Avon School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 18 months of the Education Review Office and Avon 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

Avon School caters for students in Year 1 to 8 and is located in Stratford.

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

• to develop a responsive local curriculum enabling students to acquire graduate skills and competencies between Year 1 to 8
• to ensure every student can freely access a future focused curriculum; characterised by Māori achieving success as Māori
• to promote and grow quality leadership that progresses the school vision, while responding to individual needs, abilities, and aspirations
• to build board capability to ensure effective school governance that progresses the school vision and meets legislative requirements.

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

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how well the school builds capability and practice to strengthen achievement outcomes and ensure equity and excellence for all learners.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

• the principal and trustees recognise the need to strengthen internal processes, capability, and practice to improve learner engagement and raise levels of achievement in reading, writing and mathematics to promote equitable and excellent outcomes.

The school expects to see:

• increased student engagement and raised levels of achievement in reading, writing and mathematics that ensures equity and excellence for all learners
• robust systems and processes that support an effective response to learners identified with additional and complex needs
• robust use of assessment information to inform effective teaching and learning
• consistently skilled and capable teaching practice that meets the diverse needs of learners
• effective board governance.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support the school in its goal to strengthen capability and practice to achieve equitable and excellent outcomes:

• leaders' decision making, and their collective approach in managing continuous improvement, has identified relevant priorities that are appropriately focused on strengthening learner outcomes and achieving the school’s collective vision for student success
• regular engagement of staff in professional learning, discussion and reflection providing relevant opportunities to develop shared understandings of agreed expectations for delivery of effective practice designed to strengthen learner outcomes.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

• leaders and teachers continuing to strengthen the use of assessment data to inform teaching and learning
• staff continuing to engage in professional learning and development to build their collective capability and practice to fully meet the diverse needs of learners
• continuing to gather and provide relevant information to parents and whānau that seeks to build reciprocal learning partnerships that encourages positive learner engagement, attendance, 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.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

13 March 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