Henderson Intermediate

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report 

Background

This Profile Report was written within 12 months of the Education Review Office and Henderson Intermediate 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 

Henderson Intermediate in West Auckland caters for students in Years 7 and 8. The school offers both Māori and Samoan bilingual classes which enable students to learn in a dual language environment. The school is undergoing significant property development, including the construction of 14-classroom building and the development of a fale. A new principal was appointed to will start at the school in 2024. 

Henderson Intermediate’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

• learners at Henderson Intermediate School, with their whānau, are at the ‘centre of education’. Every decision made is based on “very best outcomes for H.I.S. students with their family/whānau’
• every learner at Henderson Intermediate School will be provided with educational opportunities and outcomes that all learners can enjoy
• quality teaching and leadership is priority because these make a substantial difference for learners and their family/whānau 
• learning at Henderson Intermediate School will be relevant to the lives of students in West Auckland, as they are, New Zealand adults of the future
• Henderson Intermediate School will provide a world class, inclusive education for all learners that is trusted by family/whānau and is sustainable.

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

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how well the school’s culture of learning enables all students to be successful learners at Henderson Intermediate. 

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to support the school’s response to:  

• post pandemic changes in student behaviour, engagement, attitudes and attendance
• changing societal issues including the impact of the cost of living, community expectations and the demographic of the community served by the school 
• improving teacher capability to address the challenges presenting in the community and education. 

The school expects to see:

• consistent use of effective teaching that responds to the needs of students and promotes excellent and equitable outcomes
• students routinely supported to demonstrate agency in their learning to enable improved achievement, attendance and engagement outcomes
• learning focused relationships to support the delivery of a responsive and localised curriculum
• strengthened teacher inquiry to support the school-wide continuous improvement journey
• school-wide leadership continuing to respond to the needs and aspirations of the school community. 

Strengths 

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate the culture of learning:

• school leaders have a relentless focus on creating and implementing solutions to enable all students to access education and experience success
• student and whānau engagement, including the collection and use of voice and experience, is valued and fundamental to decision making
• Māori student achievement is a school-wide priority and is on an upward trajectory
• Pasifika student achievement is a school-wide priority and is on an upward trajectory
• classroom teachers are passionate about delivering a localised curriculum which incorporates the aspirations of students and their whānau.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise: 

establishing a shared understanding of what a strong school culture of learning looks like at Henderson Intermediate

• building on teaching as inquiry to support the school-wide continuous improvement journey
• continuing to build teacher capability and capacity through the existing professional learning programme. 

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

12 December 2023 

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