Kadimah School

1 Context

Kadimah School is a Jewish state-integrated school catering for children from Years 1 to 8. Located in the Auckland CBD, the school maintains a very close association with the Jewish community and synagogue. Inner city facilities, including parks and the central library, are used to support the curriculum. The Kadimah Pre-school operates on the same premises and many children who attend the pre-school transition to the school. The board has recently appointed a new principal.

2 Equity and excellence

The vision and valued outcomes defined by the school for all children are that they are personally fulfilled, with a secure sense of identity and purpose to their lives. Based on the Jewish values of achievement, tolerance, family and community, the school's culture of learning, is grounded in the values of T'fillah (prayer, belief and spirituality), respect for individuality and diversity, Middot (Torah values) and partnerships between families, community and the school.

The school’s achievement information shows that high levels of achievement are being sustained in the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics. In reading and mathematics more than 85 percent of students are at or above the National Standards. In writing, the discrepancy between the achievement of girls and boys is reducing. By the end of Year 8 nearly all students achieve at or above the National Standard in reading, writing and mathematics.

The cohorts of Māori and Pacific children remain too small to report overall achievement in relation to the National Standards or to identify trends over time. The school monitors the achievement of these children individually and sets specific achievement targets for each group. School data shows very good achievement outcomes for these students.

Teachers use a robust process to improve and maintain high confidence in the reliability of overall teacher judgements (OTJs) at all levels of the school. OTJs reflect the breadth of children's learning across the curriculum and make good use of assessment data from nationally referenced assessment tools.

Since the last ERO evaluation the school has:

• engaged in the Accelerating Learning in Mathematics (ALiM) programme
• developed benchmarks in mathematics to guide judgements about children's progress and next learning steps
• participated in in-depth professional learning in the teaching, assessment and moderation of writing.

In response to the areas for improvement identified in the 2013 ERO report, other actions that the school has taken to accelerate the progress of children at risk of not achieving equitable outcomes have focused on:

• strengthening learning partnerships with Pacific families and whānau Māori
• refining targets and plans for accelerating learning through more robust analysis and interpretation of achievement data
• more relevant and specific reporting to parents, identifying children's learning progress and achievement, and what their next learning steps might be.

3 Accelerating achievement

How effectively does this school respond to children whose learning and achievement need acceleration?

The school responds very well to all children whose learning and achievement needs acceleration, including children with special educational needs and those for whom English is an additional language.

Leaders and teachers use analysed achievement information well to promptly identify children who may need to accelerate their progress, from the time they start at the school. Teachers use this information to set acceleration goals, monitor children's progress, and give consideration to next learning steps. They work together to consider strategies that may better support individual children's learning progress. Teachers are increasingly focused on evaluating their teaching practices to further improve outcomes for their students.

School leaders place a priority on responding to the learning needs of children with special needs. The board resources intervention programmes to support these children. An inclusive and responsive approach to diverse individual abilities ensures that these children make progress and participate fully in appropriate learning programmes.

Children have an increasing understanding of their own achievement and next learning steps, and are highly engaged in the learning process. They readily support each other to achieve their goals. Teachers share assessment information with children and support them in decisions about how to improve their achievement.

Leaders and teachers are working to refine ways of recording and reporting progress and achievement information in order to use it in more responsive and timely ways, showing progress within and across years more clearly and explicitly.

4 School conditions

How effectively do the school’s curriculum and other organisational processes and practices develop and enact the school’s vision, values, goals and targets for equity and excellence?

The Jewish character is highly evident throughout the Kadimah curriculum. Curriculum design and delivery is integrated through meaningful contexts and children are actively engaged in their learning. Teachers are highly attuned to children's motivations and learning dispositions.

Children learn in social and collaborative contexts, providing support for each other and developing a strong sense of themselves as competent learners. Their learning is culturally located, recognising the aspirations of families and connecting to their lives and future pathways.

Strengthened partnerships with Māori and Pacific families are supporting their children to stand tall in their cultural identity within the school. Māori contexts and aspects of te reo and tikanga Māori are evident in class programmes, providing opportunities for all children to learn about the bicultural heritage of Aotearoa New Zealand.

Leaders and teachers are deliberately focused on what will make the most difference for learners. Teaching practices reflect the school's emphasis on cultural responsiveness and value relationships with the community. Teachers promote learning across a range of engaging, relevant contexts that help to build children's sense of themselves as socially and environmentally aware citizens of the future.

Families and the Jewish community share a strong sense of belonging and connection with the school. Strong learning-centred relationships continue to be further developed. The school's strengths-based approach recognises and affirms the diverse languages, cultures and identities of the children and families in the school community.

The board provides effective governance. Trustees are well informed about children's rates of progress and their overall achievement. They use this information to make appropriate resourcing decisions to improve outcomes for all students. Trustees work with school leaders to provide a physically and emotionally secure environment for all children.

Internal evaluation is used well. Outcomes of school-wide curriculum review provide clear rationale for positive changes. Staff and the school community are consulted widely as part of review processes and develop shared ownership of outcomes that support the school's overall improvement focus.

5 Going forward

How well placed is the school to accelerate the achievement of all children who need it?

Leaders and teachers:

• know the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated
• respond effectively to the strengths, needs and interests of each child
• regularly evaluate how well teaching is working for these children
• act on what they know works well for each child
• build teacher capability effectively to achieve equitable outcomes for all children
• are well placed to achieve and sustain equitable and excellent outcomes for all children.

The school is well placed to sustain progress made in curriculum and teaching practice, and to make ongoing improvements that impact positively on all children's learning.

Trustees and leaders have identified relevant priorities for further development. These include:

• continuing to develop a strategic approach to internal evaluation and inquiry across the school
• continuing to build leadership capacity across the school to support and realise the school's vision and goals.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years. 

6 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 the following:

• board administration

• curriculum

• management of health, safety and welfare

• personnel management

• asset management.

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

• emotional safety of students (including prevention of bullying and sexual harassment)

• physical safety of students

• teacher registration

• processes for appointing staff

• stand down, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions

• attendance

• compliance with the provisions of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

7 Recommendation

ERO recommends that the new principal and leaders across the school continue to build capacity for responding to the needs of priority learners, through deepening of evidence-based inquiry teaching and ongoing internal evaluation.

Graham Randell

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern

19 December 2016

About the school 

1 Context

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

Kadimah College is now New Zealand’s only Jewish school. It is sited on the grounds of Auckland Hebrew Congregation, and the link between the synagogue and school is very important to the life of both institutions and the wider Jewish community.

After many years operating as a private school, Kadimah College became a state-integrated school in January 2011, and is in the process of changing its name to Kadimah School. The integration process has opened up multiple opportunities for resourcing and teacher development that benefit student learning.

The Jewish special character is clearly evident throughout school operations. The school’s main objectives are to foster students’ sense of Jewish identity and pride in their heritage in an environment that builds a lifelong love of learning. Hebrew is taught as a second language from Years 1 to 8. Kadimah has a longer school day than many other state schools in order to accommodate the teaching of Jewish Studies and the special character programmes.

State integration has resulted in an increased student roll and changing student demographics. At the time of this review 40% of students were not Jewish. A challenge for the board, leaders and staff is to appreciate and include diverse perspectives as the school develops, while maintaining its Jewish ethos and vision for the school.

2 Learning

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

Senior leaders and teachers make good use of achievement information to promote student engagement and progress. They are developing their analysis and interpretation of data to more particularly address gaps in students’ learning.

The school’s assessment information indicates that most students are achieving well. Teachers are enabling students to understand their achievement and the steps needed to build on this. Senior students have opportunities to lead conferences with their parents and teacher about their learning goals.

Senior leaders are building teachers’ collective knowledge and responsibility for student progress. Internal and external moderation strategies are helping teachers to make more reliable judgments about student achievement. Teachers and leaders set the school's targets to accelerate the progress of those students who are not achieving the applicable National Standards.

Long standing relationships between many of the teachers and families have contributed to teachers' knowledge of students' capabilities and interests. Parents are well informed about their children's achievement. Written reports clearly state the extent to which students are achieving in relation to the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics. Reports also comment on progress students have made and their next learning steps.

The board receives an annual report on student achievement. The principal appropriately plans to report to the board more regularly on overall student progress and curriculum development. More regular updates on the progress made towards the charter targets would enable the board to consider any resourcing needs to ensure that these targets are met or exceeded.

3 Curriculum

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

The school’s curriculum is effective in promoting and supporting student learning. It aligns with the New Zealand Curriculum (NZC), the school charter and the school’s Jewish special character. Senior leaders and teachers are developing culturally responsive approaches to accommodate the increasing ethnically diverse student roll.

The curriculum has evolved from a specialist teaching approach to more holistic learning. Science and technology are integrated within class programmes. This integration enables students to make more connections in their learning across curriculum areas. Class observations indicated that students readily engage with the interesting topics and learning tasks provided. They develop skills to think about how they learn, and to research through inquiry.

Teachers take advantage of local amenities to offer students physical and artistic learning and experiences. These excursions are thoughtfully planned and involve good levels of supervision. Music is taught as a specialist subject. Years 7 and 8 students participate in additional technology learning at Parnell District School. The school’s challenging inner city site is well managed to ensure children have access to physical activities.

Digital learning opportunities are being increasingly offered to students. Teachers are trialling the use of mobile technologies for students within classroom programmes. With funding from the board, senior leaders plan to develop teaching approaches to support students’ use of digital learning.

Teachers have recently undertaken professional learning to improve their use of effective teaching practices that support students’ mathematics thinking and learning. Senior leaders plan to similarly review and develop the teaching of writing.

Senior leaders and teachers regularly review curriculum programmes. As a foundation for establishing a curriculum to meet the requirements of state integration, teachers reconsidered aspects of the New Zealand Curriculum. It could now be timely for the school’s curriculum design and implementation to be reviewed in relation to the principles of the New Zealand Curriculum. A profile of the desired attributes and skills of students as they leave the school is being developed to make teaching more strategic.

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

The school is developing strategies to support its eight Māori students to have a sense of identity as Māori in the school. Teachers are increasingly integrating aspects of te reo and tikanga Māori in their class programmes.

The board’s recent consultation with whānau of Māori students identified priorities for the school in promoting continued success for Māori students. The school/whānau partnership is likely to provide a sound basis for the school’s further promotion of New Zealand’s bicultural heritage.

4 Sustainable Performance

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

The school is well placed to sustain and improve its performance. A feature of the school is the high expectations that the board, staff and community have of the school to extend students to the best of their ability.

The board has made good progress in recognising its legal obligations as a state integrated school. Trustees have made good use of resources provided by the Ministry of Education and School Trustees Association. A useful set of policies to guide school operations has been compiled. Trustees plan to cyclically review these policies and their implementation.

The board acknowledges the need to more clearly demarcate governance and management roles and responsibilities. Senior leaders could provide more evaluative reports about the effectiveness of policy implementation, curriculum initiatives and student progress and achievement. Building self review into all school planning and operations would help to assure the board that accountabilities are being met.

Supported by capable senior leaders, the principal is committed to building teaching capacity to meet students’ learning needs. Together they promote a growing professional learning culture. Teachers are increasingly reflecting on the effectiveness of their teaching practice for promoting student learning and progress. The principal acknowledges that teachers’ performance in relation to the Professional Standards and the Registered Teacher Criteria could be documented more clearly.

Significant changes to the structure of governance and staffing have been well managed by the principal, the establishment board and the current elected board. ERO has confidence that the board, senior leaders and staff have the capacity to consolidate the changes while continuing the momentum for improving practices to enhance student learning.

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.

The board of trustees must ensure that the delivery of the curriculum is at no cost to students or parents except when there is a take-home component. All communications with parents should emphasise that ‘parent contributions’ are voluntary.

[Education Act 1989, s3; MoE Circular 1998/25 – Payments by parent of students in state and state integrated schools]

When is ERO likely to review the school again?

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.

Dale Bailey

National Manager Review Services Northern Region

31 May 2013

About the School