Pomare School

Education institution number:
2961
School type:
Contributing
School gender:
Co-Educational
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
80
Telephone:
Address:

Partridge Street, Taita, Lower Hutt

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Pomare School - 12/04/2019

Findings

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

1 Background and Context

What is the background and context for this school’s review?

Pomare School in Taita, Lower Hutt provides education for students from Years 1 to 6. The growing roll of 68 students includes 30 who identify as Māori and 24 of Pacific heritage. The main Pacific nationality represented is Samoan.

In 2018, Pomare School became host to two off-site satellite classrooms from Kimi Ora School.

The 2016 December ERO report identified areas for strengthening practice and recommended that the Ministry of Education (MoE) provide support for the school to bring about improvements in raising student achievement, documenting an agreed Pomare School curriculum, developing internal evaluation processes and capacity building across the school.

Since then a MoE limited statutory manager (LSM) and a MoE senior adviser have provided trustees and leadership with training, support and guidance. The LSM role finished at the school in 2017.

Staffing and board membership has remained stable. Trustees have received training and support from the New Zealand School Trustees Association (NZSTA). The principal and teachers continue to participate in MoE professional learning and development (PLD) to strengthen systems, processes and practices to improve literacy provision for learners.

2 Review and Development

How effectively is the school addressing its priorities for review and development?

Priorities identified for review and development

The December ERO 2016 report identified key areas for ongoing development. These were for trustees, the principal, and staff to:

  • prioritise the raising of achievement levels in reading, writing and mathematics

  • develop an explicit school curriculum which includes valued competencies and outcomes for Pomare students and clear expectations for effective teaching practice

  • strengthen the use of appraisal and internal evaluation to inform ongoing improvement

  • build effectiveness of leadership and governance.

Progress

The school has made good progress in addressing the priorities identified for review and development.

There is a deliberate and focused response to learners at risk of underachievement. A range of achievement information is gathered and used effectively by the principal and teachers to identify, track and monitor the progress of these students and to inform teaching and interventions. Staff work collaboratively to share good practice and moderate achievement decisions through evidence-based discussions.

Student achievement data is dependable and shows significant overall improvement, especially in literacy. Pacific students and girls achieve well in reading and writing. An agreed focus for the school is on accelerating achievement in mathematics.

Trustees, the principal and teachers have an increased understanding of the importance of acceleration for those that need it. Effective programmes to address disparity and accelerate achievement are in place. School data shows evidence of groups of children whose progress has been accelerated. However, some disparity remains but is reducing.

Students identified with specific learning needs have tailored individual plans, inclusive of family and whānau. There are effective processes to track and record student’s learning, social development and wellbeing. External support is accessed when appropriate.

Trustees and the principal are committed to building teacher capability. Targeted PLD has supported them to establish a shared understanding of effective practices. Components of the appraisal process have been strengthened. Inquiry has become more responsive to targeting students’ learning needs. A next step is to fully embed the appraisal process by continuing to build effective teaching strategies and promote consistent expectations of good practice through focused feedback and next steps for leaders and teachers.

The principal works productively and collaboratively with external advisers to support her leadership.

The school is making good progress in reviewing and developing a responsive, localised curriculum aligned with The New Zealand Curriculum and the aspirations of the community. A guiding framework, based on the school’s pepeha acknowledging its unique place in the community, has been developed with extensive input from children, staff and whānau. Ongoing development is needed to further shape this document so that it provides clear guidelines and expectations for teacher practice.

Internal evaluation practices are at an early stage of development. A next step is to continue to build on processes to effectively measure the impact of the school’s actions on student outcomes.

The principal and trustees have worked effectively in partnership to better meet their legislative obligations and strengthen systems and processes that promote improved student achievement, wellbeing and safety.

3 Sustainable performance and self review

How well placed is the school to sustain and continue to improve and review its performance?

The school is well placed to sustain and continue to improve its performance.

Key next steps

Key next steps to support ongoing improvement are to:

  • build understanding and use of internal evaluation to ascertain the effectiveness of teaching programmes, initiatives and strategies

  • continue to develop and refine the school’s curriculum so it provides clear guidelines and expectations of teacher practice.

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.

In order to improve practice, trustees and the principal should:

  • develop explicit procedures to further guide practice in relation to the Physical Restraint Policy, Child Protection Policy and the Bullying Prevention Policy.

Conclusion

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

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

Alan Wynyard

Director

Review and Improvement Services Southern

Southern Region

12 April 2019

About the School

Location

Lower Hutt

Ministry of Education profile number

2961

School type

Contributing (Years 1 to 6)

School roll

68

Gender composition

Girls 35, Boys 33

Ethnic composition

Māori
Pacific
Pākehā
Other ethnicities

30
24
5
9

Special Features

Satellite site for Kimi Ora School

Review team on site

February 2019

Date of this report

12 April 2019

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review
Education Review
Education Review

December 2016
February 2014
April 2009

Pomare School - 07/12/2016

1 Context

Pomare School in Taita, Lower Hutt caters for students in Years 1 to 6. Most of its 67 students, are of Pacific heritage with 23 identifying as Māori. The main Pacific nationality represented is Samoan.

A strong sense of community pride in the social and cultural environment the school provides is apparent. New initiatives, including the Kai Ora Café, provide opportunities for student leadership, and whānau and aiga engagement.

The school is currently involved in the Ministry of Education (MoE) Accelerating Learning in Literacy (ALL) and Accelerating Learning in Mathematics (ALiM) programmes aimed at raising students' achievement in literacy and mathematics.

Leaders and trustees have expressed an interest in becoming part of a Community of Learning. The school will be participating in the MoE's Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) programme in 2017.

In Term 4 2015, a new principal began at the school. At that time a Limited Statutory Manager (LSM) was put in place to strengthen financial systems and practice.

2 Equity and excellence

The vision and valued outcomes defined by the school for all children are that through perseverance, responsibility, integrity, diversity and empathy, learners will be confident, tolerant, respectful and resilient.

A clear picture of schoolwide achievement in 2015 is not available as the reported data has been identified as not dependable. In 2016, leaders and teachers are working towards collating reliable data.

Assessment practices supporting the formation of dependable judgments in relation to National Standards need strengthening. To build accuracy and consistency in making appropriate judgements, leaders and teachers should:

  • develop clear understandings of expected levels of achievement for year groups
  • review and build capability for using norm-referenced assessment tools
  • establish moderation meetings for leaders and teachers to discuss evidence used for making judgements about levels of achievement.

Since the February 2014 ERO evaluation the school has:

  • started to redevelop policies and procedures to guide school operation
  • reviewed assessment practices through participation in ALL and ALiM
  • developed a more robust appraisal process
  • formulated a framework of expectations to better guide planning to address the needs of learners
  • documented some indicators of what quality teaching looks like at Pomare School
  • reviewed and strengthened the behaviour plan and aligned it to the school's values.

While progress has been made in these developments, they remain areas for improvement. Some areas of positive progress reported in the June 2013 ERO report have not been maintained or embedded.

3 Accelerating achievement

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

There is an urgent need to establish a schoolwide, coordinated approach to effectively respond to all children who are at risk of poor educational outcomes. This should include developing:

  • staff capability to more effectively respond to the needs, interests and strengths of students
  • teachers inquiring into their practice to identify the extent to which teaching strategies are improving outcomes for individuals and groups of learners
  • a shared understanding of what meaningful acceleration looks like
  • an effective system to track students' progress
  • clearly documented guidelines for reliable assessment procedures and robust practices to monitor their implementation.

In 2016, the principal uses data to identify students who achieve lower than expectations. This information informs the setting of appropriate schoolwide achievement targets.

Teachers identify students in reading, writing and mathematics who require more focused teaching. They use a range of external interventions to support some of these identified students. A wide range of resources are available for teaching programmes that reflect learners' cultures.

Learners with additional needs are well supported by a specialist teacher, teacher aides and external agencies. Individual education plans are developed by this group, and whānau, and in-class learning programmes are well-designed to support key improvement goals. These programmes are well implemented by teacher aides.

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?

Trustees are being supported to build their understanding of stewardship, including understanding policies and procedures, processes and systems, and internal review. Extending the scope of this support for trustees and the principal, is recommended, to assist the board to:

  • better understand its statutory responsibilities and address areas of non-compliance
  • develop systems to ensure that school practice aligns with current schoolwide policies and procedures.

Collaborative relationships between the board and the principal have been developed and are focused on school improvement. The principal has established key strategic priorities for schoolwide development and has addressed some significant issues. Mentors support the principal to develop her leadership.

Students are generally happy and confident. Respectful interactions with adults and each other are highly evident. The school has focused on building a consistent approach to learning behaviours. The school environment celebrates the students' cultures, identities and languages. Purposeful programmes are in place for groups of students to extend learning, and for use of Māori and Samoan language and culture.

Parents have a range of opportunities to be involved in the life of the school. An improved template for reporting to parents should better explain their children's progress and achievement in relation to National Standards and enhance learning partnerships with home.

Further important developments are urgently needed to achieve equity and excellence for all learners. These improvements are to:

  • establish robust systems to track, monitor and report the impact of the curriculum and teaching practice on improving outcomes for students
  • continue the review of the school curriculum to ensure it aligns with the intent of The New Zealand Curriculum and is sufficient to guide school practice
  • extend the use of expectations for effective teaching practices
  • develop systems and processes for coherent and useful internal evaluation.

Clearly designing, articulating and implementing a plan, with specific, well-communicated actions and intended outcomes, should support trustees and school leaders to make these improvements.

5 Going forward

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

Leaders and teachers:

  • have not yet adequately built their knowledge of the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated
  • have not yet adequately established necessary conditions to effectively accelerate learning and achievement
  • are not well placed to achieve and sustain accelerated achievement for all children who need it

ERO intends to carry out a process of ongoing evaluation to support development over the course of one-to-two years.

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

ERO identified areas of non-compliance. To meet requirements the board of trustees must:

  • ensure the professional leaders of the school appraise staff in teaching positions based on the Practising Teacher Criteria established and maintained by the Education Council for the issue and renewal of practising certificates
    [Section 31, Education Act 1989]
  • comply with the requirement to adopt a statement on the delivery of the health curriculum, at least once in every two years, after consultation with the school community
    [Section 60B, Education Act 1989]
  • establish robust systems and procedures to identify and effectively manage hazards.
    [National Administration Guideline 5a]

To improve current practice the board of trustees should:

  • align policies, procedures and practices within the school and ensure these meet legislative requirements including: the process for appointing staff; and surrender and retention of property and searches
  • ensure attendance is monitored and all practicable steps are taken to ascertain the whereabouts of absent students, in a timely manner.

7 Recommendation

ERO recommends that the Secretary for Education consider continuing the intervention under Part 7A of the Education Act 1989 in order to:

  • build the capability and capacity of leaders and teachers to improve outcomes for all learners
  • review and develop the school's curriculum to effectively respond to the needs, interests and strengths of students
  • extend the provision of support and guidance to assist the board and principal to address the findings of this report. 

Joyce Gebbie

Deputy Chief Review Officer Central

7 December 2016

About the school

Location

Lower Hutt

Ministry of Education profile number

2961

School type

Contributing (Years 1 to 6)

School roll

67

Gender composition

Female 39, Male 28

Ethnic composition

Māori

Samoan

Cook Island

Pākehā

Other ethnic groups

23

27

6

7

4

Review team on site

October 2016

Date of this report

7 December 2016

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

Education Review

Supplementary Review

February 2014

April 2012

January 2009