116 Derwent Crescent, Invercargill
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Glengarry Kindergarten is very well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Glengarry Kindergarten offers education and care to a maximum of 40 children aged from 2 years to school age.
The service's philosophy is te ao Māori based. This includes the concepts of whanaungatanga, manaakitanga, ukaipotanga, kaitiakitanga and hauora. Underpinning these concepts is ako - learning together, moving forward together and becoming more powerful together.
This is one of 23 kindergartens within the Kindergartens South Association (KS). KS is managed by a board of governors and a general manager. The general manager and a team of senior teachers support head teachers and staff working within each kindergarten.
Since the August 2017 ERO report there have been a number of changes within the board of governors and across KS management. The next steps for the association and the kindergarten included to clearly define and align the philosophy and vision and improve planning and evaluation processes. There has been very good progress to address ERO's recommendations.
This review was one of a cluster of seven kindergartens within KS.
The positive, respectful and reciprocal relationships the teachers have with families and whanāu and within the community support children’s sense of belonging. There is a strong sense of ako- learning together as a connected whānau.
Te ao Māori concepts and perspectives are an integral part of children's learning. The curriculum is purposeful and effectively designed to promote learning about te ao Māori while enhancing children's skills, abilities and individual interests. Understanding the Māori world view is helping children across all aspects of their development.
Children successfully lead their learning and are given time and space to choose what and how they wish to learn. They have opportunities to revisit past experiences and build on prior learning. Well-considered resources and a wide range of experiences that link to children's interests promote their success across the curriculum. Teachers effectively use a range of strategies to deepen children's thinking and add complexity to their learning. Children have opportunities to be involved in a nature discovery programme and to contribute to learning through the enviroschool programme. Through this they develop an understanding and appreciation of nature and how they can help take care of the environment.
Other positive features of the kindergarten include the way teachers:
work with the local school to support children's transition to school
provide ways for whānau and community members to share their valued knowledge and skills for the benefit of all
arrange the environment to accommodate children’s different learning styles.
Children who require additional support demonstrate a sense of confidence and familiarity in their learning and play. Teachers are responsive to their needs while encouraging exploration and problem-solving. The team seeks and uses external support as required for children with additional needs. There is strong support for identified priority children and learning strategies developed in partnership with parents and whānau. Further exploring ways to support Pacific children and children who are gifted is an identified next step.
Useful assessment and planning systems are in place. Teachers seek parent and whānau aspirations and know about how they wish to be informed of their child's learning and progress. The culture and identity of children and families is highly valued. Narratives show how teachers intentionally promote success for Māori children. Teachers are currently implementing a more culturally appropriate model of assessment to add more depth to the process.
There is a high level of collaboration and team cohesion. Teachers are open to new perspectives and making change. The teaching team is improvement focused. Internal evaluation processes are useful and result in improvements across centre practices and in positive outcomes for children.
KS leaders provide effective support and mentoring for the head teacher and teachers within the kindergarten. KS continues to make significant progress in improving the systems and processes for the effective governance and management of the association.
ERO's evaluation confirms and kindergarten leaders and teachers agree that the next steps are to continue to develop and refine:
internal evaluation practice and use these practices to evaluate assessment and planning processes and the impact of new initiatives on outcomes for children
ways to provide specific learning for children of Pacific heritage and gifted children.
Next steps for the KS board and managers are to further develop and implement:
the KS strategic intent and annual plan
the service's guiding document Te Kaupapa mo nga akonga tatou
internal evaluation processes and practices.
Before the review, the staff and management of Glengarry 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.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region - Te Tai Tini
22 May 2020
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 |
Invercargill |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
5518 |
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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 |
40 children aged over 2 |
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Service roll |
32 |
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Gender composition |
Females 17 Males 15 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
11 |
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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 |
March 2020 |
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Date of this report |
22 May 2020 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
August 2017 |
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|
Education Review |
December 2013 |
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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:
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.
Glengarry Kindergarten is located in Invercargill and is licensed for 40 children aged from two years to school age. Up to 30 children attend in the morning and 20 in the afternoon, for full-day or morning sessions. Children come from a diverse range of cultural backgrounds and half identify as Māori.
The kindergarten is governed by Kindergartens South (KS). The kindergarten receives regular support from KS senior teachers. Since the 2013 ERO report, there is a new head teacher and teachers. Good progress has been made in addressing the key next steps in ERO's report, including developing systems for planning, assessment and evaluation for groups and individual children.
This review was part of a cluster of fourteen kindergarten reviews in the Southland Kindergarten Association (trading as Kindergartens South).
The head teacher and teachers have a clear vision for children's learning and wellbeing and are implementing a responsive curriculum that promotes positive outcomes for all children. They have consulted extensively with their whānau and community to develop a philosophy and vision that is strongly underpinned by key Māori values (matapono). The vision and values place high priority on ensuring children develop a strong sense of belonging and identity in the local community. The vision and values are evident in practice and help support the mana of children and their whānau.
The philosophy clearly shows the service's desired outcomes for children's learning and guides programmes and teachers' practices. There is useful alignment between the kindergarten's vision, long and short-term plans, and the philosophy. Teachers need to monitor the progress towards achieving these and evaluate how well they are achieving the vision.
All children, including Māori children and their families, benefit from the way that teachers deliberately support a strong sense of whanaungatanga. Teachers are building learning partnerships with whānau, and this is evident in the way they acknowledge and respond to parents' aspirations for their child's learning.
The head teacher is supporting the teachers to plan and implement a rich bicultural programme underpinned by the tikanga of:
manaakitanga (kindness)
whanaungatanga (positive relationships)
ukaipotanga (sense of belonging and value for children and their whānau)
kaitiakitanga (environmental respect)
hauora (health and wellbeing).
These tikanga are helping create an environment where Māori children and their whānau know that their culture is valued.
Teachers design well-considered programmes to enable children to learn at an unhurried pace and to be sustained in their play. They respond to children's interests and strengths, and extend children's learning through integrated learning experiences. This includes parents and whānau sharing their strengths and skills. Children have many opportunities to:
develop early literacy and mathematics skills
develop strategies to play and learn well with others
learn about sustainability and the natural world
develop their thinking skills and be curious.
Children with diverse learning and behaviour needs are very well supported. Teachers communicate very well with parents, and with the support of KS and external agencies, develop detailed planning and implement specific strategies to support children's wellbeing and learning.
There are newly developed systems for planning, assessment and evaluation for groups and individuals. These need to be further developed and embedded. Teachers need to make the intended learning more explicit, and evaluate how well the strategies and experiences they use have supported children's learning.
The new teaching team is in the early stages of developing and using effective evaluation. The key next step is to use internal-evaluation processes to evaluate the effectiveness of the kindergarten's systems, programmes and practices.
The kindergarten benefits from ongoing and well-planned professional learning and development and is well supported by the KS senior teachers. A new appraisal system is being introduced. This needs to include expectations for observations and explicit links to Tātaiako.
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 plans and other initiatives have been enacted and the impact on children’s learning.
The key next steps for the head teacher and teachers, with the support of the KS senior teachers, are to:
continue to develop planning, assessment and evaluation practices for groups and individual children
develop effective internal-evaluation processes
monitor and evaluate long and short-term planning.
Next steps for the 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 Glengarry 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 Glengarry Kindergarten will be in three 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 |
Invercargill |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
5518 |
||
|
Licence type |
Free Kindergarten |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
22 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
32 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Girls: 22 Boys: 10 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
16 |
|
|
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 |
May 2017 |
||
|
Date of this report |
21 August 2017 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
December 2013 |
|
|
Education Review |
September 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:
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.