[Tulip]

Hi everyone,

Do any of the NZ teachers out there know the answer to this question?

My 15 yr old hopes he can leave school on his 16th birthday in September.......or does he have to wait until the end of this school year - in December?

He is not academic so would like to leave before the exams if it's possible.

Hope someone can tell me which is right!

Thanks.


:?

[ruthyroo]

Hi

Someone may correct me on this but I believe kids can leave school in NZ at age 15, as long as they have parent's agreement, and are going on to training / job of some sort (though there is no follow up to check that they actually do, so many end up doing nothing). So leaving during the school year age 16 shouldn't be a problem.

HTH

[Nicola]

Shhhhhhhh

Nobody tell my 15yr old please.

Nicola

[driver]

Not wanting to pinch the thread, but on the other hand how long can they stay at school if they want to?

Is there an equivalent to 6th form?

Sorry nicola for changing the subject, i expect he knows that he can drive at the moment at 15 too!

My boy is 14 and only about 4' tall, i just can't imagine him seeing over the wheel. :roll:

[Gran]

Yes there is 6th form and 7th form.

[baboonworld]

When i was at school i thought you needed to be 16

I was in 7th Form at 16 (had already done school cert & sixth form) and left part way thru the year.

After 7th Form you can on to Uni.

[kiwidebs]

It was 15 when I was at high school, many moons ago, but I thought it had changed to 16. I'm happy to be told I'm wrong because I'm not entirely sure. Whichever it is, you can just up and leave as soon as you reach leaving age.

Debs

[ruthyroo]

The change might have been that technically, to leave at age 15, the child has to have been accepted onto a training / education course of some sort, or be going into work, and the parent has to write to the school confirming this. At age 16 they can just leave.

BTW for people in the UK, the NZ classes run in Years from 1 - 13, across primary and secondary. Year 9 = the first year in secondary school - though it is the age equivalent of a UK 2nd Year,a nd so on up to Year 13 - which is the age equivalent of 6th Year in the UK. Don't let all these oldies with their talk of 'Forms' confuse you - it'll be pounds, shillings and inches next!!

[GeorgeM]

BTW for people in the UK, the NZ classes run in Years from 1 - 13, across primary and secondary. Year 9 = the first year in secondary school - though it is the age equivalent of a UK 2nd Year,a nd so on up to Year 13 - which is the age equivalent of 6th Year in the UK. Don't let all these oldies with their talk of 'Forms' confuse you - it'll be pounds, shillings and inches next!!

The UK has been using 'new money' for school years for quite a while now so the two countries are pretty much in step although we oldies on both sides of the world still tend to use the obsolete terms.

In fact until we arrived in NZ my kids didn't understand the old system, but so many people have used the terminology to them here that they are now 'multilingual'.

That their knowledge of the old system comes from NZ is shown by their use of the term '7th form' for Yr 13 - in the UK when I was a lad we called this the 'Upper Sixth'.

[kiwidebs]

When I started high school (in NZ) in 1983 :eek the five years of high school were 3rd form through to 7th form. They only changed to 'year xyz' recently so those of us who went through the old system and who have yet to have kids go through it still haven't got our heads around 'the new money'. I suddenly have sympathy for all the people in the UK who are trying to get their heads around kilos and grams!!

Debs