Welcome

What is ‘Achieving @ Waitakere?’

Nine Waitakere City secondary schools have decided to join together to work collaboratively with the Ministry of Education on an innovative project called Achieving at Waitakere (a@w)

The a@w initiative is effectively an achievement incubator. The project draws on robust international research into best teaching practices and the resources of the Ministry to establish a new city wide teaching programme that aims to help our children excel at school.

Initially a three year project funded by the Ministry of Education, a@w has wider implications for education in that it could well be a national model for the future.

All students will benefit from a@w. Like all New Zealand schools, Waitakere City schools have a range of achievement levels – from students who are extremely high achievers through to those who may not fair so well. The initiative is also about further enhancing the achievement of Maori and Pasifika students. While Waitakere City secondary schools reflect similar achievement patterns across the country the principals want more for their students. As a result all students at a@w schools will benefit from additional funding and a specific focus on achievement through this ground breaking initiative.

The a@w programme is focused on literacy and numeracy. Teachers will also reap the benefits of being part of the initiative’s teaching programme and receiving greater support from the Ministry of Education.

Why Waitakere City schools?

Waitakere City secondary school principals have a strong track record of working together to establish region-wide education initiatives to benefit students and a@w is the culmination of two years of research and planning with the Ministry. Waitakere City secondary schools are leading New Zealand while benefiting Waitakere families and community with this initiative. From the Ministry’s perspective, Waitakere City is also an ideal region to conduct such a project in that it is almost a microcosm of New Zealand due to its socio-economic and ethnic mix.

How does the a@w programme work?

The programme is founded on the basis that literacy and numeracy are the corner stones of education. It takes the two core competencies and applies them across all subjects to enhance overall achievement.

For instance, a high level of literacy will help a student in any number of subjects (e.g. writing for social sciences or biology, or understanding a math’s problem). Conversely, numeracy skills (e.g. logic, order, problem solving), can equally be applied to all subjects and as a result raise achievement in those subjects.

So the a@w programme aims to incorporate literacy and numeracy teaching practices into all subjects. To this end, there are co-ordinators appointed in each of the schools who are in turn supported by the a@w literacy and numeracy specialists who will work with school staff across all subjects, to ensure a programme that is effective and easily integrated into the curriculum.

Waitakere City is a young, vibrant and fast growing community with many superb secondary schools in the area, all of which will benefit from the a@w programme. It will effectively be an “achievement incubator” where there is a focus on best practice, utilising skilled teaching staff and resources of the Ministry of Education to help gain the best results for the students.

Who is involved?

a@w is an initiative which aims is to get the community working together and combine all resources to help strengthen educational delivery and raise levels of academic achievement of students. The parties involved in supporting this programme are:

The Ministry of Education:
The Ministry of Education is the backbone to the programme, which is providing the funding and resources to ensure a@w is conducted to its full potential.

The a@w Steering Group:
A steering group consisting of representative principals, Board of Trustee members and Ministry of Education staff has been set up to manage the a@w project. The project also employs a project co-ordinator and literacy and numeracy coordinators.

Nine Waitakere Schools:
Nine Waitakere city schools have joined together to work collaboratively with the Ministry of Education on this innovative programme. The Ministry of Education set out to get the Waitakere City community to work together and help the achievement success of its youth.

The nine Waitakere city schools involved in a@w are:

• Henderson High School
• Kelston Boys’ High School
• Kelston Girls’ High School
• Liston College
• Massey High School
• Rutherford College
• St Dominic’s College
• Te Kura Kaupapa Maori O Hoani Waititi
• Waitakere College

Waitakere City schools are unique in their collaborative approach to education, with a number of initiatives already in place to bring the community together and build on its success.

Other Community Group Liaisons:

The a@w initiative will liaise with a number of community groups including:

The Waitakere City Council - Achievement of Waitakere Trust –, which is the primary link between the council organisation and the community it represents.

The West Auckland Secondary Schools’ Principals Association (WASSP) - collaboration of principals from Waitakere City secondary schools

The Waitakere Education Sector Trust (WEST) – which is established to facilitate projects between the Waitakere City Council, Waitakere schools, Maori and other education providers.