Makarika School

School 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.

Every New Zealand state and state integrated school has an ERO review at least once every four years to evaluate what is working well for learners and what needs to be improved.

About the School

Makarika School provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8. In 2024, the school roll was 30. Most learners identify as Māori. The school’s vision is for Proud tamariki who are committed to making a positive contribution to the world around them - Mana Atua, Mana Tangata, Mana Whenua, Mana Moana. The curriculum is underpinned by the core values of Kaitieki, Attitude, Think and Aroha (KATA). 

Education Counts provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement, school enrolments and school zones. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

An explanation of the terms and judgements used in this report can be found here:  Reporting | Education Review Office

Improvement and progress

This section is about the progress the school has made since the August 2016 ERO report. It includes an explanation of the expected improvements and findings.

Since the previous ERO report the school has made significant improvement. A Commissioner had been appointed to bring about necessary change. The school has now successfully returned to self-governance.

Expected improvement

• Improve planning, analysis and monitoring in accelerating learner progress in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Evaluate practices and processes that build the capability of teachers to inquire into their practice and hence improve teaching, assessment, planning for accelerating learning of target students.
• Develop agreed school guidelines and expectations for teachers about teaching strategies and practices to accelerate the achievement of children not meeting expectations.
• Develop strategies that support children to identify their own learning needs, develop self- assessment skills, evaluate their own and support others against clear criteria.

Findings

All of these areas identified for improvement are now strengths of the school. Children are confident to ask questions, have a strong sense of belonging, inquire into their learning and to challenge themselves and others to grow their skills and knowledge.

What we know about learner success

This section provides a summary of learner success and wellbeing. The judgments are based on the ERO School Improvement Framework and the evidence provided to ERO during the evaluation.

Achievement in Years 0 to 8

This section is about learner achievement. It outlines how well learners across the school meet or exceed the expected curriculum level of The New Zealand Curriculum in foundational skills.

Attendance

This section is about school attendance and the progress the school is making towards meeting the Government target of 80% regular attendance.

• Less than half of learners attend school regularly.
• The school is significantly behind the target of 80% regular attendance.
• The school has a suitable plan in place to improve attendance.
• Regular attendance is not yet improving towards or beyond the target.
• Chronic absence is reducing over time.

Assessment

This section is about how the school assesses learner progress and achievement.

• The school uses an appropriate approach and reliable practices to find out about achievement against the curriculum.
• Assessment information is used well to adjust teaching practices to ensure ongoing improvement in teaching and student progress.

Progress

This section is about how well the school supports all learners to make sufficient progress.

• The school has good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.
• The school has significantly improved achievement and progress for those learners most at risk of not achieving since the previous review.
• The school has to some extent extended achievement and progress for learners working at or above curriculum levels since the previous review.
• The school is making progress towards meeting Government reading, writing and mathematics targets and/or pānui, tuhituhi and pāngarau targets and is likely to meet them by 2030.

Next steps for improvement

This section provides more detail for the school to include in its strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school. It outlines what the school is doing well and identifies actions for improvement.

Areas of Strength

• Students express confidence in themselves, in their learning and in their potential for improvement. They have set high expectations for learning and encouraged by staff to challenge their thinking and skills development.
• Students demonstrate purposeful knowledge of their learning and next steps for improvement. They work well together in an inclusive learning environment to support each other to improve. Whānau are encouraged and actively participate in students learning and interests.
• Growth-focused leadership capably and strategically drives improvement. The collaborative approach to growing leadership and effective teaching strengthens learners’ progress and achievement school wide.
• Structured literacy and numeracy are a key focus for the school. Students know the rhythms and routines for these programmes of learning. These programmes have strengthened learners’ confidence and capability in literacy.
• Achievement information is used well to inform progress and planning. The school is exploring assessment tools and reporting to parents alongside implementing the national curriculum changes.
• The principal and teacher use inquiry well to identify strengths and areas for improvement. Reports to the School Board include clear analysis of emerging trends and patterns. Board members need to strengthen their scrutiny of information to better support the principal in their strategic leadership for improvement.

Key priorities 

• Ensure the curriculum is delivered well through high quality teaching.
• Sustain ongoing improvement for children and their whānau.
• Improve the capability of the School Board to better evaluate learner outcomes and leadership effectiveness.

Actions to bring about improvement:

Within three months:

• leaders and teachers alongside whānau, develop ways to bring about improvement to regular attendance
• the School Board members need to access and begin stewardship training
• the School Board members need to develop a plan for improving and sustaining effective stewardship

Within six months:

• leaders and teachers implement strategies to improve attendance, review and adjust as needed

Every six months:

• the School Board review Board processes and practices to inform ongoing stewardship learning needs
• leaders and the School Board monitor rates of attendance and engage with whānau to explore further strategies for improving attendance
• leaders and the School Board engage with whānau, hapū and iwi to collaborate and inform the mātauranga that guides the curriculum for improving outcomes for learners

Annually:

• the School Board monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of stewardship performance against the improvement plan for the board, to inform where to next for professional learning
• leaders and the School Board review the effectiveness of strategies used for attendance and use this to inform strategic planning
• leaders and teachers evaluate the effectiveness of the curriculum, including embedding KATA, so that learners are meaningfully engaged and continue to apply their learning in innovative ways.

Expected outcomes 

• Increase in the number of students attending regularly.
• The progress and achievement of students in reading, writing and mathematics has improved.
• Effective delivery of the curriculum that supports students to be confident to think and be curious in their learning.
• The School Board is confident to scrutinise achievement information for effective decision making to bring about ongoing improvement.

Regulatory and Legislative Requirements

This section of the report is about how the school meets regulatory and legislative requirements.

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements

This section of the report reviews the school's policies, procedures, documentation, and checks that it meets all regulations, maintains a safe environment, and supports students' wellbeing.

During this review the Board has attested to meeting regulatory and legislative requirements in the following areas:

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Yes

Personnel Management

Yes

Actions for Compliance

ERO has identified the following area of non-compliance during the board assurance process:

• the board needs to ensure it does not employ or engage a person as a children’s worker without ensuring that a safety check of the person that complies with section 31 is completed before the employment or engagement commences
  [Children Act 2014, s25].

The board has since addressed the areas of non-compliance identified.

The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Report and is due within four 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

Sharon Kelly
Director of Schools

8 October 2025