Tirimoana School

Education institution number:
1536
School type:
Contributing
School gender:
Co-Educational
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
606
Telephone:
Address:

Kokiri Street, Te Atatu South, Auckland

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Tirimoana School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within six months of the Education Review Office and Tirimoana 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 

Tirimoana School is a primary school in Te Atatū South, Auckland, catering for years 1 to 6 learners from a diverse and growing community. The school’s CARE values (Compassion, Act responsibly, Respect and Effort) are promoted throughout the school and demonstrated by leaders, teachers and learners.

The school is a member of Kokiri Tahi, the Te Atatū Kāhui Ako | Community of Learning.

Tirimoana School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are to:

  • strengthen planning and further implementation reflecting changes identified in the New Zealand Curriculum refresh

  • to further develop learner outcomes for equitable and excellent outcomes

  • shift from a focus on achievement benchmarks to progress overtime, with assessment practices and reporting to parents and whanau reflecting this

  • further enhance collaborative leadership capabilities and systems to sustain continual improvement in learner attendance, engagement and outcomes.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Tirimoana School’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the impact of leading, learning and change initiatives have on the school’s aim to achieve consistently high and equitable outcomes for all learners.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

  • close alignment to the school’s strategic plans

  • changes reflecting the New Zealand Curriculum refresh as it is progressively released to schools by the Ministry of Education, with a specific focus on the Mathematics and English curricula

  • to build on strong and effective leadership capabilities that sustain high quality collaborative and collective efficacy for change

  • attendance is a national priority and the school’s own data reveals that improvement in attendance is required following the Covid disruptions.

The school expects to see:

  • a shared understanding of the learning progressions informing assessment, planning and evaluation for learner outcomes

  • a localised curriculum that reflects community aspirations for excellence and equity and that reflects the changes from the New Zealand Curriculum refresh implemented into coherent systems and practice

  • all learners connected to an established school culture that reflects the school’s PB4L values, believing in their potential for success and progress

  • teachers’ adaptive expertise addressing individual strengths and next steps of all learners including those with additional needs

  • all learners attending school regularly, with a goal for all learners to attend at least 90% of the time over the school year, with a minimum of unjustified absences.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate the impact of leading, learning and change initiatives have on the school’s aim to achieve consistently high and equitable outcomes for all learners:

  • high quality collaborative leadership at senior and middle levels with embedded consistent focus on continual improvement in equitable outcomes for all learners

  • coherent and consistent systems that enable teachers and learners to focus on progress and achievement

  • learners experience a rich, broad local curriculum that fosters a collective belief that all can succeed with pride

  • Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) is embedded throughout the school and contributes significantly to coherent, equitable outcomes for all learners.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

  • further refining the Tirimoana School curriculum so it embraces the New Zealand Curriculum refresh and remains rich, broad and authentic

  • building collective understanding and consistent use of learning progressions for assessment, planning, evaluating and reporting to parents and whanau on learner progress, reflecting a shift away from achievement benchmarks

  • sustaining and further refining practices that contribute to high quality equitable outcomes for all learners, with a particular focus on Māori, Pacific and diverse learners

  • improving attendance to meet the goal of over 90% regular attendance for all learners so that they can maximise the learning opportunities that the school provides, in partnership with parents and whanau

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.

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

11 January 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

Tirimoana School

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements Report 2022 to 2025

As of September 2022, the Tirimoana 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

Further Information

For further information please contact Tirimoana School Board.

The next 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.

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

11 January 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

Tirimoana School

Provision for International Students Report

Background

The Education Review Office reviews schools that are signatories to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020.

Findings

The school is a signatory to the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021 established under section 534 of the Education and Training Act 2020.  The school has attested that it complies with all aspects of the Code.  At the time of this review there were no international students attending the school.

International students benefit from the positive and inclusive relationships evident throughout the school. They participate fully in all areas of learning and socialisation, and they make good progress whilst at this school.  

ERO’s investigations confirmed that the school’s internal evaluation process for international students continues to be thorough.

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

11 January 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

Tirimoana School - 31/08/2016

1 Context

Tirimoana School in Te Atatu is a primary school for children, Years 1 to 6. The school roll reflects its increasingly ethnically diverse community. The percentage of Pacific children has doubled in recent years. The recently elected board includes a good balance of new and experienced trustees.

The school is a member of Kokiri Tahi, the Te Atatu Community of Learning. This means that the school is working with eight other local primary, intermediate and secondary schools. The aim is to raise achievement across the community and improve children's and their families' transitions through the schools. The Tirimoana School principal has been appointed as the lead principal of the community, and five Tirimoana staff have been given community of learning roles.

2 Equity and excellence

The vision and valued outcomes defined by the school for all children are documented in the school's charter. Supporting children to become "confident, informed, reflective learners who embrace diversity and sustainability in order to fulfil their potential as members of society" is the school's mission. The key values of CARE ('Compassion, Act responsibly, Respect, Effort') are modelled and promoted by teachers and leaders. The long-established motto 'Discover Your Talents' continues to guide the curriculum and the opportunities offered for children to follow their interests.

The school’s achievement information shows that over the past four years most children achieve well in relation to the National Standards. Māori children's achievement has risen over that time in all standards and particularly in mathematics and writing. However, while achieving well, Māori achievement in mathematics and reading is lower than that of other children in the school. There is a disparity in Pacific student achievement across the national standards. Pacific children's achievement has lifted well in mathematics but continues to be variable in writing and reading. The school's data indicate that boys' achievement in writing and reading is lower than girls' achievement.

Kokiri Tahi has set targets to raise the achievement in writing of identified groups of Māori and Pacific students and boys across the schools in the community of learning.

Since the last ERO evaluation the school has continued to use evaluation well to ensure and develop the effectiveness of practices to support children's successful learning. Initiatives include:

  • implementing 'Positive Behaviour For Learning' to support children's engagement in learning
  • using the Progress and Consistency Tool (PaCT), professional learning, and moderation to further develop the reliability of teachers' assessment judgements
  • introducing mathematics and literacy inquiry teams to track children's progress and mentor teachers to support this progress
  • introducing a reception class for new entrant children to grow their readiness for learning
  • professional learning focused on literacy and promoting the achievement of Māori and Pacific learners
  • using a mathematics support teacher (MST) over the past four years to promote accelerated learning.

3 Accelerating achievement

How effectively does this school respond to Māori children whose learning and achievement need acceleration?

The board, leaders and teachers have been committed to accelerating the progress of Māori children at risk of not achieving national standards. They have taken appropriate action and there is good evidence of Māori children's accelerated progress.

The school charter includes specific targets to accelerate the progress of Māori children who are achieving below the standards. The charter includes an action plan to guide leaders and teachers in their efforts to accelerate the progress of these children.

Teachers, leaders and trustees make very good use of a wide range of achievement information to support Māori children to be successful learners. Assessment data are well analysed to identify children at risk of not achieving and are used to plan tailored programmes specifically designed to accelerate children's individual progress.

Māori and other children at risk of not achieving have access to many additional programmes and strategies to support their learning. These include before and after school programmes designed to address identified priorities in literacy and mathematics. Māori children also have after school opportunities to further develop their "agency as Māori learners". All of these programmes are well attended and highly valued by children and their whānau.

How effectively does this school respond to other children whose learning and achievement need acceleration?

The school demonstrates a strong commitment and acts appropriately to accelerate the learning of other children who are yet to achieve national standards. There is good evidence of children's accelerated progress.

The strategies and processes used to accelerate the learning of Māori children are used successfully with Pacific and other children. These include:

  • the use of coherent and well linked plans to raise achievement and guide and coordinate leaders and teachers actions
  • school charter targets that are relevant and aimed at accelerating learning progress so that all children can enjoy similar levels of success
  • specific targets set to accelerate the learning of Pacific children who are achieving below the standards
  • good systems for tracking the progress of these children.

Children's learning interests, strengths and needs are known and keenly followed by teachers and staff throughout the school. Leaders and teachers are alert to changes in children's engagement, attitudes to learning and assessment data. Teachers share collective responsibility for promoting children's success and accelerating their learning. They share teaching strategies and resources to cater for the learning needs of individual children and accelerate their progress.

Senior leaders and leaders of inquiry teams have good processes for monitoring and promoting effective teaching and learning. Teachers are well supported to develop teaching practices that accelerate children's learning. Teachers take responsibility for children's progress and the progress of target groups in their class and this accountability is a key aspect of their performance appraisal.

4 School conditions

How effectively do the school’s curriculum and other organisational processes and practices develop and enact the school’s vision, values, goals and targets for equity and excellence?

Strong leadership and stewardship is guiding the school's curriculum and practices to support all learners to experience success. Evidence-based inquiry and evaluation guides school and teaching development and decision-making.

Senior leaders have high expectations of team leaders and teachers. These expectations are underpinned by a strong belief that children are all capable of experiencing and enjoying success. Senior leaders work collaboratively with teachers to ensure expectations and understandings are shared and shaping effective practices throughout the school. Leaders are highly reflective and adaptive. Professional capability is fostered well through the use external professional learning and internal expertise.

Children have opportunities to 'Discover their talents' through the broad curriculum programmes they are offered. These programmes include te reo Māori and other languages, music, environmental learning and kapa haka. Success in these areas is building children's confidence and supporting them to seek and experience success in literacy and mathematics.

The breadth of the curriculum is complemented by an appropriate emphasis on literacy and mathematics. Children whose home language is not English have access to additional programmes to help them gain fluency in oral and written English.

Curriculum programmes are responsive and show clear alignment to the principles and values of the New Zealand Curriculum. Children's languages, cultures and identities are acknowledged and valued. Leaders and teachers ensure that the curriculum is adapted to children's changing learning and social needs, and to the changing community aspirations for children's education. Children with special learning needs are well supported in the school's inclusive culture, and by leaders' and teachers' responsive and flexible approaches to their wellbeing and education.

Leaders and teachers are continuing to develop children's confidence, knowledge and capability to take ownership of their own learning. Children are encouraged to think and talk about their learning and achievement with their peers, parents, teachers and leaders. They have increasing opportunities to learn through inquiry, problem-solving and e-learning. Children also have many opportunities to take leadership roles in the school and in their class. This encourages them to take increasing responsibility for their own learning and progress.

Leaders and teachers establish good working relationships with families and whānau that are focused on fostering children's engagement and learning. Parents are well informed about their children's progress and achievement. They receive useful information and strategies to support children's learning at home.

Senior leaders are responding well to the growing Pacific community in the school. They are encouraging Pacific community connections and growing parents' confidence to participate and contribute to children's learning. Senior leaders are using good inquiry, evaluation and professional learning processes to build their understanding of Pacific children and their families.

Trustees have a strong interest in children's achievement and school curriculum developments. They demonstrate stewardship through their well-considered responses to achievement data and evaluation findings. For instance, the board funds key staff to take on roles that support children and their families, and to work alongside teachers to develop teaching capability. This is enabling these teachers to flexibily and quickly respond to children and their families and to emerging achievement data and inquiry findings.

5 Going forward

How well placed is the school to accelerate the achievement of all children who need it?

Leaders and teachers:

  • know the children whose learning and achievement need to be accelerated
  • respond effectively to the strengths, needs and interests of each child
  • regularly evaluate how well teaching is working for these children
  • act on what they know works well for each child
  • build teacher capability effectively to achieve equitable outcomes for all children
  • are well placed to achieve and sustain equitable and excellent outcomes for all children.

Tirimoana School is very well placed to sustain current effective practices and to refine and adapt these in response to children's learning needs and to the aspirations of families/whānau.

Senior leaders have identified relevant priorities for further development. These include:

  • developing an action plan specifically aimed at supporting Pacific children to achieve at similar levels to other children in the school
  • extending the team leader's role in accelerating children's progress
  • further integrating e-learning into the curriculum and developing teaching practices that promote this.

ERO is likely to carry out the next review in four-to-five years.

6 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 the following:

  • board administration

  • curriculum

  • management of health, safety and welfare

  • personnel management

  • 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

  • processes for appointing staff

  • stand down, suspensions, expulsions and exclusions

  • attendance

  • compliance with the provisions of the Vulnerable Children Act 2014

7 Recommendation

ERO recommends that the school's good practices of reflection, inquiry and evidence-based evaluation continue to guide future curriculum developments to support children to be "confident, connected, actively involved, lifelong learners". 

Graham Randell

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern

31 August 2016

About the school

Location

Te Atatu South, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

1536

School type

Contributing (Years 1 to 6)

School roll

698

Gender composition

Boys 53% Girls 47%

Ethnic composition

Māori

Pākehā

Chinese

Indian

Samoan

Tongan

Cook Island Māori

Middle Eastern/African

other Asian

other Pacific

12%

45%

13%

8%

8%

3%

2%

2%

6%

1%

Review team on site

June 2016

Date of this report

31 August 2016

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

Education Review

Education Review

November 2011

November 2008

November 2005