Australia Schools

Australian School Structure

Australian children commence schooling at roughly four or five and typically finish at the age of sixteen or seventeen.  Attendance is compulsory until the student is fifteen or completes year ten.  Under the recently implemented Education Amendment Bill, students who leave school early must enter full time work or begin an apprenticeship or traineeship.

Schooling begins with the preparatory year, which recently replaced kindergarten and preschool.  Prep year utilises the outcomes taught in preschool in a more formal learning environment, and is considered a transition into formal schooling.
Primary school begins with year one (when the student is five or six) and, depending on the state, ends with year six or seven.  Primary school is a more structured environment than high school – students are given no choice to what they are to study and remain in the same classroom, with the same teacher, for the year.

High school begins with year seven or eight and concludes with year twelve.  During senior years (eleven and twelve), students work towards their final Secondary School Qualification.  The requirements and examinations differ from state to state, but the qualification generally reflects the student’s achievements over one or two years, as opposed to their performance in a final exam.
Many Australian high schools also offer vocational training, giving students the opportunity to earn further qualifications while earning their high school certificate.

Resource: Australian Schools