Karetu School

The same report — the board assurance report of 12 August 2024 — also sets out actions for compliance: the non-compliance ERO identified during that process. This is that section of the report in full, in ERO’s words.

ERO has identified the following areas of non-compliance during the board assurance process:

ensure Child Protection policies and practices are in place (Children’s Act 2014)

ensure Education Outside the Classroom policies and practices are in place ( Education and Training Act 2020, the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and the Crimes Act 1961)

undertake and record sufficient identity checks, reference and background checks on the appointment of staff (Children’s Act 2014)

ensure disciplinary procedures including stand downs and suspensions are made in accordance with legal requirements (Education and Training Act 2020)

develop and review emergency management policies, practices and procedures to include lockdowns (National Civil Defence Emergency Plan Order 2015; Good Practice).

The board has not yet addressed the areas of non-compliance identified.

Read this board assurance report on ero.govt.nz →

The roll ERO recorded, and when

ERO writes a roll into each report it publishes: a count taken for that report, on the day shown, by the review team that was there. The Ministry of Education’s current roll for this school is 80 — the figure at the top of this page, and the one to use for how big the school is now. These are a different measurement by a different body, so they will rarely agree, and a difference between them is not a change in the school.

1. November 2017

   70

   Counted while ERO’s review team was at the school. Education Review Office, report of 28 February 2018

This is one count taken for one report. It says what the roll was on that day, and nothing about how the roll has moved.

What ERO wrote in its latest report

This is ERO’s report of 12 August 2024 — “Te Ara Huarau | School Profile Report” — section by section, under ERO’s own headings, in ERO’s own order. Nothing is summarised, shortened or reordered.

Background

This Profile Report was written within 11 months of the Education Review Office and Karetu School 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

Karetu School is a small rural school in the Karetu Valley, Northland. The school provides education for students in Years 1-8. Most of the learners are Māori who whakapapa to Ngāti Manu .

Karetu School ’s strategic priorities for improving outcomes for learners are:

fostering student achievement

strategic planning, self-review and effective reporting

providing a safe and healthy environment.

You can find a copy of the school’s strategic and annual plan on Karetu School ’s website.

ERO and the school are working together to evaluate how effectively the school strengthens the wellbeing and cultural identity of all learners including those of Ngāti Manu descent.

The rationale for selecting this evaluation is:

the school has a goal to support and build on culturally responsive relationships with learners, parents, whānau and teachers

to understand how the local curriculum is improving learner wellbeing, progress and achievement

to strengthen and extend internal evaluation processes and practices that focus on improving learner outcomes.

The school expects to see:

communication between home and school that builds respectful and purposeful learning partnerships

learners who are confident in their culture, identity and language

learners attending regularly, progressing and achieving at curriculum expectation

greater clarity and focus on reliable and valid student achievement information to better understand the degree of equity and excellence in learner outcomes

effective use of assessment information to inform planning, improved teaching practice and learning outcomes for all learners.

Strengths

The school can draw from the following strengths to support its goal to evaluate how effectively the school strengthens the wellbeing and cultural identity of all learners.

learners have a strong sense of belonging to the school

staff and learner centred relationships are positive and respectful

learning environments support students to confidently engage in classroom programmes, alongside their peers.

Where to next ?

Moving forward, the school will prioritise:

setting a clear achievement- focused agenda for improvement through strategic planning, teaching and learning and reporting to whānau and the board

gaining a shared understanding about how well students achieve and progress with more reliable and valid assessment practices schoolwide

strengthening professional capability to include te reo Māori and tikanga Māori

improving and sustaining learning centred partnerships with whānau , hapū and community.

ERO has concerns about

How well leadership and governance are implementing a policy and procedural framework that ensures a physically and emotionally safe environment for learners.

Recommendation

to meet its statutory responsibilities, the Board should regularly monitor, evaluate and report to all stakeholders, the extent to which legislative requirements, policies and procedures support an emotionally and physically safe environment for all learners

the Board should access NZSTA training to support trustees in meeting their statutory responsibilities

the Ministry of Education provide leadership support based on priorities for improvement.

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

12 August 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

Read this report on ero.govt.nz →