Riverina School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 15 months of the Education Review Office and Riverina 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 

Riverina School is in Pakuranga, East Auckland and provides education for students in Years 1 to 6. The Board appointed a new principal in Term 3 2018. The school’s values are ‘Courage (Māia), Courtesy (Atawhaitanga) and Kindness (Manaakitanga)’.

Riverina School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

• empowering confident, unique, self-directed learners

• growing the wellbeing of the school community by promoting an inclusive culture

• whānau supporting the learning journey.

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

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how well culturally responsive practices improve student wellbeing and achievement. The school has formed a partnership with the Māori Achievement Collaborative to support them on this improvement journey.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to:

• promote a sense of belonging and identity for all students

• strengthen culturally responsive teaching practice with all staff

• build reciprocal learning partnerships with whānau and the community.

The school expects to see all students developing a strong, secure sense of their identity through actively engaging in authentic learning experiences. Teachers will continue to consistently integrate culturally responsive practices into their teaching, enabling students to achieve and progress. The school will strengthen learning-focused relationships with whānau to enrich opportunities for all students.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal of improving student wellbeing and achievement through culturally responsive practices:

• learners experience a positive learning environment that promotes respectful relationships and restorative practices

• learners with diverse learning needs are well supported and included in the school community

• school leadership and staff collaboratively promote and enact the school’s values and strategic priorities.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

• strengthening a shared understanding of culturally responsive practices among students, staff and whānau to promote students’ sense of belonging and identity

• ongoing professional learning to support continuity of culturally responsive teaching practice across the school

• continuing to build learning-focused partnerships with whānau and the community to improve student wellbeing and achievement.

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.

Filivaifale Jason Swann
Director Review and Improvement Services (Northern)
Northern Region | Te Tai Raki

15 February 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

This school is a fundholder for the Resource Teachers of Literacy.