Waikite Valley School

School Context

Waikite Valley School is located south of Rotorua city catering for children from Years 1 to 8. The school roll is currently 74 students of whom 15 identify as Māori. The school’s vision aims to ‘develop the person for life, using high-quality learning opportunities pitched to individual needs’.

The school’s annual improvement plan includes school goals to:

• implement a responsive curriculum that allows student’s agency in their learning
• reflect aspirations of the school community in the school environment and curriculum.

Since the 2016 ERO report an experienced principal and chairperson continue to lead the school and a number of shared teaching positions have been established. The roll has increased, a flexible teaching space created, a specialised Years 7 and 8 programme developed and there is a school-wide focus on student wellbeing and mindfulness.

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

• reading, writing and mathematics.

Evaluation Findings

1 Equity and excellence – achievement of valued outcomes for students

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

The school is achieving excellent outcomes for almost all students and there are equitable outcomes for Māori students. The school’s data from 2018 indicates that almost all students are achieving within or above national expectations in reading, mathematics and writing. All Māori students are achieving at or above national expectations and there is no disparity between boys and girls in these curriculum areas. Student achievement information from 2016 to 2018 shows an increase for all groups of learners in reading, writing and mathematics.

1.2 How well is the school accelerating learning for those Māori and other students who need this?

The school is effectively accelerating learning for Māori and other students. Leaders and teachers monitor individual data to show rates of progress in reading, writing and mathematics. Data for targeted students indicates that most made accelerated progress over the last two years.

2 School conditions for equity and excellence – processes and practices

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

Teachers promote respectful interactions and encourage student engagement. Staff work well as a team and there are positive relationships between teachers and students. Ongoing reflections and professional discussions strengthen teaching practices. Teachers know their students and families well and have identified students needing extra support with their learning.

The school’s curriculum is highly responsive with an appropriate focus on reading, writing and mathematics. Classrooms are well resourced, stimulating and supportive of learning. High levels of student engagement are evident. Students who need additional learning support are well supported in an inclusive and nurturing environment. They make progress against their individual learning goals. Students relate well to meaningful contexts and are engaged in a variety of academic, cultural, and sporting experiences.

Leaders are knowledgeable and professional. They provide clear school direction and a shared vision. The collaborative, positive leadership team is focused on student and staff wellbeing. They build teacher capability with appropriately targeted professional learning and development. A positive school culture encourages teachers to be innovative and take risks.

Trustees provide effective governance. They make well informed resourcing decisions and there is a high trust model between them and the principal. Trustees understand and support the strategic direction of the school. They are focused on student learning, wellbeing, achievement and progress.

Parents, whānau and the community are fully involved in school activities and are valued partners in learning. They are well informed about their children’s progress and achievement and consulted about school operations and development. Student learning and achievement are enriched by the learning partnership between the school and parent.

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

ERO and the school agree that management and teachers give priority to:

• developing a more consistent approach to the use of school benchmarks to enable students, with teachers and whānau, to track their progress, celebrate achievement and identify next learning steps
• strengthening the integration of te reo Māori in classroom programmes through a sequential school-wide approach.

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 Children’s Act 2014.

4 ERO’s Overall Judgement

On the basis of the findings of this review, ERO’s overall evaluation judgement of Waikite Valley School’s performance in achieving valued outcomes for its students is: Well placed.

ERO’s Framework: Overall School Performance is available on ERO’s website.

5 Going forward

Key strengths of the school

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

• a responsive school curriculum that strongly reflects the school’s vision, aims and aspirations for achievement and success
• school leadership that provides professional expertise to strengthen teacher capability for ongoing improvement
• clear direction setting by the board of trustees, that establishes challenging targets for student achievement
• well-developed practices that engage the school in reciprocal relationships with parents and the wider community.

Next steps

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

• building students’ assessment and ‘learning to learn’ capabilities to foster independent learning
• strengthen the integration of te reo Māori in classroom programmes to promote students’ language, culture and identity.

Areas for improved compliance practice

To improve current practice, the board of trustees should:

• ensure that all teachers are appraised annually.

Phil Cowie

Director Review and Improvement Services

Central Region

7 June 2019

About the school