Albury School

What ERO wrote in its latest report

This is ERO’s report of 18 September 2024 — “School Evaluation Report” — section by section, under ERO’s own headings, in ERO’s own order. Nothing is summarised, shortened or reordered.

School Evaluation Report

Tēnā koutou e mau manawa rahi ki te kaupapa e aro ake nei, ko te tamaiti te pūtake o te kaupapa. Mā wai rā e kawe, mā tātau katoa.

We acknowledge the collective effort, responsibility, and commitment by all to ensure that the child remains at the heart of the matter.

Context

Albury School is a Year 1 to 6 rural school situated inland from Timaru and is part of the Mackenzie cluster of schools. The school aims to provide a caring and nurturing environment for learning and growing with a strong emphasis on family values. A new acting principal has recently been appointed.

There are three parts to this report.

Part A: A summary of the findings from the most recent Education Review Office (ERO) report and/or subsequent evaluation.

Part B: An evaluative summary of learner success and school conditions to inform the school board’s future strategic direction, including any education in Rumaki /bilingual settings.

Part C: The improvement actions prioritised for the school’s next evaluation cycle.

Part A: Previous Improvement Goals

Since the previous ERO report in 2022, the school evaluated the extent to which the local curriculum and teacher practice led to equitable and excellent achievement outcomes for all students.

Expected Improvements and Findings

The school expected to see:

Excellent student achievement outcomes in literacy in literacy and across the curriculum.

Most students make good progress and achieve at the expected level in literacy.

Strategic planning priorities have been strengthened to be closely aligned to improving outcomes for learners.

A responsive accessible local curriculum that provides students with a sense of identity linked to the local area and thematic units of work that cover achievement objectives from different curriculum areas.

Learners have a local curriculum that through a thematic approach increasingly reflects their interests, the school community and environment.

The board successfully monitors progress towards annual and strategic priorities that improve outcomes for learners.

The greatest shift that has occurred in response to the school’s action is that teachers are now consistently implementing the expected curriculum framework for learning across the school.

Part B: Current State

The following findings are to inform the school’s future priorities for improvement.

Learner Success and Wellbeing

Most students are engaged, make good progress and achieve well in literacy and mathematics.

p ost students achieve at or above the expected curriculum level in reading, writing and mathematics.

Almost all students attend regularly; the school meets the Ministry of Education target.

Teachers prioritise student well-being and facilitate a supportive environment that enhances overall learning outcomes.

Conditions to support learner success

Strategic leadership supports ongoing improvement to systems, processes and teaching practice.

The board and school leaders have actively consulted the school community, including students, to ensure the strategic plan reflects the needs and priorities of the community and their learners.

A culture of strong relationships between teachers, parents and students positively reinforces the school’s values and priorities and enhance learners’ wellbeing and sense of belonging.

Students’ achievement is closely monitored and those with identified needs have these met through specific programmes and support strategies.

Students have rich opportunities to learn through consistent and intentional teaching practice.

Teachers collaborate well to reflect on and plan for the various abilities, interests and year levels to meet students’ learning needs.

A range of standardised assessment tools is used effectively to identify students at risk of not achieving at the expected curriculum level; supporting students to better understand what and why they are learning is a next step.

The principal has identified the need to extend the local curriculum and teacher practice to increase integration of te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori.

Well-aligned systems across key conditions results in improved outcomes for learners.

The board actively consults with the community and uses their views to prioritise areas for ongoing improvements.

The board scrutinises student achievement, engagement, and wellbeing information to inform effective decision making.

Close partnerships with local schools, agencies, parents and whānau meaningfully inform support teaching and learning.

Part C: Where to next?

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

further strengthen student progress and achievement in literacy and mathematics for all for targeted learners

increase students understanding of what and why they are learning to extend engagement in learning

extend the local curriculum and teacher practice to authentically integrate te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori .

The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.

Every six months:

review current teaching practice to identify what is working well and where to next

undertake and analyse a survey of what students understanding of what and why they are learning to strengthen students’ leadership of their learning

monitor the explicit use of te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori into teaching and learning to identify progress and inform areas for improvement

Annually:

analyse and report to the board and community schoolwide information on progress and learning of students who have not reached expectations

evaluate the impact of strategies used to accelerate progress, including analysis of student voice, to inform responsive teaching practice

survey students and whānau to gather feedback on the effectiveness of teaching and learning and identify areas for improvement

engage with whānau , families and mana whenua to further incorporate te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori into the local curriculum.

Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:

more students achieving at the expected curriculum level for literacy and mathematics

high levels of regular attendance is sustained

students know and understand what they are learning and why

a rich local curriculum that reflects The New Zealand Curriculum and incorporates te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori .

ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation Report and is due within three years.

Me mahi tahi tonu tātau, kia whai oranga a tātau tamariki Let’s continue to work together for the greater good of all children

Shelley Booysen Director of Schools

18 September 2024

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

Read this report on ero.govt.nz →