education system
#76
Forum Regular
Joined: Nov 2008
Location: WA
Posts: 222
Re: education system
Spoken by someone who does have children in the Australian education system 10 and 8 and in comparison to their cousins in the UK who go to a middle england supposedly high performing school they have far more critical thinking skills and understand how to learn rather than be taught by rote which is well researched to be the worst method of learning.
Very happy with our experience....and they are growing up slower which cant be a bad thing.
Very happy with our experience....and they are growing up slower which cant be a bad thing.
#77
Forum Regular
Joined: Nov 2008
Location: WA
Posts: 222
Re: education system
Have you looked at Stormanston Catholic College which is due to open in 2011? I thought they gave a very impressive presentation at the recent public meeting; at least they will have a formal curriculum as the students will sit the International Baccalaureate.
#78
Forum Regular
Joined: Nov 2008
Location: WA
Posts: 222
Re: education system
seems an Australia-wide curriculum is due to be introduced (in 2010):
http://www.theage.com.au/national/ne...1111-5mkg.html
http://www.theage.com.au/national/ne...1111-5mkg.html
http://www.alp.org.au/media/1008/msed120.php
We shall see.....
#79
Re: education system
Naplan (QLD) have confirmed that only state and national data are published. They say you need to ask schools indiviually for school or class data and that it may be published in their annual reports due soon. - as expected really.
#80
Re: education system
I'm sure a great deal of formative assessment is going on in the classroom to allow children to progress, just because a number is not generated at the end of it does not mean assessment is not occurring.
Unfortunately in the UK people have lost any faith in the professionals educating their children, forgetting that they have undergone years of university and are the experts in this field. The government is I feel mostly to blame for this with the increased demands for 'accountability' and putting across the idea that teachers cannot be trusted to be honest- e.g. all assessment being external or moderated.
In Oz a greater degree of that trust remains, which allows children to actually be educated rather than taught how to pass the next in an endless series of exams, the results of which will be published for everyone to pour over completely out of context.
#81
Re: education system
I kind of agree with you Mr Grumpy like most parents I think you try to tick all the boxes - education, driving license, travel, watching wales in the millenium stadium, wedding etc.
I was looking at st Peters Lutheran in brissie which is around 13k per yr plus school trips and music lessons. My brother says he pays 15k per year.
Shall shop around I think - I was just taking his infdo on cost.
Anyone know how you find exam result table for different schools?
I was looking at st Peters Lutheran in brissie which is around 13k per yr plus school trips and music lessons. My brother says he pays 15k per year.
Shall shop around I think - I was just taking his infdo on cost.
Anyone know how you find exam result table for different schools?
The great thing about St Peters is it is, I believe, the only top tier private co-ed school.
#82
Re: education system
I often wonder how we (who were educated in the UK during the 1950s, 60s, 70s and 80s) ever managed to learn to read and write.
We had no SATs, no NAPLAN tests, no nothing. The only public exam that some of us took was the 11+. There were no public statistics produced to rate our schools, our teachers and our progress. How on earth did we and our parents manage? Poor teachers - must have been like trying to teach with one hand tied behind their backs.
I guess we just have to accept that we're all stuffed educationally, because none of us know which percentile for numeracy we fell into at age 9.
But more importantly - what on earth did our parents have to talk about?
We had no SATs, no NAPLAN tests, no nothing. The only public exam that some of us took was the 11+. There were no public statistics produced to rate our schools, our teachers and our progress. How on earth did we and our parents manage? Poor teachers - must have been like trying to teach with one hand tied behind their backs.
I guess we just have to accept that we're all stuffed educationally, because none of us know which percentile for numeracy we fell into at age 9.
But more importantly - what on earth did our parents have to talk about?
#83
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Oct 2005
Location: Perth
Posts: 3,453
Re: education system
Why do you need testing? Testing does not improve learning.
I'm sure a great deal of formative assessment is going on in the classroom to allow children to progress, just because a number is not generated at the end of it does not mean assessment is not occurring.
Unfortunately in the UK people have lost any faith in the professionals educating their children, forgetting that they have undergone years of university and are the experts in this field. The government is I feel mostly to blame for this with the increased demands for 'accountability' and putting across the idea that teachers cannot be trusted to be honest- e.g. all assessment being external or moderated.
In Oz a greater degree of that trust remains, which allows children to actually be educated rather than taught how to pass the next in an endless series of exams, the results of which will be published for everyone to pour over completely out of context.
I'm sure a great deal of formative assessment is going on in the classroom to allow children to progress, just because a number is not generated at the end of it does not mean assessment is not occurring.
Unfortunately in the UK people have lost any faith in the professionals educating their children, forgetting that they have undergone years of university and are the experts in this field. The government is I feel mostly to blame for this with the increased demands for 'accountability' and putting across the idea that teachers cannot be trusted to be honest- e.g. all assessment being external or moderated.
In Oz a greater degree of that trust remains, which allows children to actually be educated rather than taught how to pass the next in an endless series of exams, the results of which will be published for everyone to pour over completely out of context.
On the issue of trust - I'd say that it was being abused on the part of the schools in certain (many?) circumstances.
The trouble with this debate is that it is turning into a UK vs Aus debate. Both systems are at opposite ends of the spectrum on testing and accountability - the UK does too much (or did do), Australia, too little.
#85
Re: education system
Testing does improve teaching and learning if it is done correctly.
On the issue of trust - I'd say that it was being abused on the part of the schools in certain (many?) circumstances.
The trouble with this debate is that it is turning into a UK vs Aus debate. Both systems are at opposite ends of the spectrum on testing and accountability - the UK does too much (or did do), Australia, too little.
On the issue of trust - I'd say that it was being abused on the part of the schools in certain (many?) circumstances.
The trouble with this debate is that it is turning into a UK vs Aus debate. Both systems are at opposite ends of the spectrum on testing and accountability - the UK does too much (or did do), Australia, too little.
Now formative assessment is a different matter, but that wouldn't be termed testing.
I do actually agree that there is slightly too little assessment in Oz- for instance there should be some sort of qualification at the end of year 10, i.e. before the end of compulsory schooling.
#86
Re: education system
http://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au.../sc_intro.html
#87
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: education system
I often wonder how we (who were educated in the UK during the 1950s, 60s, 70s and 80s) ever managed to learn to read and write.
We had no SATs, no NAPLAN tests, no nothing. The only public exam that some of us took was the 11+. There were no public statistics produced to rate our schools, our teachers and our progress. How on earth did we and our parents manage? Poor teachers - must have been like trying to teach with one hand tied behind their backs.
I guess we just have to accept that we're all stuffed educationally, because none of us know which percentile for numeracy we fell into at age 9.
But more importantly - what on earth did our parents have to talk about?
We had no SATs, no NAPLAN tests, no nothing. The only public exam that some of us took was the 11+. There were no public statistics produced to rate our schools, our teachers and our progress. How on earth did we and our parents manage? Poor teachers - must have been like trying to teach with one hand tied behind their backs.
I guess we just have to accept that we're all stuffed educationally, because none of us know which percentile for numeracy we fell into at age 9.
But more importantly - what on earth did our parents have to talk about?
#88
Re: education system
Do you not have an equivalent of the School Certificate in Victoria?
http://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au.../sc_intro.html
http://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au.../sc_intro.html
#89
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: education system
It is much more than we got, when we were kids in school.
For those in NSW, have a look at this forum (Year 10 - School Certificate), where loads of students are discussing the exams for the year 10 school certificate.
NSW & ACT both have the Year 10 School Certificate.
#90
Forum Regular
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 57
Re: education system
National standardisation with set curricula and set testing has been shown to be non beneficial. There are some studies that show Australian kids by the age of 14 are way ahead of their UK counterparts...and yes i agree many variables involved in those studies but that is what your after a comparison.