DOUBLE A

OH HAS POSSIBLE JOB OFFER IN SYDNEY FOR 2 YEARS.
SHOULD WE GO FOR 2 YEARS AND THEN RETURN TO UK (SCOTLAND) OUR ELDEST WOULD BE 15 BY THEN,JUST WONDERING IF ANY ON ELSE HAS HAD TO JUMP BETWEEN DIFFERENT EDUCATION SYSTEMS AND HOW DID THEY AND KIDS COPE.
JUMPING THE GUN A LITTLE BUT JUST NEED SOME ADVICE.:

NKSK version 2

My strong advice is to not disrupt your child's education in critical years. Critical years for me are aged 14 to 16 and 16 to 18 - with a change possible at aged 16 (but you still need to be aware that some schools do not offer the post-16 subject choices that your child may wish to pursue).

The only possible exception to this is if they transfer to an international school - but this is still dodgy.

Kids need a clear, uninterrupted run from Year 10 in the UK to the end of Year 11 and again from Year 12 to the end of Year 13. A move within this period is, in my opinion, extremely unfair to the child and could well disadvantage them for many years to come.

esperanza

I think if your eldest would be just 15 when you moved, and it was for several years, then they would probably have a good chance of settling in again and being successful.
If you did just the 2 years though, then you'd be taking him/her out half way through GCSEs and dumping them back halfway through A-levels, and that would be incredibly disruptive and I think quite unfair (from the educational perspective). If you have another child 2 years below your eldest then they would be arriving back in UK mid way through GCSEs as well.
For their education, it would probably be best to either stay in Australia a few years or stay put for a few years instead of moving them around twice during these important exam years.

NB All the above is on the assumption that they will continue education beyond 16... which I hope that they would, in some form or another, but if you think that's not likely then maybe it is less of an issue. That would make it even more important to get the best possible results at 16 though.

NKSK version 2

From my reading, they would be returning to Scotland when the child is 15. i.e. either in Year 10 or Year 11 - either way you look at it, this is part way through GCSEs.

Gems

Hello,
we came when our son was 15. He was quite happy as he missed sitting his GCSE exams. So got rid of some stress.

He went into the last 5months of Year10 here, and had time to relax and make friends without stress of exams. He settled quickly and made friends. Work was not hard if anything he had a cushy time.

He has now just started Year11 and is doing the subjects for University.Think its like doing A levels. So is at the start of 2years of hard work. (Now getting plenty of homework) He moved to a new school for Year 11 but lots of other kids have just started too, so making friends isnt a problem.

For us it was a good time to move, and for our son it was less stressful. As he didnt have GCSE exams to worry about and a big move.

For Uni here the exams after year12 are more important.

Also great opportunities for apprenticeships, or college if thats what they want.

GEMS

Dawn Romaine

Hi, im coming out this year. I have a daughter 16, just doing her gcse's this june. She wants to stay in uk and do her a levels. Dont know her options in Austrailia, she wants to go to uni. My son 15 is happy to be coming out before his exams next year but wants to work rather than go back to school, so is that an option??
Confused and need help please ???
Dawn

esperanza

Yep, I think you might be right - as you say though, it would still be part way through GCSEs. I've taught kids who moved from one UK school to another mid-GCSEs, it's really tough on them trying to catch up, some just give up and don't bother. I would recommend avoiding it at all costs!

bcworld

Bear in mind the path through high school in Scotland is structured differently to England - they may return just at the right time to sit Highers (i.e S5) - but whether that would work out would depend on if the Aussie high school provided much of the same knowledge they would've got sitting standard grades in Scotland.

willywonka

Hi, weve just arived in adelaide. My eldest son is 17 and did his gcses last summer, so he has just started in year 12 here, he got straight As in his GCSEs, he has found that most of the school work here is what he had already covered in the UK. My daughter is in year 10, and she is finding it a bit harder to settle, and my other son is in year 8, he is ok, as he had already done year seven at senior school and here year 8 is the first year of high school, so he knew what to expect. Hope that helps xx

Nu-Shooz

Exactly....don't do it. I did with my daughter, it has screwed up her education.

NKSK version 2

Good point - I have no knowledge or experience of the Scottish system.

NKSK version 2

This is an interesting point. You'd need to do a lot of work to reassure yourself that the child had covered all work necessary - either in Australia or in catch-up work. And even then it can be a minefield. On knowledge-based questions a slightly different way of phrasing something can result in lost marks - for no good reason other than different cultures.

I know that there will be people for whom a mid-course move has worked but I think that it is a huge gamble - and not entirely fair on the person who is in no position to make the decision and yet will be most affected long term.

Throw in the number of ping pongs on this forum alone and it becomes even more dodgy. You may move a child out of the UK in mid GCSEs who begins Y11 here. Family become desperately unhappy or cannot get work or find it too expensive. They then move back to the UK by which time the poor kid has missed their GCSEs and the start of the A level course.

Migration is a big enough gamble anyhow without risking such fundamentals.

bcworld

Yup, my assumption is that for example Standard Grade Maths is specifically designed as a pre-requisite to Higher Maths. An intermediate level maths qualification from overseas may be just as worthy but not prepare the student as well for what is coming. Given that these are the uni entrance exams this is a big risk. Of some comfort to the OP might be that at least in Scotland the final year of high school S6 is effectively optional and can be used to re-sit failed highers from S5 or add extra grades to meet uni requirements.....wouldn't do much good for the student's confidence though I think.