Puawai - Homebased Childcare - Rua

1 Evaluation of Puawai - Homebased Childcare - Rua

How well placed is Puawai - Homebased Childcare - Rua to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Puawai - Homebased Childcare - Rua is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.

Background

This is the first ERO review of Puawai - Homebased Childcare - Rua, which was established in April 2018. Educators provide programmes in their homes for up to four children at a time. Most children are of Pacific heritage, and their educators are mainly grandparents or family members.

The service philosophy promotes children learning through play. A priority is for children to be immersed in their home language and culture.

The service has one experienced, qualified and certified visiting teacher. She regularly visits educators in their home to help them plan education programmes for children and to monitor health and safety requirements. The owner is responsible for overall governance of the service, supported by an office administrator. They work with the visiting teacher, educators and families to set the strategic direction for the service.

The Review Findings

The visiting teacher and educators know children well. Children's learning records show that infants and toddlers benefit from individualised and nurturing care. Respectful, responsive relationships nurture children's wellbeing and belonging. Home environments often reflect the cultures of the children attending. The visiting teacher and educators promote the use of children's home languages.

Children at this service experience a curriculum that reflects the dual heritage of Aotearoa/New Zealand. The visiting teacher encourages educators' ongoing use of te reo Māori and integration of aspects of tikanga Māori.

The visiting teacher works with educators to plan a curriculum that fosters children's dispositions and interests. During regular visits, she documents children's learning experiences and provides educators with strategies to extend children's learning. Children have good opportunities to develop their creativity, as well as early literacy and mathematical knowledge.

The service's focus on learning through play and on the principles of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, is evident in planning and documentation. The visiting teacher and educators regularly share children's learning with parents/whānau. Daily journals and learning portfolios inform parents about their child's routines and learning experiences.

There is a focus on increasing educators' knowledge about positive educational outcomes for children. The visiting teacher and educators attend regular professional development opportunities. Well-organised workshops help educators to increase their understanding of practices that effectively promote children's learning.

The owner fosters a team approach and promotes an organisational culture of trust and respect. The owner, visiting teacher and administrator work together to develop reciprocal relationships with educators and families.

Policies and procedures are well developed and regularly reviewed. Good practices for monitoring children's wellbeing and health and safety are consistently maintained. Continuing to develop a long-term plan that supports the service's vision and philosophy and guides ongoing development is a priority for the owner.

The service's appraisal processes are being developed. This includes working with the visiting teacher and educators to set relevant goals to improve their practices. An internal evaluation system has been established. The use of evaluative questions and indicators of effective practice would help to guide ongoing improvement.

Key Next Steps

Key steps include using Te Whāriki to:

• develop and implement a curriculum plan for each child

• strengthen partnerships with whānau with a focus on working together to support children's learning

• evaluate the impact of the curriculum and teaching practices on children's learning.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Puawai - Homebased Childcare - Rua completed an ERO Home-based Education and Care 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.

Steve Tanner

Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)

Northern Region - Te Tai Raki

20 May 2020

The Purpose of ERO Reports

The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.

2 Information about the Home-based Education and Care Service

3 General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

ERO’s Evaluation Framework

ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:

Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children

Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children

Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children

Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.

Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.

ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.

A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.

For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to the draft methodology for ERO reviews in Home-based Education and Care Services: July 2014

ERO’s Overall Judgement

The overall judgement that ERO makes will depend on how well the service promotes positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:

• Very well placed

• Well placed

• Requires further development

• Not well placed

ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.

Review Coverage

ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.