Kohukohu School

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 

Kohukoku School is located in northern Hokianga and provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. The school values are whakapono, rangatiratanga, whanaungatanga, kaitiakitanga, ako  and manaakitanga. 

An experienced principal joined the school in early 2024. Kohukohu School is a member of the Hokianga Kāhui Ako.

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 January 2023 ERO report, the school and ERO have been working to evaluate the impact of literacy initiatives on overall achievement and teaching practices that are engaging, challenging and that support all learners to be successful.

Expected Improvements and Findings 

The school expected to see a clear and consistent progression of learning within a localised curriculum that meets the strengths and needs of all learners and leads to improved learner achievement.

• The majority of learners have made expected or accelerated gains in their learning.
• Structured literacy has been recently introduced in the junior school to support progress. 
• Leaders and teachers continue to work towards developing a consistent progression of learning in reading, writing and mathematics. 

Other Findings 

During the course of the evaluation, it was found that leaders and teachers have strengthened their use of achievement data for their planning and teaching. Continuing to embed more consistent and coherent teaching practices across the school remains an area of focus. 

The greatest shift that occurred in response to the school’s action in implementing a localised curriculum has been increased learner enjoyment and engagement in learning. 

Part B: Current State 

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

Learner Success and Wellbeing 

Outcomes for most learners are improving.

• The majority of learners are achieving at and above curriculum expectations in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Learners have a strong sense of belonging and are becoming more confident in their identity, language and culture. 
• Learners with additional needs are well supported and make good progress in their learning.
• The school has yet to meet the Ministry of Education’s target for regular attendance, with less than half of students attending regularly.

Conditions to support learner success

Leadership is working towards fostering a school-wide culture of quality teaching and excellent learner outcomes.  

• Leaders use achievement information well to plan for learners who require additional support.
• Leaders are beginning to plan and coordinate the school’s curriculum and teaching to enable a clear progression of learning to track learners progress and achievement. 
• Leaders are establishing relational trust and collaboration at every level of the school community to achieve the strategic vision and improvement goals. 

The school is improving teaching and learning. 

• Teachers create orderly learning environments that are affirming, supportive and recognise the language, culture and identity of the learners; relationships between teachers and learners are increasingly positive and respectful. 
• Teachers are beginning to use differentiated teaching strategies to support learners to make progress and engage in learning. 
• Teaching and learning programmes are increasingly building on local contexts and learners’ experiences, knowledge and interests. 

Key education conditions are beginning to be embedded to support positive learner outcomes.

• The diverse identities and learning needs of students are recognised and valued; a renewed focus on the school values has resulted in learners being settled and supported.
• Professional learning opportunities are becoming aligned with the school’s priorities for achievement. 
• Teachers and leaders share a commitment to tangata whenuatanga and are increasingly promoting the use of te reo and tikanga Māori.  
• School planning for improvement is based on evidence and becoming more systematic to support ongoing improvement. 

Part C: Where to next? 

The agreed next steps for the school are to: 

• strengthen teachers’ collective knowledge and capability to effectively deliver the new English and Mathematics curriculum
• develop a schoolwide progression of teaching and learning expectations in reading, writing and mathematics
• continue to use strategies to identify those learners at risk of not achieving and ensure that an effective programme is in place to accelerate their learning
• identify and strengthen community initiatives that lead to improved attendance.

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

Within three months:

• develop a professional learning plan to support teachers to effectively deliver the new English and Mathematics curriculum 
• support collaborative teacher planning to create school wide consistency in assessment and teaching practices
• identify and adopt assessment practices that provide a clear picture of individual progress and achievement across the school so that leaders can measure the pace of improvement and identify those who need an accelerated approach 
• develop an attendance plan so that there is active support for all students to attend school regularly.

Every six months:

• review curriculum planning documents to ensure that there is consistency between the junior and senior classes in the implementation of the English and Mathematics curriculum 
• ensure teachers set explicit targets for improvement, regularly discuss and reflect on the impact deliberate teaching practices have on accelerating progress and achievement
• moderate assessment schoolwide to monitor improvements in teaching practice and decision making
• monitor the impact of strategies used to improve attendance.

Annually:

• evaluate the effectiveness of professional development initiatives that support teachers’ implementation of the English and Mathematics curricula to determine further professional development needs
• review and analyse teacher planning and achievement data to determine whether all students are making sufficient progress and adapt initiatives as required
• review and continue to refine and strengthen attendance initiatives.

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

• raised achievement in reading, writing and mathematics so that more learners achieve at or above expected curriculum levels
• consistent teaching practices that provide a clear progression of learning 
• achievement data that is reliable and used by teachers for planning and teaching
• an increase in the number of students who attend school regularly.

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

Sharon Kelly
Acting Director of Schools

4 February 2025

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