Outstanding ERO Review For The College
Outstanding ERO Review For The College
August 09, 2019 at 5:00 PM
An Education Review Office (ERO) evaluation was carried out last term to review the performance of the College. We are proud to receive very positive feedback confirming that the programmes we run, the rapport between staff and students, and the overall morale and sense of well-being at our College campus is of the highest order.
ERO is the government department that evaluates and reports on the education and care of students in schools and early childhood services throughout New Zealand. The appointed reviewers are professional evaluators who have had many years of teaching experience before joining ERO. All have specific training in education evaluation. The purpose of the review is to evaluate and report on the quality of the education and care of students in individual schools and support a culture of ongoing improvement.
The College was assessed on its premises, staffing, equipment, curriculum, tuition standards and other obligations such as health and safety, provisions around international students, boarding facilities and teacher registrations. It has been five years since our last evaluation, and we are very pleased to report that the College has been reviewed most favourably.
In the initial verbal feedback, the reviewers, Ann Northover, Bryan Berry, Pauline James and Kirsty Holland congratulated Saint Kentigern on their results and noted that ‘the students are great ambassadors for the College.’ Ann said she was impressed with how ‘settled and positive’ the College environment is. Bryan backed this up by saying, ‘the College runs like clockwork.’
The reviewers were impressed with our premises and commented on the spaciousness of the grounds, and the quality of the specialist facilities and teaching and learning spaces available to the students. They particularly mentioned the Goodfellow Centre and how the learning commons is ‘more than just a library.’
They remarked on the quality of staff and made particular note that teachers are ‘well-served by regular professional development.’ It was also noted that the College has ‘good retention of staff, helping to ensure continuity of culture and ethos.’
They said the College is well-resourced and has reliable equipment ‘ready to go’ in all classrooms for students and staff to use. There is good use of ICT to support teaching and learning. Special mention was given to the Fitness Centre as a ‘stand out’ facility with ‘very good practice.’
When it came to curriculum, the reviewers commented that the Saint Kentigern Values, Mission Statement and Special Character is ‘well-infused in everyday life at the College.’ They found the students to be ‘thankful and respectful’, and that there are many opportunities for them to exercise leadership and offer service. They remarked on the ‘strong and varied co-curricular programme which adds to the curriculum offer.’
They noted that the dual qualification pathways, NCEA and the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma are equally valued and the separate gender classes in Years 7-10 provide ‘opportunities to differentiate but work together where appropriate.’ The expectations of academic achievement are clear with a focus for students to achieve to the very best of their ability. There is also clear recognition that student well-being is an important contributor to achievement outcomes and that the ‘well-being of students is a shared responsibility with multiple layers of pastoral support which has a learning focus.’
The reviewers stated that the tuition standards are excellent with a very good quality of teaching across all learning areas, and that there are ‘very positive interactions between students and teachers at all levels, meaning students are well-engaged in learning tasks.’ They summarised by saying, ‘Students are being taught by good, well-qualified teachers in good learning environments with teaching programmes which enable them to achieve the qualifications they choose.’
All other areas were also well supported as the reviewers made note of the sound health and safety protocols and that EOTC (Education Outside The Classroom) is well-co-ordinated. Provision for international students was also reviewed and found to be ‘high quality’ with the students being very positive about the support they receive. It was also reported that our boarders are very positive about their experience, with a ‘surprising silence’ when asked if anything could be improved!
We sincerely thank Ann, Bryan, Pauline and Kirsty for their feedback. The 2019 ERO Report is a very successful outcome for the College and reflects the hard work and dedication of all involved to ensure Saint Kentigern achieves the very best outcomes for our students.
