Newlands College

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report

Background

This Profile Report was written within two years of the Education Review Office and Newlands College 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

Newlands College is a state Yr 9 to 13 co-educational secondary school located in the northern suburbs of Wellington.  The school has an ethnically diverse roll and a learning support centre for students that are on the ongoing resourcing scheme (ORS). The school’s vision is for all students to be actively involved in making decisions about their learning, confident in their decisions and able to take risks; able to think laterally and to view learning as a lifelong journey. As a community the school values whanaungatanga (positive relationships), mātauranga (gaining knowledge), akoranga (learning together) and manaakitanga (caring for each other).

Newlands College’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

• supporting all students’ progress and achievement through quality teaching and learning, safe environments and positive relationships
• promoting a sense of cultural identity and belonging that provides students with the opportunity to fulfil their potential – with a particular focus on Māori and Pacific students
• supporting learning support students to achieve to the best of their ability
• engaging the wider school community – including board, staff, whānau, iwi and local community - in supporting students’ learning and growth.

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

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how well the college’s culturally responsive curriculum and teaching practices are supporting Māori students to enjoy educational success as Māori and to fulfil their personal and educational potential.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

• the board and school community are committed to honouring Te Tiriti o Waitangi
• the college wants to sustain and improve wellbeing and learning outcomes for Māori students
• to respond to recent curriculum and regulatory changes (ie National Education and Learning Priorities, Education and Training Act 2020 and introduction of the New Zealand History curriculum
• the board wants to know about the effectiveness of existing strategies, approaches and resourcing on supporting the cultural identity, sense of belonging and achievement of Māori students.

The school expects to see:

• Māori students and their whānau experience an environment and teaching and learning that nurtures their sense of cultural identity and belonging and provides opportunities to fulfil their potential
• strengthened confidence and competence of board members, leaders and staff to foster and deliver culturally responsive teaching and learning and wellbeing support
• the College curriculum effectively reflecting New Zealand’s unique bicultural heritage and mātauranga Māori
• the development of culturally appropriate approaches to assessment, reporting and internal evaluation.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to sustain and improve wellbeing and learning outcomes for Māori students:

• An inclusive school culture that values diversity.
• A curriculum that provides Māori students, and all students, with increasing opportunities to learn about mātauranga Māori and to participate in te ao Māori.
• Growing bilingual and bicultural capabilities across staff as a result of targeted goals and professional learning.
• Structures, roles and resourcing support leadership and delivery of culturally responsive curriculum and teaching.
• Robust internal evaluation practices, which draws on the perspectives of students, whānau and staff, informs ongoing school improvement.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

• implementation of culturally responsive curriculum and teaching practice across all learning areas - with a particular focus on new Year 11 programmes
• collaborative planning and ongoing professional learning to build teachers’ bilingual and bicultural capability
• engagement and partnership with local marae, Māori whānau, students and staff to improve governance, leadership and teaching and learning
• timely monitoring and evaluation of progress toward goals and outcomes for students to inform decision-making and improvement.

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

10 May 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