New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) has found that achievement in schools have risen due to schools creating a coherent focus on literacy teaching.
The NZCER report analysed six diverse primary schools over a five-year period which identified three common elements despite all six schools taking a different approach to sustaining a positive shift in achievement.
Senior Researcher Jan Eyre says, “All of the schools had school-wide and literacy-focused elements in place, but these varied depending on the nature of the school."
School-wide elements included a safe and supportive learning environment, a focus on developing and nurturing relationships, and strong leadership while literacy-focused elements included a clear strategic focus on an aspect of literacy.
"Each school created that coherent focus by planning and implementing literacy programmes for the whole school, ensuring collaboration across all levels," says researcher Eliza de Waal.
Details of the six schools involved in the study - NZCER
The six schools that were involved in the study were chosen to create a spread across deciles, urban/rural situation, size, and ethnicity.
For more information visit the NZCER website here.