Whanganui Intermediate

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within 9 months of the Education Review Office and Whanganui Intermediate 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

Whanganui Intermediate provides co-educational learning for ākonga in year 7 and year 8. The school sits on land gifted to the city of Whanganui by Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi. It currently provides level 3 te reo Māori to all ākonga. The school is part of the Takatini Tahi Kāhui Ako.

Whanganui Intermediate’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

• learning is real
• I belong and I am confident to be me
• whānau and community are valued partners.

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

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the extent that all ākonga develop a sense of belonging to the school.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is to support the school’s strategic objective to help ākonga feel that they belong to the kura and are confident in their identity. The school wants to provide a safe environment where all ākonga develop and explore who they are and the value they add to the kura. It is also important that ākonga quickly feel that they belong to better secure positive engagement with learning in an intermediate school environment. 

The school expects to see: 

• belonging expressed through improvements visible in a range of indicators such as; confident use of te reo Māori me ngā tikanga Māori, co-curricular involvement, wellbeing measures, attendance and engagement rates, academic progress and achievement
• learning programmes purposefully designed to promote a deeper sense of belonging
• learning partnerships strengthened in deliberate ways between ākonga, kaiako and whānau 
• refined systems, processes and tools that respond quickly to identified needs. 

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate the extent that learners develop a sense of belonging to the school:

• all staff continue to build their capability to confidently use te reo Māori me ona tikanga 
• a clear strategic intent developed from recent consultation and engagement with the school’s community
• processes are in place to recognise and respond to a range of learner needs to promote a sense of belonging and success.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

• deciding on what information to use to show that ākonga are developing a deeper sense of belonging to the school
• embedding and sustaining an integrated approach to learning using culturally informed place-based knowledges and ways of being
• further building the capacity of ākonga, kaiako and whānau to work together in strength-based ways 
• further strengthening systems, processes and tools to ensure quicker support for identified ākonga. 

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