Mataroa School

School Context

Mataroa School is a small rural school catering for children in Years 1 to 8. It is located north west of Taihape. The current roll is 29 students and 13 identify as Māori. The school draws its students from the surrounding district and nearby township.

The school’s aim is for students to demonstrate attributes of ‘working together and helping each other excel, to care for oneself, others, the school and the environment and to be a lifelong learner who strives to learn more’. Values of ‘Community-Kotahitanga, Respect-Mana and Curiosity-Patai’ are prioritised.

The school has given priority to writing as an area for development in 2019.

Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, schoolwide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:

• achievement in reading, writing and mathematics, in relation to the levels of The New Zealand Curriculum

• progress in relation to schoolwide targets

• wellbeing and attendance.

Since the November 2016 ERO evaluation, there have been changes to the leadership. A new principal was appointed in 2017. There has been an increase to staffing since 2018.

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?

Student achievement information for the end of 2018, shows most students, including Māori children, achieve at or above the school’s expectations in reading and mathematics. The majority of students achieved at or above school expectations in writing. School reported data shows that over time achievement in mathematics and reading has increased, and writing has declined slightly.

Some disparity between boys and girls is evident in writing and mathematics.

School reported information indicates students identified positive wellbeing.

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

The school achieved acceleration for half of those children whose learning and achievement needed to improve in reading, however accelerated achievement in mathematics and writing is limited.

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?

Students actively engage in the breadth of the curriculum that includes a range of purposeful and authentic learning experiences. Student voice is valued and promoted. They confidently communicate for a range of purposes. Teachers are collaborative and discuss programmes to ensure continuity for students learning. Schoolwide priorities are reflected through classroom practices.

Te reo me ngā tikanga Māori rituals are visible. Māori experts facilitate teaching and learning opportunities for students. Manaakitanga and tuakana teina relationships are actively modelled by students and staff.

The school has sound systems and processes to identify students at risk of not achieving to promote equitable outcomes for all children. Relevant interventions and internal and external supports provide assistance for student needs.

There are a range of communication processes that includes formal, informal and digital approaches to build learning partnerships. Reporting processes include student participation in sharing their learning with parents and whānau.

The charter, strategic and annual plan, collaboratively developed includes goals and targets aligned to schoolwide priorities. Teaching as inquiry practices, teacher planning, appraisal and professional development is suitably focused on positive outcomes for students.

Trustees are well informed by leadership to guide additional resourcing decisions that support students’ learning.

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

The recently appointed principal has a clear vision for the school and is focused on continuing to build effective teaching and learning processes and practices.

Ongoing training and resources have been accessed to assist trustees to strengthen understanding of their roles and responsibilities. This remains an ongoing focus.

Trustees, the principal and teachers need to more closely monitor and evaluate the expected and accelerated progress of target students. This should assist the school to strengthen their collective understanding of evaluation to know what is working well and what needs to change to raise achievement.

Aspects of the documented curriculum have been reviewed and revised to provide clear expectations and useful guidelines for teachers. This process should continue with a priority on developing literacy and numeracy statements, explicit teaching strategies and learner agency.

3 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.

4 ERO’s Overall Judgement

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

ERO’s Framework: Overall School Performance is available on ERO’s website.

5 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

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

• the broad range of experiences for children, that promote their learning, progress and achievement
• the valuing of te ao Māori culture, language and identity that is enacted in school programmes
• leadership that promotes learning partnerships across the school and wider community to increase learning opportunities for students and teachers.

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

• revising the school’s curriculum to promote consistency of explicit teaching strategies and greater levels of student agency in learning
• refining systems to track and monitor learning to better respond to students specific learning needs
• evaluation to better understand the impact of teaching and learning practices and which processes are working well and what changes need to occur.

Phillip Cowie

Director Review and Improvement Services

Central Region

1 July 2019

About the school

1 Context

Mataroa School is a full primary catering for students in Years 1 to 8. It is located in a rural setting north west of Taihape in the rohe of Ngāti Rangi. At the time of this ERO review the roll was 37, including 20 Māori. A new board of trustees governs the school. A community playgroup is hosted on site one morning a week.

2 Equity and excellence

The vision and valued outcomes defined by the school for all children are Community, Respect and Curiosity. 'Mataroa School growing a community of successful learners to excel, within our rural community and life.'

The school’s achievement information shows that most students, including Māori, achieved the National Standards at the end of 2015. Reading achievement is slightly lower. When compared to other groups, Māori learners’ achievement is similar in mathematics and writing and slightly higher in reading. Girls achieve at similar levels to boys in writing and mathematics. However, the disparity between genders in the achievement of reading is more significant for boys. The school continues to work on reducing this disparity.

Internal and external moderation takes place to support teachers to make judgements about students' achievement in relation to the National Standards. The judgements are based on observations of students learning and teachers' inquiry into, and discussion, about a range of assessment information. These practices support data reliability.

Since the last ERO evaluation the school has undertaken a number of actions to improve learners' outcomes. Leaders and teachers have:

• built their knowledge of teaching writers, and mathematics, and adapted programmes and practice
• worked collaboratively with other schools to support learners to develop as self-managing learners
• further integrated digital technologies into teaching and learning
• reviewed assessment processes to improve data gathering and maximise the contribution to teaching and learning
• improved appraisal and professional inquiry to align to the school's development needs and strengthen outcomes for those students whose learning needs accelerating
• applied strategies to meaningfully involve parents and whānau in their child's learning. This is especially notable for those learners requiring additional support to progress their achievement
• worked collaboratively to inquire into teaching practice and respond to achievement challenges
• improved internal evaluation practice to determine the impact of programmes and initiatives in promoting positive outcomes for learners.

3 Accelerating achievement

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

Leaders and teachers know the Māori students the school needs to accelerate learning for. Most Māori students achieve at or above the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics. The few experiencing achievement challenges generally make accelerated progress as they move through the school.

A number of positive initiatives are in place to embrace Māori learners' culture, language and identities. This is an integral part of students schooling experience. In previous years the school has carried out plans to develop this aspect of the curriculum. The new board has plans to undertake training in and use Hautū, the New Zealand School Trustees Association Māori Cultural Responsiveness self review tool for boards of trustees. It is timely to re-establish a group, with whānau, to consider how the good internal evaluation practices already in place could be used to further enhance this aspect of the school's curriculum.

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

The school continues to embed practices that effectively promote student's wellbeing and diminish achievement challenges. Teachers use achievement information effectively to identify students requiring adaptive classroom teaching and additional learning support. They analyse data well to identify how teaching, interventions and innovations improve student outcomes. Inclusive practices bring school, specialist staff, parents and whānau together to find solutions to address the unique needs and aspirations identified for individual learners. These students learning progress is accelerated overtime.

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?

All learners at Mataroa School access a rich curriculum that effectively supports their engagement, progress and achievement. The curriculum aligns to The New Zealand Curriculum. Students develop positive attitudes, skills and strategies for successful learning. The promotion of student agency supports them to develop as confident, connected, curious and active learners. Trustees and school staff encourage a learning environment beneficial to learners' wellbeing and development.

The school’s internal evaluation of students' progress at the end of 2015 identified achievement challenges for some learners. Achievement information was scrutinised by the principal and reported to trustees who used the data to develop appropriate goals and charter targets for 2016. These targets prioritise students requiring additional assistance to accelerate their progress and achievement in literacy and mathematics.

Leaders have developed systematic assessment and inquiry practices that respond well to identified needs of individuals. A formalised process results in teaching and intervention programmes regularly monitored and revised to stay focused on improving individuals learning.

A strategic and coherent approach to continuing curriculum improvement is informed by the evaluation of student achievement data. Developments in literacy, mathematics and the incorporation of digital technologies as a teaching and learning tool, align to school goals and identified achievement challenges. Internal evaluation practice generates timely information about progress towards meeting school goals.

Organisational processes and systems, including appraisal, effectively allow teachers to critically inquire into their practice and prioritise professional learning needs.

Parents and whānau are welcomed and involved as respected partners in learning. They receive useful information and participate in activities that allow them to constructively support their children's wellbeing and learning. Written reports to parents and whānau communicate children's progress and achievement in relation to the National Standards, and other valued outcomes of the school's curriculum well.

Trustees are new since the previous election. They have delegated roles and are becoming familiar with their responsibilities. They receive information about all students' progress and achievement. Developing a plan to build the board of trustees' capability and guide its work is a next step. In the future this should support trustees to determine how well they enact their stewardship role.

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.

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

Leaders and teachers work collaboratively to meet the learning needs of their target students. School conditions, plans and processes focus on achieving equity and excellence for all students.

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's external evaluation affirms the school's determination to:

• reduce the disparity in reading achievement between boys and girls
• use internal evaluation to further improve the incorporation of te ao Māori in the schools strategic planning the curriculum
• further build the BOT capacity in enacting its stewardship roles and responsibilities. 

Joyce Gebbie

Deputy Chief Review Officer Central

2 November 2016

About the school