Otumoetai College

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 18 months of the Education Review Office and Ōtūmoetai College 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 

Ko Takitimu te waka
Mai Mauao ki Pūwhenua, Kopūrererua ki Te Matau
Ko Huria te marae
Ko te mana o te whenua ki Ngai Tamarāwaho
Okohanga te whare wānanga
Ōtūmoetai te kura
Kia māramahia te ora e te akoranga

Ōtūmoetai College is a large state co-educational school providing education for Year 9-13 students. The school recently introduced a whare system in collaboration with Ngai Tamarāwaho to enhance students’ sense of belonging to the school and rohe.

Ōtūmoetai College’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners is based upon culturally responsive and relational pedagogy to enable progress and achievement, with a specific focus on junior and senior areas of the school:

• all students will graduate the junior school knowing how they learn. This goal will be evidenced in their ability to think as well as in their progress within curriculum areas and across shared literacy and numeracy initiatives
• all students will graduate the senior school having achieved their NCEA goals.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Ōtūmoetai College’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the effectiveness of identifying and addressing the needs of students at risk of not achieving, specifically in literacy and numeracy. 

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is: 

• the school had established a research project focusing on targeted students in Years 9 and 10. This sharp focus was carefully linked to teachers' ability to use achievement data to inform their teaching practice and meet literacy needs of the students. 

The school expects to see change in teacher practice, collaboration amongst learning areas, more integrated learning, greater opportunities to share practice and improved student outcomes in literacy and numeracy assessments.

Strengths 

The school can draw from the following strengths to support the school in its goal to improve outcomes for learners, specifically in literacy and numeracy: 

• strong evaluation practices and capability across the school 
• a focus on what quality learning looks like 
• well-established connections, communication and relationships with Māori whānau, Ngai Tamarāwaho hapū, Ngāti Ranginui iwi and ngā Mata waka
• proactive approach to multiple, personalised interventions to support students at risk of not achieving.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise: 

• improved learner outcomes through strengthening the use of student and whānau voice to enhance school-wide and teacher practice
• the use of graduate profile outcomes to inform a more responsive localised curriculum and assessment practice.

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. 

Phil Cowie
Director Review and Improvement Services (Central)
Central Region | Te Tai Pūtahi Nui

1 November 2022 

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