Matakohe School

What ERO wrote in its latest report

This is ERO’s report of 8 April 2025 — “School Report” — section by section, under ERO’s own headings, in ERO’s own order. Nothing is summarised, shortened or reordered.

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

Matakohe School is a long established small rural school in the Kaipara District. It provides education for learners in Years 1 to 8 from the local area. There are approximately 42 learners. European/ Pākehā make up most learners and 28% identify as Māori . The school Kauri values: kindness, accountability, unity, respect and integrity underpin the school learning environment.

Progress since September 2023 ERO report

ERO and the school worked together to evaluate how effectively the school met the needs of all learners to help them achieve and be their best self. The school expected to see:

teachers and learners using a common language when setting learning goals

school values driving the school’s response to support positive student behaviour

learners making progress with their goals.

During the course of the evaluation, it was found that teachers and learners are increasingly using a common language when discussing learning goals. Teachers and learners revisited the school values to ensure they support and are well used to promote a positive behaviour approach for all learners. As a result, learner attendance and achievement have improved over time.

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

How well are learners succeeding? Improvements are required to ensure all learners are engaged, making sufficient progress and achieving well.

What is the quality of teaching and learning? The school is improving teaching and learning.

How well does the school curriculum respond to all learners needs? Learners have sufficient opportunities to learn across the breadth and depth of the curriculum. There is an increasingly consistent focus on supporting learners to gain skills in literacy and mathematics. Learners with complex needs are well supported to achieve their education goals.

How well does school planning and conditions support ongoing improvement? The school is establishing planning and conditions that support improvements in the quality of education for learners.

How well does the school include all learners and promote their engagement and wellbeing? The school is taking steps to improve learners’ engagement, wellbeing and inclusion.

How well does the school partner with parents, whānau and its community for the benefit of learners? The school reports usefully and accurately to parents / whānau about their child’s learning, achievement and progress. The school is improving its collection and use of information gathered through community consultation to inform strategic planning and curriculum decisions.

Student Health and Safety The school board is taking reasonable steps to ensure student health and safety.

Achievement in Years 0 to 8

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

Foundation Skills

Reading A large majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners.

Writing Less than half of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are not yet equitable for all groups of learners.

Mathematics A small majority of learners meet or exceed the expected curriculum level. Results are becoming more equitable for all groups of learners.

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.

Assessment

The school is improving its approach and the reliability of its practices to accurately find out about achievement against the curriculum.

Teachers are developing assessment information to adjust teaching practices to ensure ongoing improvement in teaching and student progress.

Progress

The school is developing good quality planning to increase the rate of progress for all groups of students.

The school has to some extent 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 some progress towards meeting Government reading, writing and mathematics targets for 2030 and agrees this will need to be a key strategic priority.

An explanation of the terms used in the Parent Summary can be found here: Guide to ERO school reports

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

Learners experience a strong sense of belonging while at school; this is well promoted by positive teaching and learning relationships.

Leadership is strategic and highly collaborative with a deliberate focus on improving outcomes for all learners.

Leaders and teachers are taking steps to plan for the implementation of structured literacy and mathematics in 2025; an increasingly consistent focus on supporting all learners to gain sound foundational skills in literacy and mathematics is evident.

Learners take part in meaningful learning contexts connected to their local setting; the careers programme for older learners enables them to participate in a range of hands-on experiences that also support their transition to high school.

Leadership effectively builds relational trust amongst staff, resulting in a collaborative approach to their professional growth and ongoing implementation of improving teaching and learning.

Leadership is establishing processes that support teachers to reflect on, inquire into and adapt their practice to improve teaching and learning to positively impact outcomes for all learners.

Key priorities and actions for improvement

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

review and evaluate attendance initiatives to increase regular attendance for all learners to meet Government targets

implement the new literacy and mathematics requirements across the school to continue to improve and sustain progress and achievement outcomes

further strengthen effective teaching, learning and assessment practices, especially in literacy and mathematics

continue to develop partnerships with whānau Māori and local marae to strengthen te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and te ao Māori across the school and in classroom practices to enhance learners’ language, culture and identity.

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

Every six months:

review and report the impact of initiatives to improve students’ regular attendance and identify next steps

analyse and report learner progress and achievement in reading, writing and mathematics, and for groups of learners who are identified as needing to accelerate progress, achievement and engagement

review through teaching observations and collaboration the impact of teaching and learning practices on improved learner success, engagement and progress

Annually:

analyse and report schoolwide progress and achievement to the school board and community for attendance, reading, writing and mathematics and identify further actions for improvement

evaluate and report on effectiveness of professional development on equity and excellence for all learners, especially in literacy and mathematics and the ongoing usefulness of professional development programmes

in consultation with the school community review the local curriculum to support future programme planning

evaluate progress toward integration of te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and te ao Māori into classroom practices

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

learners attending school regularly

increased equitable and excellent outcomes for all learners, especially in reading, writing and mathematics

learners and teachers gaining confidence in their understanding and use of te reo Māori , tikanga Māori and te ao Māori .

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

Actions for Compliance

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

ensure all staff employed have a current police vet. [Children’s Act 2014, s104 Education and Training Act 2020]

The board has since addressed the areas of non-compliance identified.

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)

8 April 2025

Education Counts

This 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 →