Next weekend marks our final weekend in Kentucky before heading off to New Zealand. I thought I'd write something for all those who have just started reading these blogs.
The New Zealand school system could be described as 8-5 or perhaps 6-2-5. Children start school on their 5th birthday (they don't HAVE to, but it is generally expected) and enter a New Entrants class. This is also known as Year 0. When ready, they move into Year 1 (equivalent to the US Kindergarten), and after that they progress pretty regularly, year after year, into the next class. Each class level is called a "Year" and you can roughly translate the Year into a Grade by subtracting one. In other words, Year 6 is equivalent to Grade 5.
Elementary schools are known as Primary Schools and usually go to Year 6. Some include Years 7 and 8 and will then be called "Full Primary Schools". More commonly, students in Years 7 and 8 will attend an Intermediate School. Technically, an intermediate school is a primary school. This intermediate school experience is widely considered to be the most rewarding of all school experiences. You are supposed to never forget your intermediate expoeriences because it is there that new and interesting opportunities will be offered. These will include technology subjects, "shop" type subjects, practical-type subjects, opportunities to engage in different sports, cultural clubs, interest groups, and outdoor education among other things. Intermediate schools actively strive to provide students with new and mind-opening experiences.
After intermediate school, a student will attend a secondary school. This comprises Years 9-13, although some high schools, especially independent or country schools, may include Years 7 and 8. During these five years, students are considered "Juniors" when in Years 9 and 10, and have a fairly standard curriculum to follow (English, Math, Science, Social Studies, PE, Technology). Once they are seniors, they have greater choice in their curriculum. For example, in my own case, in Years 12 and 13 my subject choices were English, Math, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. PE was still compulsory in Year 12, but it was in the form of a choice of activities such as badminton, squash, scuba diving, grass skiing, judo etc...
Most intermediate schools are grouped in teams, but the teams are a little more self-contained. A group of four classes could be grouped, with the teachers sharing planning and field trips, as well as outdoor education camps, but each teacher is more likely to teach their own class for all core subjects. Sometimes teachers will swap classes, depending on their own personal strengths, other times not. Most often, teachers will swap for subjects such as music, PE, and Maori language.
Our research will take us into some full primary schools as well as intermediate schools. I am anxious to see what changes have been made since I left 11 years ago.
That's all for the moment!
No comments:
Post a Comment