Darfield High School

What ERO wrote in its latest report

This is ERO’s report of 29 August 2025 — “School Evaluation Report” — section by section, under ERO’s own headings, in ERO’s own order. Nothing is summarised, shortened or reordered.

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.

Every New Zealand state and state integrated school has an ERO review at least once every four years to evaluate what is working well for learners and what needs to be improved.

About the school

Darfield High School is a rural co-educational school for students in Years 7 to 13 located in Canterbury. The school’s vision for learners is that they will enjoy learning, be proud of their school and develop the capabilities, knowledge and values to lead healthy, fulfilling lives and to contribute to their community . A new principal started at the school in 2021.

There have been a number of changes in senior leadership since the last ERO review in 2023. The school operates the Tawera Rural College which provides learning programmes for learners preparing for work or further study in the agricultural sector.

Education Counts provides further information about the school’s student population, student engagement and student achievement, school enrolments and school zones. educationcounts.govt.nz/home

An explanation of the terms and judgements used in this report can be found here: Reporting | Education Review Office

Improvement and Progress

This section is about the progress the school has made since the February 2023 ERO report. It includes an explanation of the expected improvements and findings.

ERO and the school have worked together to evaluate the extent to which students in Years 7 and 8 are engaging with their school curriculum.

Expected improvements

The school expected to see Year 7 and 8 learners demonstrating improved engagement and achievement as a result of having sufficient and equitable opportunities to learn through effective, culturally responsive teaching practices and a relevant, connected curriculum.

Findings

Some progress has been made in developing a shared vision for effective teaching and learning in Years 7 and 8. However, this is yet to be embedded in practice or to substantially improve learner engagement and achievement. Development of a coherent, connected Year 7 to 10 curriculum remains a priority.

What we know about learner success

This is a summary of learner success, which guides the school board’s future strategic direction, including any education in Rumaki/bilingual settings.

Less than a third Less than half Small majority Large majority Most Almost all

0 to 33% 34 to 49% 50 to 65% 65 to 79% 80 to 90% Over 90%

Learner success and wellbeing

This section provides a summary of learner success and wellbeing.

The majority of learners are engaged and achieve positive outcomes, improving literacy and numeracy achievement for students in Year 7 to 10 is a priority.

School data shows that a small majority of Year 7 and 8 students are achieving at curriculum expectations in reading and maths with fewer than half meeting expectations in writing.

Fewer than half of Year 9 and 10 students are achieving at expected levels in English and mathematics. There are achievement disparities for some groups of learners in Years 7 to 10.

The large majority of learners achieve National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) Level 2 and 3. A small majority achieve NCEA Level 1 and University Entrance (UE).

Māori learners achieve equitably at Levels 2, 3 and UE.

In 2024, the majority of Year 10 learners achieved the reading and maths requirements for NCEA, and about half achieved the writing requirement.

School leavers are well supported to make positive transitions to employment, further study or training.

The majority of students attend school regularly, and the school continues to work with families and students to maintain and improve regular attendance.

Conditions to support learner success

This section provides a summary of leadership, teaching, curriculum and foundation school conditions for improvement.

Leadership is developing the conditions to support sustained school improvement.

Leadership is actively establishing and strengthening policies, systems, processes and practices needed to drive and sustain strategic improvement.

Leaders are beginning to establish relational trust at all levels of the school community for greater collaboration to achieve strategic goals and improvement in outcomes for learners.

Leaders are taking steps to foster a professional culture committed to inclusive effective teaching that engages learners and raises achievement.

Curriculum and teaching are increasingly responsive to the interests, needs and aspirations of students.

The school’s learning programmes reflect and respond to the interests, needs and aspirations of students, and students appreciate the range of sporting and cultural opportunities on offer.

Leaders and teachers are developing shared expectations and practices for supporting calm, productive learning environments and supporting learner engagement and participation in learning.

Teachers are increasingly working together to deliver consistent, explicit teaching of literacy and numeracy for junior students.

The school is improving the way it monitors and reviews its progress and performance.

Leaders and staff are developing more effective systems and practices for the collection and analysis of a range of learning, engagement and wellbeing data to support evidence-based decisions for school improvement.

The school Board is regularly reviewing its policies and procedure framework, has sound processes for knowing it is meeting its legal and regulatory obligations and is managing school resourcing responsibly to ensure sustainability for the future.

Partnerships with employers, tertiary providers and the community are well leveraged to enhance learning opportunities and to support positive transitions to work and further learning.

Next steps for improvement

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

Key Priorities

Embed a positive learning environment that aligns with the school’s values, sets clear behaviour expectations, and supports teachers to use inclusive and culturally responsive teaching approaches.

Strengthen school targets for student learning and wellbeing and regularly monitor and evaluate progress.

Develop a coherent curriculum with consistent approaches to teaching foundational skills, including literacy and numeracy for Years 7 to 10.

Strengthen teacher capability to use assessment information to make informed decisions about how to accelerate student learning and reflect on what works.

Improve and sustain regular attendance levels to ensure learners have the best opportunity to succeed.

Actions to bring about improvement

Within three months:

leaders and the Board set relevant, data-based annual targets for student achievement and wellbeing, identify baseline data and set up ways to track and monitor progress

leaders confirm the school’s plan for inclusive, culturally responsive teaching and plan professional development

Within six months:

leaders and teachers monitor how well school values, routines and positive behaviour expectations are applied to support settled classrooms and provide targeted support to teachers as needed

leaders and the Board provide opportunities for curriculum leaders and teachers in the junior school to review and align curriculum planning, develop shared understandings of effective practice for literacy and numeracy teaching and build their knowledge of new assessment practices

Every six months:

leaders review progress on the implementation of literacy and numeracy in junior classes and continue supporting teachers’ assessment capability

leaders check attendance trends and adjust strategies if needed to support ongoing improvement

Annually:

the School Board uses data to guide strategic decisions about learning, wellbeing, inclusive practices, and behaviour systems to improve attendance, engagement and achievement

leaders and the School Board use assessment information to review the improvement in literacy and numeracy teaching and curriculum and set new annual goals

the School Board report on annual attendance outcomes and set new targets for the following year and share these with the school community.

Expected outcomes

Improved levels of regular attendance, contributing to higher overall achievement.

More effective monitoring of how well strategic goals and actions are improving outcomes for learners.

The school has a respectful, positive, and settled learning environment where all learners feel valued and their diverse identities are recognised.

Students in Years 7 to 10 are making expected progress in literacy and numeracy, enabling them to access the curriculum confidently and meet national qualification requirements.

The next public report on ERO’s website will be a School Evaluation Report and is due within 4 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)

29 August 2025

Read this report on ero.govt.nz →