Education in New Zealand in secular, compulsory to the age of 15 and free to the age of 19.
PRE-SCHOOL EDUCATION
Children 3 to
5 years old may attend play centres and free kindergartens. On the fifth birthday they may
be enrolled at elementary school. At the age of six enrolment is compulsory.
PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION
After Primary
and Intermediate School (Form I, Form II) the children attend Secondary or High School for
three years (Form III, IV, V) and after passing an exam in English and three or four other
subjects they get the School Certificate. After one more year (Form VI) they get Sixth
Form Certificate, which is required for the entrance exam to a university. One more year
(Form VII or Upper Sixth Form) finished by Higher School Certificate entitles them to
enter the university without entrance exams.
CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL
A distinctive feature is the correspondence school with teachers providing full education for pupils in isolated areas, in the Pacific Islands, in hospitals, and prisons.
TERTIARY EDUCATION
There are many
colleges providing higher - specialized - education. The four main cities (Auckland,
Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin) and also Hamilton and Palmerstone North, have
universities.
SCHOOL YEAR
The
school year is divided into two parts. The fist semester starts at the beginning of
February. During the school year there are several shorter holidays. The main holidays
last approximately one month and a half during the second half of December and in January.
School goes from 9 am to 3 pm, Monday to Friday. There is a 20 minutes break
in the morning for a snack. Then an hour break at midday for lunch. Children usually bring
their lunch bag from home. When children get older and go to high school, they have to
wear uniforms.
