Rangiora New Life School

Education institution number:
418
School type:
Composite
School gender:
Co-Educational
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
440
Telephone:
Address:

Denchs Road, Southbrook, Rangiora

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Rangiora New Life School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within twelve months of the Education Review Office and Rangiora New Life School 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 

Rangiora New Life School is a co-educational school located in Rangiora and caters for students in Years 1 to 13.

Rangiora New Life Schools strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

  • expecting high academic standards and developing a broader measure of student success beyond pass rates

  • having good monitoring processes for student wellbeing

  • supporting parents in educating their children as successful learners

  • preparing students for careers and pathways outside school.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Rangiora New Life Schools website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate to what extent internal evaluation supports school processes and practices which lead to excellence and equity in student achievement.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to ensure that the school’s self-review processes are robust, comprehensive and contribute effectively to a continuous process of school improvement.

The school expects to use the outcome of the evaluation to continue to support its development of and use of robust organizational systems and processes for ensuring the quality, consistency, and coherence of the school’s curriculum, assessment and teacher practice across the primary and secondary school.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support the school in its goal to review internal evaluation practices:

  • Teachers share high, clear, and equitable expectations for student learning, achievement, progress, and wellbeing.

  • Internal evaluation practices support the gathering, analysis, and use of evidence of student learning and outcomes to improve individual and collective practice.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will continue to prioritise embedding evaluation, inquiry and knowledge building in the policies, systems, processes and practices that collectively express how the school plans for, and takes action to realise its vision, values, goals and targets.

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.

Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini

11 August 2022 

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

Rangiora New Life School

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2021 to 2024

As of September 2021, the Rangiora New Life Board of Trustees 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 Rangiora New Life Board of Trustees.

The next Board of Trustees assurance that it is meeting regulatory and legislative requirements is due in December 2024.

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

Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region | Te Tai Tini

18 February 2022 

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

Rangiora New Life School - 19/12/2014

Findings

The board, principal and staff work well together to make the school a welcoming and supportive place for students. The school’s Christian character strongly supports the quality of teaching and learning. Significant numbers of students achieve at high levels in literacy and mathematics in the primary school and at NCEA Level 2 in the secondary school. Good progress has been made in promoting success for Māori students.

When is ERO likely to review the school again?

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.

1. Context

What are the important features of this school that have an impact on student learning?

Rangiora New Life School’s special Christian character and values continue to provide a strong foundation for students, staff and board. The school has experienced a steady increase in the roll. Students come from a wide area beyond the school’s locality.

The board, staff and students are well supported by the church proprietors and the wider community. The completion of the latest building programme, including a highly functional events centre, enables the board to share the school’s facilities with its community. The principal and teachers are involved in a cluster of local schools where shared professional benefits are regularly achieved.

The board and senior management team have addressed some areas identified for further improvement in the May 2011 ERO report.

A small committee supports staff in developing a bicultural programme for the school. Students have improved opportunities to develop their awareness and understanding of Aotearoa New Zealand’s bicultural heritage.

The board and senior management team still need to strengthen the usefulness of some of the school’s documentation so that it is clear that the school's goals are being monitored and evaluated.

2. Learning

How well does this school use achievement information to make positive changes to learners’ engagement, progress and achievement?

Teachers effectively use achievement information to make positive changes to students’ engagement, progress and achievement.

This is most evident where teachers and leaders:

  • make sure learning programmes meet individual needs
  • identify and provide extra support for students who have difficulties with their learning
  • monitor student progress and make necessary changes to programmes to further support learning needs, including the needs of highly able students
  • provide information to the board about student achievement for all year levels.

Achievement information for National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) in 2013, shows that students achieve best at Levels 1 and 2. High achievement in NCEA Level 2, including an increasing number of merit and excellence endorsements, shows that the school has well exceeded the predicted national target for this level. Achievement of Level 1 literacy and numeracy continues the strong trend of high achievement in these areas over time. Leaders have begun to develop ways to increase achievement at NCEA Level 3.

In the primary school, a good number of students achieve above both regional and national levels in literacy and mathematics. In particular, a significant number of students entering Year 4 and at the end of Year 8 are at or above the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics.

Areas for review and development

The board and leaders, when appraising staff, could identify what has been having the greatest impact on student progress and any next steps for further improvement.

Leaders could also consider ways to provide increased support and opportunities for teachers and curriculum leaders to analyse achievement information within their classes and learning areas.

3. Curriculum

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

The school’s curriculum is effectively promoting and supporting student learning, progress and achievement. Students have a wide range of learning opportunities within and beyond the school. This includes access to distance learning that expands curriculum choices for individual students.

The curriculum is flexible and responsive to the interests, needs and aspirations of students. For example, in 2013, a high-quality Year 11 programme was developed to meet the needs of students having difficulties with their learning. Extensive support resulted in very successful outcomes for all students. In 2014, the programme is providing effective individual support for students’ vocational pathways.

A major strength of the curriculum is the extent to which the special Christian character helps to define the school’s values. A range of desirable learning and teaching qualities and expectations are linked to the school’s motto to seek, serve and soar high.

Students spoken with by ERO said that the school’s positive and caring culture, and its focus on service to others, helped them to have a sense of belonging and pride in their school.

Areas for review and development

Leaders should ensure that:

  • current initiatives in the junior school to improve the accuracy of teacher judgements about student achievement are reviewed and reported on
  • planning, reviewing and reporting is effectively used to set the direction and priorities for vocational pathways across the school.
How effectively does the school promote educational success for Māori, as Māori?

The Māori committee is strongly committed to promoting educational success for Māori students as Māori. The school now has:

  • an active kapa haka group
  • opportunities for students to learn te reo and tikanga Māori across the school
  • good links with the local marae
  • useful feedback from Māori parents to help staff in developing future plans.

To further strengthen the school’s bicultural programme:

  • the board could set targets based on meeting the needs of Māori students
  • the Māori committee could develop a plan that outlines the goals for the bicultural programme and how these will be met and reviewed.

4. Sustainable Performance

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

The board has well-defined roles and responsibilities and maintains a good focus on continuing to lift and support student achievement. Trustees bring a useful range of expertise to governance at the school. The steady roll increase is being well managed by the board.

The school charter strongly reflects the school’s special character and has broad goals for improvement.

The senior management team is stable and cohesive. The managers' positive relationships with staff and students encourage and promote a culture of collaboration and collegiality. A variety of opportunities are available for teachers to develop their own leadership skills. This is helping to share leadership responsibilities across the staff. Many staff told ERO how much they enjoy working at the school.

A recent survey of the community has led to improvements in communication with parents and staff. Leaders told ERO that further developments to the school’s student management system should contribute to ongoing improvements in this area.

Area for review and development

The board could more clearly identify its current specific strategic priorities in its strategic plan and how these are being monitored and evaluated.

Provision for international students

The school is a signatory to the Code of Practice for the Pastoral Care of International Students (the Code) established under Section 238F of the Education Act 1989. The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code.

At the time of this review, there were 11 international students attending the school.

The school provides high-quality pastoral care and learning support for international students. Students have good opportunities to participate in a range of programmes including educational and cultural experiences in and beyond the school and involvement in community service.

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 board, principal and staff work well together to make the school a welcoming and supportive place for students. The school’s Christian character strongly supports the quality of teaching and learning. Significant numbers of students achieve at high levels in literacy and mathematics in the primary school and at NCEA Level 2 in the secondary school. Good progress has been made in promoting success for Māori students.

Next ERO Review

When is ERO likely to review the school again?

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.

Graham Randell National Manager Review Services Southern Region

19 December 2014

About the School

Location

Rangiora, North Canterbury

Ministry of Education profile number

418

School type

Composite (Years 1 to 13)

School roll

379

Number of international students

11

Gender composition

Girls 52%; Boys 48%

Ethnic composition

NZ European/Pākehā

Māori

Cook Island

Samoan

Other Pacific

Asian

Other Ethnicities

80%

9%

1%

1%

2%

5%

2%

Review team on site

September 2014

Date of this report

19 December 2014

Most recent ERO reports

Education Review Education Review Education Review

May 2011 January 2008 December 2004