education options at 17 years old

[Guest ozziespurs]

Can anyone please help! My son is 17 in June and done his gcse in may 08 however he didn't do as well as he hoped so couldn't stay on at school, he is now at college which isn't going to well either. We intend to move in september and after having a good long chat my son has decided his best options would be to go back to school and get his SACE, can anyone please tell me if this is possible and if so what year would he go into he has already said he wouldn't mind going back if he had to as he has bummed out and thinks starting a fresh would be his best bet although he does feel a bit nervous that he will be the oldest one in his class and might get ridiculed any info would be highly appreciated many thanks.

[Guest sarahsmartiepants]

My son left UK school in may 05 with his gcses started college then in may o6, he was almost 17, started yr 11. He could have started into yr12 but wanted to do the whole thing rather than struggle, which he did a bit at first because its tuff coming here at that age to start with plus the work is different and you have to fit in with a new group of friends.

It never was an issue for him being the oldest, also being older meant he drove a car, there were people much younger than him too as the school runs an ignite programme.

He is now a uni, second yr, and doing really well.

Going to school I think is the best option as they are more likely to make friends that way.

[Rachiegarlo]

I second that. Kids here get to be kids a while longer it seems and it wont matter if he is just a bit older anyway. It will give him some spare yrs to make some friends and settle in and learn the ropes.

[Guest majortom]

My Son’s education started to suffer when we told him that we were thinking of coming to Australia. The reality set in when our visa’s were granted in April 2006, a few months before his GCSE’s. He went from an A grade maths to a final C result. His other topics also suffered.

So when we came to Adelaide in October 2006 we all decided that it would be best that he attended year 12. But his depression continued and all he wanted was to return to England and be with his friends that he had known a long time. The really big positive in that last year of study was the fantastic mates that he had made along the way. This enabled him to intergrate much better, and his yearning to go back to the UK was beginning to fade.

He left school in October 2007 without much direction, and decided to join TAFE and study electronics and robotics. I thought this was mainly to please us.

He came home one night and was really happy and excited, he told us that the Defence had shown them all a presentation on their work around electronics and communications. He declared to us with a broad smile (that I hadn’t seen for a long while) that he wanted to join the Australian Air force.

He passed the induction and fitness test and spent 10 weeks at Wagga Wagga doing basic training. We had a brilliant day at his graduation, he is now near Melbourne doing his job studying.

We are all very proud of him and I know now that he will have a great life and future before him.

I sincerely wish your Son, and the rest of you family good fortune ozzie……s#%*s. Sorry I can’t say that word, Im a West Ham fan !!!,

Good Luck

Jim

[Guest ozziespurs]

Thanks all for your replies, that makes me feel so much better knowing that he can go back to school and start a fresh. Like you Jim my sons grades went down hill when we told him we wanted to move to Oz and he virtually gave up on his coursework, although he is doing ICT at college I don't think he really knows what he wants to do with his life at the moment and the opportunity for him to go to school to get his SACE is really his one and only opportunity to find his way in life and hopefully he'll realise how lucky he is to get this opportunity. Can you please tell me what year he would be in if we came over in September, would he be able to finish year 10 then start his year 11 when the term starts in January or would he be doing year 12 in January, hope you understand what i'm asking, i hope he can start year 11 in January. Many thanks

Teresa

[Guest delnjax]

Good luck with everything. I am sure it will all fall into place. We will be in exactly the same situation in about a years time. My daughter is 14 and in Year 10. Her birthday is last day in August. Being the baby of the year she has struggled with reading (although I think she has some form of Dyslexia). It is good to know that if her GCSE's dont go as well as planned (some taken already) then she would probably be able to fit in to a new school in Oz and continue her education.

 

Wishing you lots of luck

 

jackie

[Tamara (Homes Down Under)]

Our daughter decided to start a family earlier than we would have expected! Anyway, she completed year 11 but not year 12. After the little one (our first Aussie!) was born she decided to enroll at TAFE and do a business course. However, she does have the option to enroll in school and do adult re-entry. The age doesn't seem to be so much of an issue here? Take a look at the TAFE SA web site and maybe there's something that that grabs your sons interest? I have a 17 year old and a 15 year old (who I would love to send to the army!) and their options are plenty. Kevin Rudd has just announced that every late adolescent will have a training place available (to keep them off the dole). Hope it all works out.

Tamara