Parakai 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 

Parakai School is located north of Auckland on the outskirts of Helensville and provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. The school’s vision is to grow G.R.E.A.T citizens, empowered to live successfully in their personal and global lives.

There are two parts to this report.

Part A: 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 B: The improvement actions prioritised for the school’s next evaluation cycle.

Part A: Current State

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

Learner Success and Wellbeing

Most students are engaged, make good progress and achieve very well.

• Most students achieve at and above the expected curriculum levels in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Students have a strong sense of connectedness to their school and speak positively about a supportive learning environment that acknowledges their culture, language and identity.
• A small majority of learners attend school regularly; the school is working towards meeting the Government’s target for regular attendance.

Conditions to support learner success

Leadership works collaboratively and strategically to create a learning environment with high expectations and focused on continuous improvement.

• Leaders foster a culture of high relational trust among staff that promotes a shared understanding of quality teaching and learning.
• A well-established and collaborative senior leadership team sets and pursues relevant strategic goals for improved learner outcomes.
• Leaders successfully use coaching strategies and provide effective feedback to teachers that continually enhances teaching practice.

Learners engage in a meaningful curriculum that provides a diverse range of learning opportunities.

• Teachers plan and implement an innovative curriculum that clearly reflects students’ strengths, interests and identities.
• Teachers consistently use appropriate teaching and learning strategies that support the many different needs of learners.
• Leaders and teachers contribute their knowledge and expertise to the wider educational community, strengthening professional learning networks to improve learner outcomes.

Key conditions that underpin a positive education experience for learners continue to strengthen.

• The board and leadership work closely with the community to develop the school’s vision and strategic direction, reflecting their aspirations for learners.
• Students who require additional support are identified and responded to promptly by staff, enabling them to make progress in their learning.
• Parents actively participate in school events; teachers continue to strengthen learning-focused partnerships with whānau.

Part B: Where to next?

The agreed next steps for the school are to continue to:

• strengthen initiatives and strategies to improve all students’ regular attendance
• further refine the school curriculum, continuing to embed the new literacy and mathematics requirements to sustain student progress and achievement
• further strengthen learning-focused partnerships with whānau to increase parent involvement in their child’s learning.

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

Every six months:

• monitor and review the impact of initiatives and strategies to improve regular attendance and identify further actions
• review structured literacy and mathematics approaches, providing ongoing staff professional learning to enhance teaching practice
• gather feedback from parents and whānau about how well learning partnerships support student engagement and improve outcomes for learners, informing future planning.

Annually:

• review and report to the board on student attendance, progress and achievement information to support the ongoing strategic direction of the school
• evaluate curriculum initiatives in literacy and mathematics to know the impact on teaching approaches and learner outcomes
• evaluate and report to the board on the impact learning-focused partnerships with parents and whānau have on improving attendance and achievement.

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

• more students attending school regularly
• equitable and excellent achievement outcomes for all learners in reading, writing and mathematics
• increased parent and whānau involvement in their child’s learning, enhancing student attendance, progress and achievement.

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 March 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