Waioneke School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 8 months of the Education Review Office and Waioneke 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

Waioneke School is a small rural school north-west of Auckland that caters for learners in Years 1 to 8. 

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

• we deliver a relevant, engaging, and balanced local curriculum utilising our Project Based Learning programme that ensures flexibility, improved outcomes for all learners and provides evidence of Deep Learning
• teachers, learners and whānau are building knowledge and skills unique to Ngati Whātua ki Kaipara, Kaiparatanga and working towards visible collaboration and learning partnerships with local iwi.

The school curriculum is underpinned by a Deep Learning Model that includes values and outcomes for learners. This model promotes 6 - C’s (Character, Citizenship, Collaboration, Communication, Creativity and Critical Thinking). Cultural competency has recently been added. 

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the effectiveness of the local curriculum and its impact on learner outcomes. 

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to: 

• consider how cultural competency can be successfully developed throughout learning programmes 
• support learners to understand their place in the world, starting with their local area, its history, people, and whenua and how they are all interconnected
• grow staff understanding of te Ao Māori me ōna te reo Māori and weave these skills into their daily teaching practice.

The school expects to see further evidence of:

• learners who are confident in their own personal and cultural identities and are respectful and supportive towards others 
• quality te reo me ōna tikanga Māori normalised into the daily life of the school 
• rich learning opportunities based in and connected to the local area and community. 

Strengths 

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate the effectiveness of the local curriculum and its impact on learner outcomes: 

• a school culture that is inclusive and supports a strong sense of belonging
• a well-established learning culture characterised by school values, questioning and collaboration
• teachers and leaders who have high expectations for themselves and learners.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise: 

• further development of a localised curriculum
• building knowledge, capability, and practice for kaiako and learners in te reo Māori and te ao Māori
• continued teacher and student exploration of what it means to be bicultural in Aotearoa New Zealand
• targeted professional development in cultural competency and cultural responsiveness. 

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

15 April 2024 

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