Opunake School

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 16 months of the Education Review Office and Opunake 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 

Opunake School in South Taranaki caters for students in Years 1 to 8.

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

• to provide a culture which promotes rich and relevant learning and assessment practices which engages learners, teachers, and whānau to achieve excellence
• for provision of a culture that develops high levels of learning and motivation for all learners through developing a school climate which promotes learning
• for all teachers to develop an understanding of current research and pedagogies that support equitable learning opportunities for all learners
• to develop a culture which supports and respects the wellbeing of learners in a safe and caring learning and working environment
• to promote a culture where learning partnerships are promoted to encourage proactive learning; whānau as partners in learning, and community support for the school, and learners
• a board of trustees and principal who develop a culture which practises ethical decision making, and social, economic, and environmental sustainability.

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

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how well the schools’ deliberate actions achieve the desired outcomes of positive wellbeing, self-efficacy, resilience, and culturally responsive teaching, promoting learner success.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

• strategic aims have determined a range of deliberate actions to further promote positive student wellbeing, facilitate learner efficacy and strengthen culturally responsive teaching practice to achieve successful outcomes for learners. ERO and the school will work together to measure the success and gain evaluative insights into the impact of these actions on learner progress, engagement, attendance, wellbeing, and learner self-efficacy.

The school expects to see:

• equity and excellence for students demonstrated in their progress, wellbeing, attendance, self-efficacy, and cultural identity
• effective teaching and learning, reflecting shared strategies and new approaches, in the delivery of the culturally responsive curriculum practice and strategies to achieve purposeful learner engagement at school
• the schools’ localised curriculum is documented overtime to reflect shared expectations for teaching, learning and culturally responsive practice.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to achieve equitable and excellent outcomes for learners:

• classroom environments are positive and productive, encouraging the purposeful engagement of students in learning
• access to, and co-ordination of, support for learners with additional and complex needs provides comprehensive tracking, monitoring, and outcome information to determine the impact on learner outcomes and supports evaluative insights
• collaborative practice between staff and access to relevant professional learning and development (PLD) encourages shared practice and promotes the implementation of strategies and approaches to achieve the schools desired outcomes for learner success.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

• continued opportunities for teachers to share practice and participate in PLD aligned to the school’s strategic and annual priorities to promote student wellbeing, efficacy, and building culturally responsive teacher capability and curriculum practice  
• ongoing documenting of changes to Opunake School curriculum, inclusive of culturally responsive practice, as new approaches and strategies for the promotion of learner wellbeing and self-efficacy are embedded into practice
• gathering information, at points in time, using progress data, observation of practice and stakeholder voice to inform evaluation insights into the impact of their deliberate actions on outcomes for learners. 

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

25 September 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