Education in Australia

In this post, I will be talking more about the education system is Australia for both the Aboriginals and the locals.

Aboriginal Communities

Past
Traditionally, Aboriginal education was conducted outdoors where parents and older relatives taught children to hunt, fish, gather, make clothes, build houses and trade. However when the Europeans arrived in Australia, Aboriginal children had to attend European-style schools where teachers gave lessons in English and held classes indoors. As children no longer learnt from their elders, the traditional knowledge was lost.

Present
Recently, many Aboriginal communities have set up schools that teach both traditional knowledge and modern subjects. The children will go on field trips and camping trips to learn about their language and culture.

The Australians (with the exception of the Aboriginals)

Australia’s education system is considered to be one of the best in the world and is based on the British system. The country has around 10000 primary and secondary schools, about half of which are private; many are Catholic Church schools. The private schools are partially funded by the government but charge school fees which can be rather high. They include both day and boarding schools, many of which are single-sex, especially at secondary level.

Most public schools are mixed day schools with the exception of a few secondary schools that accept boarders. Education at public schools is free, although parents must pay for books, uniforms, outings, and other school necessities. Most of the students wear school uniforms.

Most believe that private schools are more superior to public schools despite there being little differences between the best public and private schools.