10 Interesting Differences Between Schools In The USA And Australia
What is a public school like in Australia?
Are the public schools in Australia different than public schools in the United States?
I taught in the New York City public school system for 11 years after attending a public school system in Florida for my entire life. My kids began their public school careers in Florida in the same school system I attended before we moved to Australia.
In the past few years, they have attended public (or what they call state) school in 2 different catchments in Australia.
I am a part of various Facebook groups that talk about schools in different areas. While not all public/state schools are the same, they are similar.
Keep reading to find the 10 biggest differences we have found between public schools in the United States versus state schools in Australia.
Public Schools In The USA v. Australia
I had been to Australia 3 times before moving here, but this is my first time here with children.
After 4 months of living in Australia, we switched my daughter’s school.
We started her at a small school about an hour and a half north of Brisbane.
Due to the birthday cutoff being July, my August-born son was not able to start school there.
We moved to Brisbane during the summer holidays.
Here are some of the differences that we have seen so far.
My children attend public school in Australia. They attended public school in Florida before this, and I taught in a New York City public school. I know there are differences among schools in the US as well, but this is what we have seen.
I knew that schools have different starting and ending times.
In the US, we start in the fall (or often usually in August for southern states and after Labor Day for northern states) and end in May/June while Australia begins school in January/February and ends in December.
They have longer breaks between quarters (typically 2 weeks) while students in the US typically have a winter break and a spring break that align with holidays and not the end of the term. They are often 1 week long.
Summer vacation in the United States is a few weeks longer than the summer holidays in Australia.
1. Student Interviews For Public Schools In Australia
Students attend interviews.
We originally thought the kids would be staying at the first school.
We enrolled at the end of the year and they let my daughter attend the next day.
It may have been because my in-laws had talked to the office before our arrival and they were expecting us.
My son wouldn’t start until the beginning of the next year and he was called in for an interview. The interview took place with one of the teachers and included us parents.
When we moved, both children (and parents) were called in for an interview and our children were not allowed to start school without it.
We thankfully were able to have the interview before school started, but at first, they said the children were not able to start on time as they didn’t have time for an interview.
In the US, students are enrolled and do not have to come in beforehand.
2. Uniforms In Public Schools In Australia
Public schools have uniforms in Australia.
I have never been to or taught at a school that has a uniform, though the high school I went to now has a partial uniform.
Most schools in the USA that do have uniforms just require a certain color and style, whereas schools in Australia have a school-specific uniform that you can only buy at the school.
Most public schools in Australia require black shoes and white socks. Students have to wear a school hat when they are outside.
Depending on the school, some uniforms are stricter than others.
From what I have gathered, now that we have been here in Australia for 9 months, my children attend a school that is casual when dealing with school uniforms. We live in Brisbane, and it does not get very cold here. Other schools in Australia have a winter school uniform. Our school has a jumper, but students are allowed to wear black pants/leggings and warmer jackets if they want to.
Students are allowed to wear a sun-safe hat, and it does not have to be a school-specific hat, though school-specific hats are preferred. While some schools in Australia are very strict on shoes and socks, my children’s school prefers white socks and black shoes, but they are lenient.
3. Houses In Public Schools In Australia
Schools have “houses.”
Each child is put into a house (like Harry Potter!)
Students from each house have a specific color and can purchase a shirt of that color from the uniform shop.
Houses are used on sports days for competitions.
Each class is a mix of the various houses and siblings are always in the same house. There is nothing like this in the US.
4. Religion Classes In Public Schools In Australia
Public schools in Australia have an optional religion class.
I was a bit surprised the first time I was researching schools and saw that there was a religion class. In the US that would only occur in a private school. I assumed it was because it was a small school.
When we registered the kids for their new school, I had to say that I did not want them to attend religion classes. If they did go, I could choose between Catholic and Baptist. They go to a school with a large foreign population and I assume many different religions.
I asked during their interview and was told that not all students attend and the ones that do are pulled out of their regular class to go.
I asked a group of moms in a Facebook group and was told that just about every school here has the option for religious education.
At a P and C meeting (which is like the PTA in the US), I discovered that my children’s school has students from almost 50 different countries. The principal said that a parent approached him and wanted to start another religion class and he was okay with it.
Less than 20% of the students are enrolled in the religion class, so my kids are not in the minority at their school.
From what I have learned, families of other religions can bring in religious instruction depending on attendance and availability.
5. School Buses At Public Schools In Australia
The school buses are nice.
I hadn’t ever seen a school bus that wasn’t the typical yellow school bus. The buses here in Australia (at least the ones I saw at my daughter’s school) are coach buses. She took an even nicer bus on her field trip.
There aren’t any school buses at their current school.
Students arrive by car, walking, train, or public bus.
Their current school does use buses for field trips (which they call excursions) and mandatory swimming lessons, and those are coach buses.
Kids at private schools may take a school bus, as may kids who are in remote school locations, but typical state schools do not offer a school bus service.
6. School Lunch At Public Schools In Australia
There isn’t a cafeteria.
Often schools in Australia have a Tuck Shop run by parent volunteers.
In the US, schools have a cafeteria. It is inside the building and has lots of tables. Students can bring their lunch or get in line to purchase lunch. Cafeteria workers are paid, employees.
Most schools in the US also serve breakfast before school and it is often free. Students may also receive free or reduced lunch depending on their parent’s income. If a school has a large amount of low-income families, breakfast and lunch is free for every student.
In Australia, children eat outside, under a covered concrete area. Students go outside twice a day to eat lunch and play.
My children’s school does not have a Tuck Shop. Most schools do have one, but some, mostly smaller schools, do not. We received an email with a menu for Friday and the parents can preorder sushi rolls or bento boxes for the students this week.
My kid’s school is working on their Tuck Shop. It is run by the P and C, which is made up of parent volunteers. Currently, the P and C are deciding on whether they want to hire someone to run it, and then also have volunteers. They also need to decide what to serve. Many schools outsource the food, just like they are currently doing with Sushi Friday.
Plenty of schools in Australia have working Tuck Shops. It usually depends on the parent volunteers and the size of the school.
7. Fruit Break At Public Schools in Australia
The younger grades have a fruit break.
In addition to eating their lunches/snacks twice a day, the younger kids stop for a fruit break. The idea is that they eat something healthy and not packaged.
Some places in Australia call it “crunch and sip” or “munch and crunch.”
In the US, some classes have snacks due to an extremely early or late lunch. Students are generally able to bring in any type of food, not just whole fruits and veggies.
Also in Australia, the kids have 2 breaks for meals in addition to fruit break.
A morning tea break is held where the kids eat for about 10 minutes and then have 30 minutes to play.
A couple of hours later, it is lunch break. The kids have another 10 minutes to eat and then 20 minutes to play.
In the US, schools offer one lunch break.
8. School Supplies At Public Schools In Australia
There is a long and specific school supply list.
Many parents in the US will say that they too have a long and specific school supply list, but this was unlike any list I had ever seen.
Some shops will get all of your child’s supplies ready and I did not realize that we did not need to use one of those services. I am sure we could have gotten items cheaper on our own, but to be honest, the list was intimidating!
Notebooks for schools in Australia are called scrapbooks. They have different scrapbooks based on their year level.
There is a specific brand of pencils and for some reason, it is the kind without an eraser. I also purchased erasers.
I purchased a large variety of art supplies. Art is not its own subject at my kid’s particular school, but they complete a lot of art projects in class.
They need a library bag to check books out of the school library. I like that idea as it keeps the books from getting ruined in their backpacks.
The one thing that they can bring their own is a backpack and lunch bag. Everything else looks the same. They can buy a school backpack, but my children already had backpacks and weren’t given a choice. It looks as though about half of the students have school backpacks.
Some schools require that all students purchase a school backpack.
I noticed that there were not any cleaning supplies on the list here while in the US many teachers ask for antibacterial wipes, paper towels, and hand sanitizer.
9. Grade Level Names At Public Schools in Australia
Grades have different names.
I knew before we got here that grades have different names, but I did not realize that it varies by state.
In the US we have preschool which is optional and then students go to elementary school which is kindergarten through 5th grade. After that is middle school, 6th-8th grade, and high school 9th-12th grade. Sometimes that varies at private schools but they always have the same names.
In Queensland preschool is called kindergarten or “kindy.” Next, students go to primary school. The first year of primary school is called “prep” short for preparatory. After that, they refer to the grades by year. Year 1, Year 2, etc. Schools are generally Prep-Year 6 for primary and then Year 7-Year 12.
Not all schools start at Prep. It varies by state. Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, and Western Australia start with prep. South Australia calls that year “reception,” Northern Territory calls it “transition,” and the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales call it kindergarten. Confused yet?
10. Security At Public Schools In Australia
I can walk straight into my children’s classrooms each day.
In the US, I could not visit my kids’ classrooms without a pass.
A level 2 background check includes payment and fingerprints. That allowed me to walk from the office, where I always checked in, to their class without an escort. Level 1 can be in the school, but can not walk the halls alone. I had to pay for a background check for a level 1 pass.
Here in Australia, we must walk our Prep level children in and out of their classrooms each day, and I can walk across the school with my daughter. I have shown up in her class a few times before school to talk to her teacher, which she encourages. We walk by some classrooms to even get to the office.
I was not allowed to volunteer at the first school in Australia or the beginning of the school year the second year due to everything that happened in 2020. Now, I can volunteer. Because I am a parent, I do not need to have a background check or a blue card, which is a pass that means that I have taken a course and had a background check so that I can work with children.
I walk past the classrooms and into the office where I sign in, and then I can walk to the classroom to volunteer. I also volunteer at the uniform shop.
Other differences we have found from life in the US to life in Australia
