kungfustu Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 Obviously though, its all the teachers fault though that Destiny doesn't even know her own name, let alone how to read it, spell it, or write it. Whilst so many parents continue to think like this, teachers are fighting a losing battle from the off. who is talking about teachers:wacko: I dont think I have mentioned them once, we are discussing pr-school education and the lack of it in Australia. Obviously you have a problem with some of your parents at school, have you ever considered having a chat with them about it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chardy Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 All this just strengthens our resolve to carry on the extra home study we already give our older 2 kids (positively encouraged by their current great UK primary school) with our now 2 year old to ensure she has a good start too, once we are in Oz. The parents have a great responsibility to help educate their kids not just rely on state provision......................well that's my view:wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunshine111 Posted October 24, 2011 Author Share Posted October 24, 2011 Sadly most peoples situation in Oz as expats is that they dont have a huge circle of friends or family to fall back on to form their own play group, I dont think anyone is talking about a couple of hours once a week at a play group, that is the problem, the children need more stimulation and having a 3,4 or 5 year old at home for most of the week when a learning enviroment at a pre school or kindy/nursery full time is so much better for them and their development as they can interact with children their own age whilst getting a good base to their fledgling education.. I agree, for us we knew no one in Perth, which put us on the backfoot, I think, especialy as I literally was pregnant with my son within only arriving in Perth 2 months. We actively went through the playgroup/mothers group/"every activity in the area group" but just got to a point where that was not enough. I also felt he needed more interaction with his peers and older kids. Another strange thing with the school he was at, is how they kept the kindy and preschool very separate and again from the rest of the school. Now we have had a comparision with our son in early childhood in Oz and in the UK it is certainly apparent how very different they are and the shortfalls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunshine111 Posted October 24, 2011 Author Share Posted October 24, 2011 .................havving 3 of my own and involved in many other children............................from pre school to uni......................in the UK ,Europe and OZ...................THE PARENTS AND HOME INVIROMENT HAS THE BIGGEST IMPACT ON A CHILD..........playgroups and interactive enviroments do not have to be state run......................a group of like minded mums can achieve as much as any playgroup................useing parks, libary or local halls and private homes................I'm not saying any country is better than the other .........................just that the childs growth socially and educationally are ultimatley the parents responsibility !“Man must cease attributing his problems to his environment, and learn again to exercise his will – his personal responsibility.” Albert Einstein............. This is a great theory. I actually joined a community group which was actively trying to do more for the community and create a centre (from an old police station) to try and get different generations together kids through to grandparents, however after all that work, it was thrown out by the Shire in favour of making it a belgium bar (The Dome) The biggest problem with the community group was that it was being co-ordinated by only one mum who was absolutely fantastic, and worked at the shire, so knew the processes, unfortunately she did not seem to get enough support from others in the community to make it happen, so to speak. It is true that the parent and home environment does have the biggest inpact on a child, but as a children grows, |(for us and our son 3-5yrs) I think they need more interactions with their peers and older kids, different generations (grandparent age say) and the wider community in general. With just a bunch of mums only, seems a bit one dimmensional, especially if you have no family in the area. For us, I think we struggled to find like-minded people, seemed to be quite an insular mind- set, in our wider community. Very hard to crack it! Had friends in other parts of Perth that were the same. Perhaps, due to its isolation from the rest of Oz that was partly the problem, I dont know. Do you know, I would actively go to different parks to try and find kids for my son to play with that were his own age, especially when he was 4 and 1/2! and only at school x2 days a wk. We did as many playdates as we could but that didnt cover it! For us on a positive note, we have been surprised to find the community spirit well and truely alive in our little part of the woods back home. Is very refreshing and one I will not take for granted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 My child in Brisbane had a couple of years of very, very high standard kindy before he went into prep school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Guest 47403 Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 I wasnt aware that educating my children was my personal responsibility, I always thought the state took care of educating their people, my choice comes if I want a particular state to educate my children or not and in this situation I chose against the Oz state education because I felt it was inferior to the one on offer at home, the proof is in the pudding and my kids are doing just grand. What utter rubbish ensuring your children get properly educated is totally your responsibilty, if you don't feel they are getting a good enough education you move them to a school with a better reputation (whether your in the UK or Oz) The way you talk very school in the Oz is inferior to every school in the UK, you need to take those rose tinted specks off :wacko: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kungfustu Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 What utter rubbish ensuring your children get properly educated is totally your responsibilty, if you don't feel they are getting a good enough education you move them to a school with a better reputation (whether your in the UK or Oz) The way you talk very school in the Oz is inferior to every school in the UK, you need to take those rose tinted specks off :wacko: Baz.....calm down old chap you'll do yourself a nasty injury. Educating my children baz is not my responsibility. Im not a teacher, never have been, wouldnt want to be. I pay taxes to the state/government, in return they provide various services, one of those is education. The state provides trained teachers and schools for my children to get an education. Now if i'm not happy with the services they provide I then have to decide. A) do I want to keep them in the system B) do I want to remove them from this system Guess what, I chose B, because I did not think the system was as good as the system at home. If you or anyone else has a problem with that then i'm sorry but thats your problem and not mine, I am more than happy with the choice I made. What is my responsibility is to teach my children right from wrong, teach them morals and respect, that is nothing to do with their education, maybe you and a few others are getting a little confused and should read this thread from the start because you will discover it has nothing to do with schooling post the age of 5, its about pre-school education and the lack of it in Australia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Yuills Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Ok Pre School in UK....My son went to "Nursery" 2 mornings a week before he started school, he did nothing different that my daughter did here in Perth at "Nursery". My Daughter is in Kindy and doing basically the same as he did in Reception...actually she can write better than he could at that age. She has much more confidence than either of my boys did at that age, now I have no idea if thats schooling or personality. I have always believed that it is our responsibility as a parent to teach our children, it was me who taught my daughter and sons to write and recognise their names before they started school, and to continue to reinforce what teachers teach them throughout their school life. You talk about the lack of pre-school eduction here in Australia....I really can't see it, it is there if you want it. But at the end of the day its all about choice...I chose to come to Australia...I chose not to send my daughter to "Pre- School" she went to Nursery, where she could play and meet children of her own age and interact...she has the next 12 years to learn. I was very pleased that she "lost a year" here...I got to have another year with her!! I love her being a school 3 days a week, I get to spend a couple of days with her without the boys....that said I am looking forward to her going 5 days a week from February. I will continue to do reading, writing, numbers, cutting and glueing with her even when she is at school all week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 ..., maybe you and a few others are getting a little confused and should read this thread from the start because you will discover it has nothing to do with schooling post the age of 5, its about pre-school education and the lack of it in Australia. Likewise examples have been given where high standard pre age 5 education is available in Australia so I guess it pays not to generalise too much either way given the vastly different systems across each state education system and the different experiences across the UK. :wubclub: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockDr Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Saying that, there is obviously other theories on how a child learns, in Europe they don't start school till at 6-7. But for me, the younger they begin the better. Plus, keeping a child at home till 6-7 would drive me and them insane!!! haha While compulsory school doesn't start until 6-7 in many european countries, many of those countries have extensive (non-compulsory) state-funded pre-school schemes catering for children from the age of 2-3. In france, about 30% of 2yr olds, and close to 100% of 3-5 yr olds attend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johndoe Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 In france, about 30% of 2yr olds, and close to 100% of 3-5 yr olds attend. Isn't socialism wonderful? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scmercer Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I have two children under 5 who have both spend time in pre school and early years education in the UK and Australia. I don't find the UK any better to Australia, just different, they both have their positive aspects. Both my kids were really happy in pre school in Australia, it made them really confident children and despite the Aussie system lacking the routine and structure of the UK it did create a nice caring environment where they could develop their social skills. The UK tends to offer more of a structure and a better early years curriculum for pre schoolers but this doesn't mean it is any better. It really depends on where you choose to send your children, I have seen good and bad places both here and in Australia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest59652 Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 If you want a decent education in australia be prepared to pay a good whack for it. The concept of a free education to the australians is that you will get a poor education. School fees can criple parents to try and ensure a decent education. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsindecision Posted October 26, 2011 Share Posted October 26, 2011 If you want a decent education in australia be prepared to pay a good whack for it. The concept of a free education to the australians is that you will get a poor education. School fees can criple parents to try and ensure a decent education. Agree completely we swapped a high mortgage for even higher school fees for kids to achieve equivalent (or realistically a little less) than they would ahve in state system in UK. Three kids - two in school and one in university (no student loans allowed for PR people) = $30k and we were paying half the school fees that you would pay in Sydney or Melbourne. Not trying to scaremonger just being realistic about equivalency of education at secondary level - I cant comment on junior. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.