113 Kiripaka Road, Tikipunga, Whangarei
View on mapNot well placed | Requires further development | Well placed | Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Tikipunga Educare provides all day early childhood education and care for a maximum of 50 tamariki, including 16 up to the age of two years. Tamariki enrolled are mainly Māori with small numbers of Pākehā and Tuvaluan. They learn and play in three age-related rooms and share the outdoor area. Many families have generational relationships with the centre.
Whanaungatanga forms the valued basis of the centre's philosophy and guides centre operations. The majority of teaching staff are qualified teachers. The centre prepares and provides meals for the tamariki.
Tikipunga Educare was the first of a group of 11 centres owned by the directors of Educare Early Learning Centres. The shared vision across this group is "Learn, Laugh, Play". The group's senior leadership team provides administrative and professional support. They also monitor and evaluate the centre's progress towards achieving the centre-specific strategic goals aligned to the organisation's goals. Educare's focus over the past three years has prioritised professional learning and development (PLD) in leadership and te ao Māori as underpinning practices. More recently, PLD has included a focus on other aspects of the curriculum, and aspects of performance management.
The centre manager at Tikipunga Educare continues to focus on building a strongly committed teaching team amidst staff changes. Kaiako have made good progress particularly around improving assessment and planning, and building internal evaluation capability as recommended in ERO's 2014 report.
This review was part of a cluster of six reviews in the Educare Early Learning Centres organisation.
Tamariki at Tikipunga Educare are treasured and nurtured by staff. Tamariki are confident and appear to have a clear sense of belonging. The older children flourish in the centre where the teaching team has prioritised working with Māori learners and te ao Māori. All tamariki are encouraged and supported to lead their learning in their own way. Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, guides the centre's curriculum and provides primarily play-based experiences. Tamariki with additional learning needs are very well supported to develop at their own pace and are challenged to extend their capabilities.
Infants and toddlers experience unhurried and calm caregiving practices where kaiako respond to their non-verbal cues and gestures. Their environment is attractive and provides quiet spaces and interesting spaces to explore. This group of tamariki has opportunities to engage with their peers and older tamariki.
Kaiako support tamariki to increasingly make their own choices. Communication and laughter amongst tamariki and kaiako contribute to an environment of enjoyment. Teachers of the younger children recognise that they need to adapt their teaching to better reflect te ao Māori that is very evident in the learning space for older tamariki.
Children have many opportunities to explore their growing interests, dispositions and capabilities. They are learning to develop their social competencies through establishing and maintaining friendships. Children are supported to be empowered in their learning and development. Teachers could now include children's thinking and opinions in the centre's internal evaluation.
Teachers have improved their assessment and planning processes, and now plan based on the interests of each child. They continue to improve the way in which they gather, document and respond to parent and family/whānau aspirations.
Evaluations of the educational programmes sometimes show learning outcomes for tamariki. The centre manager agrees that further work is needed to develop consistency in this good practice across the teaching team. The manager is also keen to evaluate the extent to which science and mathematics enable tamariki to make sense of the natural world, and to develop early numeracy skills and understandings.
The environment provides quiet play spaces, both indoors and out. The teachers have thoughtfully created a natural environment using planter boxes, potted plants, rocks and a water feature.
Kaiako encourage parents' involvement in the centre. They provide a welcoming environment and invite families/whanau to share aspirations, children's whakapapa, and stories from their home experiences. Families are kept well informed about their child's learning and involvement in the programme through well written learning stories. The digital portal enables families to comment on, and contribute to, these learning stories.
Kaiako work collaboratively and demonstrate a clear sense of team. They model respectful interactions. Kaiako take responsibility for their own learning, and are building their understanding of te ao Māori. They are well supported, and held accountable, through the organisation's appraisal system. Kaiako are becoming more confident in collating quality evidence to meet the new requirements of the Education Council. Well considered internal PLD is helping to promote consistency in teachers' understanding of appraisal expectations for ongoing improvement.
The centre is a member of the Ngā Kura mō te ako o Whangarei (Raki Whangarei) Community of Learning|Kāhui Ako Group 3. Educare Early Learning Services is very willing to be involved with the kāhui ako and to support the achievement challenges when they are established. Staff will participate in PLD that is funded through the kāhui ako.
Key next steps for ongoing improvement include:
Educare Learning Centres managers are focused on improvement. They have identified areas they intend to strengthen across all of their centres. These areas include:
Before the review, the staff and management of Tikipunga Educare 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.
Tikipunga Educare should ensure that earthquake drills are carried out with tamariki on at least a three-monthly basis.
[Early Childhood Health and Saftey Regulations 2008, HS8]
The next ERO review of Tikipunga Educare will be in three years.
Julie Foley
Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern (Acting)
Te Tai Raki - Northern Region
7 May 2018
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 | Tikipunga, Whangarei | ||
| Ministry of Education profile number | 10178 | ||
| Licence type | Education & Care Service | ||
| Licensed under | Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 | ||
| Number licensed for | 50 children, including up to 16 aged under 2 | ||
| Service roll | 41 | ||
| Gender composition | Boys 22 Girls 19 | ||
| Ethnic composition | Māori Pākehā Pasifika | 33 4 4 | |
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80%+ Based on funding rates | 80% + | ||
| Reported ratios of staff to children | Under 2 | 1:4 | Better than minimum requirements |
| Over 2 | 1:8 | Better than minimum requirements | |
| Review team on site | February 2018 | ||
| Date of this report | 7 May 2018 | ||
Most recent ERO report(s)
| Education Review | December 2014 | |
| Education Review | May 2011 | ||
| Education Review | July 2007 | ||
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:
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.
|
Not well placed |
Requires further development |
Well placed |
Very well placed |
ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.
Tikipunga Educare, located in Tikipunga, Whangarei, offers all day early childhood education and care in a renovated building. The centre is licensed for a maximum of 50 children, including 16 up to the age of two years. Children are accommodated in three age-related rooms and share the hard surfaces in the outdoor area, which is made attractive by extensive planting. The centre prepares and provides nutritious meals for the children.
The service’s philosophy reflects the aims of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, and encompasses the dual heritage of Aotearoa New Zealand.
Tikipunga Educare is part of a group of ten centres owned by the directors of Educare Early Learning Centres and is supported by the organisation’s general manager. The umbrella organisation provides administrative and professional support.
The centre manager at Tikipunga Educare oversees the day to day management of the centre. There have been many changes to the staff since the 2011 ERO review and the centre manager has focused on creating a new, strongly committed team.
The centre management has responded positively to recommendations made in the 2011 ERO report and is continuing to make appropriate changes to the service provided.
Children and the families are warmly welcomed to the centre. Children settle quickly to chosen activities and are well supported by teachers to extend and challenge their learning. Parents report they appreciate the openness of the teachers and the friendly atmosphere of the centre. Some families have a longstanding relationship with the centre that extends over generations.
Parents particularly note that teachers know their children well. Respectful and trusting relationships between adults and children are evident. Teachers have good relationships with parents and communicate regularly about their child’s participation in the programme. Parents and whānau are regularly invited to celebrate and participate in special events held at the centre.
Affectionate and caring relationships between adults and babies and toddlers are evident in the under two area. The service’s routines encourage children's independence. Teachers promote children’s language development and offer children support with their chosen activity.
The centre follows inclusive practices. The owners and centre manager ensure that all enrolled children can participate in early childhood experiences. They work closely with external agencies to provide help for children requiring extra specialist support. The centre manager has identified that the next step is to provide a more culturally responsive programme for Pacific children, in line with the Ministry of Education’s Pasifika Education Plan 2013 – 2017.
The Educare organisation promotes the bi-cultural heritage of Aotearoa/New Zealand in all their centres. Tikipunga Educare has employed a teacher to support staff and children in developing their confidence in further implementing aspects of tikanga Māori in the programme. The centre environment reflects bicultural aspects. To promote further developments, the centre manager could now evaluate the effectiveness of approaches used to increase success for Māori children as Māori.
Teachers work closely together and recognise and value each other’s teaching strengths. They provide a good quality teaching and learning programme. Children have many opportunities to explore and problem-solve with the wide variety of natural resources offered. Teachers are well placed to reflect on how to further promote children’s learning.
Teachers participate in appropriate professional learning and are currently involved in increasing their understanding of mathematics within the learning programme. They have also looked at ways to gather parent and whānau aspirations for their children. Teachers are beginning to use these aspirations while planning further learning for the children.
Teachers are considering ways to make better use of information gathered about the children's learning. They are beginning to strengthen their planning so that it meets individual children's interests and dispositions for learning.
The centre is well managed and is strongly supported by the umbrella organisation. Its direction statement includes the centre philosophy and the manager’s vision. The philosophy and vision statements are reviewed regularly for their effectiveness in relation to outcomes for children. The value of these documents would be increased if key concepts were further defined to help develop shared understandings amongst staff. The defined concepts could then form part of the centre’s performance management processes.
Self review is an area that the centre is developing. Teachers are participating in organisation-wide and centre-wide self review. As a result of the externally supported professional learning, teachers have begun to make improvements to the programme.
ERO and the owners and centre manager agree that key next steps for improvement include:
Before the review, the staff and management of Tikipunga Educare 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 Tikipunga Educare will be in three years.
Dale Bailey
National Manager Review Services
Northern Region
3 December 2014
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 |
Tikipunga, Whangarei |
||
|
Ministry of Education profile number |
10178 |
||
|
Licence type |
Education & Care Service |
||
|
Licensed under |
Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 |
||
|
Number licensed for |
50 children, including up to 16 aged under 2 |
||
|
Service roll |
58 |
||
|
Gender composition |
Boys 34 Girls 24 |
||
|
Ethnic composition |
Māori NZ European/Pākehā Cook Island Māori South African other |
35 15 2 1 5 |
|
|
Percentage of qualified teachers 0-49% 50-79% 80% Based on funding rates |
80% |
||
|
Reported ratios of staff to children |
Under 2 |
1:4 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
Over 2 |
1:8 |
Better than minimum requirements |
|
|
Review team on site |
October 2014 |
||
|
Date of this report |
3 December 2014 |
||
|
Most recent ERO report(s) |
Education Review |
May 2011 |
|
|
Education Review |
July 2007 |
||
|
Education Review |
June 2004 |
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:
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.