Te Kauhua

When Henderson Intermediate staff were open and honest about the issues of Māori student achievement with whānau, they received an immediate response of support.

For three schools in the Christchurch region, the opportunity to operate as a cluster provided the stimulus for professional learning.

Principal Anne Brokenshire and facilitator Kylie Coulbeck reflect on what is now more evident as a result of the professional learning that staff have undertaken.

A feature of school structure at Te Kura Tuarua o Waihora – Hillmorton High School, are the vertical form classes, or tutor groups. Students and staff attribute much of the supportive and responsive school environment to the effective use of these structures.

At Te Kura Tuarua o Waihora – Hillmorton High School, a distributed leadership model was deliberately applied to the implementation of professional development in order to encourage school-wide acceptance and adoption of new practices.

At Te Kura Tuarua o Waihora – Hillmorton High School, an analysis of student data revealed a pressing need to address issues of Māori student achievement. Teachers took ownership of the issues and sought solutions through an action research model.

Lincoln High School's NCEA's data illustrated that Māori students were grossly underachieving. As a result, the professional development model of Te Kauhua was established, based on research that showed what works well for Māori.

At Henderson Intermediate, we see the beginnings of a successful push by Te Kauhua facilitators to engage whānau, by organising whānau hui, where data on Māori students’ attendance and achievement was shared.

At Hillmorton High School, we see the beginnings of a successful push by Te Kauhua facilitators to engage whānau, by organising whānau hui, where data on Māori students’ attendance and achievement was shared.

In this clip we see the benefits of teachers, students and whānau coming together to set goals – and to celebrate success in learning.