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Warrington School Open Education Initiative - Sustaining Education

Empowering our community of parents, teachers and pupils through open education

About  |  Planning  |  Envirethical  |  Free resources  |  Curriculum  |  Educational projects  |  Ideas for Collaboration

WARRINGTON SCHOOL'S CHARTER

Warrington School New Charter

Mission - The School’s purpose

• To encourage and facilitate academic, social and personal success.
• Te Ara Oraka O Okahau - Warrington Well-Being Way (draft)

Vision for our children

• To assist the development of children through child centered programmes in partnership with our local community.
• Education without trauma - Positive learning experiences (draft)

Our Values we share for our children and staff

• Encourage children’s involvement at all levels of school activities.
• Challenge children to achieve personal standards of excellence and to reach their full potential.
• A safe and positive environment that respects the dignity of all.
• Recognise and support the individual needs and talents of children.
• Create learning opportunities in Tikanga and te reo Maori.
• Appreciate our environment and cultural heritage.
• Promote learning which enhances opportunities for further education.
• Envirethical (draft)
• Solid - Liquid - Gas (draft)
• Open (draft)
• Freedom (draft)
• Decision Making Process (draft)

Aims and Objectives

• Curriculum Content

AIMS:To give children, within the National Guidelines, the opportunities to learn and progress to the best of their abilities by presenting programmes and activities that are motivating, relevant to their interests, and suited to their individual achievement levels.

OBJECTIVES:Each year the Principal/staff and parents will develop, revise or confirm aspects of the school’s curriculum plan in collaboration with the Board. The plan will include specific objectives relating to the content of the curriculum.

• Student Progress and Achievement

AIMS:To monitor, assess, record and report on children's progress and achievements in ways, which accurately reveal their learning, needs, recognise their achievements, and encourage on-going progress.

OBJECTIVES:The school’s assessment plan will identify the key purposes, principles and practices for assessing, recording and reporting on children’s progress and achievement.

• Curriculum Delivery

AIMS:To provide children with a well rounded curriculum that recognises and supports pupils individual needs and talents.

OBJECTIVES:Each year the Principal and staff will develop, revise or confirm aspects of the school’s curriculum plan in collaboration with the Board. The plan will include specific objectives relating to the delivery of the curriculum.

• Self-Review

AIMS:To regularly self-review the school's performance so as to monitor standards and vitalise future direction and progress.

OBJECTIVES:The Board with the Principal and staff will develop and operate a strategic plan for the management of its operational objectives and development goals. The Board will have a timetable for the ongoing review of its policies and plans.

• Personnel

AIMS:To be a good employer.

OBJECTIVES:The Board will prepare policies and plans to appoint quality staff, so that the school can supply education in accordance with the intentions of this charter. The Board is committed to being a good employer. It will support staff development and operate a fair and effective performance management programme

• Finance

AIMS:To use funds to the full advantage of the Schools aims and priorities for children’s education and their learning.

OBJECTIVES:The Board will prepare an annual budget to fund the school’s curriculum, personnel, property and administration activities. The Board will monitor and control income and expenditure throughout the year, and ensure the preparation, audit and publication of annual accounts.

• Property & Resources

AIMS:To continually update and upgrade teaching and learning resources. To maintain and develop the School's buildings and facilities to ensure a safe, healthy and well presented environment.

OBJECTIVES:The Board will comply with the conditions of any current asset management agreement as a good steward of the State’s and community’s assets and prepare and implement a plan of property maintenance and development, including provision for safety and hygiene.

• Community Partnership

AIMS:Encourage appropriate community participation in the life of the school and to inform the community about the school's activities on a regular basis.

OBJECTIVES:The Board will promote parent/community communication and involvement.

• New Zealand’s Cultural Diversity and the unique position of Maori Culture

AIMS:1.Developing for the School policies and practices that reflect New Zealand’s cultural diversity, and the unique position of Maori culture.

2.The aim of ensuring all reasonable steps are taken to provide instruction in tikanga Maori (Maori Culture) and te reo Maori (Maori language) are provided for full time students whose parents request it.

We will meet these aims by developing policies and practices that are sensitive to all cultures represented in the school, and which recognise the unique place of Maori culture.

OBJECTIVES:All school policies and plans will be implemented in ways that are sensitive to the cultural backgrounds, values and needs of individual children and their families. In consultation with the school’s Maori whanau/families, the Board will develop and make available its policies, plans and targets for the advancement of the achievement of Maori students, as required by the National Education Guidelines.

THREE YEAR CHARTER DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY - DRAFT

Priority Strategic Goal for the Period 2009 to 2011 This is a ‘rolling’ plan. Each year’s strategic goal/s is confirmed at the beginning of the year. Strategic goals for subsequent years are tentative pending ‘opportunity’ adjustments and confirmations at the commencement of the year. Appropriate forms of documentation for each goal are provided in Annual Plans.

2009 - 2011 Goal

• To review the Curriculum Programme throughout the School over three years with the goal of improving pupils’ achievement.

2009 TARGET

• Student Achievement – To improve the exposure to science, maths, physical education and health activities by pupils.
• School Performance – To support teachers in teaching science, maths, physical education and health activities at all school levels.
• Use of Resources – Provide training of teachers and support staff in relevant programmes and purchasing of resources to support programmes.

2010 TARGET

• Student Achievement – To improve the exposure to technology, social studies and the arts education activities by pupils.
• School Performance – To support teachers in teaching technology, social studies and arts education at all school levels.
• Use of Resources – Provide training of teachers and support staff in relevant programmes and purchasing of resources to support programmes.

2011 TARGET

• Student Achievement – To improve the exposure to English and second language education activities by pupils.
• School Performance – To support teachers in teaching English and second language education at all school levels.
• Use of Resources – Provide training of teachers and support staff in relevant programmes and purchasing of resources to support programmes.

Warrington

Warrington is a small semi-rural seaside village that sits on the edge of Blueskin Bay. It has the pristine white sands of Warrington Beach a child stroll away and is an easy 20 minute drive from central Dunedin.

The school has 50+ pupils, five teachers and a supportive community.

The school has developed good links with the local Playcentre, surf life saving club and neighbouring schools.

Warrington Board of Trustees

Are:

• Elected representatives from the school community.

Whose purpose is to:

• To make sound decisions for all people who are associated with the school.
• To protect and respect the rights of its community.

Positions

• Warrington School Chairperson
• Warrington School Principal
• Warrington School Community Liaison Person
• Warrington School Property Manager
• Warrington School Treasurer
• Warrington School Staff Representative
• Warrington School Equal Employment Officer
• Warrington School Minutes Secretary

School Philosophy

Warrington school has the "Well Being" of all, as the key to its strategic management systems.

The school's unofficial logo 'www.www' equates to wwww.warrington well-being way/Te Ara Orana.

This is also the name of the main pathway entering the school.

Pupils are taught to care for themselves, for others and the environment through a developing envirethical curriculum.

The school's annual evolving plan endeavors to record the school's charter and teaching goals.

It includes:

• School wide assessment, monitoring and reporting programmes.

• A review cycle for the Board.

• Links to events and programmes.

The school prides itself on being child centered and family friendly.

The community through the Board of Trustees supports the teachers in their continual development of using child focussed and current educational pedagogy that is developed from free thinking.

Warrington School encourages children to enjoy their childhood, ask questions of their world, seek their own answers and to have freedom to learn.

Programmes

Three diverse multi-level classrooms cater to all children:

• The junior class provides lots of structure, places an emphasis on children becoming literate and numerate through creative teaching approaches.
• The middle school children begin to take more responsibility for their own learning through directed programmes of work.
• The senior pupils are aiming to become independent learners using various strategies to gain understanding and knowledge of the wider world.

Open Education

Transparency is how we aim to work, we hope that our ideas will be copied, our mistakes avoided and advice freely offered for our continued improvement.

As a School, we believe that everything we do should be open.This means insisting on actively sharing the things that we and our colleagues create and working collaboratively with others who share our goals. It also means learning and improving, constantly.