Ngata Memorial College

What ERO wrote in its latest report

This is ERO’s report of 28 March 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.

Context

Ngata Memorial College is located in Ruatōria , on the East Coast of the North Island. It provides education for learners in Years 1 to 13. Most students are Māori and affiliate to Ngāti Porou.

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

Ākonga achievement has improved in the senior school; outcomes for ākonga in Years 1 to 10 require improvement.

In 2024, just under half of ākonga achieved Level 1 of the National Certificate in Educational Achievement (NCEA) and a large majority attained Levels 2 and 3; few learners earned endorsements and University Entrance (UE).

In Years 1 to 8, a small majority of ākonga achieve at the expected level in reading and writing, and a few in mathematics.

In Year 9, a small majority of ākonga achieve at the expected level in reading and writing, with few in mathematics. In Year 10, very few learners achieve at the expected level in all three areas.

Ākonga express they learn in a supportive environment, that provides them with a range of learning opportunities.

Attendance is improving and still below Ministry of Education targets; the school has an appropriate plan to further improve overall attendance.

Conditions to support learner success

Leadership has set and pursues targeted improvement goals, prioritising improved outcomes especially for those ākonga most at risk of underachievement.

Leadership has established the conditions for staff to know and understand expectations for the quality of teaching and learning and are now holding them accountable to improve outcomes across the school.

Leaders are strengthening teaching practices through targeted professional learning to improve outcomes for all ākonga .

The principal actively engages with and works collaboratively with other school leaders and community groups to address barriers to ākonga engagement with schooling.

School staff provide a curriculum and teaching and learning programmes that are beginning to be responsive to the needs of students.

Staff are working towards a shared understanding of consistent and robust assessment practices to support use of strategies that will meet the needs of each ākonga .

Local contexts are reflected in the curriculum and schoolwide practices so that ākonga can see themselves in their learning.

Teachers increasingly design learning experiences aligned with ākonga interests and strengths, boosting engagement and participation, especially in the senior school.

The school is strengthening practices, systems, and processes to improve ākonga outcomes.

Relational trust and communication between staff support professional collaboration, focused on improved practices and outcomes for all learners.

The school is in the early stages of developing high quality evidence-informed practices to support staff to know the impact of their teaching on ākonga outcomes, and to adapt practice accordingly.

The school uses various external services to help ākonga and their whānau maintain access to and engagement with schooling.

A supportive board, aware of the strengths, needs, and expectations of the school community, responds to these with a learner-focused approach.

Part B: Where to next?

The agreed next steps for the school are to:

strengthen systems that support capability and capacity building across the school, including a shared understanding of evaluation for improved learner outcomes

strengthen and grow staff capability in data analysis and evidence-informed practices, to be responsive to the needs of all ākonga , particularly in multi-level classrooms

explore ways to strengthen learning-centred partnerships with the school community to enhance local context coverage in the curriculum and to drive schoolwide improvement, including attendance

strengthen practices, systems, and processes to support learners with additional needs, emphasising accelerated learning.

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

Within six months:

review assessment tools and practices to ensure effective use of these tools for responsive, explicit teaching instruction to improve the level and quality of ākonga outcomes across the school

implement use of literacy and numeracy goals and progressions in teaching and learning programmes, assessment and reporting practices so that ākonga and their whānau know next steps in learning.

Every six months:

rigorously analyse and scrutinise schoolwide achievement, attendance and wellbeing data to understand the impact of teaching practice and programmes on ākonga outcomes and to inform planning

analysed ākonga progress and attendance data is reported to the board and scrutinised to inform decisions about teaching and learning

whānau voice is collected as part of schoolwide evaluation to inform improvement actions.

Annually:

board and staff rigorously analyse and scrutinise schoolwide attendance, achievement and wellbeing data to understand the impact of teaching practice and programmes on ākonga outcomes, and to inform decision making for the next school year

focus a robust professional growth cycle on continuous improvement of practice, leading to improved outcomes for all ākonga , especially for those most at risk of underachievement

review and evaluate the effectiveness of the school curriculum and teaching practices to engage ākonga and support improved outcomes

the school board to implement a process of self-evaluation to ensure the effectiveness of their own performance.

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

improved ākonga outcomes in reading, writing, and mathematics; senior ākonga achieving NCEA endorsements and UE

strengthened systems and processes of internal evaluation that result in improved schoolwide practices and outcomes for all ākonga

strengthened, learning-centred partnerships between the school, ākonga , whānau and community resulting in improved outcomes

improved regular attendance for all ākonga .

Recommendation to the Ministry of Education

ERO will discuss with the Ministry of Education provision of support for:

staff development to accelerate progress and improve achievement outcomes in reading writing and mathematics for Years 9 and 10

strengthening systems, processes and teaching capacity for learning support in Years 1 to 10, particularly for those most at risk of under achievement.

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 Director of Schools (Acting)

28 March 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

Read this report on ero.govt.nz →