Waima School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background 

This Profile Report was written within 6 months of the Education Review Office and ​Waima 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 

Waima School is a small rural school, beneath the maunga of Whakatere, in South Hokianga. The school provides education for Years 1 to 8 students. All students have whakapapa connections to Waima. The school’s vision is “He Taonga ahau - We will have success for today and be prepared for tomorrow.” 

​​Waima School​’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:  

• We will actively grow and nurture the character of our ākonga through the WAIMA values 
• We will provide an environment where all participants are active and valued  
• We will provide and monitor quality learning programmes to ensure each of our ākonga are engaged and attend school regularly. 

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

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how well the design and delivery of the localised curriculum aligns with local and national priorities and achieves equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners at Waima School.     

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to:  

• establish the school’s localised curriculum so that it reflects the interests of ākonga and their whānau 
• improve attendance, engagement, progress and achievement for all ākonga 
• continue to improve numeracy and literacy teacher capability through an inclusive, responsive learner focused curriculum. 

The school expects to see: 

• learning for ākonga that is meaningful, relevant and targeted to their individual needs and improves their achievement 
• teaching and learning through a relevant and local curriculum that improves equitable and excellent outcomes for all ākonga. 

Strengths  

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate how effectively the school’s localised curriculum is achieving equitable and excellent outcomes for all ākonga at Waima School. 

• a school learning environment that promotes shared values, builds on learner’s strengths and encourages positive engagement of all ākonga 
• an experienced, capable teaching team who work well together 
• staff who have a shared understanding of effective teaching practices and are committed to improving outcomes for all ākonga. 

Where to next? 

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:   

• strengthening whānau learning partnerships to support ākonga in their learning 
• actively promoting and sustaining student wellbeing through te ao Māori and mātauranga Māori 
• supporting the success of Māori learners through the development of the school’s local curriculum 
• strengthening assessment analysis and evaluation processes that effectively inform planning and improve teaching practice and positive learning outcomes for all ākonga. 

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  

​​30 April 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