Goldfields School (Cromwell)

Findings

Goldfields continues to be a high performing school with high levels of achievement. Trustees, leaders and teachers have a purposeful focus on improving outcomes for students. The curriculum is very highly responsive to community aspirations, student needs and interests. All students have many opportunities to learn about and experience Māori culture. Effective leadership and management ensure ongoing improvements.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

1. Context

What are the important features of this school that have an impact on student learning?

Goldfields continues to be a high-performing school for its students in Years 1 to 6. It is successfully meeting the challenges the continued roll growth brings. These include additional staffing and building more teaching spaces. Leaders and trustees are also sustaining the quality of the school curriculum with a focus on creating modern learning practices and environments.

Student achievement reports in relation to National Standards show very high levels of student achievement in reading and mathematics, and high student achievement in writing.

The school’s vision is to value individual excellence and diversity in a caring, safe and sustainable environment and for students to become self-managing learners. Trustees, school leaders and teachers have high expectations for, and are committed to, all students achieving well.

Students are positive about their experiences and learning at school and enjoy being at the school. There are supportive and positive relationships between adults, among students and between adults and students. All staff contribute to the positive outcomes for all students.

Since the last ERO review in 2010, the school has continued to build on its overall performance, including curriculum review and success for their Māori students.

2. Learning

How well does this school use achievement information to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement?

The school uses achievement information very effectively to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement. The following areas of strength support this judgement.

Students, with their teachers, use achievement information very well to:

• know how well they are achieving and progressing against expectations
• set goals and to know what to work on next
• self manage their learning.

Teachers use learning information effectively to:

• guide their planning for explicit teaching to address identified learning needs
• identify students needing extra learning support or extension
• monitor and track the progress of students
• reflect on the impact of their teaching and programmes and adapt programmes where required.

School leaders investigate learning information to identify needs of students and teachers. They then:

• set targets and goals for specific curriculum areas and groups of students
• determine staffing needs, learning interventions, extensions and programmes
• monitor and confirm progress, evaluate the effectiveness of teaching programmes, including additional learning support, and make necessary adjustments to programmes.

Trustees have a strong focus on student achievement as part of their governance role. They receive well-analysed information and use it well to:

• review strategic and annual plans, and set future priorities
• make appropriate budget and resourcing decisions.

3. Curriculum

How effectively does this school’s curriculum promote and support student learning?

The school’s curriculum very effectively promotes and supports student learning. The following areas of strength support this judgement.

The curriculum is soundly based on the New Zealand Curriculum and the school vision. It is responsive to community aspirations, student needs and interests. Central to the curriculum is the emphasis placed on nurturing and developing the wellbeing of the whole child. Other significant features of the curriculum are the learning:

• in and beyond their community
• about sustainability of the environment
• about New Zealand’s bicultural heritage.

The school’s vision is very evident in practice throughout the school and the classrooms.

Students are actively involved in the life and learning of the school. They are able to make choices in many aspects of their learning. The school culture supports students to engage in purposeful learning. This includes:

• learning support programmes
• one-to-one support from trained teacher aides and community volunteers
• effective use of modern learning practices, including e-learning
• a wide range of relevant and interesting learning experiences.

Leaders have high expectations of teachers. There are clear guidelines for consistent practice and programme delivery. Leaders know what contributes to good teaching. They research to find best practice to help make ongoing improvements to teaching. Teachers use effective teaching strategies, including those to support students to become self-managing learners.

There are useful systems in place to support teachers to build their teaching practice, including effective curriculum review, robust appraisals, and comprehensive professional development and learning.

How effectively does the school promote educational success for Māori, as Māori?

The school’s self review shows that Māori students and their whānau are increasingly engaging in aspects of their identity, language and culture at and beyond school.

Sixteen percent of the school’s students identify as Māori. Achievement reports show that these students are achieving very well in relation to the National Standards, especially in mathematics.

All students have many opportunities to hear and use te reo Māori and sing waiata. Many features of Māori culture are valued, celebrated and increasingly incorporated into the life and learning of the school. Students join in Māori performing arts, noho marae and pōwhiri.

The parent group, Whānau ō Goldfields, is providing leadership in this area. This group seeks and responds to student and whānau opinions. The principal champions biculturalism and success for Māori and ensures they are part of school plans.

The values of manaakitanga/caring, whanaungatanga/inclusion, rangatiratanga/respect and tuakana-teina are highly evident throughout the school. Work has begun to incorporate these into the school values. Trustees and leaders recognise the value of developing a shared understanding of what success as Māori means at Goldfields.

4. Sustainable Performance

How well placed is the school to sustain and improve its performance?

The school is very well placed to sustain and improve its performance. There is a strong alignment between governance, leadership, management, teachers, the curriculum and student learning

School governance is based on a well-defined vision and achievement information. The vision is put into action through useful long and short-term planning and regular review.

The principal’s leadership style motivates staff. She has a thorough knowledge of what matters and how to effect change. Leaders at all levels are well supported to build their capability as leaders. There is a priority on building a learning culture as guided by school plans.

Effective management practices focus on ensuring quality outcomes for students. This is evident in the:

• rigorous self review leading to improvement and planning
• well-planned performance management practices clearly linked to targets and school goals
• school organisation and meetings to ensure the “Goldfields’ Way” is maintained.

Next steps

From self review findings the principal and trustees have identified key areas for continued development. These include strengthening partnerships with parents and whānau, and continuing to develop their work around success for Māori. ERO agrees with these initiatives.

Board assurance on legal requirements

Before the review, the board of trustees and principal of the school completed the ERO Board Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklists. In these documents they attested that they had taken all reasonable steps to meet their legislative obligations related to:

• board administration
• curriculum
• management of health, safety and welfare
• personnel management
• financial management
• asset management.

During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student achievement:

• emotional safety of students (including prevention of bullying and sexual harassment)
• physical safety of students
• teacher registration
• processes for appointing staff
• stand-downs, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions
• attendance.

Conclusion

Goldfields continues to be a high performing school with high levels of achievement. Trustees, leaders and teachers have a purposeful focus on improving outcomes for students. The curriculum is very highly responsive to community aspirations, student needs and interests. All students have many opportunities to learn about and experience Māori culture. Effective leadership and management ensure ongoing improvements.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

Graham Randell

Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern

8 May 20151

About the School

1. The Education Review Office (ERO) Evaluation

Goldfields Primary School continues to be a high performing school. The board and principal have managed resources well to cater for the steady growth in roll numbers over the last three years. The school benefits from stable staffing with high levels of capability.

Students have a strong sense of belonging and are proud of their school. They have a high regard for their teachers. Students enjoy their school environment and are involved in decisions about developing aspects of the school’s grounds.

Students benefit from a positive learning culture in all aspects of school life. They are actively involved in their learning. They benefit from programmes that are relevant and meaningful, and make choices in their learning. Teachers focus students on learning how to learn.

The school’s vision is to create a love of learning where individual excellence and diversity are valued. Supporting this vision are key learning priorities, including the recognition of multiple intelligences, and promotion of the key competencies. Students know and are able to talk about the school’s vision for learning. This review found the vision very evident in the daily life of the school.

Teachers effectively integrate learning areas in the well-planned programmes. They cater for children’s different learning styles. Students can see that teachers are learners too. Teachers have been learning about ways to make better use of:

• the links between assessment and learning; and
• focused programmes to increase students’ rates of progress in writing.

Teachers have high expectations for students and have a detailed knowledge of them. Students respond positively to these high expectations and achieve well. Most students, including Māori, are achieving at or above the school’s expectations in literacy and numeracy. Students achieve to good levels in all other learning areas.

Other notable strengths of the school include:

• the many opportunities parents have to be informed about and involved in their children’s learning;
• the high quality of the professional learning linked to the school’s vision;
• leadership throughout the staff; and
• the board’s capability to carry out effective review and plan strategically for the future.

Future Action

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

2. Goldfields Primary School’s Curriculum

How effectively does the curriculum of Goldfields Primary School promote student learning - engagement, progress and achievement?

School context and self review

Older students are able to talk confidently about the school’s vision for students to learn within a safe, caring, respectful and sustainable environment where individual excellence and diversity are valued. The school’s curriculum emphasises the development of lifelong learning skills, self management, and students knowing about themselves as learners.

The school is able to show improved achievement over time in writing, numeracy and reading. Overall 2009 data shows that students, including Māori, are achieving at or above national performance levels in literacy and numeracy. Trends from 2010 achievement information indicate students have made further improvements in writing throughout the school. Numeracy data from 2009 shows there has been increased achievement over the past two years. The majority of students are working at or above national research data expectations in numeracy. Reading achievement information in 2010 shows that most students are achieving at or above the national standards.

Areas of strength

• Focus on student achievement.

The school has high expectations for all students to achieve in their learning and make good progress. Senior leaders closely monitor students’ progress and achievement across the school. They provide regular and detailed reports to trustees about this. The information on student achievement is valid and reliable and used effectively as the basis for strategic decision making. There are well-planned programmes for students who require support or extension.

• Assessment at classroom level.

Teachers know their students well. They gather useful information and can show how they use this to target the learning needs of individuals and small groups of students. Teachers show skill in how they integrate assessment into their day-to-day teaching. They give students specific oral and written feedback about their learning, including useful next steps.

• Students’ involvement in their learning.

Students learn how to manage and take responsibility for their learning in purposeful ways. They make choices within their learning, including what they learn about and how. Students set worthwhile goals and targets, and revisit these to check their progress. With their teachers, they develop descriptions of what successful learning will look like. Students frequently share and talk about their learning, and take social action arising from inquiry topics.

• Curriculum design and review.

Senior leaders and teachers have an in-depth understanding of the school’s vision for learning. This vision is highly evident in daily practice. Teachers follow very detailed guidelines about how the vision is to be implemented and for the delivery of the curriculum. The school’s curriculum is closely aligned to the New Zealand Curriculum and is regularly reviewed.

• Partnership with parents.

Parents are well informed about their children’s progress and achievement, and about learning programmes. There is regular and genuine consultation with parents. Parents have many opportunities to be involved in their children’s learning and their perspectives are valued. The school has used a variety of ways to inform, consult with and involve parents of Māori children.

• Professional leadership.

The principal provides strong, visionary leadership and empowers others to take leadership roles. She and other senior leaders closely monitor and support staff to meet the school’s high expectations for learning. They reflect in purposeful, well-planned ways, with a focus on continual improvement. Senior leaders involve themselves in professional learning alongside the teachers. The teachers are highly engaged in purposeful professional learning and continually reflect as to how they might improve their teaching.

• Governance.

The board has developed well-considered strategic and annual plans that guide school operations. Strategic priorities are decided after considering the findings from the school’s review processes. This includes looking carefully at student achievement data. As a result, the school has well-informed targets to improve achievement and meet other goals. Trustees have a wide range of expertise and experience relevant to their roles and responsibilities. They and senior leaders have implemented structures and systems to further build capability and sustainability within the school.

• Review.

The school has a comprehensive process to review its curriculum and other priorities. Reviews are well structured, follow a clear format and result in very useful information being gathered. The school often consults different groups, including students and parents, to identify what is going well, possible concerns, and constructive next steps. It has frequently reviewed how well it is meeting the needs of its Māori students. The focus of all reviews is on improved outcomes for students.

Areas for development and review

This review has identified Goldfields Primary School as a high performing school. School leaders are always striving to improve what happens at school for students. At the time of this review, they had already identified several priorities for 2011. ERO’s findings confirm these.

School leaders and teachers have completed a comprehensive review of the reading and writing curriculum. Their next step is to review the oral language curriculum. They also want to strengthen teachers’ knowledge, skills and confidence in teaching te reo Māori and including Māori perspectives into units of work and daily programmes.

3. Agreed Priorities

ERO and the board of trustees agree that the next stages of school development should focus on:

• extending curriculum review as indicated above; and
• continuing to build the confidence and capacity of teachers to integrate te reo Māori and Māori perspectives in meaningful ways into daily programmes.

4. Board Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the board of trustees and principal of Goldfields Primary School completed an ERO Board Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they had taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:

• board administration;
• curriculum;
• management of health, safety and welfare;
• personnel management;
• financial management; and
• asset management.

During the review, ERO looked at the school’s documentation, including policies, procedures and records. ERO sampled recent use of procedures and ERO also checked elements of the following five areas that have a potentially high impact on students’ achievement:

• emotional safety of students (including prevention of bullying and sexual harassment);
• physical safety of students;
• teacher registration;
• stand-downs, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions; and
• attendance.

5. Future Action

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

Graham Randell

National Manager Review Services

Southern Region

18 February 2011

About The School

18 February 2011

To the Parents and Community of Goldfields Primary School

These are the findings of the Education Review Office’s latest report on Goldfields Primary School.

Goldfields Primary School continues to be a high performing school. The board and principal have managed resources well to cater for the steady growth in roll numbers over the last three years. The school benefits from stable staffing with high levels of capability.

Students have a strong sense of belonging and are proud of their school. They have a high regard for their teachers. Students enjoy their school environment and are involved in decisions about developing aspects of the school’s grounds.

Students benefit from a positive learning culture in all aspects of school life. They are actively involved in their learning. They benefit from programmes that are relevant and meaningful, and make choices in their learning. Teachers focus students on learning how to learn.

The school’s vision is to create a love of learning where individual excellence and diversity are valued. Supporting this vision are key learning priorities, including the recognition of multiple intelligences, and promotion of the key competencies. Students know and are able to talk about the school’s vision for learning. This review found the vision very evident in the daily life of the school.

Teachers effectively integrate learning areas in the well-planned programmes. They cater for children’s different learning styles. Students can see that teachers are learners too. Teachers have been learning about ways to make better use of:

• the links between assessment and learning; and
• focused programmes to increase students’ rates of progress in writing.

Teachers have high expectations for students and have a detailed knowledge of them. Students respond positively to these high expectations and achieve well. Most students, including Māori, are achieving at or above the school’s expectations in literacy and numeracy. Students achieve to good levels in all other learning areas.

Other notable strengths of the school include:

• the many opportunities parents have to be informed about and involved in their children’s learning;
• the high quality of the professional learning linked to the school’s vision;
• leadership throughout the staff; and
• the board’s capability to carry out effective review and plan strategically for the future.

Future Action

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

Review Coverage

This report provides an evaluation of how effectively the school’s curriculum promotes student learning - engagement, progress and achievement. ERO’s evaluation takes account of the school’s previous reporting history and is based on:

• what is known about student achievement information, including the achievement of Māori and Pacific students;
• decisions made to improve student achievement using assessment and selfreview information; and
• teaching strategies and programmes implemented to give effect to the school’s curriculum.

ERO also gathers information during the review to contribute to its national reports. The national reports are published on ERO’s website.

If you would like a copy of the full report, please contact the school or see the ERO website, www.ero.govt.nz.

Graham Randell

National Manager Review Services

Southern Region

General Information about Reviews

About ERO

ERO is an independent, external evaluation agency that undertakes reviews of schools and early childhood services throughout New Zealand.

About ERO Reviews

ERO follows a set of standard procedures to conduct reviews. The purpose of each review is to:

• improve educational achievement in schools; and
• provide information to parents, communities and the government.

Reviews are intended to focus on student achievement and build on each school’s self review.

Review Focus

ERO’s framework for reviewing and reporting integrates the following:

• school curriculum;
• national evaluation topics –contribute to the development of education policies and their effective implementation; and
• the Board Assurance Statement, including student and staff health and safety.

ERO’s review is responsive to the school’s context. When ERO reviews a school, it takes into account the characteristics of the community from which it draws its students, its aspirations for its young people, and other relevant local factors.

ERO also builds on the school’s own self-review information. ERO is interested in how a school monitors the progress of its students and aspects of school life and culture, and how it uses this information to improve student learning.

This helps ERO to answer the major evaluation question for reviews:

How effectively does this school’s curriculum promote student learning - engagement, progress and achievement?

Areas for Development and Review

ERO reports include areas for development and review to support ongoing improvement by identifying priorities. Often the school will have identified these matters through its own self review and already plans further development in those areas.