Edgecumbe College

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.

Every New Zealand state and state integrated school has an ERO review at least once every four years to evaluate what is working well for learners and what needs to be improved.

About the school

Rangitaiki College - Te Kura Tuarua o Rangitaiki is a co-educational secondary school located in Edgecumbe and provides education for students in Years 9 to 13. The school roll is 134 and includes 70% of students who are Māori, 16% New Zealand European/Pākehā and 13% Asian. The school values are Whanaungatanga, Integrity, Respect, Excellence and Determination.

The school was in statutory management until late 2025. A new school board has recently been elected, and a new principal began in mid-2024. Construction of a new administration block and classrooms are currently underway, with planned replacement of most buildings over the next few years.    

Education Counts provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement, school enrolments and school zones. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

An explanation of the terms and judgements used in this report can be found here: Reporting | Education Review Office

Improvement and progress 

This section is about the progress the school has made since the August 2022 ERO report. It includes an explanation of the expected improvements and findings.

Expected improvements

The school expected to see more equitable and excellent literacy outcomes for learners in Years 9 and 10, the development of effective literacy teaching and assessment practice across learning areas and accurate documentation of literacy progress informing teaching and learning across the curriculum.

The school also focused on strengthening learning-focused partnerships with the community.

Findings

A considerable amount of work has been undertaken over the past 18 months, focused on raising student achievement and engagement and roll growth. Work has focused on:

• enhancing the culture of the school culture
• establishing effective planning, 
• developing organisational systems
• strengthening relationships with mana whenua and the community and renaming the school.

A more structured professional learning programme for staff includes literacy and numeracy. Literacy practices have been introduced, particularly in science and social sciences. Active steps have been taken to enhance student success in the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) literacy and numeracy common assessments. 

An important development has been the formation of the principal-led Stakeholder Group in 2024, which has broadened whānau engagement within the school. This group has played an integral role in selecting the new school’s name and designing the updated uniform.

What we know about learner success 

This section provides a summary of learner success, wellbeing and foundation school conditions, including any education in Rumaki/Reo Rua settings. The judgments are based on the ERO School Improvement Framework and evidence provided to ERO during the evaluation.

Learner success and wellbeing

This section provides a summary of learner success and wellbeing.

• A large majority of students achieved NCEA Level 1 and 2 in 2025, a small majority achieve Level 3 and less than a third achieve University Entrance (UE). 
• Overall achievement significantly increased from the previous year NCEA Level 1, Level 3 and UE. The large majority of students leave the school with at least NCEA Level 2. 
• A large majority of students achieved NCEA Level 1 numeracy, and a small majority achieved literacy, significant increases from 2024. 
• Less than a third of Year 9 and 10 students are at or above their expected curriculum level in reading and mathematics. Overall, the data shows that most students progress in reading and mathematics, Progress is not yet consistent for all students, particularly in mathematics. Writing data was not available at the time of the review. 
• Less than half of the students attend regularly, an increase from the previous year and still well below the Government target. Chronic absences are reducing over time.

Conditions to support learner success

This section provides a summary of leadership, teaching, curriculum and foundation school conditions for improvement.

• School leaders and staff demonstrate a clear awareness of disparity in academic outcomes. They are using achievement data increasingly well to identify patterns, monitor progress and inform targeted support for learners. 
• Leaders are developing processes and systems to strengthen the organisational structure of the school for sustainable change, focused on improved student educational outcomes. 
• Leaders are strengthening relational trust, collaboration, and communication focused on a positive school culture and subsequent improvements to students’ wellbeing, engagement, attendance, progress and achievement. 
• A growing alignment between annual planning and improvement actions indicates an increasing capacity to drive sustained improvement. 

• Teaching practices are relational and affirming between students and teachers. 
• Students are offered a wide range of learning through The New Zealand Curriculum, including Trades Academy, Gateway, work experience and pathways.
• Achievement data is used to monitor student progress and identify those students requiring support; further embedding of this practice to consistently inform planning and teaching adjustments is a next step.
• The Rangitaiki Junior Certificate provides a measure of student achievement in the junior school and motivates students to continue improving and attend school.  

• Staff professional learning is aligned to the school's improvement priorities for building high quality teacher practices to improve student outcomes.
• Relationships between the school and community are strengthening. The recently established Stakeholders Group has provided a catalyst for further mana whenua and community involvement and consultation.
• The sense of community in the school is evident. Students are well supported and provided with individualised and small group support with their learning. A whole school approach to wellbeing has been identified as a next step.

Next steps for improvement

This section provides more detail for the school to include in its strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school. It identifies key priorities and actions for improvement.

Key priorities

• Raise regular attendance rates and reduce chronic attendance levels.
• A consistent approach to teaching and learning across all learning areas of the school, with a focus on responsive teaching practices.
• Improve evaluative capacity across the school, including the board, with a priority on building consistency in the use of data to better inform teaching practices and identifying and monitoring student progress.
• Continue to develop a whole school approach to improving literacy and numeracy, including for writing and the acceleration of students below their expected curriculum levels.
• Strengthen a coherent, whole school approach to wellbeing.

Actions to bring about improvement 

Within three months

• leaders and the board review baseline attendance data to identify trends and refine the current attendance plan; the link between progress and regular attendance should be clear to students and whānau
• leaders establish consistent expectations and monitoring routines for attendance across the school
• leaders review the staff Professional Learning Plan to ensure it includes strengthening classroom teaching practices and responsive approaches
• leaders and staff confirm whole-school literacy and numeracy priorities and ensure they are embedded in the Professional Learning Plan
• staff identify learners below expectation and begin targeted acceleration actions
• leaders provide initial training for leaders, staff and the School Board on consistent data‑collection and use of this information to improve student progress and achievement
• leaders and staff begin reviewing existing wellbeing initiatives to inform development of a 
  whole-school approach within the next six months

Within six months:

• The principal reports to the Board termly on attendance progress and identifying next steps and actions for improvement
• leaders develop and implement schoolwide teaching expectations that includes lesson design, responsive practice and use of data
• leaders establish routines for teachers and leaders to analyse progress data and identify next steps and monitor
• leaders deliver follow‑up professional learning on using data to inform planning and track progress
• leaders and staff begin implementing and monitor agreed literacy and numeracy approaches in all learning areas
• leaders and staff develop and implement the draft whole-school wellbeing plan

Every six months

• leaders and staff review progress on embedding consistent teaching expectations across learning areas and respond accordingly
• leaders and the Board review effectiveness of their data‑use and adjust as needed
• staff monitor mid‑year progress of priority learners and adapt interventions
• leaders review and refine literacy and numeracy strategies based on mid‑year data
• leaders and staff review effectiveness of wellbeing initiatives and refine actions

Annually:

• leaders, staff and the Board analyse end‑of‑year achievement, wellbeing, attendance and progress data to inform next year’s priorities
• leaders and the Board evaluate teaching practices annually to ensure consistency and quality across learning areas
• leaders, staff and the Board review the Professional Learning Plan and update it based on evidence of practice and student outcomes.

Expected outcomes

• Improved regular attendance and further reduction of chronic absence.
• Consistent, good quality responsive, teaching practice across all year levels.
• Consistent use of achievement data to monitor student progress and to inform next steps in teaching practice and school direction.
• An embedded whole school approach to the teaching of literacy and numeracy.
• Accelerated progress for learners in literacy and numeracy and equity in achievement for all learner groups.
• Embedded, whole school approach to wellbeing. 

The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Report and is due within four 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
Director of Schools

13 May 2026