63 Murray Street, Mosgiel
View on map|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
Reid Park Kindergarten is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Reid Park Kindergarten provides early childhood education for children aged two years old to school age. It is licensed for 45 children and currently has a roll of 51. Nine children identify as Māori and five as from other ethnic groups. Sessions operate from 8.30am to 2.30pm.
Teachers aim to support children to develop early literacy and numeracy, social and emotional competency, be active explorers, be creative and independent, and have respect for Papatuanuku. They seek to achieve this through partnerships with families, valuing children's voice and culture, celebrating diversity, and fostering children's sense of belonging in respectful and inclusive ways.
The teaching team has made good progress in addressing the areas for development identified in the kindergarten's November 2015 ERO report. These included improving aspects of planning, assessment and evaluation for individuals and group learning.
Reid Park Kindergarten is one of 24 kindergartens governed by Dunedin Kindergartens (DK). Day-to-day operations are led by a head teacher, with the support of three experienced, qualified teachers and a teacher aide. A senior teacher from DK provides support for professional and operational practice.
This review was part of a cluster of seven DK kindergartens.
Children's learning benefits from an environment that is calm and welcoming. Relationships are inclusive, respectful and guided by manaakitanga. Children play well alongside and with each other. Teachers know each child very well and work closely with parents to best meet their learning needs. Māori and other cultures are valued in the curriculum and highly visible in the environment.
The indoor and outdoor environment is beautifully resourced and presented to engage and provoke learning. The spaces, resources and equipment provide a range of rich opportunities for play and exploration, and strongly support the physical and social developmental needs of the different groups of children.
Children experience a broad and interesting curriculum that supports the kindergarten's priorities for learning. Teachers deliberately provide experiences to foster children's social competency, early literacy and mathematics, and their fine and gross motor skills. They prioritise te reo me ngā tikanga Māori, including local cultural narratives.
Priority learners are very well supported. Teachers plan carefully in order to best meet the needs and interests of two year olds. They work closely with parents and external experts to best support children with additional needs. Māori children's culture and language are affirmed, enabling them to stand proud in their culture.
Teachers have developed effective assessment, planning and evaluation processes. Children's profiles include relevant learning goals, unpack significant learning and show progress over time. These value children's language, culture and identity. Group planning is based on Te Whāriki, has clear learning outcomes and results in well-considered resourcing and experiences. Teachers and ERO agree that teachers need to better document their discussions about children's goals and relevant teaching strategies. Parents' contributions could be more visible in learning records.
Teachers are reflective and improvement focused. Strategic priorities and plans are based on what matters most for children. There is strong alignment from these to professional learning. Internal evaluation has resulted in research-informed improvements to teaching and outcomes for children. Teachers and ERO agree that aspects of internal evaluation could be strengthened.
The DK board has made good progress in addressing the governance recommendations from ERO's 2016 reviews. The DK's mission and strategic priorities are well known and reflected in each kindergarten's strategic and annual plans. It has a sound policy and procedure framework that provides guidance for kindergartens and sound systems to monitor health and safety. Leaders and teachers benefit from relevant professional development and leadership support. The DK actively supports equity of outcomes for all children by funding additional teaching resources to support children with additional needs.
Leaders and teachers have identified, and ERO agrees, that to further improve outcomes for children they need to:
The DK board has clearly identified, and ERO agrees, that the key next steps for DK to further improve outcomes for children are to ensure that:
reporting and monitoring at all levels are evaluative, to clearly show how desired outcomes for children have been improved in relation to the DK and kindergartens’ priorities for learning and other strategic priorities
a robust and systematic quality assurance framework is implemented to inform and monitor ongoing improvements in each kindergarten.
Before the review, the staff and management of Reid Park Kindergarten 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:
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.
Dr Lesley Patterson
Director Review and Improvement Services (Southern)
Southern Region - Te Tai Tini
22 May 2020
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.
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Location |
Mosgiel |
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Ministry of Education profile number |
5510 |
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Licence type |
Free Kindergarten |
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Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
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Number licensed for |
45 children over two years of age |
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Service roll |
51 |
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Gender composition |
Girls 30 Boys 21 |
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Ethnic composition |
Māori |
9 |
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Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
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Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
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Review team on site |
January 2020 |
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Date of this report |
22 May 2020 |
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Most recent ERO reports |
Education Review |
November 2015 |
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|
Education Review |
September 2012 |
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Education Review |
May 2009 |
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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 ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
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.
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.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Reid Park Kindergarten is located in Mosgiel, close to Dunedin. It provides education and care for children from two-to-five years old. Forty children attend in the morning and thirty children stay for the afternoon.
The teachers are all qualified and have worked together for some years.
There have been recent renovations to the inside and outside areas. The outdoor area is still being developed. An enthusiastic parent committee supports the kindergarten through fundraising efforts.
The kindergarten has made some progress on developing self-review practices. This was a recommendation in the September 2012 ERO report.
The kindergarten operates under the Dunedin Kindergartens (DK) umbrella. DK provides management and professional support for the teachers. This review was part of a cluster of 24 kindergarten reviews in the DK.
Children have close and trusting relationships with their teachers. Parents and whānau are warmly welcomed, and they feel comfortable to stay and play alongside their children. This builds a strong sense of belonging and confidence for children in the kindergarten. Children play in a settled way and make friendships with one another. Teachers foster children’s caring attitudes and encourage them to help others.
Teachers play close attention to fostering children’s language development. Teachers encourage children’s talk, accept and respect what they say and build their confidence in social situations. Teachers respect children’s ideas and make sure they have a say in the design of the programme and environment. For example, children helped design the new cycle track.
Teachers get to know children well and use this knowledge to help plan interesting programmes for them. Teachers follow children’s enthusiasms to open up a world of learning. For example, the children’s interest in Matariki celebrations led them to exploring planets and the solar system. Children are learning about researching, mathematics and literacy through these interesting topics.
Children and teachers use te reo Māori through the day. Children enjoy and enthusiastically sing waiata and celebrate events such as Polyfest and Matariki. Māori perspectives are included in group planning. Group stories show how Māori children’s language, culture and identity are supported. However this is not so clear in individual children’s stories.
Teachers have useful systems for planning for individuals and groups of children. They seek parents’ wishes for their children’s learning and wellbeing and find ways to respond within planning.
The outdoor areas have been imaginatively designed to ignite children’s curiosity and invite physical exploration. They offer challenges and interest for all ages. Children benefit from a wide range of learning experiences such as gardening, cooking, excursions and community connections.
The teachers have responded to parents’ wishes and input from local schools in developing a planned transition-to-school programme for older children.
Teachers work well together. They know each other well and respect the strengths each contributes to the team. Teachers attend professional learning and development opportunities and use these to challenge and stimulate their thinking and to make improvements. Teachers have a useful format and schedule to guide self review. This has led to some improvements.
Teachers have a number of ideas about what they want for the future of the kindergarten. Their ideas could be developed into long-term plans that show the priorities and actions to achieve the desired outcomes. Related systems such as professional learning, appraisal, self-review topics and senior teacher support could then be aligned to strengthen the strategic focus.
The vision of the DK is to provide excellence in early childhood education for all children. The DK is governed by a board and managed by a long-serving general manager. The kindergarten teachers told ERO they appreciated the support they receive from the association and the advice and guidance of the senior teachers.
The board, general manager and senior teachers:
The teachers and ERO agree that the next steps are to strengthen aspects of planning. The teachers and senior teachers should work together to consistently show:
Teachers could redesign their kindergarten philosophy to show the depth of priorities for learning and what makes this kindergarten unique.
Teachers need to further develop their understanding of rigorous self review and use this to review all aspects of the programme that have a significant impact on children’s learning and wellbeing.
Next steps for the board, with the support of the general manager and senior teachers, are to:
With the appointment of a new senior teacher it is timely for the board and general manager to review the role of the senior teachers and strengthen systems to ensure consistent high quality practice across all kindergartens within the DK.
Before the review, the staff and management of Reid Park Kindergarten 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.
The next ERO review of Reid Park Kindergarten will be in three years.
Chris Rowe
Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern (Acting)
4 November 2015
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.
|
Location |
Mosgiel |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
5510 |
||
|
Licence type |
Free Kindergarten |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
45 children over two years of age |
||
|
Service roll |
57 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys: 29 Girls: 28 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori |
6 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates |
80% + |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
Not Applicable |
|
|
Over 2 |
1:10 |
Meets minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
September 2015 |
||
|
Date of this report |
4 November 2015 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s)
|
Education Review |
September 2012 |
|
|
Education Review |
May 2009 |
||
|
Education Review |
February 2006 |
||
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 ERO’s Approach to Review in Early Childhood Services.
The overall judgement that ERO makes and the timing of the next review will depend on how well placed a service is to promote positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:
ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.
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.