Pasifika Early Learning Puna O Le Atamai Aoga Amata

1 ERO’s Judgements

Akarangi | Quality Evaluation evaluates the extent to which this early childhood service has the learning and organisational conditions to support equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners. Te Ara Poutama Indicators of quality for early childhood education: what matters most are the basis for making judgements about the effectiveness of the service in achieving equity and excellence for all learners. Judgements are made in relation to the Outcomes Indicators, Learning and Organisational Conditions. The Evaluation Judgement Rubric derived from the indicators, is used to inform ERO’s judgements about this service’s performance in promoting equity and excellence.

ERO’s judgements for Pasifika Early Learning Puna O Le Atamai Aoga Amata are as follows:

2 Context of the Service

Pasifika Early Learning Puna O Le Atamai Aoga Amata is a Samoan bilingual centre situated alongside other Pacific centres in Mangere. A recently appointed, qualified centre manager leads a team of three qualified teachers. The directors and leadership team are responsible for overseeing the service and daily operation. The majority of the children attending are Samoan.

3 Summary of findings

Children are settled, they are confident in playing, inventing, and experimenting through the curriculum and centre environment. There are equitable opportunities for children to learn with and alongside their peers. Children take initiative in their own learning and make their own choices through indoor and outdoor experiences.

Connections to the Samoan language are included in children’s learning. Kaiako also integrate te reo me ngā tikanga Māori into daily practice, and children regularly and confidently participate in and lead karakia and sing waiata.

Children’s learning and development in play-based contexts are supported through caring and positive va and relationship with adults. Kaiako scaffold children’s learning through positive guidance and role modelling of positive behaviour. Children learn about the local and wider community through regular excursions. Implementing a localised curriculum that is culturally responsive and intentional is an area that teachers are establishing.  

Leaders support kaiako to access relevant professional learning and development (PLD) to contribute to ongoing teaching improvement. Positive outcomes from this PLD are reflected in teachers’ emergent, regular and planned self-reviews and in their professional growth cycles.  

Leaders have started to establish a process for internal evaluation. Building their knowledge and understanding of effective evaluation for improvement, and evaluating their practices focused on outcomes for children are in early stages of development. 

Managers and leaders support positive social and community outcomes for children and their families and community. Ongoing communication between service leaders and governance and management ensures that stakeholders are informed about the service’s progress in all areas of operation. 

4 Improvement actions

Pasifika Early Learning Puna O Le Atamai Aoga Amata will include the following actions in its Quality Improvement Planning:

• Implement a localised curriculum that is culturally responsive and intentional to ensure that children’s ‘mana’ is reflected and embedded in assessment practices.

• Growing teachers’ evaluative thinking and capability to do and use evaluation to scrutinise their practices with a focus on improvement and equitable outcomes for children.

5 Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Pasifika Early Learning Puna O Le Atamai Aoga Amata completed an ERO Centre Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:

• curriculum

• premises and facilities

• health and safety practices

• governance, management and administration.

During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:

• emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)

• physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)

• suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)

• evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.

All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.

6 Actions for Compliance

The service provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliance:

• Checking the premises more widely and thoroughly on every day of operation for hazards which include electrical sockets and appliances and vandalism (HS12).

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

15 August 2022 

7 About the Early Childhood Service