Otorohanga South School

School 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 

Ōtorohanga South School provides education for students in Years 1 to 8. The school is 296 and includes 54% NZ European/Pākehā students, 35% Māori students and smaller numbers of students from other ethnic backgrounds.

The school offers a specialist support class for students with high learning needs. It also provides technology education for thirteen local schools in soft and hard materials.

The school’s KETE values - kindness, effort, trustworthy and engaged, support students to become ‘Life Long Learners for the Journey Ahead.’ The school’s whakatauki, ‘Kia mau mahara’ encourages students to be conscious of themselves, others and the wider community.

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 June 2022 ERO report. It includes an explanation of the expected improvements and findings.

Expected improvements

Priorities from the last review were to raise student achievement and improve equitable outcomes. The school expected to see strengthened culturally responsive practices, accelerated student progress and improvement in the quality of teaching and learning across the school.

Findings 

The embedding of culturally responsive practices has enabled equitable outcomes for Māori students through significant improvement in their achievement. The quality and consistency of teaching and learning across the school has improved and overall student achievement has increased over time, especially in reading and mathematics. Improving student achievement in writing remains a priority for the school.

What we know about learner success

This section provides a summary of learner success and wellbeing. The judgments are based on the ERO School Improvement Framework and the evidence provided to ERO during the evaluation.

Achievement in 1 to 8

This section is about learner achievement. It outlines how well learners across the school meet or exceed the expected curriculum level of The New Zealand Curriculum in foundational skills.

Attendance

This section is about school attendance and the progress the school is making towards meeting the Government target of 80% regular attendance.

• Less than half of students attend school regularly.
• The school is behind the target of 80% regular attendance.
• The school has a suitable plan in place to improve attendance.
• Regular attendance is not yet improving towards or beyond the target.
• Chronic absence is not yet reducing over time. 

Assessment

This section is about how the school assesses learner progress and achievement.

• The school uses an appropriate approach and reliable practices to find out about achievement against the curriculum.
• Assessment information is used well to adjust teaching practices to ensure ongoing improvement in teaching and student progress.

Progress

This section is about how well the school supports all learners to make sufficient progress.

• The school has good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.
• The school has to some extent improved achievement and progress for those learners most at risk of not achieving since the previous review.
• The school has to some extent extended achievement and progress for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.
• The school is making progress towards meeting Government reading, writing and mathematics targets for 2030 and agrees this will need to be a key strategic priority.

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 outlines what the school is doing well and identifies actions for improvement.

Areas of strength

• Wellbeing data shows the large majority of students have a strong sense of belonging and benefit from positive relationships with their teachers and peers. 
• Standardised assessment data in reading for Years 3 to 8 shows the large majority of students are achieving at expected levels.
• Collaborative leadership fosters and sustains a school culture committed to continuous improvement, quality teaching practice and the strategic direction of the school. 
• Structured literacy is well embedded in classroom programmes and enables students to make accelerated progress in reading. A structured approach to the teaching of mathematics supports the consistency of teaching and learning across the school.
• The school’s curriculum acknowledges the significance of local iwi stories and promotes student learning in culture and identity.
• Provision of ongoing professional learning and team collaboration strengthens teacher capability to respond well to the needs of their students and successfully implement changes in curriculum and assessment.
• Leaders and teachers use data effectively to inform targeted action, monitor student progress and evaluate the quality of practices to improve student outcomes. 

Key priorities

• Increase rates of regular attendance.
• Raise overall student achievement in writing and improve equitable outcomes for boys.

Actions to bring about improvement 

Within three months:

• leaders and the school Board set specific targets to shift rates of student attendance from irregular to regular attendance
• teachers engage in professional inquiry into boys’ learning and engagement in writing, and set some clear targets for improvement

Every six months:

• leaders, teachers and the Board monitor progress against attendance targets and share key insights with families and whānau to strengthen collective responsibility for improvement
• leaders and teachers monitor student progress and develop further strategies to increase rates of accelerated learning in writing, especially for boys

Annually:

• leaders and teachers review and strengthen the attendance plan strategies and work with parents and whānau to address ongoing barriers to regular attendance
• leaders report on the impact of strategies to raise achievement in writing, improve equitable outcomes for boys and further inform strategic priorities for continuous improvement.

Expected outcomes

• Improved rates of regular attendance meet the Government target of 80%.
• Increased levels of student achievement in writing and improved equitable outcomes for boys.

Regulatory and legislative requirements

This section of the report is about how the school meets regulatory and legislative requirements. 

Board assurance with regulatory and legislative requirements

This section of the report reviews the school's policies, procedures, documentation, and checks that it meets all regulations, maintains a safe environment, and supports students' wellbeing.

During this review the Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in the following areas:

Board administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of health, safety and welfare

Yes

Personnel management

Yes

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

30 March 2026