Little Fantails

1 Evaluation of St Marks Community Preschool

How well placed is St Marks Community Preschool to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.

Background

St Mark’s Community Preschool is located in the South Waikato township of Tokoroa. It provides full-day education and care for children from birth to school age in two separate age-based settings. The roll of 58 includes 28 Māori children.

Through the philosophy, kaiako aim to promote Christian values, encourage children to feel safe and secure, follow their own learning pathway and develop a love of learning. The philosophy references the importance of the Treaty of Waitangi and opportunities for children to develop understanding of their own and other cultures.

Nearly all staff are qualified or completing qualifications to teach in early childhood education. Teacher professional learning and research projects have been about positive guidance for children, health and safety, assessment and evaluation, children with additional learning needs, literacy and mathematics, and transition to school.

The centre operates under the oversight of a management committee comprised of representatives from St Mark’s Church, centre parents and the teaching team. Since ERO’s 2015 review, a new centre manager has been appointed and there have been some changes to the mostly long-standing teaching team. There has been significant upgrade of the outdoor environments and ongoing centre resourcing.

ERO’s last report in November 2015 identified areas to strengthen practice relating to incorporating children’s language, culture and identity in the programme, teacher reflections and evaluation, and closer alignment between the centre’s philosophy, annual and strategic plans.

The Review Findings

Nurturing, trusting and responsive relationships and interactions between children and staff are highly evident. Teachers understand the concepts of aroha and manaakitanga including their obligations to whānau Māori. This helps them to provide appropriate care and education for Māori and other children. Children up to two years of age benefit from their relationships with consistent and familiar adults in a small group setting. They enjoy frequent opportunities for independent exploration. Transitions from home and within the centre are well managed and responsive to individual children. Teachers’ emphasis on developing children’s confidence, independence and social competence supports children's learning and their positive transitions to school.

Teachers’ engagement in long-term internal evaluation is resulting in a more deliberate response to the cultural identity of children and families. Strengthened practices and opportunities include incorporating te reo and tikanga Māori, resourcing of play areas, environmental design and developing links with the local Māori, Pacific and Asian communities.

Children experience a broad and rich curriculum. They confidently lead their own learning through self-chosen play and exploration. The programme is unhurried and allows time for sustained and uninterrupted play. The environment is well resourced, spacious and offers levels of challenge for all age groups. There are many opportunities for children to make connections and extend their interests in the centre and wider community. Literacy, mathematics, science and technology are well integrated in authentic contexts for children.

Rich records of children’s learning capture their interest, dispositions and strengths. Continuity of learning is evident in assessments and there are some good examples that show children’s language, culture and identity. Further development is needed to more consistently document individual goals and planning, and to strengthen the role of children and parents as partners in assessment for learning.

Centre leadership effectively builds capability within the service to promote positive learning outcomes for all children. A recent priority for the centre has been to establish an organisational culture based on respectful relationships and trust. Parents and staff feel valued and appreciate strengthened communication and the opportunities to be heard. Emergent leadership is fostered by recognising individual skills and empowering all staff to contribute to the life of the centre and children’s learning.

A newly developed appraisal system sets clear expectations and supports teachers in their professional growth and learning. There is regular mentoring, coaching and discussion about teaching practice. Further consideration should deepen teacher reflections and the quality of individual development goals.

Centre governance and management promote shared values that are underpinned by Christian beliefs. Leaders maintain a strong focus on the rights of all children to a quality, inclusive early childhood education. Equitable opportunities for children and families are central to decision making. The centre works effectively with external agencies to support children with additional needs and their families. A focus for the new centre manager has been to clarify and strengthen aspects of centre operations. Management recognises the need to continue to rationalise and review centre policies and procedures.

Key Next Steps

ERO identified and centre management agree that the following next steps will be important for ongoing centre development.

The centre philosophy should be reviewed as part of a planned approach to deepening teachers' understanding and implementation of the revised Te Whāriki.

Strategic planning should be strengthened. Important considerations include:

• more specific goals and indicators of success that focus on outcomes for children

• alignment between centre priorities and teachers' appraisal goals

• regular reporting and monitoring of progress against centre goals throughout the year.

The appraisal process for the centre manager needs further development. This should include:

• a more specific focus on the professional leadership aspect of this role

• quality goals to enhance professional learning and practice

• access to a suitable external appraiser with in-depth knowledge of leadership and current theories of teaching and learning in early childhood education.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of St Marks Community Preschool 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:

• curriculum
• premises and facilities
• health and safety practices
• governance, management and administration.

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.

Next ERO Review

When is ERO likely to review the service again?

The next ERO review of St Marks Community Preschool will be in three years.

Adrienne Fowler

Director Review and Improvement Services

Te Tai Miringa - Waikato / Bay of Plenty Region

14 November 2018

The Purpose of ERO Reports

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.

2 Information about the Early Childhood Service

3 General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

ERO’s Evaluation Framework

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.

ERO’s Overall Judgement and Next Review

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:

• Very well placed – The next ERO review in four years
• Well placed – The next ERO review in three years
• Requires further development – The next ERO review within two years
• Not well placed - The next ERO review in consultation with the Ministry of Education

ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.

Review Coverage

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.