Orewa College

Education institution number:
25
School type:
Secondary (Year 7-15)
School gender:
Co-Educational
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
2051
Telephone:
Address:

76 Riverside Road, Orewa

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Orewa College

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 24 months of the Education Review Office and Orewa College working in Te Ara Huarau, an improvement evaluation approach used in most English Medium State and State Integrated Schools. For more information about Te Ara Huarau see ERO’s website. www.ero.govt.nz

Context 

Orewa College is a co-educational school for students in Years 7-13. The school, situated on the Hibiscus Coast, is experiencing significant roll growth and embarking on building projects to accommodate this. The senior leadership team is made up of experienced and emerging educational leaders as part of a distributive model.

Orewa College’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

  • Manaaki Orewa four-step (restorative/pastoral)
  • Sustainability practices
  • Universal Design for Learning (Ako Orewa)
  • Aligning with the refreshed NZ Curriculum
  • Community Partnerships
  • Development of ILT (Independent Learning Time) Programme
  • Continued focus on Priority Learners.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Orewa College’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how effectively Ako Orewa and Manaaki Orewa practices improve outcomes for ākonga and kaiako.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to:

  • support further improvement of achievement outcomes for ākonga
  • consistently embed teaching and learning practices which are supported by current research (as described in Ako Orewa)
  • support implementation of the curriculum refresh and related changes to assessment practices
  • further develop whānau engagement and learning focused partnerships.

The school expects to see Ako Orewa and Manaaki Orewa consistently embedded, to enable:

  • ākonga and their whānau experiencing a strong sense of belonging and engagement at Orewa College
  • a curriculum that continues to respond to ākonga needs
  • the use of effective strategies and practices by kaiako to promote greater equity, especially for priority learners
  • school leaders to engage effectively with kaiako with targeted support to guide their professional growth journey.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate Ako Orewa:

  • kaiako know their learners well and work collaboratively to provide ākonga with continuity throughout their school experience
  • an established curriculum framework for Years 7-10 and a successful history of NCEA achievement
  • an embedded professional learning and development programme for kaiako
  • school leaders and the board work collaboratively with the Orewa College community and external agencies to achieve strategic priorities.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise supporting:

  • the professional growth of all kaiako to support this evaluation
  • ākonga to develop greater understanding and accountability for their own learning, through Ako Orewa.

ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. ERO will support the school in reporting their progress to the community. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

7 August 2023 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement.  educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Orewa College is the managing school for North Shore AE and Attendance Services for NAISSS.

Orewa College

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2022 to 2025

As of August 2022, the Orewa College Board has attested to the following regulatory and legislative requirements:

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Yes

Personnel Management

Yes

Finance

Yes

Assets

Yes

Further Information

For further information please contact Orewa College, School Board.

The next School Board assurance that it is meeting regulatory and legislative requirements will be reported, along with the Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report, within three years.

Information on ERO’s role and process in this review can be found on the Education Review Office website.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

7 August 2023 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Orewa College

Provision for International Students Report

Background

The Education Review Office reviews schools that are signatories to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020.

Findings

The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of International Students) Code of Practice 2016 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code and has completed an annual self-review of its implementation of the Code.

At the time of this review there were 32 international students attending the school.

Orewa College has effective processes for reviewing its provision of pastoral care for international students, including established systems for collecting and responding to stakeholder voice.

International students feel their voices are listened and responded to. They appreciate the physical location of the school and the opportunities to participate in a broad range of school and community based extra-curricular activities.

The International Student department is well resourced to support a holistic approach to student wellbeing and success. The school values the diversity international students bring to the school and local community.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

7 August 2023 

About the School

The Education Counts website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

Orewa College - 09/12/2016

Findings

The highly effective leadership, and teaching and learning programmes at Orewa College engage students and promote their progress and achievement. Students achieve very well in National Standards, and in NCEA qualifications. There is also a strong focus on Manaaki where the school ensures that positive values are promoted and that students’ wellbeing needs are well met.

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?

Orewa College provides education for students from Years 7 to 13 on a large, well maintained campus. Year 7 and 8 students experience the majority of their learning in home rooms and attend specialist classes on the secondary campus at different times during the week.

A long-serving, experienced principal continues to lead the school and is supported by a senior management team that includes two new deputy principals. Many staff have worked at the school for a good number of years, and have a sound knowledge of the school and its community.

As Orewa's only secondary school, the college has a significant place in the local community. The board and staff forge connections with other schools, local businesses and tertiary institutions to enhance students’ learning experiences. Since the 2012 ERO report, the school has continued to grow its professional connections, including through its involvement with and leadership of the Orewa CoL (community of learning). The CoL and other professional partnerships are enabling the collective sharing of and accessibility to learning resources.

The school continues to operate a well-designed values system, Manaaki Orewa, in conjunction with Ako Orewa, the school’s curriculum design and delivery approach. The school’s well-established use of digital devices enhances student learning and supports the implementation of all teaching and learning programmes. In addition, students have access to increased learning opportunities through Harbournet, the virtual learning network for Auckland secondary schools.

Since the 2012 ERO report, teachers and leaders have participated in on-going professional learning to constantly improve and develop the school’s curriculum and teaching practices. 

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 well to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement.

The board and senior leaders set relevant achievement targets based on close analyses of students’ achievement information. They specifically target students whose progress needs accelerating and implement learning programmes and initiatives suitable for students at different year levels. School leaders and teachers use very good monitoring and tracking systems to ensure that all students, and especially target students are making appropriate progress and are achieving well.

Teacher appraisals and professional learning groups are strategically focused on improving achievement for target learners. Using data to inform their approach, teachers regularly discuss the impact of practices and strategies within cross-curricular groups and in their departments. This personal and collective inquiry is improving teachers’ practice and making positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement. In 2016, teachers are focused on accelerating the progress of Māori students, and boys generally, especially those in Years 10 and 11.

Overall, students achieve very well in National Standards and in National Certificates of Educational Achievement (NCEA). Māori students and Pacific students throughout the school also achieve very well in comparison to national NCEA and National Standards data. Over the past five years, NCEA results have continued to improve at Levels 1, 2 and 3. Also improved are the number of certificates endorsed with merit and excellence and the number of students achieving vocational pathway awards. These ongoing improvements include NCEA results for Māori and Pacific students.

The school also uses student achievement and other information very well to identify and promote students’ wellbeing. Leaders and teachers work with the school’s Manaaki Orewa and Ako Orewa approaches to engage students in the wider life of the school and in learning. Teachers use achievement information to differentiate learning programmes, especially for students in Years 9 and 10.

One of the school’s identified areas for development within its planned Ako 2017 framework, includes further promoting students’ understanding and use of their achievement information so that they can appropriately design their own learning programmes. School leaders will make decisions about this next step in collaboration with the CoL schools. Through the CoL, achievement approaches will be shared across the groups of schools, including opportunities for teachers to moderate assessment information, increase its validity and strengthen its use.

School leaders agree they could further strengthen the use of data to evaluate the effectiveness of initiatives currently used to accelerate progress for identified groups over time.

3 Curriculum

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

The school’s curriculum is very effective in promoting and supporting student learning. It provides a broad and balanced selection of learning opportunities and options that cater very well to students’ varied interests and strengths. The curriculum is strongly connected to the many pathways available for students. These include academic, and the increasing numbers of highly relevant and sought after vocational pathways. The strong emphasis placed on the values, principles and key competencies of The New Zealand Curriculum, promote students as good citizens of Aoteaora New Zealand, and the world.

The school provides a secure and supportive learning environment for students and is inclusive of students with diverse learning needs. Students experience positive learning relationships with their teachers, support staff and each other. Most students take advantage of the school’s extensive co-curricular programme. Their successes and talents are celebrated and showcased in many ways throughout the school year. These features contribute positively to students’ experience of school and promote their engagement, motivation and self-efficacy.

The expected and accepted schoolwide use of digital devices promotes learning connections beyond the classroom and beyond New Zealand. Students’ and teachers’ use of digital technologies means that learning experiences are localised, globalised, relevant and immediate. It promotes high levels of learning engagement and gives teachers the time to provide students with individualised support.

Many teachers in the school make positive connections and integrate teaching and learning concepts and ideas. Learning leaders have worked together to develop sequential curriculum expectations for students from Years 7 to 10, especially in core curriculum areas. This approach supports Year 7 and 8 students as they move into the main campus for learning and in Years 9 and 10.

Teachers are committed and enthusiastic professionals. They design learning programmes that meet diverse student needs and that promote student collaboration. Respectful of students as capable, competent learners, teachers ensure that students experience high levels of challenge and critical thinking. They understand well Ako Orewa as a reciprocal learning concept, and are suitably challenged within their professional learning programmes.

Staff are collegial and demonstrate high levels of relational trust. They appreciate the opportunities they have to trial new initiatives and ideas. School leaders and teachers have significant input into the ongoing shaping and direction of the school’s curriculum design and delivery. They embrace change, and value the opportunities for ongoing professional learning that includes sharing of effective practices. They understand that these aspects of their professional practice help promote a highly effective curriculum and positive outcomes for students.

The school is ready to launch Ako 2017 as part of its ongoing curriculum and pedagogical redesign. This next phase is set to promote increasingly individualised and learning programmes for students that are more responsive to students’ needs, interests, strengths and talents. Alongside this curriculum redesign, leaders could also evaluate the extent to which Māori and Pacific students’ languages, cultures and identities are recognised and responded to by teachers throughout the school.

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

The school promotes educational success for Māori, as Māori effectively. Since the 2012 ERO report, the school has deliberately and determinedly focused on strengthening positive outcomes for Māori learners. This focus includes making connections with local iwi for advice and guidance.

Māori students are very well known by staff and are prioritised as learners in the school. They are amongst the highest achievers in the school and are well represented in student leadership teams. Students spoken to by ERO in 2016 appreciate the developments in offering te reo Māori within the school at NCEA levels 1, 2 and 3.

Leaders and teachers are working to strengthen the school-wide capacity in the use of te reo Māori and tikanga. In Years 7 and 8, teachers are integrating aspects of te reo Māori into their learning programmes with specialist options available for students from Year 9.

School leaders identify that their next steps involve improving opportunities to improve specialist te reo Māori teaching and learning within the school and the wider CoL. They also plan to strengthen ties with the local marae to further promote te reo Māori and tikanga throughout the school.

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.

The principal provides strong, professional leadership and is well supported by a capable senior team. She makes significant professional connections to strengthen collaborative, whole school development, and to continually promote and improve teaching and learning opportunities for students and staff at Orewa College.

At all levels, the school benefits from strategic and future-focused leadership. Change is very well led and managed with significant building of others’ leadership skills. This approach results in cohesive and connected school systems and processes, including a professional learning model and teacher appraisal system. Strategic school leadership helps to ensure that the board’s goals and achievement targets are evident throughout the school.

Trustees bring to the board varied skills and expertise. They are highly supportive of the principal, senior leaders and staff. Trustees contribute to and promote the school’s strategic vision for improved student outcomes, especially for Māori and other priority groups. The board is focused on scrutinising information it receives to promote ongoing improvement.

Internal evaluation is used at all levels of the school to identify the impact and effectiveness of programmes and initiatives, and next phases of growth and development. School leaders could consider using internal evaluation to investigate the effectiveness of practices and processes to identify the emerging needs of individuals and groups.

Provision for international students

The Education (Pastoral Care of International Students) Code of Practice 2016 (the Code) was introduced on July 1st 2016.

The school is aware of the need to update its policies and procedures to meet the new code requirements by December 1st 2016.

At the time of this review there were 63 international students attending the school.

The school is making good progress in aligning its policies and procedures to meet requirements for the 2016 Code. 

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

The highly effective leadership, and teaching and learning programmes at Orewa College engage students and promote their progress and achievement. Students achieve very well in National Standards, and in NCEA qualifications. There is also a strong focus on Manaaki where the school ensures that positive values are promoted and that students’ wellbeing needs are well met.

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

Graham Randell

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern

9 December 2016

About the School 

Location

Orewa, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

25

School type

Secondary (Years 7 to 15)

School roll

1847

Number of international students

63

Gender composition

Boys 51% Girls 49%

Ethnic composition

Māori

Pākehā

Asian

Pacific

other

12%

79%

4%

3%

2%

Special Features

Managing school for Alternative Education Consortium

Managing school for Harbournet Virtual Learning Network

Review team on site

October 2016

Date of this report

9 December 2016

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

Education Review

Education Review

October 2012

June 2009

May 2006