Principals from Ōtara share how this year’s Ministry of Education-facilitated teacher-only days are enhancing the professional development of their teaching workforce and fostering connections between schools to address shared challenges and celebrate successes.
In a workshop on skilled reading, kaiako looked at Scarborough’s reading rope and used craft paper to visually demonstrate the connections.
In South Auckland, where over 60 percent of the learning community is Māori or Pacific, local schools have embraced a tailored approach to meeting national education priorities.
Key focuses for schools include:
In keeping with the theme for Samoan Language Week, ‘serve in love for a blessed future,’ Ferguson Intermediate School, Flat Bush School and Rongomai School’s teacher-only days focused on essential professional development and integrating the new curriculum refresh into classroom learning, including the science of learning, structured literacy, and student mental health and wellbeing.
These sessions were facilitated by Renu Sikka, a Ministry of Education curriculum lead, who presented an online prerecorded webinar by Doctor Nina Hood, founder of the Education Hub.
Nina’s webinar introduced the Science of Learning, delving into the research on cognitive processes that shape learning and its implications for pedagogy and curriculum development.
Drawing upon teachers’ prior knowledge on the Science of Learning, Renu emphasised its core biological and cognitive foundations. She encouraged teachers to build a shared understanding of how structured literacy approaches can be aligned with the Science of Learning.
Renu discussed skilled reading, metaphorically linking to the strands of Scarborough’s reading rope. She facilitated a session where kaiako used craft paper to visually depict and illustrate how all the components of being a skilled reader are interconnected and interdependent.
Ferguson Intermediate’s teacher-only day focused on building essential literacy skills, ranging from phonemic awareness to understanding text structures.
“Using Scarborough’s reading rope to document our teachers’ progress along a literacy continuum was an excellent way for us to self-reflect and identify gaps in our current teaching practices,” shares principal Ronnie Govender. “This came at the perfect time as we gear up to deliver structured literacy in the new year.”
To aid the psychological wellbeing of students, Amanda Bond from the National Library ran a session on ‘reading for joy’.
“By making reading more enjoyable for students, they naturally do more of it outside the classroom, drawing valuable lessons from literature,” explains Amanda. “This enhances their academic achievement, cognitive function, empathy, and cultural knowledge – helping them become more active and engaged citizens.”
Amanda’s insights about the benefits of reading for joy were perfectly aligned with Ferguson’s focus on student wellbeing and inclusion, says Ronnie.
“It’s important to us that we support our rangatahi as they learn to navigate their emotions and social interactions,” he adds. “Our on-site social worker has been effectively driving this, but we also want our students to feel confident in managing their mental health and wellbeing on their own as they prepare for secondary school.
“The session with Amanda highlighted the importance of constant reading for broadening students’ horizons and understanding of the world. It may seem like common sense, but the robust research about its benefits has influenced us to ensure it is always top of mind.”
Left to right: Flat Bush assistant principal Emily Fernando, Flat Bush deputy principal Janetta Mayerhofler, National Library facilitator Amanda Bond, Rongomai deputy principal Carol Fauolo, Ministry of Education curriculum lead Renu Sikka, Rongomai acting principal Sarah Faifua and Flat Bush principal Banapa Avatea.
Flat Bush School and Rongomai School took a collaborative approach to their teacher-only day, holding a combined day to address the needs of their students.
“A form of prayer before an important engagement or meal is the norm for our Māori and Pacific students and teachers,” says Flat Bush principal Banapa Avatea, describing the day.
“So, we started the day with a karakia, encouraging teachers to bring their whole selves to the professional development sessions.”
In addition to the Science of Learning and reading for joy sessions, Emily Fernando, Flat Bush School’s associate principal, presented innovative methods for utilising AI tools such as ChatGPT, Diffit, and Gemini to enhance curriculum planning and design.
“We’re excited to exercise our learnings from the professional development sessions as a starting point for implementing structured literacy across all year levels by term 1 2025,” says Banapa.
During their shared teacher-only day, Flat Bush and Rongomai schools, both part of Te Puke ō Taramainuku Kāhui Ako, discovered their shared values, visions for education and common challenges.
“Student attendance has been impacted by the pandemic and weather-related interruptions. To combat this, we have an on-site social worker to help learners and their whānau get back into school,” explains Banapa.
“For many families, financial struggles and challenging circumstances affect attendance. Our social workers ensure these students don’t fall through the cracks and follow up on cases of unexplained truancy,” he adds.
To address bullying, Banapa emphasised the importance of open communication and strong pastoral care.
“We believe in open lines of communication and ensure a school counsellor is onsite at least three days a week to support students. We also use resources from the MITEY schoolwide mental health programme to educate learners and whānau on the difference between one-off unkind moments and bullying, helping them work through issues constructively.”
BY Education Gazette editors
Education Gazette | Tukutuku Kōrero, reporter@edgazette.govt.nz
Posted: 2:06 pm, 19 July 2024
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