GEEZER 6266

I am new to this site.I have an 12 year old daughter,who is just about to start year 8 in the uk.She goes to a very good all girls Catholic school in London.She is in the top sets for Maths and English.
We are seriously looking at going back to Melbourne next year(September).I was wondering how the education is over in Oz.

jad n rich

I put 3 kids through school in OZ. 8 or 9 different education systems, each State runs their own, very difficult if you move around. Choice of private, state, or catholic. Plus if really smart and dedicated to about 6 hours of study a day, IB is available in grade 11 and 12, one of mine went that way.

In melb the good state schools will be surrounded by highly priced housing areas, similar to UK then. A true religious input helps getting you into the Catholic schools, their fees are cheaper. The privates you put your name down for at Birth can charge up to 30,000 a year.

Dont be fooled at a kid being top at everything at age 12, they are on the cusp of becoming teenagers, many decide on thier own agenda after that and being top at school isnt always on it to the surprise of many a teen parent

Some schools in melb can be particuarly competitive due a high % of Asian Students who seem far more dedicated to their studies than many western kids.

Also a few more free/alternative schools but that doesn't sound what your looking for.

At my kids UNI open days in melb up to 30,000 kids attended, most multicultural mix of people you can imagine, kids from all schools from the state high to the most expensive Private end up at UNI together anyway. Bonus ranks are awarded for a second Language or sport, usually with sport being regarded higher!

How much work your teen wants to do will be the biggest factor of all.

Good luck with it.

carolinephillips

My daughter was in the same boat as yours- had just finished Y7 at a grammar school in Bucks. When we came over the selective high schools were all full (and about 90% Asian) so we went into the end of Y7 at a private school. It gave DD time to settle and make friends, but we found that the language side was about 2 years behind.

It is swings and roundabouts really, you have to suit the child to the school. DD did the IB in Y11 and 12, which was a fantastic way to prepare for Uni. It is hard work and a lot of study, but she was encouraged to be an independent learner. (I'm not knocking the HSC by the way.)
A lot can change between the pre-teen and the 17/18 year old...............

quoll

It's a first world education which, by the end of Uni honours, is out there on the world stage technically. A good number of parents opt into the private system for the HS years which probably speaks volumes about the state system offerings (varies from state to state, some are better than others - ACT is the highest with around 50% of kids in private for HS)