Fairfield School (Levin)

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 

Fairfield School (Levin) is a full primary school located in the north-east of Levin and provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8. The school’s values of Mana Motuhake (respect for self), Manaakitanga (respect for others) and Kaitiakitanga (respect for the environment), underpins the school vision for teaching and learning practices that encourage and empower learners to be ‘open, self-directed and engaged lifelong learners.’

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

• Most students achieve at or above curriculum expectations in reading, and a large majority of students in writing and mathematics.
• Improving equity for groups of learners, particularly for Māori and Pacific learners, remains a school priority.
• Students with additional learning needs have an inclusive, supportive learning environment and they progress well in relation to individual goals.
• The majority of learners attend school regularly, but the school has yet to meet the Ministry of Education target; leaders and teachers closely monitor and support whānau to improve the attendance rates for all learners.

Conditions to support learner success

• Strategic planning and improvement goals are student-outcome focused with clear measures for success in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Students at risk of not achieving are clearly identified in a timely manner, interventions put in place and progress monitored and reported.
• Leaders effectively collaborate with staff to evaluate student progress and outcomes and take required action.

• Learners benefit from consistent and targeted teaching practices that improves progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Staff know students well and work together to provide purposeful, well-paced learning.
• Teachers have comprehensive systems to track and monitor learner progress; planning and teaching is responsive to the needs of learners.

• Leaders act on evidence gathered through evaluation to make improvements, including regular monitoring and reporting of student attendance, progress and achievement to the board.
• Staff seek and engage in ongoing, targeted professional development to improve outcomes for learners.
• The board, leaders and staff continue to strengthen partnerships with parents, whānau and mana whenua, to ensure their views guide ongoing development of local curriculum and strategic planning.

Part B: Where to next?

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

• continue to improve positive achievement outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics, particularly for Māori and Pacific learners
• further develop partnerships with parents, whānau and the wider community, using the skills they bring, to improve student learning, engagement and attendance
• embed a curriculum that reflects the local environment and responds to the goals and aspirations of students, parents, whānau and mana whenua.

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

Every six months:

• continue to analyse learner attendance, progress and achievement information to inform responsive teaching and learning practices
• further strengthen communication and work with parents and whānau to help them understand the correlation between attendance and academic progress and achievement
• build on current practice to strengthen engagement with parents and whānau and sustain active participation in the planning and decision-making of the school

Annually:

• to inform school improvement, continue to review, analyse and report the impact of teaching and learning programmes on learner attendance, progress and achievement, particularly for Māori and Pacific learners
• continue to collaborate, gather and review student, staff, whānau and mana whenua voices to assist with evaluating the extent of engagement and participation in learning
• critically review and evaluate curriculum initiatives to ensure they promote learner identity and respond to the goals and aspirations of all stakeholders.

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

• increasing equity in attendance, progress and achievement for all learners in reading, writing and mathematics, especially for Māori and Pacific learners
• sustained levels of engagement with whānau and mana whenua and increased participation in the decision-making process of the school
• an embedded localised curriculum that reflects the goals and aspirations of whānau and mana whenua.

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

19 September 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