Figure 1.--This Year 5 boy is hard at work on a class assignment. This school pursued a rather traditional teaching approach. Many other classes at this level do a great deal of group work.
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Figure 1.--This Year 5 boy is hard at work on a class assignment. This school pursued a rather traditional teaching approach. Many other classes at this level do a great deal of group work. |
Compulsory education in New Zealand is divided into three basic levels: primary, intermediate or middle, and secondary schooling. New Zealand has over the tears referred to school forms or grades in different ways. Until 1995, students were classified as being in either juniors (for the first two years), standards (the next four years) or forms (two years at intermediate level and five years at secondary). The designations for the different levels was not always consistent from school to school. The Ministry of Education has since replaced the form level system with a single, simpler system identifying levels according to the number of years of schooling. The most common system has become chronolgical year of school.
A child who starts primary school for the first time between July (when the school roll is counted) and 31 December of a school year and is aged between five and six years (with most children beginning on their 5th birthday) will be classified in Year 0.
Children who begin attending school for the first time between 1 January and before the July roll count will be classified as being in Year 1. After the first year, the year number (year of schooling) of students is increased by one at the start of every school year. It may sometimes be necessary to reset the number at the start of Year 7 (when they move to intermediate level) or Year 9 (when they start secondary school) so that their whereabouts in the system can be correctly identified. If children start school for the first time after the age of six, they will be given the same year of schooling number as other children of the same age.
Some basic information on the different forms is as follows. Click on the link for a look at some representative classes at each form level. Information on the class make up and activities is provided. Both the old and new form level mames are provided on the links.
Primary schools are the first level of compulsory schooling. They cater for children from the age of five years (Year 0) to the end of their 6th year of schooling
(Standard 4). At primary level children work in a wide variety of learning situations. They are usually based in one classroom (which may be open-plan space housing two or
more classes) but may join with other classes for some activities. In the classroom, group activities help children learn to share and work co-operatively. At other times they will work alone on projects. Class sizes vary but are generally smaller in the junior school level Years 1 - 3. Class size is determined by the school, within guidelines provided by the Ministry of Education. The school day usually begins about 9:00 am and finishes about
3:00 pm with breaks (intervals) mid-morning, lunchtime, and mid-afternoon.
Many primary schools have a New Entants class for the younger children who prepare them for Year 1. Some children move very quickly into Year 1. Other children are kept in the New Entants class longer until they are judged ready. The children are 5 years old.
The physical environment is especially important for the younger child. Through
the senses, the child takes in all the sights, sounds, smells, and feelings of the
world. It is important, then, to ensure the environment is beautiful as well as safe.
The new entant teacher works to have an atmosphere of reverence for one another and the world around. She or he doesn't direct or oversee activities but rather leads by example. working with the children. A daily rhythm is established by balancing periods of relaxed free play with those of more directed effort. Mornings may begin with a free play period, followed by a more organised activity such as bread baking or painting. A free play period would possibly follow, before the children help to tidy away the wooden animal, stones,
stools, cloths and tables that they have used to build towers, forms, shops, houses, to name but a few of the activities that might be played. Morning tea is another focal point for which the children may even help prepare food and the table.
This is the new entant level of prinary schoolm although most of the children have attended grade school. They begin at about 5 years of age.
These children normally begin at about 6 years of age.
These children normally begin at about 7 years of age. Main lessons in may include form drawing (the drawing of exact forms and mirror images); writing the letters of the alphabet, which are introduced via story telling, movement, painting and drawing; and arithmetic. Some schools may place an emphasis on mental arithmetic and rhythmic work in learning the times tables, but methods vary. After morning tea time, specialist lessons may take place. These include handwork (such as knitting), perhaps some fun activities with a second language (European and Maori), eurythmy and music. Some schools inroduce wooden flutes or other beginner instruments. The pattern of the day mau consist of the main lesson in the first two hours, followed by a specialist lesson until lunch time. The daily timetable may take account of the ebb and flow of the children's energy, and is varied accordingly. Therefore the afternoon lessons at some schools are more relaxed with an emphasis on games and practical activities.
These children normally begin at about 8 years of age. Eight year olds react strongly to imagery in the fables and in stories. They learn cursive writing, reading and simple sentence structure, and in mathematics the times tables, adding, subtracting, multiplying
and dividing simple numbers. The sciences and geography may be based on the child's environment. A variety of specialist lessons are usually offerred. Many schools continue some workmon foreign languagescand handicrafts.
These children normally begin at about 9 years of age. Around the age of nine comes a very important psychological change. The child has a stronger experience of its own individuality or identity and therefore begins to question adult authority. The child may feel isolated from family and friends and therefore need more sympathy and firmness from teachers and parents. Again, the subjects given to Class Three are carefully chosen and
timed to relate to this inner psychological change. The children may learn about occupations such as house building, farming and traditional crafts. How do farmers provide our food. Unforgettable is an early morning visit to a cowshed with its characteristic sounds and smells, seeing the cows milked, feeling their warm breath, tasting the fresh milk! School gardens may be used to sow wheat and with luck the grain can be harvested, threshed, winnowed, ground and made into a small loaf, enabling them to experience just how much work is done for us by other human beings. The children begin to feel protected after all. Children by the end of Year 5 are expected to have achieved basic reading skills and know their times tables forwards, backwards and "inside out" and to use the four processes of arithmetic using four digit numbers.
These children normally begin at about 10 years of age. Year 6 children have developed to a point where they can be led into the history and geography of their locality. Their English work demands simple composition and knowledge of the parts of speech. In nature study the main animal types are described, contrasted and compared with human beings. In mathematics, fractions and decimals are introduced.
There is considerable variation in New Zealand as to what kind of school children attend in year 7 or 8. Children in their 7th and 8th years of schooling (Forms 1 and 2) may either be in a separate intermediate school or part of a primary, secondary or composite/area school. Most children in urban areas attend intermediate schools. The history and culture of the ancient civilisations of India, Persia, Egypt and Greece may be studied. New Zealand geography, zoology and botany are introduced in a way which appeals to the soul of the eleven-year-old. English and maths are further developed. Another subject which is introduced at this age is woodwork. The children are taught to use wood in an imaginative way. Many intermediate have well equipped work shops.
Figure 2.--Year 9, the year most New Zealand children enter secondary school, is a critical year. The larger secondary schools require substantial adjustments. |
Secondary schools usually provide for students from Year 9 (Form 3) until the end of Year 13 (Form 7). Adult students who are returning to school adopt the year of schooling which corresponds to the level of the majority of the subjects they are taking. Secondary schools operate under a different system. Students are usually grouped in classes but go to different teachers for each subject they are studying. During the course of a typical day they may move between a number of classrooms and may not necessarily be with the other students in their class. The school day is usually about half an hour longer than the primary school day.
Most students begin their secondary school in form 3 at about 13. Most schools have special programs to help orient new students. Often the programs include peer leaders, usually form 7 students who received peer leadership training. The orientation sessions include meetings during school as well as after school social events. All students need to get a good start at secondary school. In the junior school the emphasis is on learning the good work habits, knowledge and skills which all students need for success in the senior school. The Year 9 programme at New Zealand dchools have many features which ensure that the needs of students of every ability are properly and thoroughly met. Classes are generally small, typically 25-28 in year 9 and year 10 classes. In order to cater for individual needs and talents, students may be individually streamed in English, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies after extensive testing, although policvies vary fom school to school. The better schools work hard to get to know each individual child quickly and then provide the best programme that will enable them to settle smoothly into productive work. The year nine programme provides a firm foundation of basics whilst enabling all students to experience and develop talents in the widest possible range of subjects. The school aims to raise students awareness of their strengths, abilities and planning goals and then help them to achieve them. Our school facilitates this approach with an "Individual Programme" for each student, encouraging the student to make informed decisions about their subject choices and ensuring that as the need arises to review their goal, the decisions are reflected in the subjects and school activities of the pupil. Core Subjects: English, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Social Education, Physical Education & Health. Students study English, Mathematics and Science (including Horticulture) for four hours a week for the whole year. This give the opportunity for a solid grounding in these vital core subjects. Social Studies is studied for six modules (out of eight) and Social Education introduces all students to aspects of Economics and Commerce. All Year 9 students study Maori for one module. Option Subjects: Schools believe that all students should have the opportunity to experience a wide range of subjects at the junior level. Only then
are they properly equipped to make sound choices as they progress through the school.
Year nine students have the opportunity to try five option subjects. These are studied in concentrated blocks over two modules (one term) each. Art, Food Technology, Clothing & Textiles, Graphics, Information Technology (Computers & Keyboards), Languages (Japanese), Music, Workshop Technology (Metal & Wood).
[Good quotes in Cash93, p.82]
New Zealanders have generally defined a basic secondary education as staying at school until Form 5. Many pupils have traditionally left school after the 5th form without pursuing any form of tertiary education. Only in the 1980s did increasing number of students begin staying beyound form 5. These students normally begin at about 14 years of age. In Year 10 all students continue with a programme of core and optional subjects:
Core Subjects: English, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Physical Education and Health. In addition, each student studies two option subjects from the list below. The fact that students have had the opportunity to study these subjects during Year 9 will be a great help to them as they make their Year 10 option choice. Option Subjects: Art, Clothing & Textiles, Economics, Graphics & Design, Home Economics, Horticulture, Information Technology, Japanese, Maori, Music, Workshop Technology - Wood & Metal.
These students normally begin at about 15 years of age.
These students normally begin at about 16 years of age.
Form 7 is the final year of secondary education in New Zealand. Most secondary pupils who continue to the 7th Form are pupils planning to go on for university education or other tertiary studies. The New Zealand system is like the British system, students can leave at different times. Their qualifications are based on exams set at the grades achieved on those examinations. There is no formal graduation for all students at the end of a senior year as in the United States. These students normally begin at about 17 years of age.
Area schools do not fall nearly into the three levels of New Zealand schools. Area or composite schools, which are usually based in rural areas, combine primary, intermediate and secondary schooling at one location. This allows the students to go to a neighborhood school without a long bus ride, but the facilitoes for the secondary level students are much less than at a normal high school.
