St Albans Catholic School (Christchurch)

Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report 

Background

This Profile Report was written within 12 months of the Education Review Office and St Albans Catholic School (Christchurch) 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 

St Albans Catholic School (Christchurch) is situated in the suburb of St Albans in Christchurch and caters for students from years 1 to 6. The school’s vision is, ‘Together we excel, we live our faith and celebrate learning and life.’ The special character of the school integrates family values and the Catholic faith across learning contexts.

St Albans Catholic School (Christchurch)’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

• to provide learners with the support they need and motivation to achieve success and reach their full potential
• to maintain and foster the home-school partnership where parents are aware of their child's needs in literacy and numeracy, and the deliberate acts of teaching that are taking place to support their children.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on St Albans Catholic School (Christchurch)’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate the effectiveness of the New Zealand Aotearoa curriculum refresh for improving outcomes for learners.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is: 

• it is timely to consider the content and sequence of the refreshed curriculum so that the school can be assured of expectations for progress for all learners. 
• teachers are already engaged in teaching mathematics in the refreshed curriculum context
• the school is committed to supporting and upskilling teacher knowledge around New Zealand Aotearoa Histories through related professional learning opportunities. 

The school expects to see: 

• students engaged in their learning 
• students making progress against the expectations in the refreshed curriculum 
• teachers maintaining current knowledge around teaching and engaging in new curriculum content.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support it in its goal to evaluate the effectiveness of the New Zealand Aotearoa curriculum refresh for improving outcomes for learners.

• There are clear expectations for learners to be active participants as Kaitiaki supporting the school and each other.
• Teachers are continuing to develop strong learner centred relationships to respond to learners cultural, academic and emotional needs.
• The school staff are all invested in strengthening the school community culture and give of their time and resources for the good of all.
• A strong, effective and engaged Board of Trustees that is focused on learners’ achievement and provides support for all learners to make progress.
• An active community that demonstrates high levels of interest and participation in contexts across the school.

Where to next?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

• supporting the school community to be aware of and understand changes across the refreshed curriculum including To Tātou Whakapono, so that all community members can engage in an informed way amidst these changes 
• consulting with the school community to understand what knowledge parents and whānau think is  important for their tamariki to learn, which will enable them to confidently contribute to their future aspirations
• supporting teachers and students to strengthen their learning centred relationships within an increasingly diverse climate, while ensuring a safe and respectful environment for all.

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

13 February 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