South End 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 

South End School, Te Kura Taitonga, provides education for Years 1 to 8 learners in Carterton, South Wairarapa. A new principal was appointed at the beginning of Term 3, 2024. The school provides a Montessori learning pathway for students. South End School’s whānau values are: kia whakaaute, kia whanake and kia aumangea; learners who are respectful, resourceful and resilient.  

There are three parts to this report.

Part A: A summary of the findings from the most recent Education Review Office (ERO) report and/or subsequent evaluation. 

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

Part A: Previous Improvement Goals 

Since the previous report of March 2023, ERO and the school have worked together to evaluate how effectively the mathematics programme meets the needs of all learners and accelerates their progress in mathematics.

Expected Improvements and Findings

The school expected to see:

Accelerated achievement of priority learners through aligned and cohesive systems and processes.

• Well-analysed information shows that the majority of learners who need to accelerate their progress are now achieving at expectations in mathematics.

Development of consistent classroom practice. 

• Leaders and teachers collaboratively plan responsive learning interventions resulting in consistent and effective mathematics teaching.

Strengthened learning partnerships with whānau. 

• Teachers have strengthened learning partnerships by regularly providing whānau with relevant and useful ways to support their child’s learning. 

Other Findings

During the evaluation, it was found that greater consistency of teacher planning and targeted professional practice accelerated the progress of priority learners.

The greatest shift that occurred in response to the school’s actions was improved achievement outcomes through the strong growth in whānau engagement and involvement in their child’s learning. 

Part B: Current State

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

Learner Success and Wellbeing 

Outcomes are improving for some learners.

• The majority of learners achieve at or above curriculum level expectations in reading, writing and mathematics.
• The school has yet to have boys achieving as well as girls in writing and this disparity has increased over time; leadership identify, and ERO’s evaluation affirms, that they need to strengthen schoolwide writing programmes and achievement.
• Some progress has been made in reducing disparity between the achievement of Māori learners, particularly in mathematics. 
• The school has made progress towards, but is not yet meeting, the Ministry of Education’s target for regular attendance; this remains an ongoing focus for the school.

Conditions to support learner success

Leadership increasingly fosters a culture committed to quality teaching, and high expectations of learner achievement.

• Teacher professional learning, strategically aligned with the school’s improvement targets, contributes to a shared understanding of quality and consistent teaching practices for raising student achievement. 
• Leaders support staff to increasingly integrate te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori throughout the curriculum to increase students’ knowledge and understandings of these areas.

Teachers use a range of evidence-based, responsive teaching practices to provide learners with purposeful learning opportunities.

• Learners are encouraged to question, and problem solve by their teachers through engaging and targeted learning programmes. 
• Strengthened and well-aligned tracking systems support teachers to collaboratively review learners’ progress and plan their next learning steps.
• Teachers create a collaborative, inclusive environment where learners engage, experiment and apply new learning.

The school increasingly builds and sustains partnerships with whānau and the community to support and improve learning opportunities and achievement.

• The board represents and works well with whānau and the community to guide the school’s strategic direction, and to prioritise improvement goals related to achievement, learning and wellbeing.
• Community resources are used to develop a rich localised curriculum, that supports learner achievement and wellbeing.
• Parents and whānau are valued partners in learning; they are well informed and provided with opportunities to support and actively participate in their child’s learning.

Part C: Where to next?

The agreed next steps for the school are to: 

• provide schoolwide professional learning for engagement and improving student achievement in writing, especially for boys and Māori learners
• develop a broad literacy support programme for students from Years 1 to 3
• continue to strengthen the use of te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori learning across the school with a focus on increasing staff and learner capability
• continue to monitor and strengthen school processes focused on having all students attend school regularly.

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

Within six months:

• develop a responsive implementation plan to guide teacher professional learning focused on strengthening learner engagement, achievement and acceleration in writing
• undertake a data-informed review of literacy in the junior school; prioritise and plan for students who require further learning support
• collect baseline data about the delivery of te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori learning across the school and develop a plan that will strengthen the capability of staff and students
• use attendance data to identify and implement targeted strategies to improve students’ attendance 

Every six months:

• review professional practice through teachers’ observations and learner outcomes in writing, and report progress and planned future actions to the board 
• monitor and report the progress of targeted groups who are receiving specialised support in literacy to their whānau and to the board 
• measure the improved capability of staff and learners in te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori though observations and teacher and student reflections
• track and monitor mid-year attendance data and, if necessary, review and sharpen targeted strategies.

Annually: 

• report schoolwide achievement in writing to the board and strategically plan actions that will further improve the achievement and learning outcomes of all students
• identify initiatives that have been most successful in accelerating learner progress and develop next strategic targets
• review and assess capability and capacity in te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori learning across the school and strategically plan next steps.
• report to the board showing how the impact of attendance strategies have improved attendance.

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

• learners engaged and experiencing accelerated progress in writing, well supported to achieve through targeted high quality professional practice
• learners confidently and successfully apply literacy strategies in their learning
• te reo Māori, tikanga Māori and mātauranga Māori learning integrated throughout the curriculum to improve learners' knowledge and understanding
• improved levels of attendance that meet or exceed the Ministry of Education’s target for regular attendance.

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

18 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