Rotorua Intermediate

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 

Rotorua Intermediate, located in the city of Rotorua, provides education for students in Years 7 to 8. The school has three Rua Reo classes and one Rumaki class, offering Māori medium education at Levels 1 and 2 immersion (Te Whare o Te Roro o Te Rangi). Wellbeing of students is a key focus of the school kaupapa. 

There are three parts to this report.

Part A: A summary of the findings from the most recent Education Review Office (ERO) report and/or subsequent evaluation.

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

Part A: Previous Improvement Goals

Since the previous report in July 2022, ERO and the school worked together to evaluate how well schoolwide structures of collective responsibility and high expectations for teaching and learning, improved equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners.

Expected Improvements and Findings

The school expected to see:

Enhanced organisational structures, processes and practices for collectively monitoring and responding to learner needs, resulting in increasingly excellent and equitable outcomes for all learners.

• A small majority of learners’ progress and achievement has accelerated; inequity remains for some groups of learners.
• Teachers’ engagement in professional learning for literacy and mathematics has improved accuracy of judgements made against curriculum levels.
• Teachers collectively monitor their impact on improving learner outcomes and they adapt learning programmes to meet student needs.
• Reliable systems for collecting and analysing learner assessment data have been established; reviewing the efficiency and consistency of how this data is used schoolwide to most effectively meet the needs of all learners, is a next step.

Other Findings

During the course of the evaluation, it was found that the school has significantly enriched systems and processes for supporting learner wellbeing and inclusion, particularly for those requiring adaptive and structured support.

The greatest shift that occurred in response to the school’s actions, is the enhanced collective approach to monitoring the impact of teaching on learner progress and achievement. These processes are improving consistency across the school for effective teaching and learning practices that are increasingly responsive to learner needs.

Part B: Current State

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

Learner Success and Wellbeing

• Outcomes are improving for the majority of learners in reading and writing, with achievement in mathematics lower; there is still inequity for some groups of learners.
• Learners’ progress in literacy has improved as a result of a targeted response to address disparity; continuing to focus on disparity in literacy and mathematics is a priority.
• Learners have increased confidence and knowledge in their identity and culture and this has supported their improved engagement in learning.
• The school is working towards meeting the Ministry of Education targets for regular attendance; dedicated personnel monitor and address issues of non-attendance.

Conditions to support learner success

• Leaders build and sustain trust and collaboration within the school and community to support strategic vision and positive outcomes for learners. 
• Professional learning initiatives are informed by assessment data and aligned to school strategic planning that focus staff on improving outcomes for learners. 
• Leaders support teachers to strengthen effective teaching practices and promote leadership development to build capability within the school.  

• Learner engagement and success are supported through a curriculum that reflects learners’ identity and culture.
• Respectful and collaborative teacher-learner relationships support an inclusive learning environment that promotes student engagement.
• Teachers work collectively to monitor and support learner progress and achievement and strengthen aspects of their teaching practice.

• Leaders and teachers regularly report to the board progress towards priorities for learner success to support effective decision making.
• School leaders value student voice and meet regularly with the student council to discuss conditions that contribute to learner wellbeing, learning opportunities and success.
• Inclusion and wellbeing for all is prioritised with specialised staff and targeted resources well supporting learners requiring extra support.

Rumaki/Bilingual Outcomes and Condition to Support Learner Success

Learner success and wellbeing

Tamariki:

• are engaging in a language learning environment that embeds significant lifelong values and attitudes towards te reo and mātauranga Māori
• have a sense of empowerment based on their confidence with te reo Māori and know who they are as a person, and their position in te ao Māori
• are increasingly being exposed to opportunities of exploration and risk taking when using te reo and tikanga Māori.

Conditions to support learner success

• Intentional use of iwi documents is beginning to inform the development of a localised curriculum.
• Leadership roles within Te Whare o Te Roro o Te Rangi directly support the progress of the tamariki academic and te ao Māori achievement.
• Kaiako are establishing educationally powerful partnerships to support a seamless Māori medium transition for tamariki.

Part C: Where to next?

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

• improve outcomes for all learners through strengthening effective use of assessment information to guide responsive teaching and learning practices, particularly in mathematics 
• grow learners’ confidence and capability in using strategies and tools to guide their own learning 
• provide explicit professional learning and guidance around Te Mārautanga o Aotearoa to inform development and implementation of marau-ā-rohe
• continue to prioritise systems and processes to support learner wellbeing and inclusion and improve rates of attendance.

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

Within three months:

• identify kaiako strengths and development needs around Te Mārautanga o Aotearoa
• develop an action plan for improvement to strengthen professional understanding of Te Mārautanga o Aotearoa and support development of marau-ā-rohe in Te Roro o Te Rangi.

Within six months:

• identify teachers’ strengths and development needs within the mathematics curriculum and provide professional learning to support consistency of quality teaching and learning
• review how effectively teachers use student attendance, progress and achievement data in literacy and mathematics to respond to learner needs
• review practices and tools used within classrooms that support learners to self-assess their learning and set and self-monitor goals for improvement
• engage kaiako in professional learning around Te Mārautanga o Aotearoa.

Every six months:

• monitor the consistency of teaching and learning within mathematics, and the impact on learners’ progress
• monitor the consistency of classroom practices that support learners to successfully self-manage and take responsibility for their own learning
• monitor and evaluate the implementation and impact of marau-ā-rohe in Te Roro o Te Rangi
• collect student voice from across the school to monitor and evaluate student wellbeing and the impact of strategies to improve attendance.

Annually:

• analyse and report on student attendance, progress and achievement data with particular focus on improvements in mathematics outcomes
• evaluate how well teachers are using assessment information to plan responsive and engaging opportunities for all learners to succeed 
• evaluate the impact of improved learners’ self-management and self-responsibility for learning, on learner progress and achievement outcomes.

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

• improved levels of attendance, engagement, confidence and achievement outcomes for all learners in mathematics and literacy
• enhanced, responsive systems for supporting learner wellbeing, inclusion and attendance
• improved outcomes for learners through increased self-management and self-responsibility for learning
• development and implementation of marau-ā-rohe in Te Roro o Te Rangi.

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

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

7 August 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