Pukekawa School is a rural contributing primary school situated in rural northern Waikato. It caters for students from Years 1 to 6. At the time of the review there were 97 students enrolled including 14 who identify as Māori.
The school vision states they will prepare students for lifelong learning. This focuses on encouraging students to believe in themselves, have a sense of belonging, be confident, be passionate about learning, be active participants and be worthwhile members of society. The school values are stated as RICHER: respect, initiative, confidence, honesty, excellence and responsibility.
The school’s goals for 2019 are to:
There have been significant changes to the teaching team over the last four years. There have been new trustees elected since the last ERO review.
The school is a member of the community of learning Kāhui Ako – o te Puuaha o Waikato.
Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, school-wide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:
reading, writing and mathematics.
The school’s achievement data shows excellent outcomes for most students; however, outcomes are not yet equitable for all students. The school’s data shows that most students achieved at or above expected national curriculum levels over the last three years in reading, writing, and mathematics. In 2018 Māori were achieving the same as their Pākehā peers in reading. However, there is disparity between Māori and Pākehā students in writing and significant disparity in mathematics with Māori achieving below their Pākehā peers. This pattern of disparity has remained over time. In 2018, boys and girl’s achievement in mathematics was comparable. There is significant disparity with girls achieving higher than boys in reading and writing. This disparity has increased over time.
The school is yet to show effective acceleration for Māori and those students who need this. The school was able to provide some date that showed some students made accelerated progress in 2018.
The school’s curriculum is broad and engaging. Authentic, real-life contexts and opportunities for learning are promoted. Students demonstrate a high level of self-management in class and are engaged and focused on learning. Teachers are flexible and responsive to students needs and interests. There is a wide range of resources used in class that are appropriate to all learner levels.
Visual displays and prompts in all classrooms are literacy rich, with deliberate value placed on students work. Curriculum themes include the school values, and key competencies are woven throughout all areas of learning. The promotion of leadership opportunities for students across the curriculum and school events promotes effective tuakana teina relationships.
Students learn in an inclusive and supportive environment. Teachers are approachable, and interactions are positive and affirming. Classrooms are calm and settled and teachers are responsive to students. Target students are identified by teachers and grouped to promote a culture of learning that is well supported. Transition into and through the school has supported children and their families to settle well in class. There is regular sharing of learning, which is promoted through a digital platform in the senior hub, and formal reporting to parents twice a year. Parents are encouraged to participate in class and school activities and feel well supported by the school and the wider community.
Teachers use a wide range of strategies and resources to support learners, including teacher aides in class and appropriate processes for supporting students with additional needs. These include a family/whanau approach to working alongside children and support for liaison with external agencies. Professional learning and development opportunities undertaken support teachers and leaders to cater for students with additional needs.
The school needs to develop and implement internal evaluation practices to determine the effectiveness of strategies focused on raising student achievement and accelerating the progress of at-risk learners. This will include:
Improving the management and use of school-wide data to develop a coherent approach to tracking and monitoring the progress of target students. This will include:
Leaders need to continue to develop a consistent school-wide approach to integrating of bicultural practice. This should include strengthening teachers’ knowledge of te ao Māori and this to be a more integral part of the school’s curriculum.
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:
During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on student safety and wellbeing:
On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of Pukekawa School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Developing.
ERO’s Framework: Overall School Performance is available on ERO’s website.
For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:
For sustained improvement and future learner success, priorities for further development are in:
To improve current practice, the board of trustees should:
Phillip Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services Central
Central Region
9 September 2019
|
Location |
Northern Waikato |
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
1449 |
|
School type |
Contributing (Years 1 to 6) |
|
School roll |
97 |
|
Gender composition |
Female 53 Male 44 |
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori 14 |
|
Students with Ongoing Resourcing Funding (ORS) |
No |
|
Provision of Māori medium education |
No |
|
Review team on site |
July 2019 |
|
Date of this report |
9 September 2019 |
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review December 2015 |