Frankleigh Park Kindergarten

1 Evaluation of Frankleigh Park Kindergarten

How well placed is Frankleigh Park Kindergarten to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Frankleigh Park Kindergarten is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

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

Background

Frankleigh Park Kindergarten provides early childhood education and care for up to 40 children aged over two years. The current roll is 55, including 11 Māori children. All teachers are fully qualified.

The philosophy emphasises relationships, whānau involvement, sustainable practices, inclusion and te ao Māori. It is underpinned by the values of 'kaitiakitanga, whakamana, manaakitanga, ngā hononga, whanaungatanga, ako and kotahitanga'.

Frankleigh Park is one of 24 kindergartens operating under the governance and management of Kindergarten Taranaki (the association). The association’s vision is ‘enriching learning’. The governing board is responsible for setting the overall direction for the organisation. Oversight of the association is the role of the current acting chief executive. The acting chief executive is supported by a team of managers and leaders. There have been a number of changes in leadership and management personnel in the past three years.

Since the previous ERO review the head teacher and most of the teaching team at Frankleigh Park Kindergarten are newly appointed.

Key next steps for the association, identified in the January 2017 ERO evaluation, continue to be priorities. Frankleigh Park Kindergarten's key next steps to strengthen internal evaluation and acknowledgement of children's culture, language and identity in assessment continue to be progressed.

This review was part of a cluster of seven kindergartens in Kindergarten Taranaki.

The Review Findings

Children engage in a curriculum that strongly reflects the Treaty of Waitangi and sustainability based practices. They lead their own learning, supported by responsive teachers. A range of teaching strategies are employed that promote exploration and extend children's thinking about ways the world works.

Children's strengths are acknowledged and celebrated. A learning community is evident through the enactment of ako. Children are confident and demonstrate a sense of belonging.

Parents actively participate in the curriculum and strategic developments within the kindergarten. Recently developed practices are promoting a deeper engagement with whānau, and once embedded, should result in stronger learning-centred partnerships. Children's learning is enhanced and extended through teachers' understanding of their home life contexts.

Assessment, planning and evaluation practices are strengthening. Children's cultures, languages and identities, and aspirations of parents and children, are starting to inform individual planning. As this work progresses teachers should continue to:

• strengthen individual assessment to consistently reflect the depth of learning and children's progress over time
• develop evaluation of learning to consider how effectively teachers support children to achieve their goals.

The newly-established teaching team is effectively building a shared understanding of teaching and learning in the context of the kindergarten. The philosophy is highly evident in practice. Teachers actively seek further support for children with diverse learning needs. They regularly work alongside parents to plan progress of their children's learning.

The association has identified that a priority is to strengthen educationally powerful partnerships with whānau. A range of information and reporting is shared with whānau and surveys are undertaken to gather their views. Evaluating the effectiveness of current communication and consultation strategies should contribute to the association progressing this priority.

Teacher appraisal and professional development are growing practice and effectively promoting positive outcomes for children. The association board has sustained a deliberate focus on strengthening Kindergarten Taranaki capacity and capability to support educational success for Māori learners. At Frankleigh Park Kindergarten Māori expertise is valued and promoted. Te ao Māori concepts are richly woven into kindergarten practices.

Teachers are well supported to build their understanding and use of evaluation for teaching improvement. Targeted support to enhance understanding of aspects of evaluation should continue to drive improvements for children’s learning. Having a clear focus for each evaluation is a key next step, so that actions needed are identified and given priority.

Systems for recording and monitoring health and safety requirements were implemented in 2018. Further rigour and monitoring is required to ensure oversight of ongoing compliance accountability is maintained. Priority should also be given to the consistent implementation of a policy review schedule.

Board members show a good understanding of their governance roles and responsibilities. Strategic direction and annual planning align and guide the organisation. Reporting to the board by association leaders has recently strengthened. Evaluating progress and outcomes of the strategic plan and further refining reporting to the board should continue to enhance decision making.

Key Next Steps

Key next steps for the kindergarten are to continue to:

• strengthen planning, assessment and evaluation of children's learning progress over time
• refine the use of internal evaluation.

Kindergarten Taranaki should:

• consistently implement a policy review schedule and strengthen effective monitoring of accountability systems and processes
• enhance reporting to the board to include assurance of accountability, the quality of teaching and learning and outcomes for children’s learning
• systematise and strengthen processes used to evaluate outcomes of the strategic plan.

Recommendation

Priority should be given to sustaining a systematic process that assures governance and management of ongoing compliance accountability. Future ERO evaluations will monitor Kindergarten Taranaki progress towards this priority.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Frankleigh Park 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:

• 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.

To improve compliance practice, Kindergarten Taranaki should;

• finalise the development of lockdown procedures to further guide kindergarten practice statements
• strengthen the review of accident, illnesses and incident records and implementation of practices as required.

Teachers at Frankleigh Park Kindergarten should:

• ensure that parents are notified, and approve of, adult:child ratios for excursions.

[Licensing Criteria for Early Childhood Education and Care Centres 2008, HS7, HS27, HS17]

Darcy Te Hau

Acting Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)

Central Region - Te Tai Pūtahi Nui

3 June 2020

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

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.