Tamariki School

Education institution number:
4143
School type:
Full Primary
School gender:
Co-Educational
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
48
Telephone:
Address:

86 St John's Street, Woolston, Christchurch

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Tamariki School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

 Background

This Profile Report was written within seventeen months of the Education Review Office and Tamariki 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

Tamariki is a Years 1 to 8 special character school. The school’s approach to its curriculum is through its special character and each child’s individual context. Its mission statement is for children to be open to a full life, to like themselves and to like learning. A new principal was appointed and took up the position in 2021.

Tamariki School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are to develop and implement:

  • sustainable learning systems using digital technologies to support ongoing learning opportunities for Years 7 and 8 students.
  • sustainable systems for reporting to parents which demonstrates an understanding of each child and shows their level of engagement with the entire curriculum.
  • effective, responsive and consistent mechanisms for transitions into, within and through their time at the school.

You can access a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan at the Tamariki School office.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate assessment and reporting for learning.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

  • full coverage of the New Zealand Curriculum needs to be more clearly evident and documented.
  • teachers are undertaking externally provided professional learning and development in assessment for learning in literacy and mathematics.
  • the school needs a sustainable system to report students’ achievement and progress to parents and whānau, across the Tamariki school curriculum.

The school expects to see:

  • the development of clear expectations for student progressions across the breadth of the school curriculum that align well with the New Zealand Curriculum.
  • a comprehensive picture of student learning across the curriculum based on good quality assessment which is drawn from a range of evidence to enable evaluation of the progress and achievement of students.
  • consistent use of good quality assessment tools and processes that provide useful and accurate information to inform teaching, learning and reporting to parents and caregivers.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support the school in its goal to evaluate assessment and reporting for learning.

  • Respectful and positive relationships which increase students’ sense of belonging were observed between students and between teachers and students.
  • Students have many opportunities to direct and manage their own curriculum and learning including through the Key Competencies within the New Zealand Curriculum. This contributes to learner agency and students’ empowerment.
  • Students and staff follow well-established and known protocols for discussing matters that arise between students or matters of importance for the whole school, thus providing opportunities for their social development.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school must prioritise the implementation of the school’s recently developed improvement plan by:

  • Building the capacity and capability of teachers through planned and well-implemented professional development and learning to understand and use effective assessment tools to improve outcomes for students.
  • Significantly improving the opportunities for all children to engage with the breadth and depth of the New Zealand Curriculum.
  • Extending the school’s reporting of students’ progress and achievement to parents and caregivers to meet legislative requirements.

ERO has concerns about

  • The school’s ability to collaboratively implement, monitor, embed and sustain the changes outlined in the school’s improvement plan and this report, in a timely manner for the benefit current students.

Recommendation

  • That the school receives and fully engages with support and guidance, with close monitoring, to effectively improve outcomes for students.
  • 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.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

13 December 2023

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

Tamariki School

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2022 to 2025

As of September 2022, the Tamariki School Board 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

Actions for Compliance

ERO has identified the following areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:

  • The board, leaders and teachers should ensure that all aspects of the New Zealand Curriculum are part of the Tamariki School Curriculum and regularly reviewed.

[Section 127(1 and 2) Education and Training Act 2020]

  • The board must ensure that the school’s principal and staff monitor and evaluate the performance of students in relation to curriculum requirements and that this information is appropriately communicated to their parents.

[Section 165 Education and Training Act 2020]

  • The board should ensure its governance framework contains current policies and procedures that meet regulations, are regularly reviewed and are fit for purpose. The board must maintain an on-going programme of self-review in relation to policies, procedures, plans and processes.

[Section 125(2) Education and Training Act 2020]

  • Systems for the management and recording/administering of medication have recently been improved. The board should continue to monitor the use and analysis of these.

[Management and recording of medication Good practice]

  • Students should practice what to do in the event of an earthquake if they are at school. All records of emergency practices should be accessible. The school’s preparation and recording systems for traumatic incidents, evacuations and lockdowns should improve and records of these should be readily accessible.

[National Civil Defence Emergency Plan Order 2015; Good practice]

The board has not yet fully addressed the areas of non-compliance identified.

Further Information

For further information please contact the Tamariki School Board.

The next School Board assurance that it is meeting regulatory and legislative requirements will be reported, along with the Te Ara Huarau | School Evaluation Report, within three years.

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

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

13 December 2023

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

Tamariki School - 18/01/2018

School Context

Tamariki School provides a unique learning environment for 59 children from Years 1 to 8 in Christchurch city.

The school's special character is based on giving students the freedom to choose when, how and what they will learn. There is a strong emphasis placed on the social and emotional wellbeing of the students.

The school community aims "to equip each child, according to the child’s nature and talents, to lead a personally satisfying life, and to be an effective and contributing member of a democratic society".

The school's valued outcomes are:

  • emotional and social growth
  • close relationships
  • participation in rule-making and group meetings
  • child-control over learning
  • self-reflection and goal setting
  • learning through play
  • child-control over environment & resources
  • involvement of whanau.

The school's goals are to:

  • develop and maintain a culture of self review and documentation
  • support strong community relationships and connections
  • support all children to become, according to their nature and talents, emotionally, socially, and academically able and engaged lifelong learners.

Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board, school wide information about outcomes for children in the following areas:

  • achievement in reading, writing and mathematics
  • outcomes for students with additional learning needs, including very able students.

At the time of the 2015 ERO review there was a limited statutory manager (LSM) in place with responsibility for curriculum and achievement. The LSM completed her work in 2015 and the board was returned to full governance. In the past two years teachers have become much more involved with local schools. This has led to opportunities for professional learning and development (PLD) with their peers.

The school is a member of the Tamai Kahui Ako|Community of Learning (CoL).

Evaluation Findings

1 Equity and excellence – valued outcomes for students

1.1 How well is the school achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all its students?

The school's strong focus on the learning needs of each child provides equitable opportunities for each child to reach their personal best.

Most students are working at their expected curriculum levels by the end of Year 8.

1.2 How effectively does this school respond to those Māori and other students whose learning and achievement need acceleration?

The school is very effective in responding to those Māori and other students whose learning and achievement needs acceleration.

Each child receives individual and small group support from teachers. All teachers are very aware of children's strengths, interests and needs.

2 School conditions for equity and excellence

2.1 What school processes and practices are effective in enabling achievement of equity and excellence?

Leaders and teachers continue to build their capability and capacity to respond to the students’ learning needs and interests. The positive impact of their recent PLD is evident, particularly in writing and the use of effective teaching strategies. Teachers have a collaborative approach to their work. The professional relationships teachers and leaders have formed with others in local schools is supporting improved teaching and learning.

Community collaborations enrich opportunities for students to become confident, connected, actively involved, lifelong learners. Parents are present and actively engaged in the learning of their own and other children. Parents and the community have many opportunities to contribute to school developments. The Tamariki Society, board of trustees, and school leaders are all involved in community consultation.

Students learn in a caring, collaborative and inclusive environment. The flexible and responsive curriculum is well aligned to the school's valued outcomes. There is a strong focus on the safety and wellbeing of students. The vision is evident in the way learning is student led. Improvements in assessment practices mean that students' social, emotional and academic progress is carefully tracked throughout their time at the school.

2.2 What further developments are needed in school processes and practices for achievement of equity and excellence?

Some aspects of evaluation and curriculum need to be improved.

Trustees and leaders need to build on recent developments to continue to improve their evaluative practices. A recent review of the health curriculum provides a good model for future evaluation. A new appraisal system provides a structured approach to teaching as inquiry. When trustees have completed their current work on updating policies, they will be able to begin a systematic review of their responsibilities.

Leaders and teachers need to improve the bicultural perspectives and practices. Maori language and culture are not sufficiently evident in the school’s programmes and practices. Teachers and leaders know they have further work to do in order to ensure that the school is effectively promoting te reo and tikanga Māori. This should support students to understand and participate in their bicultural heritage.

Teachers need to continue their progress in developing teaching and assessment practices. The effective strategies being used in writing could be extended to other curriculum areas. There are some useful assessment tools in place. However further work needs to be done to ensure that teachers’ judgements about student achievement are robust and based on an appropriate range of assessments.

3 Board assurance on legal requirements

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.

4 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

For sustained improvement and future learner success, the school can draw on existing strengths in:

  • providing equitable and effective learning opportunities for all students to reach their personal best
  • involvement of parents as partners in learning and the whole school community in the life of the school
  • the flexible and responsive approach to the curriculum that meets the needs, interests and abilities of all children.

Next steps

For sustained improvement and future learner success, development priorities are in improving:

  • evaluative practices so that trustees, leaders and teachers know what practices and strategies are most effective in improving outcomes for children
  • bicultural practices so that all students can understand and participate in their bicultural heritage
  • teaching and assessment practices to ensure that all students make sufficient progress to leave the school having attained the school’s valued outcomes.

ERO’s next external evaluation process and timing

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

Dr Lesley Patterson

Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern

Te Waipounamu - Southern Region

18 January 2018

About the school

LocationChristchurch city
Ministry of Education profile number4143
School typeFull primary (Years 1 to 8)
School roll59
Gender compositionGirls 35; Boys 24
Ethnic composition

Māori 11

Pākehā 45

Asian 3

Provision of Māori medium educationNo
Review team on siteNovember 2017
Date of this report18 January 2018
Most recent ERO report(s)

 

Arotake Paetawhiti Review June 2015

Education Review January 2013

Education Review November 2009

Tamariki School - 09/06/2015

Findings

School trustees and staff have achieved a considerable amount since ERO’s previous review. The school’s curriculum now clearly outlines expectations for learning and aligns the school’s special character with the New Zealand Curriculum.

Students are articulate, confident, self-managing learners who are supported by dedicated staff. However, there is still work to be done before parents and trustees can be assured their aspiration that students leave the school as effective and contributing members of society is realised.

ERO intends to carry out another review over the course of one-to-two years.

1 Background and Context

What is the background and context for this school’s review?

Tamariki School opened as a private school in 1967. It became a state integrated school in 1990.

The school has a strong emphasis on developing a child's emotional strength, and on children learning through play. The school community aims to equip each child, according to the child’s nature and talents, to lead a personally satisfying life, and to be an effective and contributing member of a democratic society.

The 2013 ERO report identified several areas for review and development. These included:

  • students' engagement, progress and achievement
  • developing, documenting and implementing a school curriculum that promotes high-quality teaching and learning
  • aspects of governance and management, including self review, financial management and improving the focus on student progress and achievement.

Since ERO’s review, the Ministry of Education has worked with the school through the support of two Limited Statutory Managers (LSMs) and others, to improve its overall performance and build its self-review capability.

An LSM with responsibility for student achievement and curriculum, board systems and processes, finance and employment was appointed in September 2013.

After the conclusion of the work of this LSM, in August 2014 a second LSM was appointed with specific responsibility for curriculum and student achievement. This LSM is still in place.

2 Review and Development

How effectively is the school addressing its priorities for review and development?

Priorities identified for review and development

The 2013 report identified a need for leaders to:

  • develop curriculum guidelines that show the alignment of the school’s special character with the New Zealand Curriculum and detail the expectations for curriculum coverage and assessment
  • develop a process for reviewing and monitoring student’s use of time
  • identify effective ways of tracking student progress and achievement over time, and providing this information to students
  • further support student independence in their learning by assisting them to set goals and monitor their own performance.

Progress

Management, staff and the school community have worked together, with the support of the current LSM to develop comprehensive curriculum guidelines. These guidelines clearly show the links between the New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) and the school’s special character. They cover all aspects of the curriculum, including key competencies, values, and statements for each learning area.

The guidelines also detail Tamariki’s unique approach to planning and delivering the curriculum through student-led inquiry. They identify the role of the learner and the teacher in this process.

Teachers engage with students in a variety of ways. They use individual education programmes for older students, and individual learning plans where a specific need is identified for a particular student. Optional classes are offered in a wide range of curriculum areas. There are formal classes for numeracy and literacy. Students engage in a wide range of child-led and teacher-initiated activities.

The current review of the school day should contribute to a greater shared understanding of how students spend their day, and of how teachers can continue to support them in their learning.

Students are involved in setting goals, and in recording their achievements. Students who spoke with the ERO review team were very aware of their strengths and what they needed to work on.

Teachers continue to use a learning-management system to document stories about students’ learning. They have worked with the product developers to improve the breadth and depth of the information it contains. Students and parents have ready access to this information, which covers all aspects of the curriculum, and special character attributes. Some students document their own learning stories through videos, photos and the written word.

Teachers use a variety of assessments, especially in reading and numeracy. They have identified a concern with the standard of writing, and are putting plans in place to address this.

Achievement for most students in reading, writing and numeracy is below national expectations. Although the numbers at each year level are small and the focus is on the achievements of students in the final years, the overall picture is of concern.

There is now a greater focus on student engagement. Teachers have documented Tamariki School's indicators of student engagement, and identified strategies for working with students when they are disengaged. School attendance is monitored and reported to the board.

Key next steps

Trustees and teachers have identified, and ERO agrees, that the curriculum guidelines will need to be regularly revisited and updated to reflect current practice.

Teachers are planning to become more involved with teachers at local schools and other schools with a similar special character. This is likely to support teachers in reflecting on and developing their roles as learning facilitators. It should also assist them to develop their assessment practices so that they and parents can have increasing confidence in the judgements they make about student achievement.

Teachers have good information about each student gathered from a range of sources. It is now time to use that data better to provide good information to the board about how groups of students are progressing. The school’s targets are set for older students. Teachers know that in order to meet their targets at the senior end of the school, they need to track and monitor students better from an early age.

The board receives achievement reports at the start and end of the year. Trustees need to better have information to show how teachers are adding value to the learning of students as they move through the year levels. This will involve expanding existing reports to show where groups of students were achieving at the beginning of a year, how they were progressing by the middle of the year, and what they have achieved by the end of the year.

3 Sustainable performance and self review

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

The school is not yet well placed to sustain and continue to improve and review its performance.

The board has received considerable support to improve its governance. Good progress has been made with its financial and policy responsibilities. Trustees told ERO that they have a much clearer idea of the roles of school managers, governors and proprietors. They stated that workloads are now more evenly and appropriately distributed.

There is now better alignment from strategic planning to annual planning and principal appraisal.

The board and teachers are beginning to establish a culture of self review. They have developed a plan for the review of policies, and are involved in emergent review.

Recent reviews of the learning management system and the school day show good development in the understanding of self review. However, there is more work to be done to embed a process that is understood and followed. Self review needs to focus on important aspects of the school in a way that answers high-quality evaluative questions and provides recommendations to the board to make improvements to the learning and achievement of the students.

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.

Completion of the checklists raised a number of discussion points for the board. ERO discussed these issues with the board and clarified requirements.

The school is now meeting the requirement to report to the Secretary for Education on the number and proportion of students at, above, below or well below the National Standards.

However, the board does not receive any information about the achievement of students from Years 1 to 4. The information it receives about students from Years 5 to 8 is based on curriculum levels and does not indicate whether students are at, above, below or well below the National Standards.

Most parents do not receive a report on their child’s progress and achievement in relation to the National Standards. ERO was told that most parents, when asked, indicated that they did not wish to receive this information. Parents who request the information do receive it. All parents have access to achievement information in plain language through online access to their child’s learning stories.

The board is having ongoing discussions with the Ministry of Education about reporting requirements.

4 Recommendations

Recommendations, including any to other agencies for ongoing or additional support.

The current LSM has recently begun to support the school in improving student achievement. It will be some time before the results of her work and the work of the school community can be fully evaluated.

ERO recommends that the Secretary for Education consider continuing the intervention under Part 7A of the Education Act 1989 in order to bring about the following improvements:

  • student achievement
  • self review.

Conclusion

School trustees and staff have achieved a considerable amount since ERO’s previous review. The school’s curriculum now clearly outlines expectations for learning and aligns the school’s special character with the New Zealand Curriculum.

Students are articulate, confident, self-managing learners who are supported by dedicated staff. However, there is still work to be done before parents and trustees can be assured their aspiration that students leave the school as effective and contributing members of society is realised.

ERO intends to carry out another review over the course of one-to-two years.

Graham Randell,

Deputy Chief Review Officer Southern,

9 June 2015

About the School

LocationWoolston, Christchurch 
Ministry of Education profile number4143 
School typeFull Primary (Years 1 to 8) 
School roll47 
Gender compositionBoys 27; Girls 20 
Ethnic composition

Māori

NZ European/Pākehā

Pacific

3

42

2

Review team on siteMarch 2015 
Date of this report9 June 2015 
Most recent ERO reports

Education Review

Education Review

Education Review

January 2013

November 2009

November 2008