Motu School

School Evaluation 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.

Context

Motu School, a small rural school inland from Gisborne, provides education to students in Years 1 to 8. The teaching principal was appointed in 2023. The school’s vision is to develop conscientious, global citizens who are: connected to their community; proud of their tūrangawaewae; and active learners who have the skills to adapt to a rapidly changing environment. 

There are two parts to this report.

Part A: An evaluative summary of learner success and school conditions to inform the school board’s future strategic direction, including any education in Rumaki/bilingual settings. 

Part B: The improvement actions prioritised for the school’s next evaluation cycle. 

Part A: Current State 

The following findings are to inform the school’s future priorities for improvement.

Learner Success and Wellbeing 

• Achievement information for the end-of-year 2023, shows that most learners, including Māori students, achieved at or above the expected curriculum levels in reading, writing and mathematics. 
• Students have a strong sense of belonging and engage in an inclusive, caring environment. 
• Most students attend regularly, and overall attendance is above the Ministry of Education target.

Conditions to support learner success

• Leadership coordinates, plans and actions the school’s curriculum and evaluates this to increasingly improve learner outcomes; a planned next step is broadened delivery of the refreshed curriculum.
• To increase opportunities for students’ learning and success, leadership builds educationally-focused relationships with other education providers and community groups. 
• To support the wellbeing of learners and to meet what parents and whānau want for their children, leadership gives priority to developing in learners, a strong sense of their culture and identity. 

• Students learn in a collaborative, well-resourced learning environment that provides wide-ranging opportunities to engage, experiment and apply new skills; an identified next step is to work towards developing student leadership and learning independence.
• Learners have multiple opportunities to practise literacy and numeracy skills through a range of learning opportunities integrated within the wider curriculum.
• Assessment practices increasingly support teachers’ insights into learner progress, during the year and over time; collaboration with other schools to verify assessment decisions is an identified next step.

• Collaboration with whānau, and community partnerships and professional networks, increasingly strengthen the school’s capacity to meet community aspirations for learners.

• Capitalising on local community knowledge and expertise contributes to delivery of an increasingly broad and rich curriculum in which students participate in community activities, fostering strong, enduring reciprocal relationships. 

• The school is beginning to deepen partnerships between local iwi, hāpu and whānau, and is developing collaborative consultation so that the curriculum reflects local tikanga Māori, mātauranga Māori and te ao Māori.
• The board represents and serves the community, and the strategic plan aligns with community aspirations; continuing to develop the skills and expertise of the school board is an agreed next step.

Part B: Where to next? 

The agreed next steps for the school are to: 

• support students in developing independence in their learning and provide more opportunities to develop leadership skills 
• grow teacher capability in assessment by undertaking moderation activities with other schools, ensuring judgements about student learning are consistent with curriculum expectations
• implement the refreshed curriculum in ways that sustain and build on student progress and achievement, including strengthening partnerships with iwi, hapu and the community to support Māori learners enjoying success as Māori
• build long term sustainability and capacity of the board and staff by sourcing appropriate professional learning and networking opportunities.

The agreed actions for the next improvement cycle and timeframes are as follows.

Within six months:

• identify strategies that will support students to become more independent in their learning and ways to measure this
• identify opportunities to further develop student leadership 
• continue to consult with iwi and hapū to inform curriculum content and delivery
• source appropriate professional development to grow capacity of staff and board, including moderation activities with other schools.

Every six months:

• moderate, monitor and report on the progress of student outcomes across the curriculum
• review implementation of the refreshed curriculum and identify next steps 
• regularly meet with whānau, hapū and iwi to sustain active participation in the planning and decision making of the school.

Annually:

• analyse and report on schoolwide attendance, progress and achievement data to the school board, including steps made in developing student leadership 
• review progress in developing student independence in learning by undertaking surveys with each learner and their whānau, parents and staff
• with the school board, review the impact of new initiatives and professional development on learner outcomes, and the confidence and capacity of staff and the board in their roles, and use this to inform future school planning.

Actions taken against these next steps are expected to result in:

• increasingly independent learners who can articulate their learning pathways as they progress successfully through the curriculum
• collaborative relationships between the school and its community, including iwi, that contribute to the depth and breadth of teaching programmes
• increased capability of staff and the school board so that they are knowledgeable in their roles, and confident in the effectiveness of school systems to result in desired outcomes for learners.

ERO’s role will be to support the school in its evaluation for improvement cycle to improve outcomes for all learners. The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation Report and is due within three 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.

Shelley Booysen
Director of Schools

25 July 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