jollyswagman

Has anyone any opinions as to the comparison of education between schools in the Uk to schools in Australia. Hubbie and i are still in talking stages and of course having children wouldn,t want to do anything which would be of a disadvantage for our two children.

Katsmajics other half !!!

i am sure that if you do a search then it will come up with lots of threads about schools and schooling. Or one of the mods will be happy to help you out.

From what has been said on here and what ppl have told us the schooling is very good.........and i cnt quite see your kids being at a disadvantage by being brought up in Oz.

jollyswagman

Thanks for your reply, i am sure you are right, its sonds nice to hear it from someone else though!!

Katsmajics other half !!!

this last week has totally done my head in at work and at home........at work we had the year end and we shifted over £5M worth of work and they thanked us then said as an extra special thanks for all you hard work and effort we sore gonna treat you to a bacon roll and a doughnut on friday morning. the cheek of it.

and then with all this crap going on today has made me feel like every day that i spend in england is a day too long.

thebears

The attention in early years is more on social and motor development skills.

We have moved over specifically for the education - further down at University consideration will be on an international level - not that this discounts Australia but this also should not rule out a US or UK/European Uni.

Our daughter is also attending a school which on an individual basis is far superior to the one we would of considered in the UK. However in both countries you will find good and bad throughout.

jollyswagman

yes i am sure you are right, we have several schools near us to choose from with one being exceptionally better than the others.

woogle

Hi
Mine are too little yet for school, but I spoke with a mum at playgroup yesterday,& she's an Aussie, but lived in London for 8 years,working as a teacher. She said she & hubby decided to come back to Oz & settle to have children here, because it was a better lifestyle for kids & because she believes the education system is much better here.
She did also say if it wasn't for the kids, she'd move back to live in London in a heartbeat But she's staying here for the kids.

BadgeIsBack

It does appear the aussie 'system' concentrates on the allround individual at primary and then the kids catch up in secondary - and attain enough to compete in American and European markets. University is a personal thing, and by that age, it's all very much about what you need and want out of what is a global market.

The problem is only where children transfer from one to the other. All of a sudden a kid suddenly appears 'gifted' and may be bored. Look at the number of kids on these forums who are suddenly off the scale when they get here in the late primary school years! It happens in the UK too- happened to me when I moved from a larger school back to a smaller school temporarily I had once gone to - they couldn't believe the progress but it was partly the home input not the system. Most of the kids in the small village catchment area weren't pushed at home. I say this because a lot of parents seem to over focus on what is being taught when a lot of the basics start and are maintained, or should be polished, at home. (A personal opinion, but educators agree, even if not officially).

jad n rich

Weve done private and state, covered all grades with 3 kids except a couple of years of high school.

Theres good and bad in both systems, how much do you want to pay, of course a $23,000 pa school is going to be great, very much the more you pay the more you will get. Some private schools in our experience tho, blow their own trumpets too much then dont stand up, and lack in areas like controlling bullying.

State school pitfalls - many schools are strapped for funds, be very very very aware of this if you child has a learning problem, countless people on this forum have said the same thing, you will not get anywhere near the amount of help you got in the UK.

We have consistently found our kids work level is a good 2 years behind the UK age group. In high school no catch up miracles start, it just depends on what subjects they take, class sizes in state highs are often HUGE.

One real niggle in the state school system is life is not that easy for the non sporting child, No 1 and No 2 are sporty no 3 age 9 reads at adult level, completes high school maths, frankly nobody gives a shite, but if he was good with a ball he would be some sort of elite superstar We intend with this one to go for a private school scholarship, he also plays trombone very well, private schools will overlook the lack of sportyness then, most state high forms we saw only wanted to know if they excell at sport

If you had to sum it up in one line, most teachers kids go private, by High, have never met a teachers kid in state, says something I guess.

Gibbo

I'm a teacher and my 4 sons went through the State system and all have done very well for themselves. One of them had learning difficulties. I know a large number of teachers whose children have or are going through the State system.

bal56

There's some truth in this. Four of our five went into state primary initially and were completely unchallenged in Maths and English (two years behind the UK is about right). The school was generally unresponsive to requests for extra work for them. (This seems to be the general picture in the state system).
We therefore opted for one of the cheaper private schools, and were lucky that because the local population was still growing we got places reasonably easily. Here, the eldest two are in 'middle' school (years 7 and 8). I'm OK with the work that they're getting (so there does appear to be some raising of standards once out of primary), although they still appear to get very little homework.
Of the two in primary, one is still pretty unchallenged, even in a private school, but as she's very disorganised, she's learning more about 'self management' instead. The other is a lot less capable, at least in Maths than the first three, so the standard of Maths that the Aussie system gives her is about right.
There are programs for gifted kids in the state system, but these are often focused on certain schools that may not be nearby or involve attending special lessons at external venues to which parents must transport the children during the school day.
I'm sure the more expensive private schools cater better for more able kids, and certainly some offer scholarships, but these are also some distance away.
Also there are very long waiting lists for some of the cheaper private schools.
In summary - unless you're very well off, plan your location carefully (whether you're after a state or private school), and get kids on school waiting lists ASAP.

ridds

There have been loads of threads on this topic - nice to see that this one hasn't degenerated into a slanging match

I've extracted some info from my blog, which might help...

I am a product of 3 educations systems – Australia, US and UK – and have taught at OZ universities and currently teach part time at a university in London, whilst still working in the non-academic world.

In my personal experience the Australian education system is on par with the systems in most of the rest of the developed world at all levels - primary, secondary and tertiary. The anecdotal evidence I have from colleagues and friends who teach from primary through to university supports this. There are differences in specialisms / strengths within schools, and differences in teacher’s approaches, but you will obviously get this whether you are in the UK, Oz, or anywhere else in the world. For an empirical review of the educational frameworks used in Australia vs other countries, you can refer to the International Review of Curriculum and Assessment Frameworks (Please note this research does not say “this system is better than that system” – instead it provide a base from which to understand the similarities and differences between the frameworks. You can work out your own preferences from there.)

HTH

thebears

Good post

JaneandJim

For anybody in Brisbane wanting to send their boy to Brisbane Grammar in year 8, you need to apply at least 4 years in advance, or already know that he's bright enough for an academic scholarship or good enough to compete in sport at state level and so can get a sports scholarship.

Jane

ELLJAY

The Principal (Headteacher) at my kids primary school - sends his kids to the local State High School.