Education

If you're moving to New Zealand with children, you'll want to know they're going to get a good education here. And they will. 

New Zealand's education system is world-class, modern and responsive. It combines proven, traditional principles of education with innovation, creativity and fresh thinking to produce leaders and citizens equipped for the 21st century.

From a child's first day at school, our government-funded schooling system provides a comprehensive curriculum of academic, sporting and skills-based learning options in a positive environment.

Quick Facts:

• School is compulsory for all children in New Zealand from the age of 6 to 16
• A national curriculum sets out the learning requirements for all state schools
• Children are eligible for free education if they are a New Zealand citizen or resident, or if they qualify as a domestic student.
• There are three types of schools: state-funded, state-integrated and private
• The average number of students to teacher is 18 to 1 in primary schooling and 15 to 1at secondary state schools
• There are four terms in the school year.

Levels of education in New Zealand

Curriculum

Most schools in New Zealand, even those in inner city areas, offer a broad and healthy curriculum and will often have their own playing fields, gymnasiums and swimming pools.

Children are usually put into classes according to their age, so that they will have classmates and friends of their own age, but the ability of individual children is also taken into account. 

A national curriculum sets out the learning requirements for all state schools. The curriculum encompasses core subjects, key competencies and shared vision, principles and values.

Core subjects

• English
• Health and physical education
• Languages
• Mathematics and statistics
• Science
• Social Sciences
• Technology
• The arts

Secondary schools may also add other subjects such as accounting, art history, media studies and specialised science and language studies.

Key competencies

Competencies are more than skills, they are also knowledge, attitudes, values and the ability to take action. The five key competencies covered by the national curriculum are:

1. Thinking. 
2. Using language, symbols, and texts - different ways to communicate and understand information. 
3. Managing self - a "can-do" attitude. 
4. Relating to others - being able to listen, see different points of view, share ideas. 
5. Participating and contributing - being a good group member and including others.

The national curriculum includes a vision for our young people to be confident, lifelong learners. It also requires schools to recognise the importance of different cultures and to value:

• excellence (aiming high and sticking at it) 
• innovation, enquiry, and curiosity (thinking, exploring, creating) 
• diversity (our different cultures, languages, and backgrounds) 
• respect (for themselves, for others, for human rights) 
• equity (fairness and justice) 
• community and participation (taking part) 
• ecological sustainability (caring for the environment) 
• integrity (being honest and responsible).

Discipline

Staff in New Zealand schools are not allowed to hit or physically punish students in any way.
If your child misbehaves they might miss out on privileges, have to do extra homework, or have to stay after school on detention. If they misbehave in a way that could be harmful or dangerous, they might be stood down or suspended for a set length of time. This may result in an exclusion from the school.

Eligibility

Children are eligible for New Zealand's free education if they are a New Zealand citizen or resident, or if they qualify as a domestic student and have the correct documentation:

This means in most cases you will need to arrange a student visa/permit for your children until they become New Zealand residents or citizens. Alternatively you can enrol your child as an international student, but generally fees at both public and private schools are higher for international students.

International students need a student visa/permit in order to attend a school in New Zealand, and schools are not obliged to accept international students although most do.

Public or private education

The school system in New Zealand is divided into three types: state-funded, state-integrated, and private schooling.
The state-funded schooling covers education of children from age 5 to 19. This takes children through their primary and secondary school years. Most New Zealand children attend state-funded schools. In state-funded schools the average number of students to teacher is:

• Primary/Intermediate 18:1
• Secondary 15:1

Schooling is free at state-funded and state-integrated schools for New Zealand citizens, residents and children of a person here on a work permit although parents are expected to meet some minor costs. These include the cost of school books, stationery and uniforms. Schools may also ask parents for donations towards the cost of running the school or for extra activities. These costs vary widely depending on individual school requirements and usually range from $100 to $500 a year.

Alternatively, parents can enrol their children in private schools. Private schools receive only limited government funding so charge fees for attendance. Each private school sets its own fees and these can range from $4,000 to $14,000 a year for a New Zealand resident child. Fees for children who don't qualify as a New Zealand resident may be higher. 

The key differences between the three types of education are:

Choosing a school

Most children attend the school closest to home but they can enrol at any state school that doesn't have an enrolment scheme.  An enrolment scheme is usually designed to avoid overcrowding of the school. Under the scheme, students will be enrolled if they live within the home zone determined by the school.  For highly popular schools, properties for sale or rent will be described as being in the school zone, and will often be more expensive than nearby properties that are outside the school zone.

For locations of school zones in New Zealand see www.schoolzones.co.nz.

School rankings/reviews

All schools, state and private are reviewed every three years by the government Education Review Office (ERO) every three years. The results of these reviews are publicly available at www.ero.govt.nz.

All state schools also have a decile rating, which indicates the socio-economic mix of the school's neighbouring community. There are 10 deciles. Schools in decile one have the highest proportion of students from low socio-economic backgrounds and schools in decile ten have the highest proportion of students from high socio-economic backgrounds. 

The decile rating is used by the government to help allocate funding to schools in an equitable manner. The lower a school's decile rating, the more funding it gets.

The increased funding given to lower decile schools is to allow those schools to cover the increased learning needs of their students and, because of this funding, decile ratings have little to do with what and how well your child will learn. 

School terms

The New Zealand school year is divided into four terms for primary, intermediate and secondary schools. 

Students have a six-week summer holiday break and three two-week breaks between each of the four terms. During term-time, schools will also close for statutory holidays, teacher-only days and regional anniversary days.

The terms:

• Term 1 Early February until mid-April 
• Term 2 Late April until the beginning of July 
• Term 3 Mid-July until late September 
• Term 4 Mid-October until mid-December

The exact dates change from year to year. The school day usually begins at 9.00am and ends at 3.00pm or 3.30pm. 

During the school day, there are intervals in the morning and afternoon and at lunchtime for children to have something to eat and to play. In New Zealand the responsibility is on parents to provide lunches and morning and afternoon tea.