Redoubt North School, Manukau, caters for students from Years 1 to 8. A quarter of learners are Māori and half have Pacific heritage, with Samoan being the largest group.
The school’s mission is to develop confident communicators who strive for excellence. The school values of respect, responsibility and excellence underpin its mission. The school’s direction and values are well understood and supported by parents, teachers and students.
Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, schoolwide information about outcomes for students in the following areas:
achievement and accelerated progress in reading, writing and mathematics
outcomes for students with additional learning needs, including gifted and talented students
achievement in relation to school and national targets
information from community surveys
reviews of learning areas including progress made with programmes and initiatives.
Staff participate in professional learning and development designed to support the school’s identified priorities. Over recent years, there has been a particular focus on improving children’s writing.
Since the 2013 ERO report, school leadership and stewardship have remained stable. The school is strategic in appointing beginning teachers. Senior leaders ensure that teachers work in roles that use their strengths to positively impact outcomes for children.
The school is very effective in achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all its students.
The school consistently succeeds in promoting high levels of student achievement. Most students achieve expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics. Leaders and teachers have successfully addressed disparity in achievement for boys in reading and mathematics. They are continuing work to achieve parity for boys in writing.
Students achieve very well in relation to other outcomes valued by the school. Most students:
The school responds very effectively to Māori and other students whose learning and achievement need acceleration. Achievement targets have been developed to address identified learning gaps. Progress towards these targets is closely monitored by school leaders and the board.
School leaders expect all children to be successful during their time at the school. They prioritise the achievement and learning of all Māori and Pacific children. Their commitment to all children achieving is shared by teachers. All staff know about, and are focused on, supporting the students who need additional help in their learning. Processes for closely monitoring children’s rates of progress and their levels of achievement are well embedded.
Teachers and leaders are highly strategic and responsive to the learning needs of all children. They work closely with children, differentiating programmes in response to children’s strengths and learning needs. Specialist teachers provide intensive programmes designed to support and accelerate the progress of groups of children with similar learning needs. The effectiveness of these interventions is evident in the school’s achievement data.
School leadership is very effective in setting, and implementing, the vision for teaching and learning. Leaders ensure that decisions and initiatives are well aligned to the school’s direction. They continually challenge themselves to do better through ongoing improvement.
A positive school climate and effective routines promote an environment where children can be successful learners. Children and staff respond well to the high expectations that are set. School leaders closely monitor the implementation of expectations to ensure consistency across the school.
Teachers make good use of the school day for children’s learning. Frameworks and processes for identifying and responding to children’s learning needs, support equity and excellence for all. Teachers provide very good opportunities for children to develop their skills in core learning areas. Children participate in a variety of activities that are designed to extend their experiences and develop their social competencies.
The board contributes positively to school development. Several trustees have long standing connections with the school. Trustees share a strong commitment to fully supporting the school’s pursuit of excellence. The board is proactive in seeking additional funding and sponsorship to extend learning opportunities for children.
Children learn in very settled and purposeful classroom environments where their work is valued and they are encouraged to take pride in their achievement. Respectful relationships between teachers and children are the basis for the positive tone in classrooms. Older children contribute to and serve the school through a variety of leadership roles.
The school has a strong professional learning culture. There is a sense of purpose and collegiality. Induction programmes for teachers new to the school, and advice and guidance support for beginning teachers, help to maintain the school’s high standards. Targeted professional learning supports individual teachers to improve their practice. It also helps to maintain the continuity of school-wide approaches and programmes. Leadership opportunities and career pathways are identified and promoted for teachers.
To continue to support the achievement of equity and excellence, leaders and teachers could:
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:
board administration
curriculum
management of health, safety and welfare
personnel management
finance
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 and certification
processes for appointing staff
stand down, suspension, expulsion and exclusion of students
attendance
school policies in relation to meeting the requirements of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014.
For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:
leadership that promotes consistently good practice and high expectations
responding to individual children’s learning needs that results in high achievement
establishing and maintaining the positive learning culture and environments that support children well to engage in their learning.
For sustained improvement and future learner success, development priorities are in:
further developing partnerships with parents that focus on learning
increasing students’ use of achievement information to support them to identify and plan their next learning steps
providing more authentic learning programmes that strengthen connections with children’s lives.
ERO is likely to carry out the next external evaluation in four-to-five years.
Graham Randell
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern
Te Tai Raki - Northern Region
1 December 2017
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Location |
Manukau |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
1460 |
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School type |
Full primary (Years 1 to 8) |
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School roll |
689 |
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Gender composition |
Boys 52% Girls 48% |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori Pākehā Samoan Indian Southeast Asian Tongan Cook Island Māori Fijian Chinese Niuean other Pacific other Asian |
19% 5% 26% 10% 10% 9% 8% 4% 3% 3% 2% 1% |
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Review team on site |
October 2017 |
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Date of this report |
1 December 2017 |
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Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
June 2013 |