# Primary Schools Tauranga/Mount Maunganui



## Simonajane

Hello,

We are looking to move to the Bay of Plenty, Tauranga/Mount Maunganui. I have a very bright little girl and would like her to attend a primary school which teaches to a child's level rather than age. I would know exactly what to look for if looking for a school in London, Ofsted reports etc, but am unsure if the NZ Decile report is comparable. 

Is there anyone who could give me personal opinions from experience on which primary schools would be good for an above average child. 

My husband is keen to move to the Mount as we have family there, but I am unsure on how good Mount Maunganui primary school is. 

Does anyone have any experience of the recently opened Montessori at Arataki primary and how this works?

Thank you for any help.


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## escapedtonz

Decile rating has nothing to do with how good a school is or how good the staff are. 
For that you must look at the ERO report for the school which is completed every 5 years, so if a school has an old report it isn't really a good indication of how the school is now, however you haven't any other method of finding out unless you speak to a parent of a child that attends that school or someone that has personal experience of it. 
The decile rating measures the socio-economic class of the parents/families of the children that attend the school in that school zone. The info comes from census data. A school with a lower rating will gain more funding from the government per child. The higher the score the less funding the school receives. It is however a good indication of the quality of the area or zone that surrounds the school and where the school recruits it's pupils. 
So, in the case of a Decile 10 school you would expect the properties to be worth a lot of money and the area to be pretty good overall.
Our boy goes to a Decile 10 state school and was reportedly one of the best Primary schools in the area. It is a rural school so is surrounded by lifestyle blocks of high $ worth. It is a good school, however because of the funding issue the school loses out on at least $25 000 which has to be made somehow so we and other parents have to have deep pockets and get involved with fund raising often.

Can't help you with any of the schools around the Mount as I'm in Bethlehem.

Your other option is to send your child to a fee paying school that may specialize in children that appear brighter than the average child - e.g. Bethlehem College, Aquinas or ECG maybe...I know Bethlehem College does all years. Unsure about the others.


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