11 December 2012

Tuesday 11 December 2011

Naumai e te whanau o te kura Muritai 

Tena koutou katoa

CLASS STRUCTURE 2013

We have finalised our class structures for 2013. Using the most up to date information we have we know we have a starting roll in 2013 of 418 (401 this year) so we will essentially be running an extra class at Muritai School in 2013. Class placement notices will be coming home this Friday with student reports and student learning journeys. 

The Ministry of Education funds the school on the following ratios - 1 teacher to 18 for year 1, 1 teacher to 23 children in years 2-3 and 1 teacher to 29 children at year 4-8. This gives us a staffing allowance to have 18 classrooms but using the parent donation we will finish with 20 classrooms. It needs to be acknowledged that Muritai School is a high decile school with very high student achievement performance and so the school receives limited funding for learning support programmes, reading recovery and extension programmes – and this has to be allocated out of our staffing allowance or operational funds.

So….Muritai will start with 18 classrooms and grow to 20 through the year. As a state school we don’t have the luxury of nice, neatly sized groups and this is something that our parent group needs to understand. In establishing class groups – be aware that the year groups do not fit nicely into small groups of even sizes, and there are a number of 'bulges' in year groups as well as gender imbalances. We also have to plan for the unexpected children coming in and take into account the need to have learning spaces available for ‘other’ activities, although in 2013 we will have no spare classrooms.  Our geography, with a split site, also provides a challenge. These are the real issues that the Board quietly confronts and tries to resolve as best it can for the benefit of student achievement.

We have mixed age classes from year 5-8. This is a challenge for the children but it works well and it gives the children a chance to work with different children than they are used to, and develop a working appreciation of others in a learning environment. Children have different strengths and weaknesses, passions and enthusiasm and so age at these levels is not necessarily a determinant to ability. Children currently in year 4 are going from being in 2 classes into 4 classes and this will be a different for all of them. It will a fresh start for many and a different challenge in 2013 but children need challenges to help them grow. We also have a blended class in year 3-4 – with able and older children from 2013 year 3s mixed with some of our younger year 4s. Ironically the age difference between the children will be less that in a ‘straight class’.  These children have the lovely Jess Savage as their teacher!

Muritai School uses the parent donation to fund additional teaching resources. Most of this donation is used to provide smaller classes than the MOE fund. The school also provides a strong learning support programme through Sarah Richardson, and various extension and remedial programmes provided through additional teachers and teacher aides. At the same time the school is confronted by a shrinking funding source as costs go up (specifically wages) against a relatively static operational funding source.

As we go into 2013 we have a very settled staff who are forming into a very strong teaching team. We do have one change and as advised earlier, Annabel Smith is going on maternity leave for 2013. Gabrielle Heath takes her place in year 3. Gabrielle has been working here at Muritai part-time for a number of years and is well known to the children.

What the school is able to provide in 2013 is class sizes of 20-24 in year 1-2 and 24-27 in year 3-8 and so the 2013 line up looks like this –

Year level	Number of classes	Class size	Teachers
Year 7-8	3 classes	26	Stu Devenport, Lisa Allen/Ruth Hooke, Melissa Coton
Year 5-6	4 classes	26-27	Kirsten Berry, Raihania Chadwick, Deane McKay, Murray McMillan
Year 3-4	5 classes	26	Richard Dobson (Y4), Karen Chao (Y4), Jess Savage (Y3-4); Hayley Skilton (Y3), Gabrielle Heath (Y3)
Year 2	3 classes	22-23	Morag Roberts/Jo Salisbury, Rebecca Saker, Mikaela Cody
Year 1	3 classes	18-20	Maureen Buckley, Margs Mills, Barbara Ryan

I am sure you will support the teaching and management staff as we head into 2013. Your continued support is much appreciated.

Yours sincerely,

Andrew Bird

Principal