Motu School

Education institution number:
2616
School type:
Full Primary
School gender:
Co-Educational
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
12
Telephone:
Address:

6 Motu Falls Road, Motu

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Motu School - 25/08/2017

Summary

Motu School caters for students in Years 1 to 8. At the time of this external evaluation, ten students were enrolled, with two identifying as Māori. There is a clear focus on providing an inclusive environment for students. Strong support from families and the community continues to be a feature of the school.

Since the June 2013 ERO report, the board of trustees has experienced significant membership changes. A new board chair has been appointed. Staffing is stable. The school have been recently refurbished to modernise its learning environment.

The school’s mission is to develop every child as a ‘Motu Kid’ within a caring learning community with all able to achieve personal excellence, with lifelong learning attitudes. The school’s values of duty, compassion, obedience, kindness, responsibility, honesty and truthfulness, respect and consideration are evident.

Leaders and teachers have been involved in a wide range of professional learning and development programmes since the previous ERO report.

How well is the school achieving equitable outcomes for all children?

National Standards information over the past three years, shows that most children make expected progress over time. There is achievement disparity between Māori learners and their peers. Trustees and teachers have identified that accelerating achievement in writing for Māori boys is a priority in 2017. Some learners have experienced accelerated progress. Girls’ achievement overall for reading writing and mathematics is higher than boys.

Further developments in school processes to achieve equity and excellence should include: strengthening school wide targets and reporting progress against these; building trustees’ and teachers’ understanding and practices of internal evaluation; building board understanding of their roles as trustees; revising the appraisal system for teachers to include teacher inquiry and links to school wide targets that focus on accelerating children’s learning.

The school agrees to:

  • develop more targeted planning to accelerate learning for children

  • monitor targeted planning, improved teaching, and children’s progress

  • discuss the school’s progress with ERO. 

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

Equity and excellence

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

The school is continuing to develop its effectiveness is responding to all children, including Māori, whose learning and achievement requires acceleration.

Achievement information, over time, indicates achievement disparities for Māori learners. The data shows that they are achieving below their peers for reading and mathematics. The school identified that writing in particular for Māori boys is a priority for the school this year.

The teaching principal and their release teacher know students well. They use a range of assessment tools to identify, respond to and monitor individual learning and progress.

Assessment and moderation practices provide trustees and teaching staff with a dependable picture of achievement across the school. The teaching staff actively engage with other schools to support their decisions when making their judgements about student achievement. They share knowledge with colleagues to assist them in this process.

School conditions supporting equity and excellence

What school processes are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence?

Trustees and teaching staff are developing their capability and processes to better support and promote the achievement of equity and excellence for all learners.

The board of trustees is highly committed to the school and the community it represents. The board is achievement focused and makes resourcing decisions to support and target student learning and achievement.

The teaching principal actively builds strong relationships with the community. They work collaboratively with other staff, board members and parents.

Parents, whānau and the community are welcomed as respected and valued partners in learning. They receive useful information and participate in many learning opportunities that enable them to support their children’s learning.

The curriculum provides many opportunities for children to learn, progress and achieve. Teachers use children’s interests to develop authentic and meaningful learning experiences. Children are supported to identify useful learning goals to build on and extend their progress and achievement.

Children experience positive and respectful relationships with their teachers and peers. Learning contexts promote student wellbeing, and a high sense of belonging in the school. 

Sustainable development for equity and excellence

What further developments are needed in school processes to achieve equity and excellence?

Trustees and teaching staff are improvement focused. Key next steps are to: seek professional learning to build their understanding of their roles as trustees; and capability in internal evaluation to evaluate the systems and processes that impact on children’s learning.

Improved clarity and alignment of annual goals and targets from the strategic plan to classroom teaching is needed. This should enable more regular reporting of children’s progress against targets during the year and build understanding of what works for school wide improvement.

Enhancing the appraisal process is required, to build teachers’ understanding of systematic inquiry into their practice and strategies that improve outcomes for students whose achievement needs acceleration.

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

  • 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 Vulnerable Children Act 2014.

Going forward

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

The school has capacity and capability to accelerate learning for all children. However, disparity in achievement for Māori children remains.

Leaders and teachers:

  • know the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated

  • need to improve the school conditions that support the acceleration of children’s learning and achievement.

  • need to build teacher capability to accelerate children’s learning and achievement.

The school agrees to:

  • develop more targeted planning to accelerate learning for children

  • monitor targeted planning, improved teaching, and children’s progress

  • discuss the school’s progress with ERO.

ERO will provide an internal evaluation workshop to support the school to develop effective planning and monitoring processes to support equity and excellence for all children. 

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

Alan Wynyard

Deputy Chief Review Officer Central (Acting)

25 August 2017

About the school 

Location

Gisborne

Ministry of Education profile number

2616

School type

Full Primary (Year 1 to 8)

School roll

10

Gender composition

Male 7, Female 3

Ethnic composition

Māori 2
Pākehā 8

Provision of Māori medium education

No

Review team on site

July 2017

Date of this report

25 August 2017

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review, June 2013
Education Review, July 2010
Education Review, April 2007

 

Motu School - 13/06/2013

1 Context

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

Motu School is a small rural school inland from Gisborne. It caters for students from Years 1 to 8. There are 11 students on the roll, four are Māori and eight are boys.

The school is the heart of a highly supportive learning community. The long-serving principal has established good community knowledge and relationships. It is a family-oriented school.

Teachers and students take full advantage of the rich opportunities to incorporate the unique local environment into the curriculum. A strong information and communication technologies (ICT) learning programme counters the school’s remote location.

2 Learning

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

Almost all students are achieving at or above in relation to the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics and they are progressing well. Students are active, enthusiastic and focused learners.

Teachers form their judgements of achievement in relation to National Standards based on standardised tests and the sound knowledge of individual strengths and needs. They consistently use this achievement information to continue to challenge each student through purposeful teaching and learning.

In 2012, some students did not make the expected progress in mathematics. Teachers, with board support, have introduced a range of strategies to improve progress in this area and can already demonstrate improvements.

The graduate programme “Motu Kid” is a tool for students to set personal targets related to attitudes and values as well as academic learning. There is clear evidence of the success of this tool, based on the respectful behaviour of all students.

This is a learning community. Parents are well informed of their child’s progress and are supported to work closely with them at home. In particular the reading challenge has led to accelerated progress.

E-portfolios promote students’ ownership of learning and are a rich resource for demonstrating progress. Within the portfolio is a printout which, in clear English, shows how well students achieve in relation to National Standards.

3 Curriculum

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

Students experience a coherent and rich curriculum that provides them with relevant choices and pathways through the school as a result of carefully planned sequenced learning. Parents contribute to the design of the curriculum and strongly support initiatives such as reading at home and the enterprising education outside the classroom programme. It is a community-led curriculum.

Teachers effectively establish and support a stimulating classroom environment. Staff have high expectations and facilitate independent learning by providing tasks that support problem solving and critical thinking. They affirm and provide appropriate feedback and guidelines to help students establish their next learning steps.

The programme is context driven and highly relevant for students. Good use is made of the unique local environment to extend learning. Planned, purposeful trips to local towns add to students’ views of the world.

The curriculum reflects bicultural New Zealand. It includes te ao Māori and opportunities to learn and use te reo Māori. Students have developed knowledge and awareness of significant local physical and spiritual features of the landscape.

Students study independently at their own ability levels. ICT supports their inquiry learning. There are high expectations for students to lead their own investigations and constantly challenge themselves.

Teachers and students appropriately use the available wide range of up-to-date resources to facilitate high levels of learning. Success is celebrated publicly in newsletters and also through affirming teacher feedback. It is an inclusive environment and students support one another.

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

Motu School successfully supports Māori students to succeed as Māori. Benchmarks have been established and a robust action plan has been developed for ongoing review.

Self review has identified strengths related to:

  • Whanaugatanga. Teachers have in-depth knowledge of each of their students and form effective partnerships with students and whānau
  • Tangata whenuatanga. Learning is authentic and local history and culture are well integrated into the classroom
  • Manaakitanga. Teachers are strong advocates for the student. They demonstrate compassion and understanding.

One of the areas for further development is for teachers to have a better command and use of te reo Māori. This has been identified in the action plan and is part of the principal’s professional development for 2013. Students have the opportunity to learn te reo Māori through regular online lessons from the Virtual Learning Community.

All students, including Māori, identified for further support, have specific learning plans to meet their needs.

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. Trustees have sound knowledge of governance and useful guidelines for procedures, roles, expectations and support for induction. Most families are represented on the board, and their children’s learning is the paramount focus.

The charter has been developed through consultation. Trustees are well informed of progress towards meeting set goals, in particular those related to student achievement. The school’s selfreview process, as exemplified by the Māori success review, is highly developed. It has led to ongoing development and further evaluation of practice and outcomes.

Policy structure has been reorganised, with appropriate supporting procedural guidelines making the system more streamlined and useful. This is an ongoing process.

The principal manages the school well. He has set a positive tone and leads the schoolwide professional learning culture.

The school is well supported by the wider community, particularly in the enterprising fund-raising activities. The mutual benefits are evident.

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.
When is ERO likely to review the school again?

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

Joyce Gebbie

National Manager Review Services Central Region (Acting)

13 June 2013

About the School

Location

Motu

Ministry of Education profile number

2616

School type

Full Primary (Year 1 to 8)

School roll

11

Gender composition

Male 8, Female 3

Ethnic composition

NZ European/Pākeha

Māori

7

4

Review team on site

April 2013

Date of this report

13 June 2013

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

Education Review

Education Review

July 2010

April 2007

June 2004