Education and Workforce Committee - 2018/19 Additional Questions Further Questions for Written - Parliament

Education and Workforce Committee

       2018/19 Additional Questions

       Further Questions for Written
                Response

                                       June 2018

1. How has ERO's strategy, as outlined in its 2016-2020 Strategic
   Intentions document, evolved since its initial publication? We note that
   ERO is developing a new Outcomes Framework:
    What is the progress of this framework and when can the Committee
       expect to see this finalised?
    The Committee may wish to ask how various measures demonstrate
       continuous improvements over time and, ultimately, greater impact.

   Answer:

   The Education Review Office is in the progress of reviewing the 2016-2020
   Strategic Intentions document.

   This will include some new measures focused on the impacts of our reviews
   on the leadership in schools and early learning services.

   It is expected that the document will be tabled in the second half of 2018.

2. The Committee notes the increase in schools and ECE places under
   Vote Education and is interested in whether the number of evaluations
   expected to be completed by ERO has increased in line with this, and if
   so, how will this be accommodated within the slightly reduced budgets
   for evaluation?

   Answer:

   The number of evaluations is set out in the 2018 Estimates for Vote ERO and
   it is estimated that ERO will be around the mid-point of the output ranges for
   2018/19. This means more ECE reviews will be done in 2018/19 compared to
   2017/18 and the number of school reviews will be at similar levels between
   those two financial years. The increase in school and ECE places (i.e. number
   of children and students) does not necessarily translate to an increase in
   number of institutions to be reviewed by ERO.

   ERO’s appropriation for 2018/19 has decreased slightly compared to 2017/18
   due to a one-off anticipated insurance payment for property and equipment in
   Revera House damaged during the November 2016 earthquake. Setting aside
   the insurance payment, ERO’s funding from the Crown (i.e. Revenue Crown)
   has increased between 2017/18 and 2018/19 for evaluations as tabled below.

                                             2017/18 2018/19
    Revenue Crown                             Supp's   Mains Increase
                                                $000    $000     $000

    Early Childhood Learning Services           9,590     9,708       118

    Schools and Other Education Service
    Providers                                 15,372    15,501        129

3. The Committee notes ERO’s targets specific its national education
   evaluations on identified education issues and sector performance.
    What specific issues does ERO intend to evaluate in the coming
      year?
    How is ERO planning to assess and report on the effectiveness of its
      good practice reports?

   Answer:

   ERO has a number of national evaluations underway and expects to publish
   reports on the following topics in the 2018/19 financial year:
       The quality of education in Activity Centres
       The implementation of Te Whāriki 2017 (series)
       Sexuality education
       Teaching strategies that work – parent partnerships
       Teaching strategies that work – rich curriculum
       Teaching strategies that work – writing
       Bullying prevention and response
       Key competencies in the NZ Curriculum
       RT:LB Service: Responding to Māori learners
   We are considering the following evaluation topics for the 2018/19 year in line
   with major education initiatives:
        Principal performance and development
        Professional learning and development
        Implementation of Te Whāriki 2017
        Digital Technology | Hangarau Matihiko
   Our national evaluation programme is iterative and developed in consultation
   with the Ministry of Education, other agencies involved in education, and the
   education sector. The Minister of Education may also request ERO to look at
   specific matters in terms of section 325 of the Education Act 1989.

   The effectiveness of our good practice reports are assessed two ways. We
   seek feedback from appropriate providers with respect to their awareness of
   reports and the relevance and impact the reports have on practice. Secondly,
   we undertake follow up evaluations in subsequent years to explore whether or
   not practice has improved as a consequence of our work.

   As examples, the recent report Resource Teachers: Learning and Behaviour
   Governing and Managing RTLB clusters published in April this year follows on
   from ERO reports on the RT:LB service published in 2009 and 2004. Our
   report on A Decade of Assessment looks at the trends and practice over the
   past ten years in our primary schools.

From indicative question preparation for additional questions

Question

What are the “new approaches’ to reviews of early childhood education
services under consideration and referred to in answers to questions today?

Answer

ERO is revising its Early Learning Service evaluation methodology and its
associated indicators. These two projects have started and are running concurrently.
Some aspects of the methodology for evaluating a governing organisation are
currently being trialled. Other changes will be trialled as they are developed.

ERO is revising its Early Learning Methodology in respect of:
  • individual services where a governing organisation has oversight (draft
      indicators are currently being trialled)
  • prioritising evaluations of new services, existing standalone services and
      services identified by ERO as not well placed or requiring further development
  • the use ERO’s external evaluation to influence, intervene and support ongoing
      improvement in the sector.

The Early Learning indicators project will:
   • incorporate new research and good practice findings that have emerged since
      the current indicator framework was last revised in 2011-2012
   • revise and refine ERO’s indicators for reviewing early learning services (not
      including Te Kohanga Reo) to ensure a seamless and coherent set of
      indicators across the system that promote a better learning outcomes for
      children.

The anticipated rollout of the completed projects, tools and documents is scheduled
to take place in 2019.

Transferred from Ministry of Education follow up questions

Question

   The Committee notes the increase in the Early Childhood Education budget
   for 2018/19 due to increases in demand for places.
        Has there been a corresponding rise in Vote ERO to cover an
         increase in ECE provider reviews? If not, why?

Answer

      There was one spending initiative that was approved in Budget 2017 for
      ERO. This initiative enabled ERO to undertake early childhood learning
      service evaluations to meet the growth in this sector and to address cost
      pressures. To support the growth in the early childhood sector ERO has
      recruited additional Review Officers.