Te Kura o Otangarei

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 15 months of the Education Review Office and Te Kura o Otangarei 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 

Te Kura o Otangarei is in Whāngarei, and provides education for ākonga in Years 1 to 8.  The school’s vision is to encourage and foster Taha Wairua, Taha Hinengaro, Taha Tinana and Taha Whānau in ourselves and others around us. The school has Rumaki Reo Māori for ākonga in Years 4 – 8. A new Principal was appointed in 2023.

Te Kura o Otangarei’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

• Taha Wairua – Environment
• Taha Hinengaro – Teacher Pedagogy
• Taha Tinana – Health and Wellbeing
• Taha Whānau – Culture and Heritage

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Te Kura o Otangarei’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how well the engagement, progress and achievement of all ākonga is improved through health and wellbeing initiatives and approaches to learning. Strengthening home-school learning partnerships and improving rates of ākonga attendance are ongoing priorities to further support progress and achievement.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is: 

• the school’s goal of Taha Tinana Health and Wellbeing has ākonga at the centre, experiencing a safe environment where their needs are met and they are engaged, progressing and achieving
• to understand how health and wellbeing initiatives are supporting growth in student wellbeing, self-care and care for others
• the continued focus on building partnerships with ākonga, whānau and community to support progress in learning.

The school expects to see: 

• ākonga experiencing a safe learning environment where their health and wellbeing needs are met, and they are engaged, progressing and achieving
• the evaluation of health and wellbeing initiatives and programmes to inform teaching and learning approaches
• strengthened learning-focused connections, communication and relationships with parents and whānau
• the kura, tamariki, whānau and hāpori embracing and promoting our kura vision “Tū Pono, Tū Tika, Tū Aroha, Tū Rangatira”.

Strengths 

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate how well the engagement, progress and achievement of all ākonga is improved through health and wellbeing initiatives and approaches to learning:

• collaborative leadership for learning that is open to change and focused on improvement
• ākonga are consistently well supported to achieve success with a strong sense of their cultural identity
• Te ao Māori and Te Kura Tapa Wha strategic goals support the conditions and practices that encourage and foster ākonga health and wellbeing.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

• leaders, teachers, parents and whānau sharing high, clear and equitable expectations for ākonga wellbeing, engagement, progress and achievement
• gathering, analysis and use of ākonga learning outcomes as evidence to further inform the refreshed school vision, values, goals and targets.

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.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

7 May 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