Booma

no they are just calling bullsh*t when they see it

tasmania is cool temperate. the green bits on the map are temperate.

oz is so much bigger than the uk though & not everywhere has a punishing climate. i live in a temperate area and enjoy lovely weather all year. four seasons but not too hot in summer or too cold in winter & kids can play outdoors without multiple layers, hats & gloves.

dont think many ozzies would support this. can you imagine the hoards that would come to oz.

kiwiinaus you are starting to sound a bit silly now.

forgot to say you can ask me questions if you want but i dont login very much because too many oz haters are on here but you can send me a private message if you want.

i don't have time to write much but i lived near there until just recently & hope to go back soon. you sound like you are a similar age to me & i think its a lovely. some older people live there but it is not full of old people. what a silly thing for someone to say. it has all the shops you need & canberra not too far away if you want city shopping. there are lots of tourists in summer because there is the river & the seaside but it isnt the crazy crowded like places in the uk so isnt too bad. there are no mouldy old buildings, museums and stuff so if you like that type of thing you might not like the bay. people dont sit in the pub all day either so if thats your idea of culture oz probably wont suit. but if you like being part of a warm community and like lots of different outdoor activities you will probably like it. there are lots of boats owned by locals and tourists so you should be able to get work. there are also lots of families so there are lots of schools. it is popular with ozzie teachers so getting permanency is hard but i have been working nonstop doing long term supply teaching & have even been sent on exchange just now to canberra. it surprised me how invested they are in teachers even ones doing supply. the people are lovely & very welcoming but dont suffer fools. the houses are great & you can choose between older places or new builds to rent.

you cant judge an education system on such as small sample. but I have no wish to discuss this topic further. its a lovely day outside & i am going out to enjoy it.

i normally teach in the nsw system but am on exchange in the act at the current time. all states have their own curriculums but seem to follow similar teaching fundamentals. i say this due to discussions with teachers from other states and similarities between nsw & act. teachers at different schools are what make them good or not in my opinion so perhaps your experience in qld is more about the teachers your children have had & less about the curriculum. i agree that a move sooner rather than later to the uk sounds best if you are sure you want to move.

my opinion of oz education is very high. as a teacher who has taught in both oz & the uk i believe the oz system of providing students with a conceptual understanding of why things are they way they are is far better. the uk system is based on learning by rote to pass a test to ensure the school doesnt lose funding. its a pity more parents dont understand the advantages meaning learning provides students.

my hubby has family living just outside canberra & we stay with them a lot so i can get treatment at the hospital. the more i stay here the more i like it.

my hubby didnt struggle with anything except the weather. there were things that he didnt like ie small houses, overcrowding & pub culture but he just got on with it. he was happy to stay for a few years but not forever.

if you want a laugh you could try this scottish independence referendum

be careful about going back. i didnt settle my first time in oz because i missed my family & didnt feel like i belonged in oz. i went back to uk but realised after a few weeks it was a terrible mistake. am back in oz now & happy but wasted a shed load of money working out the problem was my attitude the first time. i kept dwelling on what i left behind instead of what i gained.

i realised almost straight away going back to the uk was a big mistake & started saving to move back to oz. i am back in oz now & very happy. could you come back? its a massive pain spending money going backwards & forwards but its better than being stuck in the uk wishing you was in oz.

i missed my family & didnt feel at home in oz. it wasnt long before i realised moving back was a mistake though. sometimes you have to go back to realise what you are giving up in oz. that was true for me anyway.

i dont regret coming back to oz i just regret not giving it a proper go the first time i came and wasting so much money. life is good and oz is wonderful.

i dont miss anything anymore

i havent noticed a difference in how often i get sick but i seem to get better faster in oz. i think its because i can sit in the sun & soak up its amazing healing properties even in winter. i used to feel down in the colder months as well but that doesnt happen anymore. my other half is ozzie & his health is much better now he is back in oz but probably because he is much more active here.

our metal roof makes lots of popping & cracking noises as it expands & contracts due to heating up & then cooling down

he probably wont ask so you should offer

did you offer to teach him english yourself? my parents were refugees to UK and learned everyday english from the people in the village

it is the closest city to us coast dwellers for major shopping & we have family there as well. im visiting now & think its fab.

i teach in a public school & think the level of education between pubic & private is much of a muchness in oz. both are very good. i would prefer to send my children to private though or to a public school with children from higher socioeconomic areas for the reasons you list in your post. at least private schools can ask children to leave but public schools are stuck with them. also when i taught in a lower socioeconomic area with a high migrant intake from non english speaking countries i spent more time on basic english skills and managing behavioural problems than in actual teaching of the curriculum.

poetic justice that :biglaugh: