Online toolkit launched to help secondary schools

A new online toolkit has been launched aimed to help New Zealand secondary schools raise student achievement.

The toolkit has been designed by Starpath, a research project from the University of Auckland.

Based on more than ten years of research in low-to-mid decile schools, the free toolkit is designed to support schools in their use of Starpath practices to improve student outcomes.

Starpath works with secondary schools to better understand the educational dynamics which lead to academic success and tertiary participation.

Since the project began in 2005 a total of 39 secondary schools in Auckland and Northland have adopted Starpath practices.

Starpath director, Professor Cindy Kiro says the toolkit is a proven set of strategies developed within these schools to raise achievement.

"In the past ten years we have learned a great deal about data utilisation within schools, about literacy and leadership practices and the opportunities available to Māori and Pasifika students, particularly in low decile schools, to learn and achieve," explains Cindy Kiro.

"A great deal of research and time has been put into developing this toolkit from both the Starpath team and its partner schools," she says. "We are pleased and excited that our strategies can now be made available to all secondary schools in New Zealand.

Kiro says the toolkit is based on the comprehensive use of academic counselling and clear checklists for NCEA attainment – especially for University Entrance; embedding data utilisation skills among staff; the active use of data for quality academic planning; and better engagement of family and whānau.

Schools can now access resources, case studies, checklists and templates to implement Starpath strategies and customise them to their individual circumstances.