.
ERO found that teachers have identified two important Māori concepts. However, planning to deepen the teachers' and children's understanding around these has not been sustained. Children experience some aspects of te ao Māori in the programme, such as waiata, a kindergarten whakapapa and some legends. The teachers need to develop planning to extend and enrich the bicultural programme and teaching practices.
The 2013 ERO report identified that the teaching team needed to:
strengthen annual planning.
ERO found the kindergarten's vision to guide annual planning was not current and was in the process of being developed. The vision and the kindergarten philosophy need to be developed collaboratively with parents, and include their aspirations and expectations.
The 2013 ERO report identified that the teaching team needed to:
develop their knowledge and use of internal evaluation.
ERO found the head teacher and teachers do not have a good understanding of robust internal evaluation practices. They do not have evidence to show how well they have improved aspects of their practice. The head teacher needs to develop her own and teachers' understanding and use of effective internal evaluation to monitor and improve the programmes and practices they provide.
The kindergarten benefits from ongoing and well-planned professional learning and development. A new appraisal system is being introduced. This needs to include expectations for observations and explicit links to Tātaiako. Specific goals to support leadership should be included within the process.
The kindergarten receives good support from Kindergartens South (KS). The KS board has a clear strategic vision that outlines key priorities for development. The next step is to ensure explicit alignment of these priorities to each kindergarten's long-term planning. The board has identified that internal-evaluation practice is not strong at board level. The board needs to receive evaluative reporting of how well these plans and other initiatives have been enacted and the impact on children’s learning.
The key next steps to promote positive outcomes for all children are to:
develop leadership for learning
find ways to work in collaboration with parents and whānau and reflect their aspirations and expectations within the philosophy, vision, and long and short-term planning
develop effective systems for planning, assessment and evaluation, and implement a rich curriculum
continue to strengthen bicultural practices
develop effective internal-evaluation practices.
The key next steps for the KS board are to:
ensure the appraisal system continues to be developed and embedded
develop and use rigorous internal-evaluation practices
ensure explicit alignment of kindergarten planning to implement the KS strategic goals
receive evaluative reporting of progress towards the strategic goals.
Before the review, the staff and management of Elsie Street 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
To improve current practice the kindergarten needs to strengthen risk-management plans for excursions.
ERO recommends that the service, in consultation with the Ministry of Education, develops a plan to address the key next steps and actions outlined in this report.
The next ERO review of Elsie Street Kindergarten will be within two years.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern (Te Waipounamu)
21 August 2017
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 |
Gore |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
5515 |
||
|
Licence type |
Free Kindergarten |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
45 children aged over 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
55 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys: 31 Girls: 24 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
4 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
May 2017 |
||
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Date of this report |
21 August 2017 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
December 2013 |
|
|
Education Review |
February 2007 |
||
|
Education Review |
October 2004 |
||
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:
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.