Mangere Central School

Education institution number:

1347

School type:

Full Primary

School gender:

Co-Educational

Definition:

Not Applicable

Total roll:

444

Website:

http://www.mangerecentral.school.nz

Telephone:

09 275 9979

Address:

244 Kirkbride Road, Mangere, Auckland

View on map

Mangere Central School - 07/11/2019

07 Nov 2019

School Context

Mangere Central School caters for students from Years 1 to 8. Nearly two-thirds of the students have Pacific heritage. The next largest student group is Māori. Many children speak more than one language.

The school’s mission is to ‘empower learners to take flight’ and be motivated, caring and successful learners.

Since the 2015 ERO review a new principal and management team have been appointed. There have also been changes to the board of trustees and the teaching team.

The board has recently reviewed the charter and strategic plan to reset the school’s direction. The key goals for 2019 include improving the curriculum, nurturing social values and promoting student-led learning. There is a focus on professional learning to grow teacher capability.

Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board schoolwide information about outcomes for students’ progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics.

The school is a member of the Mangere Kāhui Ako | Community of Learning.

Evaluation Findings

1 Equity and excellence – achievement of valued outcomes for students

1.1 How well is the school achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all its students?

The school is working towards achieving equity and excellence in student achievement and outcomes.

The school’s achievement information indicates that over the past three years a large majority of students achieve at national curriculum expectations in literacy and mathematics. Māori learners, as a group, make very good progress in writing and mathematics over time. The achievement data show persistent in-school disparity for boys in reading and writing.

In 2018, overall reading achievement data dropped significantly. The principal attributes this to teachers adapting to schoolwide changes in teaching and learning expectations. The mid-year 2019 information is indicating a positive increase in reading achievement and increasing parity for boys.

Students experience a wide range of learning opportunities that support them to achieve the school’s valued student outcomes. These include:

being caring, connected contributors
making and sharing connections
being engaged, resilient and actively involved learners.

1.2 How well is the school accelerating learning for those Māori and other students who need this?

The school has processes and practices that are beginning to help students who need to make accelerated progress. School achievement information shows that some students make accelerated progress in literacy and mathematics. In 2018 many Māori students made accelerated progress in writing and mathematics.

Students with high additional learning needs are quickly identified and receive appropriate learning support. A broad range of professionals support the health, wellbeing and education of these students. Learning support programmes are now more aligned to classroom programmes. Students develop social and emotional competencies to help them to be successful learners.

The board strategically funds learning assistants to support students’ learning. Children with English as an additional language receive targeted provision to build their oral language skills.

2 School conditions for equity and excellence – processes and practices

2.1 What school processes and practices are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

Leaders can clearly articulate the school’s vision and new direction, and are using these well to promote change and improvement. They have a strong commitment to ensuring students experience an inclusive environment that supports their learning and wellbeing.

Internal evaluation is beginning to guide improvement. Parent and staff perspectives are valued and used to develop school goals. Leaders and teachers engage in reflective practices and knowledge building to promote equity and excellence.

School leaders have oversight of student achievement. Team leaders report progress against student learning targets. Teachers carefully identify and monitor students’ rates of progress. Teachers have a deliberate focus on using a range of effective teaching strategies that best support each learner.

A school priority is to develop teachers’ shared understanding of effective practice using individual and collaborative inquiry approaches. This is helping teachers to adapt their professional practice to better respond to students’ learning needs.

The principal is strategically using professional development to improve teaching practices and student learning outcomes. Distributed leadership opportunities proactively build internal leadership capability and capacity. Internal and external expertise is helping to promote change management processes that are resulting in better outcomes for students.

The curriculum is being revised. There are increasing opportunities for students to learn and achieve across the breadth of the New Zealand Curriculum (NZC). Students enthusiastically participate in learning programmes including Discovery projects and languages.

School leaders and teachers prioritise the building of collaborative, reciprocal relationships with students and families. Parents and whānau appreciate the approachability of teachers and leaders.

Continuing to promote learning-centred partnerships in a range of ways is an ongoing priority. Online tools are helping teachers to collect evidence to inform teaching and learning. Teachers have introduced ‘real time’ reporting to regularly inform parents and whānau about their child’s learning.

2.2 What further developments are needed in school processes and practices for achievement of equity and excellence, and acceleration of learning?

There is a significant focus on developing individual capability and collective capacity at all levels of the school. Teachers, team leaders and senior managers are focused on:

improving schoolwide data literacy capability and developing robust moderation processes
engaging in coaching and peer support dialogue that improves teaching practices
strengthening the use of effective teaching strategies to help students articulate their progress, achievement and next steps in learning.

Leaders could more regularly liaise and form educational partnerships with local early learning services and colleges. Strengthening such critical transition points could positively impact on outcomes for learners. Further priorities aligned to the curriculum include:

strengthening the bicultural provision and multicultural perspectives that deliberately foster students’ languages and culture
strategically planning to accelerate learning for Pacific students by using resources such as Tapasā.

The board readily accesses training to grow trustees’ understanding of their stewardship roles and responsibilities. A key next step for the board is to increase their capability to scrutinise board reports, in particular student achievement information. Focused discussions about the evaluation of achievement information will support trustees to identify priorities and targets and make more informed decisions about school priorities.

The principal agrees that it is now timely to consider how to evaluate progress made against the school’s priorities. This should include evaluating student progress and achievement, and the effectiveness of interventions and new initiatives designed to improve student outcomes. Using evidence-based evaluation and inquiry to determine the impact of developments on student learning, could help guide ongoing school improvements.

3 Other Matters

Provision for international students

The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of International Students) Code of Practice 2016 (the Code) established under 238F of the Education Act 1989. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code. At the time of this review there were no international students attending the school.

4 Board Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the board 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
finance
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 and certification
processes for appointing staff
stand down, suspension, expulsion and exclusion of students
attendance
school policies in relation to meeting the requirements of the Children’s Act 2014.

5 ERO’s Overall Judgement

On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of Mangere Central School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Well placed.

Overall Findings and Judgement Tool derived from School Evaluation Indicators: Effective Practice for Improvement and Learner Success

6 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:

leadership that collaboratively develops and pursues a new vision for equity and excellence
organisational structures that promote a coherent approach to professional learning and practice
a curriculum that provides increasing opportunities for students to learn and achieve across the breadth of the New Zealand Curriculum
building collaborative, reciprocal relationships with students and their families.

Next steps

For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for further development are for leaders to:

grow schoolwide data literacy capability
identify and develop effective teaching practices for accelerated learning for all students who need this
continue to strengthen teachers’ inquiry approaches to build effective practice and increase student agency
strengthen internal evaluation processes to evaluate the effectiveness of programmes through a focus on what makes the biggest difference for improving student outcomes.

Areas for improved compliance practice

To improve current practice, the board of trustees should:

ensure that school appraisal processes meet the requirements of the Teaching Council
revise the Child Protection policy to clearly state that staff can make an independent disclosure at an appropriate agency.

Steve Tanner

Director Review and Improvement Services Northern

Northern Region

7 November 2019

About the school

Location	Mangere, Auckland
Ministry of Education profile number	1347
School type	Full Primary (Years 1-8)
School roll	480
Gender composition	Boys 51% Girls 49%
Ethnic composition	Māori 23% Samoan 24% Tongan 24% Cook Island Māori 11% Indian 4% Tokelauan 4% other ethnic groups 10%
Students with Ongoing Resourcing Funding (ORS)	No
Provision of Māori medium education	No
Review team on site	August 2019
Date of this report	7 November 2019
Most recent ERO report(s)	Education Review May 2015 Education Review November 2010 Education Review September 2007

Mangere Central School - 20/05/2015

20 May 2015

Findings

Mangere Central School continues to be a high performing school. It has a warm and affirming environment that strongly values students’ languages, cultures and identities. The future-focused curriculum is well designed, meaningful and relevant. It, along with effective home/school partnerships, promotes high levels of student engagement, progress and achievement.

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?

Mangere Central School, founded in 1859, continues to provide high quality learning opportunities and experiences for students in Years 1 to 8. Sixty-six percent of the school identify as Pacific, and twenty-two percent are of Māori heritage. The culturally diverse staff and board of trustees value and reflect the school’s inclusive practices. The school provides for the needs of a high number of students who are new speakers of English.

The affirming school climate promotes a sense of student wellbeing and belonging. The school’s guiding values of respect and responsibility are very evident amongst students and teachers. These values underpin all operations and systems in the school. High expectations of, and for students and their learning, permeate interactions and relationships.

Home/school partnerships continue to be a highly valued and central to student success. Partnerships were further strengthened in 2014 by the introduction of the Mutukaroa partnership programme. This programme is aimed at working closely with families to develop and review personalised programmes for students from Years 1 to 3.

The recently changed management structure provides a wide range of leadership opportunities across syndicates and all curriculum learning areas. Collaborative relationships and cohesive ways of working permeate the school. As a Health Promoting School, students, their families, teachers and leaders are actively involved in seeking sustainable ways of being healthy and self reliant.

High quality practices identified in previous ERO reports continue to be a feature of the school. Since ERO’s 2010 review, the school has prioritised the building of a modern learning environment for students in Years 4 to 6, strengthened digital learning and technology and appropriate teaching strategies, and deliberately linked with Asian countries and schools as integral components to students’ future learning.

2 Learning

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

The school uses student achievement information very effectively to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement. Overall, students are well engaged and show pride in their learning. Their achievement levels are generally high and are increasing over time.

Students show confidence and pride in their language, culture and identity, and are motivated to be successful. Māori and Pacific students achieve as well as their peers. There is strong evidence of accelerated student progress, especially for students who have been identified as achieving below National Standards. Students with additional learning requirements receive very good support from caring and well trained staff.

Highly developed analysis of student achievement data focuses on success for all students. Actions to use this information effectively include:

frequent, accurate monitoring of student progress and achievement that is accompanied by focused teaching strategies to promote the success of individuals and groups of students
increasing students’ ability to understand, manage and be responsible for their learning
high quality reporting to parents against National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics, as well as against the wider curriculum, with very clear and useful information about how parents can further support their child’s learning
ensuring the accuracy of student achievement data and decision making
deliberate and aspirational target setting and appropriate resourcing.

Leaders and trustees have shared their interest with ERO in exploring their student achievement data more deeply. This deeper analysis should help the school to further evaluate and report to the board on the effectiveness of all initiatives and programmes, including those for students with English as a second language. Leaders are also keen to extend their current moderation practices within the school and to include schools within their cluster.

3 Curriculum

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

The school’s curriculum promotes and supports student learning very effectively. It successfully integrates student learning across the learning areas of The New Zealand Curriculum. The school charter reflects the school’s commitment to a future-focused philosophy about teaching and learning. This commitment is informed by current theory and research.

Strengths of the school’s curriculum include the:

strong focus on literacy and numeracy, and the value placed on students’ first language
high levels of responsiveness to students’ cultures and interests
provision of authentic learning opportunities that make good use of the current construction and building challenges outside the school
ways that teachers consciously reflect on their professional practice to improve outcomes for students.

Future-focused curriculum strengths include the:

ways teachers build students’ understanding of, and leadership and engagement in environmental, local and global connections and issues
ways that digital technologies and learning environments are well used to engage and motivate students in learning.

The school recognises the importance of monitoring the effectiveness of approaches as students’ transition from Year 6 to Year 7, particularly with regard to the learning environment, and the need for effective teaching and learning strategies. Leaders are interested in hearing from students in Years 7 and 8 about what would further engage, motivate and challenge them. They are also keen to complement the strong pastoral support for students with formalised, anonymous student wellbeing surveys across all year levels.

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

The school promotes educational success for Māori, as Māori, very effectively. Teachers demonstrate a strong commitment to improved outcomes for Māori students. Strong leadership in this area, coupled with very strong links to local iwi and the marae, and deliberate partnerships with parents and families/whānau form a strong foundation for the success of Māori students in this school. The school plans to develop more robust assessments in te reo Māori and to ensure te ao Māori is integrated into all curriculum areas.

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. Students benefit from adults’ belief in children’s rights to high quality educational opportunities and experiences, and the importance placed on developing students as leaders. The school’s tone, culture and extent of community engagement provide a strong foundation for sustaining and improving student learning.

The school is very well led and managed. Effective self review is evident in systems, practices, and teaching and learning. The experienced school principal, together with the supportive and capable leadership team, mentor and support teachers and actively work together to grow leadership at all levels of the school. As a team they model ongoing learning that motivates other staff to follow a similar direction.

The school is very well governed. The board’s strategic goals are clearly reflected in practice at all levels of the school. Trustees strongly advocate for every child's entitlement to achieve and experience success. They take every opportunity to engage with the community through networking and school activities to improve outcomes for students. They demonstrate a strong commitment to their community and the local area.

Effective quality assurance processes help to provide senior leaders and trustees with good information to guide decision making. Ongoing and strategic review of the school charter strongly informs the school’s future priorities for development and review, based on outcomes for students.

Provision for international students

The school is a signatory to the Code of Practice for the Pastoral Care of International Students (the Code) established under section 238F of the Education Act 1989. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code. At the time of this review there was one international student attending the school.

The school responds positively to occasional requests to provide care and education for international students. During their generally brief periods at the school, these students participate in an appropriate programme that includes in-class support for their English language needs within the wider curriculum. International students are included in all school activities and events. They are well supported by the school’s strong pastoral care systems.

School leaders could further improve their self evaluation through an evidence-based approach and reporting on the quality of provision for international students. This evaluation could mirror the current good practice evident in the analysis of overall student achievement.

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

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

Dale Bailey

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern

20 May 2015

About the School

Location	Mangere, Auckland
Ministry of Education profile number	1347
School type	Full Primary (Years 1 to 8)
School roll	449
Number of international students	1
Gender composition	Girls 53% Boys 47%
Ethnic composition	Māori Pākehā Samoan Tongan Cook Island Māori South East Asian Niue Middle Eastern Indian other Pacific other	22% 1% 30% 16% 13% 6% 4% 3% 2% 2% 1%
Review team on site	April 2015
Date of this report	20 May 2015
Most recent ERO report(s)	Education Review Education Review Education Review	November 2010 September 2007 September 2004