About Accent School Support

School Support is a core part of Accent Learning.  

Accent Learning is contracted by the Ministry of Education to provide professional learning to meet government priorities as well as to meet regional needs.

Our highly-qualified team of School Support Education Advisers is well versed in current research about what works best in professional development in schools, and highly skilled at translating that knowledge into practice.

In 2011, the specific areas of focus are:

• building capability of schools for continuous improvement
• accelerating the progress of all students to ensure attainment of worthwhile qualifications
• embedding the identity, language and culture of Māori learners and their whānau into PLD and teacher practices so that Māori achieve education success as Māori
• supporting leaders and teachers to make significant improvements in student outcomes represented in The New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) and Te Marautanga o Aotearoa, particularly in literacy and numeracy.

We offer a needs-based approach to in-depth professional development.

Our model is based on collegial processes with our advisers working collaboratively with leaders and teachers in their schools and classrooms. The professional learning programme is designed to meet school goals for teacher and student learning with our team able to make links to different curriculum areas through a focus on quality teaching practices.

Accent Learning advisers support schools and teachers to:

• critically examine their beliefs, expectations and professional practices to design learning programmes that will help all students to become successful learners, particularly those who are, or are at risk of underachieving
• purposefully gather, analyse and use data, including student achievement data, as the basis for professional decision making
• undertake evidence-informed inquiry to help them understand their students’ experience of learning, be informed by research, and examine the impact of their practice on students’ learning and achievement
• increase their subject knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge
• develop inclusive school cultures which acknowledge the identities and diversity of  students, taking into account gender, culture and special education needs
• develop effective learning communities within and between schools which improve outcomes for students
• plan to ensure developments are sustained over time.