Balmoral School Newsletter - 29 August 2025

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Te Tumuaki / Principal

Kia ora e te whānau

Are Our Tamariki Failing? A Closer Look at Last Week's National Assessment Data

Like many of you, I was concerned by the headlines last week about the 2024 national assessment results. The story being told is one of widespread failure in maths and writing, an education crisis.

But is it an accurate story? When we look closer at how the data was measured and reported, some valid questions emerge.

The report measures students against a fixed "curriculum level." This isn't a measure of students against their peers (like PAT tests); it's a comparison to a single, pre-decided standard.

Imagine we set the "pass" mark or standard for a 17-year-old sprinter at 12 seconds for the 100m. Based on that high bar, we could claim nearly every student in the country is "failing." This doesn't mean our students are poor runners or that the schools are failing. It implies the standard itself might be unrealistic for measuring the achievement of that year group.

When a "crisis" is manufactured, it is a natural human response to rush to find simplistic solutions. People then claim to have an answer without questioning the problem itself.  Manufacturing a crisis and rushing to a simplistic solution without examining the problem is a classic example of what Peter Senge would call a failure of systems thinking and an organisational "learning disability". By rushing, adopting a heroic solution, we don't allow the time for rigorous critique.

Senge would say a 'powerful thinker' would ignore the event-level panic or rush and instead ask questions about the underlying structure that produced the event. If we apply this thinking to the headline of a failing education system, we should be asking:

• Who decided on the curriculum level for a Year 8 student?
• Is the standard a realistic expectation for the average student, or is it an aspirational goal?
• Who benefits from telling a story of a "failing system"? Is it our tamariki?

This isn't just about the accuracy of data. A misleading story of failure has real-world consequences:

• Clickbait for media outlets
• A vacuum for simple heroic solutions to be sold to a non-discerning audience.
• Unnecessary pressure is placed on Boards, schools, and teachers.
• Anxiety for parents worried about their child.
  
• Demoralised educators who feel their hard work and expertise are being ignored.
• Misguided, rushed policy decisions based on a flawed premise and, therefore, wasteful use of taxpayer funds.
• And most worrying, anxiety and then demotivation for tamariki.

Our tamariki, parents, teachers, schools and our society deserve an honest and accurate picture of education in New Zealand. True reporting of data requires a deeper discussion about the appropriateness of the curriculum standards, not just a crisis judgment that may be built on a questionable foundation.

Ngā mihi

Malcolm

National Assessment Data in More Detail

Below are four graphs that provide a clearer picture of achievement and progress from the 2024 national assessments, which are aligned to the new curriculum standards. Importantly, across both Writing and Mathematics, there is evidence of steady improvement from Year 3 through to Year 8.

However, when you look closely at the box-and-whisker plots, you will see that for each cohort (Years 3, 6 and 8), the middle 50 per cent of learners (shown by the box) are performing below the expected curriculum levels for their year group. This suggests that while progress is being made, overall achievement remains below the expected standard set out in the curriculum.

Of real concern are the attitudinal results shown in the two bar graphs. As students progress through school, fewer report enjoying mathematics and writing, or believing they are good at it. This matters, as students’ confidence and self-belief plays a significant role in whether they stay engaged with learning and arwilling to put in effort.

How we talk to tamariki about their learning — the feedback we give and how we frame their progress — has a powerful influence on their mindset, motivation and achievement. What they hear about themselves and their success is directly related to how they will perform.

Data in Graphs

School Board Elections  Parent Election Timetable

I strongly encourage all parents and caregivers to vote in the upcoming school board election.

When you participate in this democratic process, you are modelling a vital civic duty for your children. This simple act teaches the next generation that being an active member of a democracy is essential.

As of Wednesday, only 10.5% of our eligible voters had cast their votes. 

Staffing in 2026: Music

After searching for a music teacher for over 18 months, we have successfully found a music specialist, Maarten Tros. Maarten is currently working and living in Vancouver. We are working through immigration requirements to ensure Maarten is here to start the 2026 school year. 

Good Luck AIMS Games Tamariki

Next week, we have over forty children from Balmoral Intermediate in Tauranga for the AIMS Games. We wish them all the best for this incredible sporting tournament with over 14,ooo competitors and 431 schools. 

Sport Leagues

Flippaball/Minipolo Term 4  

Term 4 registrations are live on the school website.

Flippaball is open to all Year 4 - 6 students. 

Minipolo is open to all experienced flippaball players or strong swimmers in Year 5 - 6. 

Games are played at Diocesan School Pool on a Sunday.

Unlike other years, the Neptune Express poolside coaching will be offered again in Term 4. Teams are allocated a 20 minute coaching session with flippaball/minipolo coaches, prior to their games each week. However this may be subject to the number of teams entered, pool space availability, and may be restricted to certain grades. If teams do not have Neptune Express session allocated to them, then the school pool will be available for training and a coach will be needed for these teams. I have student coaches willing to take on this role if needed.

https://www.balmoral.school.nz/flippaball-yr46

sport@balmoral.school.nz

Primary School News

News from Whānau Hiringa

It has been a very busy term so far for Whānau Hiringa. We started the term exploring the water cycle, in relation to how it impacts food production. This included students creating their own models and experiments to demonstrate their understanding of it. Students then had some questions about how we could use water more sustainably within our local community. As a result they are currently busy designing and prototyping rainwater collection devices for gardens. We have also started to germinate some vegetable seeds which will be planted in our school gardens. 

Whānau Hiringa also had the opportunity to visit Ambury Farm this term. Having the chance to feed the animals was definitely a highlight for the students but there was also a lot of learning about the time, effort and cost involved in food production on farms. 

This week the students have been immersed in our school Arts Festival and have produced amazing work that will be on display during Week 10.

Student Voice

Esme - It was interesting to learn the scientific names for what happens in the water cycle, for example precipitation and condensation.

Bliss - I enjoyed learning exactly where our food came from when we went to the farm. It was also interesting to explore the water cycle.

Keisha - The farm trip was exciting as we learned how and why they shear sheep and how cows are milked.

Vedansh - It was so much fun bottle feeding the lambs, they had to be bottle fed because they were either very small or had had an illness.

Thomas - The farm trip was great because we learnt about the different products that are created from a range of animals.

Intermediate School News

Bandquest

On Monday night our two bands, Kārearea and Tīwaiwaka performed at Bandquest with fourteen other bands from the Auckland Central area. Both bands were amazing, and received rapturous applause for their performances from a very enthusiastic audience. Kārearea won the Best Original Song prize, and Bella, their drummer, received the Rock Styles Award, in part for the amazing band t-shirt she designed. Congratulations to them, and all the band members.

Our enormous thanks to Alex for all his work getting the bands ready, and to Lily for her work helping the vocalists with both their singing and stage presence. 

Both bands performed to the Primary and Intermediate this week as part of the Arts Festival. We look forward to seeing more of them next term.

Arts Festival 2025

Here is a sneak preview of some of the wonderful pieces of art produced this week, alongside the performers showcasing their talents in the Hall. Well done to everyone who has pushed themselves outside their comfort zones and taken a risk in trying something new during this week that celebrates the importance of the Arts.

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