ERO Reports

How well placed is Finlayson Park Childcare Centre to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

Background

Finlayson Park Childcare Centre in Manurewa, provides full-day care and education programmes for up to 24 children aged three months to five years. There are strong links between the centre and the adjacent primary school.

Infants are cared for in a separate play space. They have good access to the indoor space of the older children and the shared outdoor environment. The majority of children enrolled have Māori or Pacific Island heritage.

The centre’s philosophy, developed in consultation with the community and staff, provides a good foundation for the programme. Teachers are very focused on fostering education outside of the centre environment through frequent walks and outings. A team of qualified teachers, supported by two who are unqualified, provide a high teacher-to-child ratio.

In response to ERO’s 2012 review the centre has strengthened processes of self review and developed programme planning to be more responsive to individual children. Managers have provided frequent opportunities for the teaching team to engage in professional development.

The Review Findings

Children display a strong sense of wellbeing and belonging in the centre. They play well together and have established relationships with each other and their teachers. They are encouraged to be independent and to take responsibility for caring for their environment and each other.

Regular walks to the library, parks recreation centre and school have strongly supported children’s developing confidence and knowledge of the wider world. Children are articulate, can initiate conversations, theorise and ask highly complex questions. A consideration for the teaching team is how these questions could be more fully incorporated into planning decisions.

The infant and toddler room has a slower pace and routines are very responsive to children’s needs. Teachers are responsive to verbal and non-verbal attempts at communication from the children in this area. Children have good access to available resources and the environment is set in response to their interests.

Teachers are very receptive to children’s requests and questions. Their practices reflect the rights of all children to an inclusive and quality early childhood education. They talk with children about decisions that affect them and sensitively manage transitions into, through the centre, and on to school. These practices have supported children’s developing sense of themselves of successful learners.

Established relationships exist between whānau, teachers and children. Aspirations of parents for their children are sought through informal discussion and regular whānau conferences. Children’s portfolios contain numerous and regular responses to learning stories contributed by families. The team is now reflecting on how they could more effectively respond to and include parent and whānau aspirations in programme planning processes.

There is clear evidence that centre practices align with the philosophy statement. A strong commitment to establishing successful, reciprocal relationships with whānau and the local community is evident. The centre philosophy statement could be reviewed now to include reference to the bi-cultural heritage of Aotearoa New Zealand.

The value of self-review is gaining more recognition by the team and there is a strong commitment to teaching and learning that leads to positive outcomes for children. Managers are aware of the need to more clearly, and more regularly, document self review projects that guide centre direction. Good access to professional learning and development is provided for teachers. Managers are able to articulate how these opportunities have strengthened teaching practice.

ERO References