Whareama 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.

About the School

Whareama School, located in rural Wairarapa, provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8. There are 48 students on the roll; 27% are Māori and 73% are New Zealand European/Pākehā. Whareama School’s R.U.R.A.L. values of Respect, Unique, Resourceful, Achievers, Leaders reflect the community’s aspirations for their students. The principal resigned at the end of 2024. The school board is in the process of appointing a principal.

Part A – Parent Summary

Progress since August 2022 ERO report

ERO and the school have been working together to evaluate how well the achievement of learners at risk of not achieving was accelerated for continuous and sustained achievement. 

Student achievement has improved with accelerated progress for many targeted students. Schoolwide achievement information is shared, tracked and monitored, enabling well-considered support to be provided for all learners. The use of a sequenced approach to evaluation, led by the principal and involving all staff, ensured a consistent, collaborative approach to planning with clear schoolwide expectations for quality teaching practices. 

Highly supportive whānau are well-informed about the learning and progress of their children. A culturally informed approach to teaching and learning is developing partnerships with whānau, local hapū and iwi. This work supports student engagement and increased acceleration of students’ progress from better targeted teaching and learning programmes. 

How well placed is the school to promote educational success and wellbeing?

Achievement in Years 0 to 8

This table outlines how well students across the school meet or exceed the expected curriculum level.

Attendance

The school is behind the target of 80% regular attendance.

The school has a suitable plan in place to improve attendance.

Regular attendance is improving towards or beyond the target.

Chronic absence is reducing over time. 

Assessment

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

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 Government reading, writing and mathematics targets and is likely to meet them by 2030.

An explanation of the terms used in the Parent Summary can be found here: Reporting | Education Review Office
 

Part B - Findings for the school

This section of the report provides more detail for the school to include in strategic and annual planning for ongoing improvement across the school.

Areas of Strength

Schoolwide information shows increasing equity of achievement across all levels of the school. Targeted learning support, in class programmes and initiatives led by the principal, have successfully accelerated achievement. 

Structured literacy and mathematics are already well embedded in the school curriculum. Staff have undertaken professional learning to strengthen their teaching practice in these core subjects. A well-embedded inquiry model supports teachers to review, strengthen and grow their professional practice, focused on improved student achievement and accelerated progress.

Whānau, the community and local hapū are committed and actively support the learning and wellbeing of the students, their teachers and leaders.

Key priorities and actions for improvement 

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

• continue to implement structured literacy and mathematics that promotes student engagement and embeds high quality teacher practice
• develop aligned, consistent and well-understood expectations for literacy and mathematics
• continue to strengthen culturally appropriate practices within the school curriculum to promote active student engagement, wellbeing and accelerate the achievement of all learners
• continue to monitor and focus on improving schoolwide attendance. 

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

Every six months:

• review the effectiveness of teachers’ professional practice through classroom observations and learners’ achievement in structured literacy and mathematics; report progress and planned next steps to the board
• monitor and report on the development of schoolwide assessment expectations to the board
• continue to review the impact of the school curriculum and the development culturally appropriate practices through teacher and students’ inquiries and reflections
• report to the board and review the impact of initiatives to improve student attendance

Annually:

• analyse schoolwide achievement in structured literacy and mathematics, including that of identified learners; use this data to report to the board, and to strategically plan actions that will improve the achievement and learning outcomes of all
• review school assessment processes and expectations; identify initiatives that have been most successful and use this information in schoolwide strategic planning
• evaluate the impact and outcomes of the curriculum, the growth of teachers’ and learners’ cultural practices across the school; strategically plan next steps to further strengthen student engagement and accelerate achievement
• evaluate the effectiveness of initiatives employed to increase student attendance; strategically plan implementation for the next year.

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

• students who effectively apply structured learning strategies, improved achievement outcomes and accelerated progress in literacy and mathematics
• robust assessment systems and processes that inform teachers’ planning and practice, and support all learners to know how well they are achieving and what they need to learn next
• a constantly improving and developing a school curriculum that enables leaders and staff to strengthen their professional practice, deepen schoolwide capability in cultural practices and improve the achievement and wellbeing of all learners
• improved rates of attendance.

Part C: Regulatory and Legislative Requirements

Board Assurance with Regulatory and Legislative Requirements

All schools are required to promote student health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.

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

Board Administration

Yes

Curriculum

Yes

Management of Health, Safety and Welfare

Yes

Personnel Management

Yes

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 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

Sharon Kelly
Director of Schools (Acting)

27 May 2025

Education Counts

This website provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement. educationcounts.govt.nz/home