Ongarue School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within three months of the Education Review Office and Ongarue 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 

Ongarue is a sole charge school located in the rural village of Ongarue, near Taumarunui. The school provides education for students in Years 1 to 8 and has strong links with the local community.

Ongarue School’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are through building:

• achievement | ako
• wellbeing | wairua
• local curriculum | akiakitanga.

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

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how effectively student outcomes continue to improve through strengthening school practices and processes, that meet the individual needs of all students. Further building student agency and monitoring rates of attendance are ongoing priorities for the school. 

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is: 

• the school’s commitment to continual improvement and equitable outcomes for all students, through a personalised approach to learning
• the importance of maintaining regular attendance and enhancing students’ knowledge and engagement in their learning 
• the priority to strengthen assessment and evaluation practices for continuous improvement.

The school expects to see targeted actions implemented, that enable improved progress and equitable outcomes for all learners, across the local curriculum.

Strengths 

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to improve equitable outcomes for all: 

• a strategic approach to planning for learning that responds to students’ individual needs, strengths and interests
• positive, caring relationships that support learning in a respectful, inclusive environment
• a well-resourced school that enables students to participate and learn in a wide range of opportunities across the curriculum.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise: 

• implementing targeted actions to support increasingly effective outcomes for all students in reading, writing and mathematics
• empowering students to lead their own learning and promote further success
• strengthening and embedding effective practices in assessment and evaluation to further inform planning that continues to be tailored to the individual needs of the students.

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

5 December 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