Charter and Annual Plan 2012

Contents

Overview from the Chair and Chief Executive................................................................................3

Establishment, legislative framework and governance..................................................................5

Vision...........................................................................................................................................6

Purpose........................................................................................................................................6

Core values and behaviours..........................................................................................................6

What we do..................................................................................................................................7

Our students and community........................................................................................................8

Enrolment numbers..........................................................................................................................9

Guiding principles.......................................................................................................................10

Māori student achievement........................................................................................................11

Implementation of National Standards........................................................................................13

Our structure..............................................................................................................................14

Our stakeholders.........................................................................................................................14

Strategic context.........................................................................................................................16

Contribution to the education sector..............................................................................................16Our strategic direction...................................................................................................................17

Key initiatives.............................................................................................................................19

Performance measures and standards.........................................................................................22

Early Childhood Service Charter..................................................................................................29

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Overview from the Chair and Chief Executive

Paetāwhiti e Te kāinga ō mātiro Ngā pae tata e Whakamaua kia tina TINA! ā Toi o ngā rangi eHe kahurangi mo te aho O te kura pounamu

‘Tis the far horizonThe home of aspirations yet to be accomplishedWhile the goals of todayLet them be pursued and achieved

A compelling urge from highest potentialA prized gift emanating forthLike the treasured aspirationsof radiant greenstone.

The key focus for 2012 will be on embedding the changes in our service delivery that we have developed during the past two years and on Te Kura’s place in New Zealand communities as a partner and provider of highly personalised, authentic learning.

Our authentic learning approach will be ‘business as usual’ for 2012, following a successful developmental phase in 2010 and wider implementation in 2011. While Te Kura is in an ideal position to personalise learning, authentic learning allows us to take that one step further and build on the teaching and learning practices in curriculum areas such as technology, where learning is achieved through the student’s real life experiences. We have adapted ideas from the international Big Picture Learning movement and applied them in a distance learning context by building a learning programme around the student’s passions and goals and then working with the student, whānau and community to facilitate real life learning experiences. These experiences could be through a Gateway or STAR programme, shadowing someone who works in the student’s field of interest, or an internship in a workplace.

A vital element of authentic learning is having a presence in our students’ communities rather than standing apart from them. During 2011 we continued to strengthen our presence in the four regions – Northern, Central North, Central South and Southern – which allowed us to develop a number of relationships with regional and national organisations that are able to work with us to support our students’ learning. While our resources are limited, we can be more effective when we work in partnership with other agencies. An example of this is a very successful partnership in Whanganui with the local public health organisation, which has enabled us to have a learning advisor based in Whanganui who can give greater support to our students there. In 2012 we hope to build on what we have achieved over the past two years and create new partnerships that will benefit students.

Our regional presence has also allowed us to connect with students in different ways through regular or one-off tutorials, setting up advisories where students can meet with a Te Kura teacher or liaison teacher, and subject-focused event days where students can get practical experience in subjects like chemistry under the supervision of a teacher. We will continue to offer these experiences to students in 2012.

One area in which we have not been able to make significant inroads into is Māori student achievement. Our achievement results for NCEA and National Standards show that non- Māori students are achieving at higher rates than Māori students. The Board has reaffirmed its commitment to improving Māori student achievement and over the next two years Te Kura will focus on building relationships with iwi and hapu, providing authentic learning opportunities for students, building staff capability, embedding language,

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culture and identity across all our services and being accountable for everything we do so that we can increase the level of achievement of our Māori students.

Like schools around the country, Te Kura is impacted by the changes to NCEA standards and the implementation of National Standards. Updating our course material to reflect the new standards for NCEA Levels 1, 2 and 3 is a significant undertaking for Te Kura, involving many staff and a significant financial investment. That work will continue throughout 2012 as we work on NCEA Level 3 material and complete any remaining Level 2 course materials. 2012 is also the final year in a three year implementation plan for the National Standards, when the focus will be on increasing teachers’ knowledge and understanding of the Standards. In addition, we will be implementing our literacy strategy with an initial focus on Māori students, who are achieving at much lower levels than non- Māori students.

A new student management system, planned to be implemented in 2011, will be a priority during the first term of 2012, which will see a significant amount of work undertaken across the school in the lead up to the new go-live date in March. All staff will receive training in the new system, which will improve reporting across the school, particularly in the area of student achievement.

Patricia McKelvey, CNZM MBE Mike Hollings

Chair Chief Executive

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Establishment, legislative framework and governance

The Correspondence School (Te Kura) was set up in 1922 to provide education at primary school level for 83 students living in remote areas. Seven years later it expanded to cater for secondary school students. Since then the school has grown and developed to meet the changing demands placed on it as its role in the education sector has evolved over time.

We are New Zealand’s largest education provider in the early childhood and compulsory education sectors. We also provide education programmes for adult learners who are returning to qualification-based learning.

The Ministry of Education funds Te Kura in accordance with section 81A of the Education Act 1989. Funding is based on student enrolments and engagement.

The enrolment of students is governed by sections 7 and 7A of the Education Act 1989. Our enrolment policy is reviewed annually by the Ministry of Education and the Board of Trustees, and is published by Gazette notice. Students who meet the policy criteria may enrol as government-funded students. Other students may enrol as fee-paying students, subject to other entry criteria.

Te Kura is governed by a Board of Trustees, the composition of which is determined by the Minister of Education in accordance with section 95 of the Education Act 1989. The Board is supported by the Risk Assurance Committee and the Employers Committee, which between them deal with much of the detailed work prior to consideration by the Board.

Board membersTrish McKelvey (Chair)Wayne BainbridgeDon BlakeneyRoger DrummondJohn Nisbet (Te Kura staff member)Nori ParataJacky StaffordRoger Taylor (Deputy Chair)

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Vision

Our students achieve their potential.

Purpose

We provide our students with anytime, anywhere personalised learning.

Core values and behaviours

Our values describe the way we go about our work.

We take personal responsibility for our performance and the achievement of our students.

We reflect the values of rangimarie (peace, serenity, calmness), and aroha (compassion/ empathy).

We are respectful, courteous and good humoured in all our interactions and relationships.

We are innovative and responsive to the needs of our students and their whānau/families.

We communicate openly and honestly, and respect alternative perspectives.

We support and encourage each other, share knowledge and ideas, and work collaboratively for the benefit of our students.

We respect all our people and the contribution they make to the organisation.

We support each other’s need for work/life balance.

We value diversity and encourage individuality.

We take the time to celebrate the successes of our students and colleagues.

We learn from our experiences, and take responsibility for our ongoing learning.

The vision and values of the New Zealand Curriculum 2007 are key drivers for Te Kura in all our interactions with students and form the basis of our pedagogy and curriculum development.

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What we do

Te Kura provides educational services to early childhood, primary and secondary level students for whom we are the best current option. Our full-time students range from the traditional geographically remote families to urban students who enrol with us for a wide variety of reasons. We also provide specialist subjects for dual-enrolled students attending other schools who do not have access to a broad curriculum and supplementary services to students with special needs.

We work with families, communities and other agencies to enhance our students’ engagement and achievement. We are developing our capacity to use e-learning as a means of connecting with our students and other groups to overcome some of the barriers associated with distance learning.

Among our students are:

(a) students whose access to a local face-to-face school/early childhood centre is currently not practicable

(b) agency-referred for special conditions/disengaged students

(c) students attending a face-to-face school, which needs support to offer a broad year 9 – 13 curriculum

(d) students attending a face-to-face school, which requires supplementary curriculum adaptation services while it builds special education capability

(e) young adults, aged up to 19 years

(f) adult learners.

We are also responsible for on-payment of supplementary 0.1/0.2 services for full-time, years 1-13, Ongoing and Reviewable Resourcing Schemes (ORRS) verified students.

We administer on behalf of the Ministry of Education the on-payment of the supervisors’ allowance to eligible supervisors of our full-time students.

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Our students and community

The circumstances of Te Kura students are many and varied. This diversity is evident in terms of their age and ethnicity, location, educational need and the level of support available to each student.

In 2011 Te Kura had a cumulative roll of close to 27,000 with around 14,000 students enrolled at any one time. While most were of secondary school age, the school’s students ranged from pre-schoolers to senior citizens from all parts of New Zealand and overseas.

Te Kura must provide for the learning needs of all our students and address the expectations of their learning supervisors, families and whānau. Te Kura has a sizeable Māori community, with Māori students comprising approximately 30 per cent of full-time primary and approximately 45 per cent of full-time secondary enrolments. Our Māori Responsiveness Strategy recognises the school’s need to engage, develop and support Māori learners to be successful and to do so in ways that support their identity as Māori. While the roll still includes those who are geographically isolated, itinerant or living overseas, Te Kura students are increasingly those for whom a face-to-face school is not currently the best option. This includes students who have been alienated or excluded from a face-to-face school, those who have been referred by Group Special Education, young parents and students who have been referred by Child, Youth and Family. Together, these students make up 61% of our full-time roll.

Our focus is on working with students, their families, whānau and communities to provide effective teaching and personalised learning. We aim to have Student Education Plans (SEPs) in place for all full-time students that record their agreed aspirational goals. Each SEP is developed through negotiation between the learning advisor, the student and their supervisor. Regular review of a student’s SEP measures progress made and provides the opportunity for setting new goals.

Regionally-based event days, advisories and tutorials are organised by staff who know their students and their families, and the schools, agencies and community groups that are available to support the students’ learning. These events help Te Kura students develop their practical work, social and relationship-building skills within a local context. Parallel programmes for learning supervisors augment the skills they use when working with their students. Regional Reference Groups ensure all our stakeholders have the chance to hear more about what is happening at their school and provide feedback.

Te Kura also has a substantial number of dual-enrolled students from primary and secondary schools, enrolled for curriculum access, adaptation or extension. Through these enrolments the school has developed solid working partnerships with many of the country’s primary and secondary schools. Each of these partnerships is based on a Service Level Agreement (SLA) that formalises each party’s responsibilities for the student’s education.

While early childhood enrolments encompass a diversity of lifestyle and socio-economic backgrounds, they continue to be drawn mainly from rural areas. Most of these students go on to attend their local primary school. As part of the Ministry of Education (the Ministry) programme to increase participation in early childhood education, a new gateway was introduced in 2011 to enable children who are ineligible under any other early childhood gateway to enrol at Te Kura with a Ministry referral.

Our roll includes a large number of young adult students – those aged 16 or over who have already left the schooling system. Students enrolled under this gateway may remain enrolled up to and including the end of the year in which they turn 19.

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Enrolment numbers

Enrolment type 2011 actual cumulative

enrolments1

2012 forecast cumulative

enrolments1

2011 actual equivalent full time students

(EFTS)2

2012 forecast equivalent full time students

(EFTS)Early Childhood 935 928 709 704Primary Dual 1,108 1,195 403 435Primary Full-time 1,013 1,112 659 724Primary Fee Payers 3 52 50Secondary Dual 10,854 4 11,066 2,499 2,548Secondary Full-time 3,219 3,087 1,817 1,743Secondary Fee Payers 3 197 200Young Adults 5,327 5,334 1,418 1,420Adults 5 4,191 4,086 441 430Total 26,896 27,058 7,946 8,004

1. These figures (as at 11 Nov) represent the total number of enrolments throughout the year, not a count of students. Final enrolment figures for 2011 will be updated at year-end.

2. Total EFTs as at 31 October 2011. Final EFTs totals for 2011 will be updated at year-end.3. Fee payers do not generate EFTS.4. Secondary Dual actual enrolment numbers for 2011 (as at 11 Nov) are made up of:

2,909 Attached units (includes alternative education, teen parent units and activity centres)2,413 Special needs (includes regional health schools, remedial, language for ethnic, gifted, special schools

and exchange students) 5,532 Other reasons (includes subject not available, small senior classes, emergency staffing, reintegration/

transitional).5. Adult student numbers include students from the Department of Corrections.

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Guiding principles

Te Kura implements and complies with the National Education Goals (NEGs) and the National Administration Guidelines (NAGs).

We ensure our students are given an education which will enhance their learning, build on their needs and respect their ethnic and cultural heritage.

Our purpose is to:

improve the achievement of all students as well as focus on addressing underachievement recognise the differing needs of different groups of students, including those with special education

needs and disabilities target education programmes and learning support to students’ education needs and support

requirements be committed to the critical relationship between the student, teacher and family/whānau focus on parent, whānau and building community-based capability to support learning recognise and respond to regional differences respond positively to changing expectations of students, parents and communities.

We assess and report on student progress and achievement to our stakeholders, our Māori communities and iwi, and our community as a whole.

We aim to develop organisational capability and to promote high levels of staff performance to support the effective and efficient delivery of education to our students.

We operate on a sustainable financial basis. We allocate our resources according to sound educational and financial principles, having as the basis the best possible achievement outcomes for students.

We maintain a strategic plan and an annually updated annual plan, including goals and targets, and report on these annually.

We document how the National Education Guidelines are being implemented, maintain an ongoing programme of self-review and comply with all general legislation requirements.

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Māori student achievement

Ngā paetae o ngā ākonga Māori

In 2011, Te Kura reviewed new research on raising Māori student achievement, contributed to internal and external stakeholder reviews, built relationships with key Māori educationalists and participated in development programmes such as He Kākano so that we could align our planning, people and resources to raise Māori student achievement.

This is a very challenging task, and we acknowledge that our current results confirm that this is a challenge. The next two years will be focused on building relationships, providing authentic learning opportunities for students, building staff capability, embedding language, culture and identity across all our services and being accountable for the services we provide so that we can begin to see a significant rise in Māori student achievement at Te Kura.

We see the distinct role that whānau, hapū and iwi have in the successful outcomes of Māori student achievement and acknowledge that there are many critical issues facing Māori students today. So we have embedded in our strategy a focus on providing authentic learning pathways for Māori students in the secondary schooling and tertiary education systems.

Our Māori Responsiveness Strategy for 2010-2013 ensures our vision, goals, and outcomes are consistent with Ka Hikitia (the Māori Education Strategy from the Ministry of Education) and the key educational strategies in Aotearoa to meet the aspirations of Māori students to succeed as Māori. Our strategy includes the following aims.

Foundation Years for Māori Increase participation in early childhood education. Improve literacy and numeracy for Māori students in their first years of school. Strengthen home school partnerships with Māori whānau focused on learning.

Young Māori Engaged in Learning Improve Māori students’ access to appropriate teaching and learning specifically in years 9 - 10. Increase Māori students’ involvement, responsibility and decision-making about future pathways,

and authentic learning. Build staff knowledge of Māori education pedagogy and mātauranga Māori. Expand staff relationships with Māori students, their whānau, the community and iwi Māori.

Māori Language in Education Increase effective teaching and learning of, and through, te reo Māori. Develop a Strategic Māori Language Plan and an investment plan. Broaden staff skills and competencies in the application of te reo and mātauranga Māori.

Organisational Success Improve staff understanding of the Māori Responsiveness Strategy and how it applies to their

work. Build culturally responsive organisational leadership through participating in the He Kakano

programme. Build Te Kura’s capacity and confidence to lift performance for and with Māori.

Use evidence deliberately to focus decisions and investments on what works for Māori students.

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Build relationships with iwi, hapū, whānau and Māori organisations.

Each wāhanga in Te Kura has aligned its annual plan with specific activities that work towards achieving the vision, goals, and strategic priorities of the Māori Responsiveness Strategy. We will also support staff to align their activities with key performance indicators so we are more accountable for our outcomes.

Te Kura is focused on reaching a collective outcome of enabling students to achieve their educational aspirations as Māori. Much work remains to be done to clarify, organise and raise Māori student achievement. However, we believe that our Māori Responsiveness Strategy 2010-2013 will support the achievement and realisation of these goals.

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Implementation of National Standards

In 2010 the Te Kura Board made a commitment to implement the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics for students in years 1-8, according to the National Education Guidelines. Te Kura aims to effectively use National Standards to support improvements in students’ progress and achievement.

Over 2011 Te Kura teachers undertook ongoing professional development designed to ensure they have sufficient knowledge and understanding of the National Standards to effectively support student progress and achievement. They set goals with each student around their achievement and progress. A new reporting system was implemented for years 1 to 8 students and we successfully reported on each child’s progress and achievement against National Standards to parents, families and whānau, and to the Ministry of Education.

To date, three reports on student achievement against the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics have been prepared. The most recent is the 2011 mid-year analysis of achievement data, which shows that over 60% of Te Kura students are working at or above the standard for their year level. The percentage goes down as the year level goes up. For those working above their standard, the majority are one year above. For those working below, most are one year below but many are two years below their year level.

In 2012 we will continue to work with teachers to increase knowledge and understanding of the National Standards to effectively support student progress and achievement. A specific focus will be on increasing the accuracy of the overall teacher judgment of student achievement. We will continue to report to parents using plain language on their child’s achievement and progress. Our annual report will provide an update on progress made in relation to the targets set for student achievement.

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Our structure

Our management structure is detailed in the diagram below.

Chief Executive Mike Hollings

Learner Services Wahanga Authentic Learning Manager Curriculum Manager Early Childhood Manager Regional Managers (4)

Chief Advisor to the CE Margaret Gamlin

CE’s Office Wahanga

Chief Operating Officer Viv Rogers (Acting)

Operations and Performance

Wahanga

Senior Advisor Maori Education

Sonya Bishara

Te Kura is organised into three wahanga (areas) – Learner Services, Operations and Performance, and the Chief Executive’s office. The Chief Executive and the Board are supported by the Chief Advisor.

The Senior Leadership Team has responsibility for the overall leadership and strategic direction of the school, and comprises the Chief Executive, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Advisor, Chair of the Learner Services Rūnanga, a representative from the Operations and Performance management team, and the Communications Specialist (ex officio). Te Kura has the equivalent of approximately 450 full-time staff members and 160 teacher aides, around 29% of whom are based in regional offices outside Wellington.

Our stakeholders

We work in partnership with students, their families and whānau, schools, a number of government agencies, organisations and communities. Some of our key stakeholders include:

alternative education providers Auckland University of Technology Authentic Learning external stakeholder group (national) Big Picture International Careers New Zealand Child, Youth and Family city councils Deloitte (Te Kura external auditor) Department of Corrections district health boards early childhood education providers Education Review Office

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Immigration New Zealand industry training organisations iwi KPMG (Te Kura internal auditor) Leadership Development Centre Learning Media Literacy Aotearoa Ministry of Education Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs Ministry of Social Development Ministry of Youth Development New Zealand Educational Institute New Zealand Post Primary Teachers’ Association New Zealand Qualifications Authority New Zealand Police New Zealand Teachers Council Port Nicholson Settlement Block Trust schools e.g. King’s College service suppliers State Services Commission Te Kete Ipurangi – The Online Learning Centre Te Puni Kōkiri – Ministry of Māori Development Tertiary Education Commission tertiary providers Te Runanga Nui o Nga Kura Kaupapa Māori o Aotearoa the business community The Correspondence School Parents’ and Supervisors’ Association of Te Aho o

Te Kura Pounamu The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand Victoria University of Wellington wananga Whanganui Regional Primary Health Organisation Youthline.

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Strategic context

Contribution to the education sector

The Government has determined an end outcome for the broader education sector which is to have a world-leading education system that equips all New Zealanders with the knowledge, skills and values to be successful citizens in the 21st century. This is what the Government aspires to achieve for society in terms of education. Within this context, the Government seeks to raise education standards at all levels to ensure equity of opportunity for all young people.

The Ministry of Education’s priorities for the sector include increasing opportunities for children to participate in high-quality early childhood education, with a particular focus on increased rates of participation for Māori students, Pasifika students and students from low socio-economic communities. The Ministry has similar expectations that every child achieves literacy and numeracy levels that enable their success, again with a particular focus on improved achievement for Māori students, Pasifika students, students from low socio-economic school communities and students with special education needs.

We have made changes to the ways in which we connect with our students, their families, communities and other agencies, that reflect our commitment to contributing to the realisation of a more meaningful and relevant 21st century education system in New Zealand.

The school’s strategic goals and priorities fit within and align to the Ministry’s own priorities and the wider education sector end outcome. In particular, the development of the school’s strategic focus and delivery of education has been influenced by the following significant sector publications:

i) Ministry of Education Statement of Intent 2011/12 – 2016/17

ii) Schooling Strategy 2005-10

iii) New Zealand Curriculum 2007

iv) Secondary Futures

v) Ka Hikitia, Managing for Success, the Māori Education Strategy 2008-2012

vi) Enabling the 21st Century Learner 2006-10

vii) Pathways to the Future, Early Childhood Strategic Plan 2002-2012.

Our strategic thinking has also been informed by the following publications:

Pasifika Education Plan 2009-2012 the Ministry of Education’s Special Education Policy Ministry of Education – Competent Learners @ 16 report the Tertiary Education Strategy 2010-2015 the New Zealand Disability Strategy Youth Development Strategy Aotearoa.

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Our strategic direction

Our strategic plan for 2010-12 outlines the direction Te Kura has taken over the past two years. This 2012 annual plan forms year three of the strategic plan by aligning and supporting the school’s strategic direction.

The intent of the strategic plan comprises our:

Vision Our students achieve their potential

Purpose We provide our students with anytime, anywhere personalised learning

Strategic theme Students first.

The Students First theme conveys our application of the concepts of teaching one student at a time and ‘one size fits one’. The theme also complements the focus on personalised learning encompassed within our purpose. The theme reflects the place of students, their values, context and needs at the centre of all teaching and learning experiences. Students, together with their families, whānau and teachers, are actively involved in creating their own personalised learning pathways and career plans. These recognise their unique potential, talents and strengths, meet their particular mix of requirements and are tailored to ensure they have the opportunity to succeed in their learning and future careers.

Our medium-term strategic direction is centred on three overarching and integrated strategic goals, which are the focus of everything we do, within the context of teaching and learning as core delivery for the school:

Student Presence => Student Engagement => Student Achievement

Underpinning these goals are three strategic priorities which fundamentally change the way Te Kura looks and position the school to realise our vision. These are the key strategic changes that we aim to deliver over the term of the strategic plan. The strategic priorities have guided the development of the key initiatives that are being implemented through our annual planning.

The plan also includes three significant enabling strategies which highlight the key things we need to do across Te Kura to support the achievement of our strategic goals and priorities, and the core delivery of teaching and learning. These cut across every aspect of the school’s work and will be the foundation stones for our future success.

Our strategic framework is summarised in the strategy map that follows.

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Vision Our students achieve their potential

Fully integrated

regional teaching and support

services for full-time students

Authentic and

engaging learning experiences for

full-time students

A distinct service delivery model

for dual students targeted at their

specific needs

Engage, develop and support Maori learners to succeed as Maori

Become a leader in e-learning and utilise technology effectively

throughout the school

Purpose We provide our students with anytime, anywhere personalised learning

Students First

Student Achievement Students achieve their educational and personal goals, enabling them to

participate effectively as members of their communities

Student Presence Students are ready and able to

learn and have personalised learning programmes that

reflect their goals, aspirations and context

Strategic goals: The key things that we need to deliver in order to achieve our vision

Strategic priorities: The key changes we want to make over the term of this plan towards achieving our goals

Key enablers: The things we need to do right across the school to support and enable achievement of our goals and priorities

Ensure our people, systems and processes are adaptive, responsive, and capable of achieving our goals

One student at a time

Student Engagement Students are positively engaged

in their learning and feel connected to, and supported by,

the school and their own communities

Key initiatives

Our key initiatives highlight significant pieces of work that we will undertake during 2012 toward delivery of our core purpose of teaching and learning, and the achievement of our strategic priorities and key enablers. Unless otherwise stated, the initiatives below will be achieved within timeframes and budgets agreed with the Board.

Te Kura’s highest priorities for 2012 are:

Implementation of the Student Management System (SMS)Te Kura is implementing a new SMS system which will bring together the functionality of four older systems into one single system. The SMS was to be implemented in 2011, but due to the complexities of introducing this type of system into Te Kura the implementation has been delayed until March 2012. The new system will have a significant impact on the school’s operations both before and after implementation.

Making sure that staff are ready and able to use the new system with minimal impact on students will be a high priority, so change management will be a significant piece of work both pre and post implementation. Successful implementation of the new SMS is a major contributor to our core service delivery and our key enablers “Become a leader in e-learning and utilise technology effectively throughout the school” and “Ensure our people, systems and processes are adaptive, responsive and capable of achieving our goals”.

NCEA Standards Review Last year Te Kura highlighted the significant work required to re-write and publish NCEA resources. This was in response to the NCEA review by the Ministry of Education and the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA). For Te Kura, the complexity of distance delivery and the necessity to have resources updated and available ahead of the teaching year have put significant pressures on our staffing resource and capacity. To date, this has involved re-writing, proofing and publishing over 900 level 1 resources and beginning the review of 836 level 2 resources.

Te Kura aims to publish the best quality resources to meet students’ needs and initial feedback received from students using the new resources has been positive. Apart from the immediate benefits to students of having resources that are aligned to the New Zealand Curriculum, this work has provided us with an opportunity to look again at the way we develop and publish new resources and to streamline our internal processes for greater efficiency.

In 2012 we will complete the remaining production of our level 2 resources and begin development and production of our NCEA level 3 resources. Further production work will continue into 2013, as will ongoing revision work in response to feedback from students, teachers and further information received from NZQA and the Ministry.

Implementation of National StandardsTe Kura continues to work towards using National Standards effectively to support improvements in students’ progress and achievement. In 2012, we will be in the final stages of our three year implementation plan and the focus will be on continuing to work with teachers to increase knowledge and understanding of the National Standards. A specific focus will be on increasing the accuracy of the overall teacher judgment of student achievement.

Māori Responsiveness StrategyOur Māori Responsiveness Strategy 2010-2013 is the overarching document that describes how we are going to reach our overall strategic outcome of “engage, develop and support Māori students to succeed as Māori”.

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Our focus in 2012 has to be on relationships and partnerships with iwi, hapū, whānau and Māori organisations, embedding culture, identity and language across our services, and increasing authentic learning opportunities for Māori students.

The challenge over the next few years will be embedding a relentless focus on, and accountability for raising Māori student achievement at Te Kura.

In addition, we will also continue to focus on the following activities:

Authentic learningAuthentic learning at Te Kura is becoming increasingly embedded into our teaching and learning processes. It builds on national and international best practice authentic learning which involves skilled learning advisors working closely with students and whānau to establish each student’s interests and passions, and then personalising a programme of learning to support those.

At Te Kura, advisories (learning groups led by learning advisors) support students to explore interests and passions through real life learning experiences. This may lead to learning internships where the student works on a project to support their learning with a business or community group providing the internship. An integral part of authentic learning is student exhibition of their learning to their whānau, advisor and mentor.

In 2011, advisories were established in every region and learning advisors worked with individual students to support them through our authentic learning processes. In 2012 this focus will broaden and intensify as new advisories are established and formalised. Research will be undertaken to track the progress of students who have embarked on the authentic learning programme of learning. Case studies will be completed to showcase the benefits to students and employers. Students highlighted in the case studies will act as role models for other Te Kura students, with their stories featuring in our student magazine Link Up, on our website and internally.

Digital delivery to secondary dual schools/providersWe will continue to work towards digital delivery of all NCEA levels 1-3 courses by 2014. This strategy will be supported by ongoing communications with school principals, emphasising their responsibilities to provide tools to enable their students to access online learning, and the mutual benefit offered through Te Kura providing an equitable and efficient delivery service.

Online Teaching and Learning EnvironmentThe Online Teaching and Learning Environment (OTLE) was implemented in 2011 as part of our aim to “become a leader in e-learning and utilise technology effectively throughout the school”. The functionality offered by OTLE is key to achieving improved student presence, engagement and achievement and offers teachers and students, new teaching and learning tools that lead to a richer experience for all.

In 2012 there will be an increased focus on promoting effective online pedagogy across all current online courses and through the development of new courses. Te Kura already has courses in digital technology and the arts available through OTLE and at least one course will be developed for OTLE in each curriculum area, that is, an increase of at least 8 online courses in 2012. There will be an increased offering in all online courses of collaboration and interaction amongst students.

PartnershipsTe Kura continues to expand partnership arrangements throughout New Zealand with organisations, iwi, schools and other education providers. These partnerships exist, in the main, to facilitate the relationships we have between our school as a secondary provider and tertiary providers (including ITOs). However, we

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have also sought, or been approached, to form partnership arrangements with other educational and iwi groups who are supportive of our authentic learning approach to teaching and learning.

Additionally, Te Kura and the Open Polytechnic have been successful in a joint bid to establish a Trades Academy for roll-out from mid-2012. Our status as a Trades Academy provides 100 places for students, which will complement our current authentic learning programmes that aim to offer seamless secondary/tertiary education for our students.

Strategic planningAs 2012 will be the last year of the Te Kura 2010 – 2012 Strategic Plan we will also be working on the development of a new strategic plan during the year to guide our work from 2013 onwards.

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Performance measures and standards

Te Kura sets a range of internal measures and standards aimed at measuring progress towards our strategic goals of student achievement, student presence and student engagement.

The students enrolled with Te Kura come from a wide range of backgrounds and have differing aspirations, needs and levels of support available to them. The diversity and complexity of our school roll creates an ongoing challenge in terms of measuring and reporting student progress and achievement. Simply aggregating data together at a school-wide level can often create information that is not meaningful or useful in terms of understanding the progress made by specific groups of students.

For 2012, we have been guided by the Ministry’s clear expectations in relation to National Standards that schools focus on specific groups of students for targeted improvement. We have also applied this approach to the other areas we report on. This approach gives us five key annual goals, or areas of measurement, for reporting against in 2012. Regional targets are then included where appropriate.

It is important to note that each region has its own unique mix of students. The regional targets reflect where the priorities within a region require more specific analysis to address areas of concern with particular groups of students. The ability to target interventions more clearly is a key strength of our regionalised approach and also helps to achieve more clarity in reporting progress.

Our targets are based on the latest baseline data available to Te Kura, with comparative results for Māori students shown in brackets. Analysis of this data has greatly influenced the targets set for 2012. In future years, the school will be in a better position to be able to track and analyse this data more closely, alongside the reported outcomes of new partnerships formed with regional and national organisations, to continuously improve the school’s achievement.

Annual goals for 2012

1. Increase the number of students achieving at or above the National Standards for reading, writing and mathematics.

2. Improve achievement in literacy and numeracy for all students.

3. Improve student presence and engagement.

4. Improve engagement, achievement and completion of NCEA.

5. Have an efficient and effective school by ensuring our people, systems and processes are adaptive, responsive and capable of achieving our goals.

1. Increase the number of students achieving at or above the National Standards for reading, writing and mathematics

Background:Analysis of school-wide achievement data for full-time students in years 2 to 8 has identified areas of concern, particularly for our Māori students.

Our data shows that in 2010, a significant proportion of Māori students did not meet the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics when compared with the achievement of all students. In reading, 51% of Māori students met the National Standards compared to 72% of all students and in writing,

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41% of Māori students met the National Standards compared with 64% of all students. Of greatest concern, only 33% of Māori students met the National Standards in mathematics compared with 64% of all students.

Gender differences for students who performed below or well below the National Standards are most evident in writing, where 9% of male students (11% of male Māori students) did not perform as well as their female counterparts.

A range of strategies involving targeted tracking and monitoring of students from mid-year to end-of-year is being developed for each region to monitor student progress and to address areas of significant concern. These strategies will include:

developing processes to record, track and monitor student progress and achievement on a monthly basis.

closer monitoring of individual student progress by learning advisors. focusing on using the e-asTTle test results to raise student awareness of the areas where improvements

could be made.

We aim to decrease the number of students who are below or well below the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics. At the same time, we will continue to aim for overall increases in the number of students achieving at or above National Standards.

A specific focus will be to increase the accuracy of the overall teacher judgment of student achievement.

Targets:

School-wide: The proportion of years 7 and 8 students who are below or well below the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics in 2011 will decrease by 5% in 2012.2011: reading 34% (49%), writing 50% (57%), mathematics 46% (60%).

Northern region: The proportion of full-time students in years 2 to 8 achieving at or above the National Standard in mathematics will increase by 5% from mid-year to end-of-year in 2012.

2011: 65% (43%).

Central North region: Increase the proportion of fulltime students in years 2 to 8 from mid-year to end- of-year 2012 that improve by at least one level in National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics by 5%.

2011: percentage improvement from mid-year to end-of-year: reading 30% (38%), writing 19% (15%), mathematics 32% (33%).

Central South region: Develop appropriate processes to record, track and monitor on a monthly basis, and record the progress and achievement of all full-time students and full-time special education students at mid-year and end-of-year. Monitoring the progress made by Māori students will be a specific focus.

Target: At least 70% of full-time students in years 2 to 8 achieve at or above the National Standards. 2011: reading 72% (44%), writing 63% (44%), mathematics 70% (33%).

Southern region: Develop appropriate processes to record, track and monitor on a monthly basis, and record the progress and achievement of all full-time students at mid-year and end-of-year. Monitoring the progress made by Māori students will be a specific focus.

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Target: At least 60% of full-time Māori students in years 2 to 8 achieve at or above the National Standards in reading, writing and mathematics.

2011: reading 70% (38%), writing 59% (25%), mathematics 54% (6%).

2. Improve achievement in literacy and numeracy for all students

Background:In 2011 Te Kura developed a literacy strategy for 2011/12 and beyond. The imperative for developing a strategy was to address the literacy needs of Te Kura students comes from the demands placed on 21 st century citizens in a global and digital context, the literacy levels required to engage with Te Kura curriculum and resources, and the assessment information we have about the underachievement of many of our students in literacy.

The objectives of our literacy strategy are to: improve the literacy achievement of all students at Te Kura with a particular emphasis on the

achievement of Māori students improve accessibility of the curriculum irrespective of students’ literacy levels deliver personalised literacy programmes to diverse learners.

School-wide intervention that is targeted to the needs of specific groups of students is required to address the needs of our school. In the first phase of the literacy strategy, Te Kura has identified Māori students as its target group. The literacy needs of gifted and talented students, as well as digital literacy will be addressed during the second phase of the strategy.

In response to the changes made by the Ministry and NZQA to the literacy and numeracy requirements for NCEA Level 1, Te Kura has developed a new framework and distinct pathways for students to achieve the new requirements in specified Achievement Standards or new Unit Standards. For both literacy and numeracy, the requirements have changed from 8 credits to 10 credits.

Te Kura has revised its NCEA level 1 resources and in 2012 we will be developing our primary-level literacy resources. In writing, this will be for curriculum levels 1, 2 and 4. In guided reading, this will involve reading levels 12 to 22 and curriculum levels 2 to 4. Numeracy resources will also be reviewed during 2012.

For 2012, each region will focus on targeted groups of students with the aim of lifting their literacy and numeracy levels. Various strategies will be employed, including:

closer monitoring of students who are “well below” their reading age, writing and numeracy levels working intensively with years 1 to 8 Māori students to ensure they move up at least one National

Standard in reading, writing or mathematics during the year setting up additional advisories and targeted event days to attract students who are under-achievers running additional tutorials for years 11 to 13 students encouraging students to complete asTTle and NUMPA tests exploring opportunities to partner with other organisations to enable students in years 1 to 10 to

access literacy and numeracy intervention programmes setting targets for each Māori student to achieve a minimum of 50% of the credits they were enrolled

in and eligible to achieve in 2012. Increased tracking of each student’s progress will be monitored throughout the year to support this initiative.

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In future years, Te Kura will endeavour to analyse literacy and numeracy achievement for each enrolment gateway to enable the school to introduce strategies that will benefit specific groups of students whose achievement levels are of most concern.

Targets:

School-wide: Establish baseline data for each enrolment gateway and develop a new process to specifically monitor student progress in literacy and numeracy from years 6 to 8 and years 9 to 10 in 2012, in preparation for tracking in 2013.

Northern region: Improve literacy achievement of full-time students in years 2 to 8 by increasing the percentage of students who progress to a higher level in 2012 when measured against National Standards in reading and writing.

2011: reading 20% (10%), writing 22% (0%).

Central North region:

Improve literacy and numeracy of full-time students years 7 to 10 who are “well below” their year level by improving their results by a minimum of one level to “below” in the first instance.

Improve the percentage of Māori students who are eligible to gain NCEA level 1 in 2012 to 60%. 2010: 32%.

Central South region: Improve literacy and numeracy achievement, as measured by NZQA results, by 2% for all full-time students in years 11 to 13 by running additional tutorials for students.

2010: Literacy 12% (12%), Numeracy 23% (21%).

Southern region:

Improve literacy and numeracy achievement, as measured by NZQA results, by 2% for all full-time students in years 11 to 13 by running additional tutorials for students.

2010: Literacy 29% (19%), Numeracy 40% (25%).

Encourage supervisors of years 1 to 10 students to access Literacy Aotearoa.

3. Improve student presence and engagement

Background:Two of the three strategic goals which Te Kura aims to achieve are around student presence and engagement. Te Kura aims to ensure that students are able to learn through personalised learning programmes that reflect their goals, aspirations and context. The school works towards having its students positively engaged in their learning, to feel connected to and supported by Te Kura and their own communities.

To measure our progress towards achievement of these two strategic goals, Te Kura focuses on ensuring enrolments are processed as quickly as possible and learning resources are dispatched to students within five working days of being ordered. Although previous years’ targets have largely been achieved, the targets for 2012 will remain the same as 2011. Preparations for implementing the new student management system in March 2012 have been thorough, with processes revised and staff training

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accounted for. The full impact of putting into place a new system for enrolments and resource dispatch will not be known until later in the year. Response times will be closely monitored throughout the year to try to mitigate any risks to the achievement of our targets.

Students, whatever their circumstances, need to engage with our school on a regular basis and our principal method for measuring student engagement is to monitor the amount of assessable work they return. Our non-returners process assists us in monitoring and reducing truancy rates and having students actively engaged in their learning.

The non-returners process will be supported by implementation of specific strategies to improve student engagement and to monitor the number of non-returners. For full-time students, this will include individual follow-up and encouragement to attend advisories for face-to-face engagement. For dual-enrolled students, regional relationship coordinators will provide follow-up with dual schools/providers and in some cases, visit those with significant non-engagement issues to help develop strategies to improve student engagement. Data retrieved from our non-returners process will allow us to monitor monthly averages from March through to September in 2012.

Targets:

Enrolments are processed as quickly as possible.

Target: 87% of all students are enrolled within 10 working days of receipt of enrolment documents.

Enrolment Services will answer all calls successfully with an abandonment level no greater than 3%. Target: Reports on ring time, response time, waiting time, abandonment level and other relevant indicators will be reported quarterly to the Board.

Students’ learning resources are dispatched within five working days of being ordered.

Target: 93% of orders.

School-wide: Improve the level of student engagement of full-time students and dual-enrolled students by decreasing the proportion of students who are removed from the roll due to non-engagement.

Target: full-time students 1.5%; dual-enrolled students 1.5%.

2011 non-returners: full-time students 8% of roll, dual-enrolled students 9.5% of roll.

4. Improve engagement, achievement and completion of NCEA

Background:Analysis of NZQA’s participation-based data for Te Kura’s NCEA students in years 11 to 13 highlights the need to improve engagement and achievement across all levels.

The percentages of all participating students gaining NCEA in 2010 were:

50.5% (41.0%) for level 1 in year 11 65.8% (63.4%) for level 2 in year 12 56.3% (61.9%) for level 3 in year 13.

Students classified as “participating” include those who have results from enough standards to potentially gain an NCEA i.e. if they achieved all their standards they would have gained a certificate.

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For 2012, Te Kura will aim to improve engagement, achievement and subsequent completion of NCEA, with a specific focus on NCEA level 1 in year 11. The engagement levels of this cohort of students will be analysed via student enrolment gateway and specific strategies will be implemented at a regional level throughout 2012, such as:

summarising known achievement information for learning advisors to provide more awareness of each student’s completion status at the time they enrol with Te Kura

setting additional individual targets for Māori students who remain enrolled for the whole year and following up each student’s progress towards achievement of targets

more focused tracking and follow-up of the young adults student group to identify those who are not participating or responding to follow-ups.

Targets:

School-wide: Decrease by 5% the proportion of full-time students and young adults in years 11 to 13 remaining on the roll for 6 months or more, who gain no credits.

2010: full-time 38% (44%), young adults 60% (67%).

Northern region:

Improve completion levels of NCEA by increasing the proportion of “participating” students completing NCEA level 1 in year 11 by 5%.

2010: All Northern 35%, Northern Māori 39%.

Improve Māori student achievement by decreasing the proportion of students gaining fewer than 3 internal credits by 10%, and increasing by 10% the proportion of students gaining 8 or more internal credits by 10%, in the courses they are enrolled in.

2010 internal credits: NCEA Level 1 less than 3 - 81%, 8 or more - 8%

NCEA Level 2 less than 3 - 85%, 8 or more - 7%

NCEA Level 3 less than 3 - 90%, 8 or more - 3%.

Central North region:

Improve completion levels of NCEA by increasing by 10% the proportion of “participating” students completing NCEA level 1 in year 11.

2010: All Central North 52%, Central North Māori 32%.

Improve Māori student achievement by increasing 10% the proportion of students who achieve at least 50% of the credits they were enrolled/eligible for.

2010: 71%.

Central South region:

Improve completion levels of NCEA by increasing by 5% the proportion of “participating” students completing NCEA level 1 in year 11.

2010: All Central South 62%, Central South Māori 65%.

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Improve achievement for full-time students, including Māori students, through application of a strong focus on teachers developing quality relationships with these students and a strong emphasis on holding high expectations, rewarding and recognising effort.

Southern region:

Improve completion levels of NCEA by increasing by 2% the proportion of “participating” students completing NCEA level 1 in year 11.

2010: All Southern 57%, Southern Māori 35%.

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5. Have an efficient and effective school by ensuring our people, systems and processes are adaptive, responsive and capable of achieving our goals

Background:Cross-school collaboration, adaptability and responsiveness can enhance the capability of Te Kura. In fostering a school culture that values and supports those ways of working, we recognise the power of each staff member to contribute to improved organisational performance.

Targets: Te Kura achieves its operating and capital budget targets within variance acceptable to the Chief

Executive and Board.

Target: Te Kura operates within its approved budget.

Te Kura assets will be well-managed and updated according to the replacement cycle.

Target: The Capital Management policy is adhered to.

Te Kura will comply with all statutory, regulatory and audit requirements and the school’s policies and procedures.Targets: Te Kura receives an ‘unqualified opinion’ from Audit NZ. No incidents of imprudence or non-compliance with legislation arise that may compromise the

Board or stakeholders.

Notes to performance measures and standards:

1. Unless otherwise stated all increases or improvements are against the 2011 calendar year. Where baseline data from 2010 has been included e.g. NCEA results, this will be updated with 2011 results once available.

2. Unless otherwise stated a percentage increase means a change in the overall percentage declared, e.g. an improvement from 60% to 62% will be acknowledged as an increase of 2%.

3. “Participating” students are defined as those students included in the NZQA data from Categories 1 and 3, according to the NZQA Manual 2010 (V.4.3) Secondary School Data and Statistics.

Student categories/groups identified in the NZQA qualification statistics breakdown are as follows:

Category 1 – those students who ‘Achieved the Qualification’ during the current year.

Category 2 – those students who ‘Achieved the Qualification’ in a previous year. These students are excluded from the participation denominator for ‘single year’ calculations but are included in cumulative calculations.

Category 3 – these students had sufficient entries (and results from previous years) to gain Level 1 but they fell short of the 80 credits required for Level 1.

Category 4 – these students are not participants. They had insufficient entries (and results from previous years) to gain Level 1.

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Early Childhood Service Charter

Te Tutohinga a Te Ratonga Kohungahunga

Description of the service – He kupu whakaahua mo te RatongaThe Early Childhood Service is a distance education programme for families within New Zealand who have limited or no access to any other licensed and funded early childhood service or centre. Eligibility for enrolment is specified in the school’s enrolment policy as determined by the Ministry of Education from time to time.

Description of the service’s community – He kupu whakaahua mo te Hapori o te RatongaAll enrolments in the Early Childhood Service are based on access criteria. The majority of enrolments are from rural areas where little or no access is available. Other types of enrolments include itinerant families and enrolments for medical reasons or special circumstances, which may also be urban-based families. Some enrolments continue with Te Kura for their schooling, but most go on to attend a local school. The programme aims to accommodate the diversity of lifestyle and socio-economic backgrounds and be flexible enough to operate at varying levels of complexity.

Fees and statement of financial accountabilityParents provide the venue, heating, lighting and supervision. They do not pay fees. The statement of financial accountability is covered in the section Performance measures and standards in this charter and annual plan.

Statement of Desirable Objectives and Practices

Guiding principles – Nga Kaupapa ArahiManagement1 and educators2 of this chartered Early Childhood Service3, in partnership with parents/guardians and whānau, will promote and extend the learning and development of each child attending or receiving the Service, through the provision of quality early childhood education and care.

Te Whāriki, the Ministry of Education's early childhood curriculum policy statement, provides the framework within which educators will develop and implement curriculum which assists all children to grow up as competent and confident learners and communicators, healthy in mind, body, and spirit, secure in their sense of belonging and in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society.

Learning and development – Te Akoranga me te Whakatipuranga1. The educators will enhance children’s learning and development through:

a) relationships and interactions which are responsive, reciprocal, positive and encouragingb) extending children’s thinking and actions through sensitive and informed guidance, interventions

and supportc) respecting children’s preferences and involving children in decisions about their participation in

activitiesd) planning and evaluating the physical environment and providing resources to support the needs of

each child and to facilitate quality curriculum and interactionse) modelling non-discriminatory behaviour and promoting this with childrenf) implementing strategies to include all children.

1 ‘Management’ is the charter holder.2 ‘Educators’ include all trained and untrained personnel who work with children in the service on a regular or formal basis.3 ‘Service’ means licensed early childhood centre or home-based service.

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2. The educators will demonstrate understanding of current theory and principles of learning and development and of the different characteristics of infants, toddlers and young children.

3. The educators will demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the learning and development of each child, identify learning goals for individual children and use this information as a basis for planning, evaluating and improving curriculum programmes.

4. The educators will implement curriculum and assessment practices which:a) reflect the holistic way that children learnb) reflect the reciprocal relationships between the child, people and the learning environmentc) involve parents/guardians and, where appropriate, whānaud) enhance children’s sense of themselves as capable people and competent learners.

5. The educators will plan, implement and evaluate curriculum for children in which:a) their health is promoted and emotional well-being nurtured and they are kept safe from harmb) connecting links with the family and the wider world are affirmed and extended; children know

they have a place and feel comfortable with routines, customs and regular events; and children know the limits and boundaries of acceptable behaviour

c) there are equitable opportunities for learning for each child, irrespective or gender, ability, age, ethnicity or background; children are affirmed as individuals; and children are encouraged to work with and alongside others

d) children develop verbal and non-verbal communication skills for a range of purposes; children experience the stories and symbols of their own and other cultures; and children discover and develop different ways to be creative and expressive

e) children’s play is valued as meaningful learning and the importance of spontaneous play is recognised; children gain confidence in and control of their bodies; children learn strategies for active exploration, thinking and reasoning; and children develop working theories for making sense of the natural, social, physical and material worlds.

Communication and consultation – Te Whakawhitiwhiti Korero me te Korero Whanui6. The management and educators will ensure that communication and consultation with each other and

with parents/guardians, whānau, hapu, iwi and local communities acknowledges and respects all parties’ values, needs and aspirations.

7. The educators will seek information and guidance from specialist services where appropriate, to enable them to work effectively with children and their parents/guardians and whānau.

8. The educators will provide opportunities for parents/guardians and, where appropriate, whānau to:a) feel welcome to discuss concerns and participate in decision-making concerning their childb) discuss both informally and formally their child’s progress, interests, abilities and areas for

development on a regular basis, sharing specific observation-based evidencec) have access to information concerning their child, the operation of the Service and Education

Review Office reports regarding the Service.

Operation and administration – Te Mahinga me te Whakahaerenga9. The management will develop and regularly review a statement of the Service’s philosophy and the

charter, in consultation with educators, parents/guardians and, where appropriate, whānau.

10. The management and educators will implement policies, objectives and practices which:a) reflect the Service’s philosophy, quality curriculum, current theories of learning and development,

the requirements of the Desirable Objectives and Practices and legislation

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b) acknowledge parents/guardians and whānau needs and aspirations for their childc) reflect the unique place of Māori as tangata whenua and the principle of partnership inherent in Te

Tiriti o Waitangid) are inclusive, equitable and culturally appropriatee) are regularly evaluated and modified by an ongoing recorded process of internal review.

11. The management will implement:a) personnel policies which promote quality practices including appointment of competent staff, staff

appraisal and professional development for both management and educatorsb) employment policies which incorporate the principles of being a good employer, including equal

employment opportunitiesc) financial management policies which include budgeting to ensure that policies and objectives are

met.

12. The management will make the audited financial statement available to educators, parents / guardians, whānau, the local community and government, to account for the use of Ministry of Education funding.

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