Visit New Zealand

- By Diana Tijoriwalla

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• Indians in NZ
• The Howick Historical Village
• School Levels
• The Treaty of Waitangi.
• Maori Cooking
• Anzac Day 25th April
• Auckland Regional Parks
• Tongariro National Park
• The Buried Village (Rotorua)
• Auckland's Islands
• Paradise Valley Springs (Rotorua)
• MOTAT
• The Polynesian Spa
• Rules for Teachers
• Daffodil Day
• The Waitakere Ranges
• Western Springs Tramway
• Auckland Museum
• New Zealand's Pride
• The Tuatara
• Maungakiekie
• Secondary Schools
• Sir Edmund Hillary
• Halloween
• Auckland Zoo

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School Levels

New Zealand school children move up through the year levels from primary to secondary school, reflecting the progress they make from their earliest years as new entrants (first year at school) to their final year as a student: ready to join the work force or further education at a tertiary institute.
The early years at schools are very structured in terms of what is taught, but later, this is eased as the child passes through his last year when all the subjects studied are optional.

Primary School. (Years 0 to 6)
You may choose to enroll a child at primary school from age 5 & the majority of New Zealand parents do that. You may enroll your child at any time during the year. A 5-year-old is classed as year 1 if enrolled before the 31st of July & year 0 if enrolled after this date. A 6-year-old is placed with children of the same age.
The primary school day begins at 8.30 am & ends at 3pm, although this may vary slightly between schools. They have one main teacher for the year. They are taught a number of compulsory subjects such as English, Maths, Science, Social Studies, Physical Education, Technology, Health Education & Arts (music, dance, drama, visual arts etc) Children move up through class levels according to their age.
Some primary schools go up to year 8. These last two years of primary school are also known as intermediate or sometimes called as ‘Middle’ school.

Intermediate School (years 7& 8)
This is a transition between primary school & secondary school. They may be either a separate school or maybe a part of a bigger school called a ‘composite’ school. A composite school may go from years 0 -8, 6-13 or 0-13. The subjects taught are similar to those taught in years 1-6, but there are some other options to prepare them for the secondary school. They begin at 8.30am & end at 3pm, although this may vary between schools. The intermediate students require wearing a uniform.

Secondary Schools. (9-13)
Secondary school (also called as college, high school & grammar school) education begins when a student is about 13 years old. At this level, students are put into classes, known as their ‘form class’ with a ‘form teacher’. The form teacher has a sole responsibility for students regarding all matters pertaining to school, their studies, late works, coming late to school & so on.

Unlike primary school however, the form teacher is not the students’ main teacher. Students are taught by a variety of teachers, each specializing in particular subjects. As a student progresses through secondary school, the teaching becomes less & less regulated. For e.g. year 9 & 10 have a similar curriculum with the addition of several optional subjects such as another language, economics or history, while in year 13 all subjects are optional.
The National Certificate of Achievement (NCEA) is used to assess students from year 11 to year 13. This system has internal as well as external assessment. The students are given credits. This is a new system introduced in New Zealand.

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