Lincoln High 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 

Lincoln High School is a co-educational high school for learners in Years 9 to 13, located in Lincoln, a semi-rural environment near Christchurch. The school’s values are: Whakamana | Respectful; Whakapono | Reliable; Manaaki | Supportive; Manawaroa | Resilient.

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 learners are engaged, make good progress and achieve very well.

• Most learners in Years 9 to 11 achieve at or above the expected curriculum level.
• Almost all learners achieve the National Certificate in Educational Achievement (NCEA) in Levels 2, with most learners achieving NCEA Level 3 and a large majority achieving University Entrance; Year 11 learners are not assessed for NCEA Level 1.
• Learners state that they feel safe at school and that the positive school culture and processes assist them to have high levels of wellbeing.
• A small majority of learners attends school regularly so the school is not yet meeting the Government target for regular attendance; improving regular attendance is a priority for the school.

Conditions to support learner success

Strategic leadership sustains a culture committed to high quality teaching and learning.

• Leaders model strong relational practice and regularly refine systems and processes to best meet the needs of learners and staff and to inform strategic priorities.
• Leaders at all levels are continually engaged in professional knowledge building with teachers to enhance teaching effectiveness and learning outcomes.
• Leaders at all levels ensure the focus remains on the design and delivery of a well-coordinated curriculum and consistent teaching in all classes to support success for all learners.

Teaching and learning opportunities are well-considered and intentionally relevant, challenging and meaningful for learners.

• The classroom learning culture is well-established and consistently characterised by respect, inclusion and collaboration between teachers and learners.
• Learners benefit from a curriculum that provides a wide range of learning opportunities and caters for diverse learner needs, interests, and pathways in and beyond school.
• Teachers have consistently strong relationships with their learners and are continuing to develop strategies to promote engagement and success in learning for the diversity of learners.

Conditions that underpin effective schooling are well-embedded and contribute positively to school improvement.

• The board actively represents and serves the school in its stewardship role with sustainability of learner and staff wellbeing, and learner progress and achievement being key priorities.
• Systematic, collaborative inquiry, and internal monitoring and evaluation practices are used to drive improvement strategies.
• Leaders and teachers prioritise targeted and sustained professional development to ensure the focus remains on successful strategies for learner progress and achievement.
• Learning and wellbeing support processes are strongly embedded in the school; regular self-review determines the effect of the strategies in these areas.

Part B: Where to next? 

The agreed next steps for the school are to: 

• continue to build a positive and aspirational culture through the ongoing implementation of planned strategies, including a learner graduate profile, that promote engagement, progress and achievement for the diversity of learners
• review and refine the school’s teaching and learning framework to further support effective teaching across the diversity of the school and identify areas for further development
• further develop the school’s processes for tracking and monitoring progress and achievement for all learners in Years 9 to 11.

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

Within six months:

• develop the learner graduate profile
• continue to review and adapt the school’s teaching and learning framework, including culturally inclusive practices, to further support consistent teaching practices
• further develop the school’s processes for tracking and monitoring progress for learners in Years 9 to 11

Every six months:

• monitor Year 9 to 11 learning progress and responding to the data
• respond to the trends and patterns of regular attendance for all learners and develop strategies and approaches to improve and sustain regular attendance 

Annually:

• evaluate the impact of the school’s actions towards its strategic priorities in learner wellbeing and engagement, attendance, progress and achievement to inform future planning
• report to the board, community and iwi on the progress of the school’s implementation of its strategic priorities.

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

• effective, inclusive teaching practices that are consistently experienced by learners across the school
• continuing high levels of wellbeing, engagement and achievement for all learners
• improved levels of 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

Sharon Kelly
Acting Director of Schools

17 February 2025

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