19A Marmon Street, Rawene
View on mapThe service is well placed to promote positive outcomes for children. Centre members are developing their capacity to plan for, assess and evaluate children’s learning.
Rawene Playcentre is open for two sessions each week. Centre members provide a programme for infants and children up to five years of age. The Playcentre operates as a parent co-operative and is part of the Mid Northland Playcentre Association. A supervisor is employed to ensure that required training levels are maintained for each session. The relatively new parent group is focused on improvement and committed to increasing their training levels. Involvement in professional development is supporting increased understanding of self-review processes.
Respectful relationships are a feature of the Playcentre. Children are settled and have a sense of belonging. They interact confidently with adults. Children have extended periods of time to participate in activities of interest to them. They are inquisitive learners who are keen to be involved in the programme. Children enjoy the spacious outdoor area and participate in extended periods of individual and co-operative play.
Adults provide activities to extend children’s learning. They are consistently available to support children’s play. More experienced members model appropriate teaching and learning strategies and provide ongoing support to newer members. Members are enthusiastic about participating in adult education courses. They discuss their learning and use this knowledge to implement the learning programme.
The Playcentre is managed effectively by centre members. Members are proud of the centre and its prominent position in the community. They have worked to develop closer relationships with the local school and Te Kohanga Reo. Members who are office bearers are providing enthusiastic, collaborative leadership.
ERO and members agree that next steps for development include:
Members would benefit from Association support to build their capacity in programme planning, assessment and evaluation. Next steps could include:
It would also be useful for the Association to support centre members to develop long-term goals for the Playcentre.
ERO recommends that the Mid Northland Playcentre Association work with centre members to manage priorities for centre development and guide sustained improvement.
Before the review, the staff and management of Rawene Playcentre 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:
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:
All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.
ERO is likely to carry out the next review in three years.
Makere Smith NationalManager Review Services Northern Region (Acting)
26 November 2012
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Location |
Rawene |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
16144 |
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Licence type |
Playcentre |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
30 children, including up to 10 aged under 2 |
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Service roll |
19 |
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Gender composition |
Boys 11, Girls 8 |
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Ethnic composition |
NZ European/Pākehā Māori Māori/NZ European Samoan/New Zealand European Chinese/New Zealand European |
7 2 5 3 2 |
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Review team on site |
August 2012 |
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Date of this report |
26 November 2012 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review Education Review Accountability Review |
February 2009 December 2005 February 2002 |
The Education Review Office (ERO) is the New Zealand government department that reviews schools and early childhood services throughout New Zealand.
ERO's education reviews in early childhood services focus on the factors that contribute to positive learning outcomes for children. ERO evaluates how well placed the service is to make and sustain improvements for the benefit of all children at the service. To reach these findings ERO considers:
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 self review and partnerships with parents and whānau.
ERO reviews do not cover every aspect of service performance and each ERO report may cover different issues. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.
Individual ERO school and early childhood service reports are public information and may be copied or sent electronically. However, the Education Review Office can guarantee only the authenticity of original documents which have been obtained in hard copy directly from either the local ERO office or ERO National Office in Wellington.
Rawene Playcentre operates as a parent cooperative within the Mid North Playcentre Association, Whakarongarua, and is situated beside the local school. The Association provides systems and personnel to support the operation of the centre, and offers parents training programmes in early childhood education.
Centre members share decision-making in a participatory management structure. Good self-review processes have helped the president, with support from experienced Playcentre members, to lead ongoing improvements to centre operations. In response to the 2005 ERO report, adults have developed strategies to capture children’s interests as a basis for programme planning. Members now record possibilities for learning for all sessions, based on children’s strengths, ideas, and spontaneous interests. The outdoor environment has been improved with a large sun-shade covering the sandpit area.
A welcoming, inclusive tone is a feature of the centre. Centre members feel confident to suggest ideas and articulate their aspirations for their children’s learning. As a result, they are becoming increasingly involved in joint decision-making about planning programmes for children. Greater sharing of responsibility would support the emergent leadership of centre members.
Adults provide children with opportunities to learn and develop through play, much of which is child-initiated. The positive, inclusive learning environment contributes to the children’s sense of belonging and gives them confidence as they pursue their interests. Children work well with different centre members. They use resources confidently and independently and are prepared to experiment with a variety of equipment. Resources in play areas could be made more easily available to children to support their independent play.
This report evaluates the quality of education, including planning and assessment practices and considers the extent to which the centre identifies and responds to the aspirations and expectations of parents and whänau of Mäori children.
The review identifies areas of good performance and areas for further development. ERO recommends that centre members continue with professional development that focuses on strengthening links between programme planning, assessment and evaluation.
ERO is confident that the service is being managed in the interests of the children. Therefore ERO is likely to review the service again as part of the regular review cycle.
Before the review, the management of Rawene Playcentre was invited to consider its priorities for review using guidelines and resources provided by ERO. ERO also used documentation provided by the centre to contribute to the scope of the review.
The detailed priorities for review were then determined following a discussion between the ERO review team and the management and staff. This discussion focused on existing information held by the centre (including self-review information) and the extent to which potential issues for review contributed to positive outcomes for children at Rawene Playcentre.
All ERO education reviews in early childhood focus on the quality of education. For ERO this includes the quality of:
ERO’s findings in these areas are set out below.
The 2005 ERO review found that centre members were addressing the concerns about programme planning identified in the 2002 ERO report. The 2005 ERO report recommended that members continue to refine children’s interests became the focus of future planning.and document systems for planning, assessment and evaluation so that
Current members are new to the centre since 2005. The present members have identified their main challenge as continuing the good practice of planning for individual children, which was identified in the 2005 ERO report. The president has actively coordinated centre members’ efforts for this endeavour through an inclusive style of leadership. The welcoming tone of the centre has helped parents to feel valued and has encouraged them to contribute to the successful operation of the programme. All parents are enthusiastic participants in Playcentre training and have recently participated in whole centre training led by an external professional development provider.
Respectful relationships. Parents display warm, respectful relationships with children. These positive relationships contribute to children being settled and having a sense of belonging in the centre. Children cooperate well with each other and with centre members.
Learning interactions. Children play well alongside children of different ages and some cooperative play is evident. At the time of this ERO review visit, the ages of the children attending ranged from 1 month to three years.
Positive behaviour management. Adults guide children’s behaviours positively. Expectations of children are consistent and parents communicate well about what is happening in the learning environment. Members successfully guide children to use positive interactions so that they remain focused on learning.
Positive, inviting tone. The centre’s vibrant, spacious environment presents children with an interesting and inviting play space. Children are confident in their exploration of different areas of play.
Catering for different types of play. Centre members support children’s interests by listening attentively and making good use of the centre environment to provide relevant learning opportunities. The flexible morning tea allows children to continue without interruption when they are immersed in play.
Resourcing. Centre members and children access books from a well stocked library. Children enjoy adults reading books to them. Thought has been given to the provision of a variety of resources, such as puzzles, that support mathematics learning. Opportunities for children to use skills in counting and measurement are evident in the programme. Children have frequent opportunities to explore the local environment on centre trips. Resources, such as books, dress-ups and wall displays celebrate a variety of cultures in the centre and contribute to its inclusive tone. Centre members could examine ways to develop some areas of play so that children can access resources more easily.
Response to external review. With the support of the Mid North Playcentre Association, parents have addressed areas for improvement identified in the 2005 ERO report. In particular, record keeping has improved so that parents are better able to ensure that sound early childhood education practices are implemented and monitored. Observations of individual children are displayed for all members to view and respond to. Centre members plan monthly for groups of children, using these observations as a basis for parent and whänau discussion. Members have identified, as a next step for improving centre practices, that a programme that is responsive to individual children’s emerging interests should be developed. To achieve this goal, centre members have identified the benefit of using daily and weekly evaluations to inform programme planning.
Enhancing self review. Centre members could consider enhancing current self-review processes by developing a long-term plan that identifies goals for the next year, and for several years hence. The long-term plan should be used to guide ongoing improvements in all areas of centre operations. A self-review framework that is linked to the strategic plan would help parents to monitor the need for, and effectiveness of, ongoing improvements.
Strengthening planning and evaluation. Currently, centre members’ end-of-session evaluations focus on identifying the areas of play that children are involved in, rather than looking at the underlying strengths or interests that the child is exhibiting. More reflective session evaluations would enable members to plan better to extend children’s emerging interests and strengths at following sessions.
ERO provides information about the education system as a whole through its national reports. This information will be used as the basis for long term and systemic educational improvement.
As part of this review ERO evaluated the extent to which this service carries out a process to identify and respond to the aspirations and expectations of the parents and whänau of Mäori children and focuses on the potential of Mäori children to develop as competent and capable learners. Five of the eighteen children on the centre’s roll are Mäori.
An inclusive environment for Mäori children. The centre provides an inclusive environment for Mäori children. The concept of whanaungatanga underpins the centre philosophy and guides the programme. Mäori children are respected in an environment that acknowledges and celebrates their status as tangata whenua.
Recognition of Aotearoa/New Zealand’s dual heritage. The use of Mäori concepts and protocols evident in the centre reflects the willingness of members to incorporate and respect te reo and tikanga Mäori. A good selection of books about Mäori experiences, some of which are in te reo Mäori, is available in the centre. Centre members learn Mäori words and phrases to communicate with children. They promote children’s participation in karakia and waiata.
Te waewae koukou initiative. Centre members’ attendance at te waewae koukou meetings about good bi-cultural practices, reflects the commitment that members have to the Treaty of Waitangi. This initiative is organised by the Mid North Playcentre Association and ensures that resources with Mäori themes are procured and their use promoted in the centre.
Before the review, centre members of Rawene Playcentre completed an ERO Centre Management Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they have attested that they had taken all reasonable steps to meet their legislative obligations related to:
During the review, ERO checked the following items because they have a potentially high impact on outcomes for children:
In order to improve current practice, centre members should:
During the course of the review ERO identified an area of non-compliance. In order to address this, centre members must:
ERO and the centre members agree that members should continue with professional development that focuses on strengthening links between programme planning, assessment and evaluation.
ERO is confident that the service is being managed in the interests of the children. Therefore ERO is likely to review the service again as part of the regular review cycle.
Elizabeth Ellis
Area Manager
for Chief Review Officer
13 February 2009
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Location |
Rawene, Northland |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
16144 |
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Type |
Playcentre |
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Number licensed for |
30 including a maximum of 10 under two |
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Roll number |
18 |
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Gender composition |
Boys 9, Girls 9 |
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Ethnic composition |
NZ European/Pākeha 11, Māori 5, Cook Island Mäori 2 |
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Review team on site |
December 2008 |
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Date of this report |
13 February 2009 |
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Previous ERO reports |
Education Review, December 2005 Accountability Review, February 2002 Assurance Audit, June 1994 Review, March 1992 |
These are the findings of the Education Review Office’s latest report on Rawene Playcentre.
Rawene Playcentre operates as a parent cooperative within the Mid North Playcentre Association, Whakarongarua, and is situated beside the local school. The Association provides systems and personnel to support the operation of the centre, and offers parents training programmes in early childhood education.
Centre members share decision-making in a participatory management structure. Good self-review processes have helped the president, with support from experienced Playcentre members, to lead ongoing improvements to centre operations. In response to the 2005 ERO report, adults have developed strategies to capture children’s interests as a basis for programme planning. Members now record possibilities for learning for all sessions, based on children’s strengths, ideas, and spontaneous interests. The outdoor environment has been improved with a large sun-shade covering the sandpit area.
A welcoming, inclusive tone is a feature of the centre. Centre members feel confident to suggest ideas and articulate their aspirations for their children’s learning. As a result, they are becoming increasingly involved in joint decision-making about planning programmes for children. Greater sharing of responsibility would support the emergent leadership of centre members.
Adults provide children with opportunities to learn and develop through play, much of which is child-initiated. The positive, inclusive learning environment contributes to the children’s sense of belonging and gives them confidence as they pursue their interests. Children work well with different centre members. They use resources confidently and independently and are prepared to experiment with a variety of equipment. Resources in play areas could be made more easily available to children to support their independent play.
This report evaluates the quality of education, including planning and assessment practices and considers the extent to which the centre identifies and responds to the aspirations and expectations of parents and whänau of Mäori children.
The review identifies areas of good performance and areas for further development. ERO recommends that centre members continue with professional development that focuses on strengthening links between programme planning, assessment and evaluation.
ERO is confident that the service is being managed in the interests of the children. Therefore ERO is likely to review the service again as part of the regular review cycle.
When ERO has reviewed an early childhood centre we encourage management to inform their community of any follow up action they plan to take. You should talk to the management or licensee if you have any questions about this evaluation, the full ERO report or their future intentions.
If you would like a copy of the full report, please contact the centre or see the ERO website, http://www.ero.govt.nz.
Elizabeth Ellis
Area Manager
for Chief Review Officer