Sumner School Board Talk
26 May 2015
Dear Parents/Caregivers
Welcome to the latest edition of the Sumner School Board of Trustees' Board Talk.
Years 7&8 students recent Overseas Learning Experience to Samoa
Education Review Office Report
As we mentioned in the Board Talk in February, this year started off at full speed with a visit from the Education Review Office in Week 2 of Term One. We have recently received the report of their findings and feel that it is something that we can all be very proud of and will want to celebrate!
ERO felt that our school benefits from strong community and parent support. They identified good cooperation between teachers, parents and students in deciding students’ learning goals. They confirmed that there are good systems for teachers to identify and monitor pupils who need extra support in order to reach expected levels of progress.
ERO could see that there was a respectful and cooperative culture among staff and that they respond positively to high expectations set by the Board and the parent community. There is good quality reporting back to the Board on student progress.
ERO commended the very effective leadership of our principal Stuart Cameron and the collaborative approach that he takes with the Board, senior leadership and staff.
Good steps have been taken toward integrating Te Reo and Tikanga Maori more effectively and consistently into daily practices and programmes. This continues to be a focus for 2015 in the school.
All these factors mean that our children enjoy a wide range of learning opportunities coming from a rich curriculum and that student achievement at Sumner School in reading, writing and mathematics is very high against the National Standards.
These findings also confirm that good progress has been made in each of the areas that were identified as needing improvement in the 2010 ERO review undertaken.
Areas for focus in the future that have come out of this review are:
· Developing policies to better document staff self-reviews of teaching practice.
· Increasing confidence in teachers’ judgments about students’ achievement against the National Standard in reading, writing and mathematics by
working with other schools to compare how well these judgments are being made.
· Building understanding among staff and parents about modern teaching practice and learning environments.
The Board would like to thank the staff and management, particularly Stuart Cameron and Tracey Mora for the huge amount of time and effort put into preparation for what was a very successful visit.
We continue with a 4-5 yearly cycle for the next review which reflects ERO’s view that Sumner School is operating effectively and that our children are receiving a high quality of education.
A great result!
To read the full report, read more.
Appointments
We are very fortunate to have had Jill Pears join our Senior Management TeamMangemnt Team in Week 4 of Term 2 as Associate Principal. Jill comes to us most recently from Linwood College where she was Assistant Principal of Years 7-8. She has a strong background in music having been a professional musician for a number of years. She has a passion for robotics in schools as well as a deep interest in the development of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education. It will be wonderful to have her input in many aspects of the life of our school.
We would also like to welcome Kellen Gillstrom (Room 14) and Kim Ristrom (Room 3) to our teaching team.
Finally,We have also recently welcomed a new member to the Board. Libby Studholme was co-opted onto the Board in May to particularly focus on community liaison, an area in which she has a lot of experience.
Parent Education and Strategic Planning
In line with the areas of focus for the Board as detailed in the ERO report, we feel that it is timely this year for our school and parent community to be taking a look at where education may be heading in the future. The speed of change in the world today and in education is unprecedented and we want to keep pace with these changes.
This is important preparation for us as a school community if we want to make the most of the opportunities that we will have as the Ministry of Education’s’s Renewal Programme is actioned at Sumner School in 2020. This time frame allows staff to keep developing learning practices that will serve our children well in the future and for us all to deepen our understanding about how education is changing and what that might mean for the physical environment of our school.
As many of you will be aware, the Board has launched a website called ‘Learning for Change’ which is linked to our Sumner School website. There are many interesting and thought-provoking links on that site that explore aspects of the nature of the world that our children are growing into and what they need in order to be equipped to meet the challenges of that world.
Our first Parent Education evening was held on May 13th where we heard a lot of valuable insights from Mark Osborne of Core Education about where we have come from and where we are going in education. For those of you who were unable to attend that night, there is a recording of the presentation on the ‘Learning for Change’ website.
On June 16th, the Board is excited to host Lucy Hone from our own community as well as some visitors from Riverdale; a renowned school in New York City, speaking on Character Education – how to promote resilience and well-being at school. This is so important for our children. This promises to be a fascinating evening and we would love to see as many parents there as possible!
For more information on Sumner School: Learning for Change click here
Redcliffs Submission
It is little more than a month before the July 1st deadline for submissions to the Education Minister Hekia Parata.
The Board fully supports Redcliffs School submission to keep their school open.
Please consider making a submission in support of the Redcliffs School being able to return to their site. The closure of Redcliffs School would have a huge impact on their community and the communities of the Bays area.
There is more information about how to make a submission on the Sumner School homepage and background information including the report from the Ministry to the Minister on the Redcliffs School website.
This need not take a lot of time but could help make a big difference to our wider community.
Kind regards,
Yvonne Hall
Sumner School Board Chair
As we mentioned in the Board Talk in February, this year started off at full speed with a visit from the Education Review Office in Week 2 of Term One. We have recently received the report of their findings and feel that it is something that we can all be very proud of and will want to celebrate!
ERO felt that our school benefits from strong community and parent support. They identified good cooperation between teachers, parents and students in deciding students’ learning goals. They confirmed that there are good systems for teachers to identify and monitor pupils who need extra support in order to reach expected levels of progress.
ERO could see that there was a respectful and cooperative culture among staff and that they respond positively to high expectations set by the Board and the parent community. There is good quality reporting back to the Board on student progress.
ERO commended the very effective leadership of our principal Stuart Cameron and the collaborative approach that he takes with the Board, senior leadership and staff.
Good steps have been taken toward integrating Te Reo and Tikanga Maori more effectively and consistently into daily practices and programmes. This continues to be a focus for 2015 in the school.
All these factors mean that our children enjoy a wide range of learning opportunities coming from a rich curriculum and that student achievement at Sumner School in reading, writing and mathematics is very high against the National Standards.
These findings also confirm that good progress has been made in each of the areas that were identified as needing improvement in the 2010 ERO review undertaken.
Areas for focus in the future that have come out of this review are:
· Developing policies to better document staff self-reviews of teaching practice.
· Increasing confidence in teachers’ judgments about students’ achievement against the National Standard in reading, writing and mathematics by
working with other schools to compare how well these judgments are being made.
· Building understanding among staff and parents about modern teaching practice and learning environments.
The Board would like to thank the staff and management, particularly Stuart Cameron and Tracey Mora for the huge amount of time and effort put into preparation for what was a very successful visit.
We continue with a 4-5 yearly cycle for the next review which reflects ERO’s view that Sumner School is operating effectively and that our children are receiving a high quality of education.
A great result!
To read the full report, read more.
Appointments
We are very fortunate to have had Jill Pears join our Senior Management TeamMangemnt Team in Week 4 of Term 2 as Associate Principal. Jill comes to us most recently from Linwood College where she was Assistant Principal of Years 7-8. She has a strong background in music having been a professional musician for a number of years. She has a passion for robotics in schools as well as a deep interest in the development of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) education. It will be wonderful to have her input in many aspects of the life of our school.
We would also like to welcome Kellen Gillstrom (Room 14) and Kim Ristrom (Room 3) to our teaching team.
Finally,We have also recently welcomed a new member to the Board. Libby Studholme was co-opted onto the Board in May to particularly focus on community liaison, an area in which she has a lot of experience.
Parent Education and Strategic Planning
In line with the areas of focus for the Board as detailed in the ERO report, we feel that it is timely this year for our school and parent community to be taking a look at where education may be heading in the future. The speed of change in the world today and in education is unprecedented and we want to keep pace with these changes.
This is important preparation for us as a school community if we want to make the most of the opportunities that we will have as the Ministry of Education’s’s Renewal Programme is actioned at Sumner School in 2020. This time frame allows staff to keep developing learning practices that will serve our children well in the future and for us all to deepen our understanding about how education is changing and what that might mean for the physical environment of our school.
As many of you will be aware, the Board has launched a website called ‘Learning for Change’ which is linked to our Sumner School website. There are many interesting and thought-provoking links on that site that explore aspects of the nature of the world that our children are growing into and what they need in order to be equipped to meet the challenges of that world.
Our first Parent Education evening was held on May 13th where we heard a lot of valuable insights from Mark Osborne of Core Education about where we have come from and where we are going in education. For those of you who were unable to attend that night, there is a recording of the presentation on the ‘Learning for Change’ website.
On June 16th, the Board is excited to host Lucy Hone from our own community as well as some visitors from Riverdale; a renowned school in New York City, speaking on Character Education – how to promote resilience and well-being at school. This is so important for our children. This promises to be a fascinating evening and we would love to see as many parents there as possible!
For more information on Sumner School: Learning for Change click here
Redcliffs Submission
It is little more than a month before the July 1st deadline for submissions to the Education Minister Hekia Parata.
The Board fully supports Redcliffs School submission to keep their school open.
Please consider making a submission in support of the Redcliffs School being able to return to their site. The closure of Redcliffs School would have a huge impact on their community and the communities of the Bays area.
There is more information about how to make a submission on the Sumner School homepage and background information including the report from the Ministry to the Minister on the Redcliffs School website.
This need not take a lot of time but could help make a big difference to our wider community.
Kind regards,
Yvonne Hall
Sumner School Board Chair